How Glyn Johns Captured Charlie Watts' Drums on Beggars Banquet with Room Mics at Olympic Studios

The big takeaway: Glyn Johns didn’t just mic the kit — he used the room. At Olympic Studios in 1968, the live wooden floor and high ceiling gave the drums a natural slap that no plate reverb could match. For “Sympathy for the Devil” and “Street Fighting Man,” that room sound became as important as the snare itself.

Johns’ mic technique for Charlie Watts was stripped-down and unconventional. He placed one overhead condenser (a Neumann U67, reportedly) directly over the snare, another over the floor tom, and a third mic — sometimes a ribbon (Coles 4038) — about eight feet back in the room, angled at the kick drum. No close mics on the toms, no hi-hat mic. The “Glyn Johns method” in its earliest form. The distant mic captured the wood reflections and the air moving off the kick, then he blended it in just enough to make the drums sound huge without losing attack.

On “Sympathy for the Devil,” you can hear it clearly: the tambourine and Watts’ ride cymbal are crisp