I was just on a Dutch site offering history and photos of Westend Drums. As I'm unable to read the info, I am wondering if anyone knows anything about this company and their drums.
I did, however, understand the photos and believe they were produced during the 50's-70's time period.
Give me the link, please. I'll try to find out more from that then.
Ralf
Those are nice, and it looks like it is sporting a calf skin batter on the bass.
Danke, Ralf!
Here's the link:
Wow, Thats a nice looking set,wish i could add it to the others i have off brand sets...To me the lugs look like copys of slingerland radio kings,,the t-rods on the bass look like Hayman drums ones...Cool set..Mikey
Hi Stallwart - If you just google Westend Drums, [for me it came up as the top hit on the list] - it was helpful on the google list, next to the WESTEND Drums - Home, to click on [ Translate this page ]
See if that helps, it worked for me Yes Sir:
http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=westend+drums&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
understand the photos and believe they were produced during the 50's-70's time period.
Your Dutch is OK, Stallwart. Westend was produced from 1954-1976.
Let me introduce myself: My name is Rob van der Werf and I live in the Netherlands. The website www.westenddrums.nl, mentioned here, is mine.
I made this website because there was on the web no information about Westend drums at all. What does the website say in Dutch? Well, in a (very) short cut it's the following, as I wrote earlier for www.jedistar.com:
In 1914 Justus de Hooge establishes a store for musical instruments at Westeinde 176 in The Hague, Netherlands. The name of the firm: J. de Hooge. Almost every kind of musical instrument can be bought. In 1947 two sons of Justus, Bram en Just, become co-owners and founder Justus steps back. The new name of the firm: J. de Hooge & Zonen (J. de Hooge & Sons).
Bram en Just still sell regular musical instruments but they decide to specialize in drums. The brothers indeed do repair more and more (mainly English and American) drums and after a while there is a lot of knowledge about repairing drums. Soon they decide to sell and repair only drums.
A Dutch professional drummer, called Tonny Nüsser, sympathizes with Bram and Just and gives them lots of practical advise. Also because of that the brothers decide to build a drum kit, fully produced after their wishes and in 1954 their first hand build drum set is for sale. The mark: Westend, named after the Westeinde in The Hague.
The first two, three years are hard, not more than about eight drum sets are being sold, mainly to jazz drummers. Bram, the technician of the two brothers, is constantly looking for approvements and that’s why many details are different, every time they deliver a new build drum kit. In 1960 Just decides to leave the firm and Bram is on his own now. Inspite that the name of the firm has never been changed: J. de Hooge & Zonen.
During the sixties more and more drummers hear about the high quality of the mark and a lot of kits are being ordered. Not only to jazz drummers, but to many rock drummers as well.
Some names of groups, playing on Westend in those years: Dutch Swing College Band, Q65, Motions, Shocking Blue (Venus, recorded in 1970) and Golden Earring (Radar Love, recorded in 1973 with two 26” bass drums).
In the end of the sixties lots of relatively cheap Japanese drums such as Pearl and Tama reach the European market. The American marks as Gretsch, Ludwig, Rogers and Slingerland are expensive (because of the high rate of the US dollar), but because of expanding income also in the Netherlands, Westend is already loosing grip on the market.
January 1, 1976, after producing by hand 300 - 400 Westend drum sets, when Bram de Hooge is 69 years old, the production of this remarkable Dutch brand is history.
So far. If you have questions I will be happy to answer them.
Best regards,
Rob.
PS Thanks Ralf, for pointing at this subject here.
Thank you, Rob, for the quick reply!
I guess that Westend was mainly (only?) sold in the Netherlands? I've never seen such a drumkit here in Germany.
Venus - Shocking Blue
One of the first single disc records, I owned.
Radar love - Golden Earring
'Radar Love' with that great unique drum playing - I loved to cover it (and was proud to be able to do so)!
Ralf
That's correct, Ralf, Westend kits were mainly sold to bands in The Hague, which was a centre of beat bands in those days.
However, I know one German guy who was playing on Westend. You find him in de second "Fotoalbum" on the Westend site: Hans-Bernd Brockhoff from Bielefeld (Hans Bernd band). He bought his Westend kit in the Netherlands, somewhere near the Dutch/German border.
Radar Love, Venus and more can be found in the section "Bewegende beelden" on the site. There you'll see only Westend drums.
Hi Rob:
Great work!!!!Amazing tubes!!!
How much a complete Westend set is fetching nowadays on the Netherlans market? how about a snare?
Vin
