... and here is a SS Slingerland #153 "Artist"... 1968 ... and part of my Buddy Rich snare drum collection. Kevins is quite right, not many are solid shelled.. and .. Buddy started out playing the plied model when he went over to Slingerland in late 1967, although he did play the solid shell "Artist" as well. Didn't last too long because as we all well know... Buddy debuted the NEW Slingerland 4X14 16 lug Buddy Rich Model in LATE 1969,.. ( I have BOTH model 4X14's in the BR collection, both LATE 1969! ) .. although it was cataloged as a 1970, and wasn't even available to the public for purchase until 1970. Anyway!...

Here's a pic of my #153 Slingerland "Artist" Buddy Rich w/solid shell... all original, and near MINT!

Tommyp

Thanks guys Cool1

Here are some closer pics. It is a solid maple Niles serial # 53898.

The it's calf on the top and I'm waiting to put a calf snare side on the bottom later this week.

It sounds great, so I'm hoping that the calf bottom will sympatheticly match the top, at least that's what they say to get the true sound and experience you should have both sides calf.

Is 63'ish to 65'ish close as to its age do you think?

My gut told me it was most likely an Artist, but the guy who had said that it was Radio King and I hadn't seen any with a Zommatic on them.

I guess either way it sounds great so there's no down side.

I'm a big Buddy guy like you Tommyp, but I don't have the archives that you have. Are there any pictures of Buddy playing 4x14 w/ 16 lugs from the 69'-70' era?

I'd be curious to seem them.

Thanks again!

BGT

BGT!...

Have a look at these... and,

This is a pic of a pic that I took for you as I have the original photograph taken/matted/framed by David Redfern displayed on the wall in my drum room. ( my wife calls that room "The Shrine to Buddy" ) Indeed. It is a large photograph as the frame is 16X20. I HAD to buy it when it was offered for sale as it is a GREAT shot of BR playing the 1970 Slingerland COW 4X14 Buddy Rich model snare drum... not to mention the fact that his expression says it all, doesn't it? You can just hear him yelling "come on!!" to the trumpet section. Of interest:

Buddy played BOTH the WMP and COW models of this snare drum from late 1969 to early 1973, but my research shows that he clearly favored the COW model over the WMP. I have both drums and can attest to the fact that the COW is a bit "brighter" in sound with everything else being equal otherwise.. wires, heads, tension, etc. After doing the comparison I decided that the difference has to be the REAL chromed spring steel wrap vs. the WMP. It's just enough to make the drum a little brighter. I would guess that Buddy thought so too! The other pic is from the same concert... different angle, but not one that I have framed on my wall, thus much smaller. Same drum though!

Tommyp

BGT!...

Also... here's a nice clip from the November 1969 "Talk of the Town" concert featuring Buddy performing "Chavala" on the Slingerland COW 4X14 16 lug Buddy Rich model snare drum. The drum is crisp!!... course so are Buddy's chops. He was just incredible... and then some. Stay with the clip as it breaks down to just Buddy on this particular snare drum... and he makes it SING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoroNJYi3Xo&feature=results_main&playnext=1&list=PL02D5645EE8D83655[/ame]

Tommyp

Jeeeeezzuzz!! Tommy Clapping Happy2

Thanks for the clip, he never does cease to amaze me!

How some players have said that they've "seen all the he can do and it doesn't impress them"............. I won't mention who it was, but he was a great player and technician and recently passed away, was either having a bad day or living in another dimension!

Great sounding drum without being shrill or tinny the way some of the more piccolo type snares can sound.

I always did like his sound with the COW.

The Sound King I have that I originally put my AmRawCo calf head on was for the purpose of giving it a warmwer sound but still have that response that in this case is a COB not COW.

And great pictures thanks.

BGT

BGT!...

Hmmm... and you KNOW that you have to mention "who it was", right?! LOL! Truthfully, I would be interested to know as it's kind of hard to get one's head around the fact that a "great player and technician" would be that ridiculously stupid on purpose... if you know what I mean. Seriously...

One doesn't have to like every drummer they hear, but one SHOULD be able to recognize talent/chops even outside of one's musical comfort zone and give a nod of approval. Buddy would and should impress ANYBODY that actually knows what's what, regardless of whether or not they like him or his style of playing. Anyway!,

Thought I might attach a few pics of my LATE 1969 Slingerland COW 4X14 Buddy Rich for you to see. Amazingly, the WMP model I have is a mere few hundred digits away from this one... what were the chances?! They are both beautiful drums, but again, I also prefer the COW in the sound department. Three plies/rings, Zoomatic, StickChopper Hoops, EXACTLY like Buddy played his, and all original.

You mentioned that the drum didn't sound tinny or shrill... YES! That's the beauty of a 3 ply shell/rings with a REAL metal wrap, as opposed to a lot of "piccolo" type snare drums that are all metal/brass/etc. Amazingly, these model snares weren't all that popular back in the day.. ( outside of the Buddy fans that HAD to have what BR was playing at all times of course! LOL! ) .. thus they can be a little hard to find today, and moreso in nice condition, especially the COW model as a lot of times the wrap looks like crap. The StickChoppers also ADD to the sound of the drum as there is a difference in sound between the StickChoppers and StickSavers. Buddy always preferred StickChoppers if they were available, and with Slingerland they were! By the way,

Buddy LOVED this snare drum!... until he didn't. That was Buddy! LOL!! He did play it with better than decent regularity between LATE 1969 and early 1973 though.

Tommyp

Hey TommyP and everybody,

Well his initials are J.M. wink wink........ and he was having a bad by the account I heard but I digress....... ut I think you'll agree he had chops no question.

This should be a pretty easy question for you.

I'm mounting the ride and splash lugs on the bass, I'm drawing a total blank as to which way the lug faces, tapered side facing front or the square side facing front?

I feel like a moron..........

And secondly, the L arms, do I remember correctly that there where 2 different styles, one for the ride and the other( a longer telescoping ass'y) for the splash?

See what happens after no being into it for 25+ yrs you lose it!

Thanks guys

BGT