Drum History

Rudimental drumming first appeared in in the Swiss Army in the 1300's to set the tempo and communicate commands during battle, and then spread around Europe where it evolved and was eventually documented in 1588 as the first form of drum notation. It then continued across Europe, and eventually made it to America and evolved into the 26 Rudiments that we have today. This is just scratching the sur...

Jeff takes us back to the ice age where drums were made of turtle shells that were flipped over, had skin stretched over them, and then dried in the sun for tension. We then move forward through history and touch on many of the highlights in the fascinating history of drum tuning. Jeff also gives us tips and tricks on how to get the sound you want out of your drums in a quick and easy way, without...

Barry James is the last living student of George Lawrence Stone (Stick Control, Accents and Rebounds) who still teaches the Stone technique. Barry is 81 years old and took lessons with Stone in 1957 in Boston College. He has had an amazing career and still teaches via Skype to people around the world. We learn what it was like to step into Stones Boston drum studio and learn from the author of one...

Charlie Watts is one of the most important drummers in Rock and Roll History. Mike Edison is the author of "Sympathy for the Drummer: Why Charlie Watts Matters" and he gives us a great in depth look at the importance of Charlie and the Rolling Stones on popular culture. Learn about the impact Charlie made on pop culture with The Rolling Stones and as a passionate jazz drummer. We discuss his perso...

Did Premier secretly produce Ludwig Supraphonic shells in the 70's? Listen to find out! Founded in 1922, Premier is the most famous brand in British drum history and has a fascinating story. Mike Ellis is an expert on Premier and an avid restorer who shares the complete history with us plus tons of great stories along the way. Learn all about the comparisons between classic American brands and Pre...

We learn the role of drummers in the Military and the purpose they served as a form of communication and a way to keep the troops unified during battle starting with the US Colonies through to the Revolutionary War. Then we take a deep dive into the Civil War and learn all about the importance of the Fife and Drum Corp on both sides in the extremely bloody war that divided the country. Patrick Jon...

Rob tells us the story of the postponed 2020 Chicago Drum Show and what we can expect in 2021. He also tells us about the 30 year history of the show going back to year one with some great stories along the way. We also chat about drum legend George Way and fill in some gaps in his history that has been covered in previous episodes on Way. This is an unprecedented year for many things around the w...

(You do not need to have listened to part 1 to enjoy this episode) Part 2 covers the role of working drummers starting in the 1960's with session drummers, then Rock and Roll superstar's, through the 80's monster drumsets and up to modern times. Matt is a brilliant historian and educator, and he brings us a very fun and relaxed conversation about this amazing history of how drummers survived and w...

Andy Zildjian is the president of Sabian Cymbals and takes us on a very fun journey through the history of the company that dates back to its founding in 1981 by his father, Robert Zildjian. This episode features tons of great information about his famous family in general and we discuss the factors that caused the split in the family and become the iconic Sabian cymbals that we know today. We lea...

We talk about celebrities who are also drummers such as Chevy Chase, Bob Crane, Johnny Carson, Andy Kaufman and many more.  It is amazing how many classic celebrities of the silver screen enjoyed playing the drums, and could have easily been famous musicians if they didn't become famous for acting and/or comedy. This is a fun episode that features information about people you may not know are drum...

Uli is the Ludwig Marketing and Artist Relations Manager and shares the complete history of the iconic Black Beauty snare drum. We discuss how it originated as the 1919 "Inspiration Model" and then evolved into Black beauty we know today over the next 100 years. Learn about how Ludwig was not the first company to use the "Black Beauty" name, but they became the most famous. We talk about the diffe...

Dom Famularo teaches us about Billy Gladstone, Sanford A, Moeller, and George L. Stone - the godfathers of drumming technique. He also shares many great stories from his journey through learning from the students of these great teachers including Shelly Manne, Jim Chapin, and Joe Morello. The lineage of educators that run from these three men runs so much deeper than I ever imagined. This episode...

Bill shares the full story of C&C drums that began with the first kit he made for Carl Palmer, and then later grew to be one of the most popular boutique drum brands in the world. Before that, Bill Cardwell had a long background in vintage drum collecting and restoring including owning a drum shop and being involved with the very first issue of Not So Modern Drummer. Bill followed his passion and...

