Well, they were never cataloged anyway. So yeah, imagine they were custom.

Look here, pages 9-12. Should help a bit: http://www.gretschdrums.com/ebooks/artist_ads/index.html#/9/

As to the purpose, you get a more attacky, timbale sound. Some people, like Chico and Hal Blane, dig it.

this i was wondering, since i only knew the sound from the records and the drums sounded beautiful but also like a normal set...

I know the pictures you're probablly referencing about Chico and his kit-

I can`t know for sure but I always imagine that it was for simplicity, ease of packing around NYC- and also gave him a simple, light sound. Single headed toms can also give more of a latin timable type sound if you tune them up a bit. When muffled with an internal felt muffler, for example, you aren`t really needing much resonance from a bottom head- it`s lighter carry, they can nest as single headed. By the mid 70s all the companies had prolific single headed drum options- Pearl`s 1975 catalog describes the single headed sound as "tunable to a single pitch for melodic playing"

[IMG]http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn87/Osakabop/melotoms.png[/IMG]

Those photos of Chico are at the beginning of that period where almost everyone went to single headed toms and bass.

I love Chico`s playing.

yes! he's one of my alltime favourites - very musical!

I wonder if single headed drums will come back into vogue someday- everything else has cycled- I can`t imagine it not also...

Here is a cool old Zicos acrylic catalog page- check out the single headed acrylics! Very original- unique from todays standards. You agree?

[IMG]http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn87/Osakabop/zickos_cat_2.jpg[/IMG]

With single head drums, the sound goes out of the drum right away. It makes for a very punchy, short sound. On a double headed drum, the sound bounces around, which makes it a longer tone, and because the bottom head has it's own frequency the sound is much, much more complicated than on a single headed drum. Because it's a simpler sound, single head toms tend to be a bit boring when you only have, say, one rack tom and they are usually better used in groups.

When I started in the late 60's, single head toms were the rage. Hal Blaine reportedly got A.F. Blaemire to make him a set of what was called "melodic" toms. Hal gave a set of multi-toms to Ringo. The Ludwig companies came out with multi toms kits that were expensive - but cheaper than if the had bottom heads. Recording engineers got into a habit of using a separate Sennheiser MD421 mic stuffed in the bottom of every tom and that combination is what you hear on tons and tons of the recordings of the era. The Hawaii-50 theme for example.

The whole thing was popular until the mid 70's. At that point, Steve Gadd came on the scene using a 10" double headed tom as his first tom and the single head thing faded.

Also, single head toms nest inside each other for transport and of course they are cheaper to make 'cause there's less parts and that makes them lighter too.

Single headed toms get kinda boring after awhile, sound absolutely horrible, in my opinion, on jazz sets except maybe for latin stuff, and work best when you have lots - 4 or more, preferably 6 or 8.

But you can't get the single head tom thing without looking at how they were recorded because that's 1/2 of why they were popular.

I disagree with the statement that single headed toms sound horrible. What about all those late 60's to mid 70's recordings you speak of? Great recordings and sounds! And lets not forget about the longest holdout for getting rid of his single headed toms....Phil Collins! Phil still uses them to this day and he has a FANTASTIC drum sound!

Sorry - I'm sure my wording could have been better - I need a pretty secretary!

I didn't mean "they sound horrible"... I've always liked them.

What I meant when I said they "sound absolutely horrible, in my opinion, on jazz sets except maybe for latin stuff" was:

I've heard guys playing an Oscar Peterson type gig with concert toms that sound like Hawaii 5-0 and that sounds wrong to me. On a Brazillian Sergio Mendes type gig they could work fine.

Jazz is a weird word because I always think of Kind of Blue but another person might be thinking Hot Rats.

Hi,

First off, thanks for raising the question, it gives me an opportunity to return to the glorious subject of Chico Hamilton. What a career!

Anywho, I can contribute the following morsel from Chet Falzerano's book on Gretsch drums. It seems that Chico was listed as a Gretsch endorsee in the the 1958 catalog. The next bit of information is in the same paragraph:

"Chico wanted his toms without bottom heads. Though not pictured in the catalogue, Gretsch was accommodating and built him a custom set long before it became the rage in the 1970's."

I know there have been interviews with him over the years where he talks about his set up. Here is one article that provides some sort of explanation:

"Uniqueness in the Hamilton sound may also emanate from the fact that he makes his own drums. He laments that he was unable to buy skin heads during WWII so now he buys his own skins and makes the heads. Also due to that calf shortage, as an economy move Chico resorted to using one-headed drums. “I was the first to do that, too” he said matter-of-factly. Single-headed drums are now standard fare for rock drummers who want thud not reverb. He received a citation for that innovation from former New York State Governor Pataki."

http://www.jazz.com/features-and-interviews/2008/3/3/octojazzarian-profile-chico-hamilton

Moving away from the gearhead stuff we all revel in, here is a three part interview that outlines at least some of the highpoints of his career. (To have done 1/100th of which would have satisfied me):

http://www.jazzwax.com/2009/03/interview-chico-hamilton-part-1.html

http://www.jazzwax.com/2009/03/interview-chico-hamilton-part-2.html

http://www.jazzwax.com/2009/03/interview-chico-hamilton-part-3.html

cheers,

Patrick