percussion , whats needed?

[dvincent]

I'm getting ready to put some percussion (tambourine, shaker, congas, etc.) on my acoustic rock recording. If anyone has any ideas or tips on what sounds best on whatever song, I'd like to know. At this point I'm only familiar with the tambourine, shaker and maracas. The music is kind of Jewel,Bruce Springsteen ballad type of stuff. Thank you.

[dr.colossus]

i did a recording for a friend and we used the water filled glasses xylophone with great sucess on a ballad (kinda semi percussive).... brush work on a snare is always nice, that can be faked by rubbing sand paper on wood (careful of dust on that expensive mic ).... guiro and rythm sticks are nice in the percussive department... i think the key to good soft percussion is to use the most unexpected sound for a song, not necessarily the least obvious, but lets say the second thing that pops in your head, not always the first.... goood luck