By Tim Northup
Let’s take a trip back in time to the year 1928, the early jazz age. Drummer Jack “Peacock” Kelly, of Chicago’s Mark Fisher Orchestra, is one of the world’s highest paid drummers. Jack is featured on the cover of the 1928 Ludwig Catalog playing a trap kit with an oil painted Moose bass drum head similar to this month’s set. This happens to be my favorite factory painted head in the collection here at the Northup Drums Museum. This trap set features many of the very rare items that are all shown on Jack’s set in the 1928 catalog. Let’s take a closer look at what we see on this set. The Bass drum is 14x28 Black Lacquer with De Luxe gold hardware. The snare drum is a Ludwig 5x14 engraved Black Beauty L with De Luxe gold hardware. The (very rare) Ludwig Console Trap Table holds a variety of instruments. We see a set of 3 Ludwig Soloblox (Ludwig’s very rare version of temple blocks,) two Chinese toms and a 15” Chinese gong. The “tree” of cymbals includes a sizzle cymbal, a Chinese cymbal, and a Zildjian splash. The cymbals are completed with bock-a-da-bock hand cymbals and a Ludwig “Charleston” snowshoe pedal. The traps include a fan of tuned cowbells, a ratchet, wood blocks, several sound effects, a train whistle, cyclone whistle, and a cuckoo whistle. This would have been an above standard professional drum kit for a working drummer that was playing in orchestras, vaudeville, and theaters for silent films in the 1920-30s. If you would like to experience this set in person and even play it! Visit the Northup Drums Museum. We are open by appointment 607-434 4769. www.northupdrums.com