This month I would like to share the story of my 1955 Gretsch Broadkaster No. PX4182 Cocktail Drum Set and the original owner, the amazing Miss Madeleine Manney of The Madeleine Manney Quartet. She lived only a few miles from where I reside today. I included photos of her playing THIS drum at a family barbecue and of her onstage with one of her other cocktail drums, she owned several and some are still with her surviving family. Check out the newspaper live music entertainment section with her advertisement along with many other venues and music acts of the day.
From what I learned about Miss Madeleine Manney, she was a very unique and strong woman, especially when you consider the time period in which she led her own band - quite extraordinary. I wish I had had the opportunity to not only meet and talk with her, but to witness one of her many live performances as she toured extensively in the Tri-State PA., N.J. and N.Y. area over many years. She was a celebrity in that region. I imagine she was an exceptional lady. I will keep her memory alive with the drum.
When I cleaned the interiors I found the date stamps Dec. 17, 1955 on the Cocktail and Dec. 21, 1955 on the Bongo Tom. This was a bit of work, this drum was never cleaned or maintained as far as I could tell, so... Total disassembly, interiors cleaned, polished and the wood nourished, plated metal parts were soaked, cleaned and polished, every un-plated metal piece polished by hand, dented main rim repaired, bottom trim hoop removed, taped and painted, wrap repaired and glued, missing parts found and replaced, snare strainer repaired, wrap cleaned, compounded, buffed, polished and hand buffed, steel metal band polished, brass floral tacks polished, wing nuts repaired, polished only the raised area of the brass Gretsch badge, wood bongo brackets glued and repaired, new heads, oiled..., reassembled.
Both drums retained their original heads which are blackened from brush use, I did not clean them and they shall remain with the drum.
This is a great sounding drum set with a wonderful history and I am so grateful to own it and have done the restoration. I will see you next month with a jaw dropping surprise, stay tuned...🥁
Edward Tucker Fate Up Studio 3T