Ha! A BBC article reports on a medical study which shows that “drumming in a rock concert is as grueling as a premier league football match.” Drummers can burn between 400 and 600 calories per hour, and Blondie drummer Clem Burke, who participated in the study, had a heart rate averaging between 140 and 150 beats per minute, peaking at 190, “levels comparable to other top athletes.”

Of course, Clem Burke is an insanely physical drummer, and one tends to get a bit more excited when playing a concert for thousands of people than, say, running through a bunch of cover songs at the local bar & grill for a few dozen disinterested drunks.

It’s hard to deny that drumming is very good physical exercise, though. By the fourth hour of a club gig, playing definitely feels like a workout. And my doctor tells me I’m in exceptional shape for my age. Still, I can’t help feeling amused that anyone might consider me some kind of a jock.