CEO of Modern Drummer Magazine, David Frangioni is this weeks guest. We discuss the history of Modern Drummer and talk about how drummers can make the best of the current "Stay Home" situation, plus we learn about his long and exciting career in the music world.  In March 2020, we are all faced with the Covid-19 virus that has everyone staying at home to help control the spread of the virus. David...

Gary is a historian and expert on all things Ringo Starr. He has curated Ringo's collection of original Beatles drum kits and is full of great stories about Ringo that you won't hear from anyone else! We talk about a biography of Ringo, A description of all of his drum sets through the years, and Garys involvement with Ringo and his drums including over 4 million dollars in auction sales from Ring...

This James Brown song from 1969 made a very small splash at first, until it's beat was re-discovered in the 80's and changed the world of music forever. We take a deep dive learning everything about Clyde Stubblefield's Funky Drummer beat including how and where it was recorded, the gear he used, the impact on music, and Clyde's legacy.  Dylan Wissing has created "sample replays" for artists such...

This very special episode takes a deep dive into the history of New Orleans Jazz and features multiple interviews that I did in New Orleans while I was there to see the Rolling Stones and meet Charlie Watts in July, 2019. I was lucky enough to sit down with Stanton Moore and get the full history of Nola Jazz, and also go backstage with Walter Harris and Joe Lastie at Preservation Hall Jazz Club, p...

Sezar teaches us the full History of Istanbul Agop, dating back to its origins in the Zildjian K Factory where Agop Tomurcuk learned how to make cymbals. We discuss how hand hammered cymbals are made and why Turkey is so special for cymbal making. We learn all about the history of the different lines Istanbul Agop offers and also the story behind the split with Istanbul Mehmet. Sezar Inceoglu is t...

Matt takes us on a deep dive into the early mistreatment of drummers in the musicians labour unions dating back to the early 20th century, through the rise of the "Radio Stars" of the 1940's all the way up to the great session drummers like Hal Blaine and Earl Palmer. The episode kicks off by learning the origins of drummer jokes that we have all heard through our careers and is full of great info...

Drum Engraving goes back to the 1920's when drums such as the Slingerland and Ludwig Black Beauty's would become legendary thanks to the intricate engraving on the metal shells. Fast forward to today, John is the man behind the hand engraving for companies such as Ludwig, A&F, DW, Pearl, C&C and Joyful Noise. He is also the founder of the amazing publication "Not So Modern Drummer", which has been...

George Way is one of the most innovative people in drum history, and is known as the godfather of the modern drum set. George passed away in 1969, but Ronn Dunnett has been carrying on the legacy of George Way Drums since 2006.  George worked for basically all of the classic American drum companies including Leedy, Slingerland, Rogers and many more. His designs were decades ahead of what was being...

We learn the evolution of how early drummers learned their craft by watching other drummers who passed through town and by apprenticing with drummers such as Chick Webb and Art Blakey. Then came the advent of drum notation books which allowed young drummers to learn at home, followed by drum tapes and DVD's, and now social media which has drastically changed the learning process. Stephen also teac...

Bernie purchased the original Slingerland radio frequency drum shell making machinery on an Ebay auction in 2001, and that began his decade long quest to figure out how they work. He went through hundreds of attempts to figure out how these incredibly complex machines created drum shells before he got help from from Jack Moritz, a former Slingerland employee who ran the machines for 22 years. Once...

A Pearl tom mount on an ultra-rare Ludwig Top Hat and Cain kit? It happened... Steele teaches us his process of preserving and restoring classic drums in an effort to keep them as original as possible with tons of great stories along the way. We discuss the hierarchy of his process, beginning with diagnosing the wrap, followed by what to do if extra extra holes were drilled in the drums, and then...

The origins of the Hi-Hat pedal have long been debated, and Rob Cook introduces us to a new theory that a gentleman named Skip Retherford was the inventor in the 1922. This pre-dates Papa Jo Jones, who is widely thought to be the earliest user of the Hi-Hat. Rob shares this great story with us and how he got involved after Zildjian decided he was the best man to handle this information. Find out w...