My drum teacher used to call the hi-hat "the sock" he would say "go to the sock" indicating to switch from ride to hi-hat. I never asked him why he called it that but recently heard an interview with some jazz guys and one of them said sock cymbal referring to the hi-hat.
Anyone know why they called it that? Did Ludwig make the first Hi-hats too? Was it something to do with playing in your socks?
I also remember it being called the "sock" back in the 50s - 60s...but, I don't know why either.
The term came into vogue during the lowboy stand era .
I thought it was because they were at sock height when first invented.
I too have heard hi-hats referred to as "sock" cymbals. It was a term used in a much earlier time and generally reminds me of the early swing era. It would be interesting to note the etymology of that term, however, I actually wonder the same for the term "hi-hat" or "top-hat."
My drum teacher used to call the hi-hat "the sock" he would say "go to the sock" indicating to switch from ride to hi-hat. I never asked him why he called it that but recently heard an interview with some jazz guys and one of them said sock cymbal referring to the hi-hat.Anyone know why they called it that? Did Ludwig make the first Hi-hats too? Was it something to do with playing in your socks?
These are two examples of early sock cymbals. They predate the modern high hat and served a similar function, but of course could not easily be used with sticks. I think the name really derived from the fact they were located at the height of one's socks. I believe that first "modern" hi hat stands were developed in the late '20s. Of course they have continued to develop during the 80+ years since then, but I think the improvements in the last 35-40 years or so have been fairly modest. As a young player in the late '50s and early '60s the terms sock and hi hat were used interchangeably by almost everyone. To this day I still use both terms, and my son Dan, who at 24 is a professional jazz player and show drummer, occasionally refers to high hat cymbals as sock cymbals.
[img]http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7378/9085203745_6bd774238e.jpg[/img]
6781333267_fd138deb9f_z by mwsilver, on Flickr
[img]http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7411/9087421772_d541fe02a3.jpg[/img]
Ludwig_Low_Boy-600x400 by mwsilver, on Flickr
Now that I've been asking around I've gotten two additional explanations. One is that the "low-boy" type cymbal, the one that looks like a dwarf hi-hat would sometimes clamp down on the drummers sock at the ankle, pinching it, and thus the nickname of the sock cymbal.
The second explanation is that the pedal shown which has two shoe shaped pieces of wood and a spring which claps together the attached cymbals originally had a strap which the foot would slip into. This required the drummer to take off one shoe to fit the foot into the strap.
Ok so that's all I got so far!
I haven't heard that in a long time. Also in a lot of countries the hi-hat is referred to as a "charleston" or "charlie" for short.
