SKF NOTE: This handwritten note is Neil Peart accepting Modern Drummer Founder Ron Spagnardi’s invitation to join the MD Advisory Board.
Most interesting to me, and perhaps to his fans who know Neil only as a prolific book author, is Neil’s third paragraph. In his 1981 note we have an indication of Neil’s cold feet at writing and submitting his “Moving Pictures” piece for publication.
An article I have spoken of contributing for the last several months still reposes incomplete in my notebook, but I hope to find the time & mental space soon to complete and submit it.
It would deal with the special circumstances and challenges of the drummer in the recording studio as part of a group, in particular it would, elaborate on the recording of our ‘Moving Pictures‘ album.
All writers and musicians experience cold feet. Typically, Neil persisted, and almost one-and-a-half years after writing his note to Spagnardi, MD published the first of three installments of Neil’s “The Making of Moving Pictures.” The full piece was published in three issues of MD: December 1982, January 1983, and February 1983.
SKF NOTE: There can never be too many good-to-great Buddy Rich photos. Years ago I wrote about the times in my life when drummer photos were drum lessons.
These two photos I scanned from a Rich concert program. They show Buddy playing full-steam ahead and in repose.
I have nothing more to add except to say that I like these Buddy Rich photos.
SKF NOTE: My idea for the “Who Reads Modern Drummer?” in-house magazine ads were based, I think, on a similar idea I saw somewhere else. Possibly it was Gretsch‘s great ad campaign with Charles Stewart drummer photos. When and if it comes to me I will post that info.
Basically, MD would ask respected drummers if they were okay with us using their photo in a full page “Who Reads Modern Drummer?” ad. Drummers who agreed were asked to submit a brief MD endorsement to use with their photo in the ad.
I conceived the MD ads with minimal clutter added to the drummer’s photo: the quotation and, across the lower part of the ad page, a subscription coupon to be clipped and snail mailed to MD. (At the time, MD was only available as a print magazine.)
MD Founder Ron Spagnardi approved the ad idea. Ed Shaughnessy’s letter here indicates the excellent response drummers had to the idea. It really was a win-win. No money was involved.
MD benefitted from the drummers’ endorsements, and the drummers secured a full-page ad in MD.
Over time Ron couldn’t resist adding clutter to the “Who Reads…?” ads. I protested at first, but it was Ron’s magazine. Bottom line: it was a successful ad campaign.
SKF NOTE: Looking again over my 1976-77 Mel Lewis interview transcript. Among Mel’s comments, deleted because there wasn’t room for them in his first Modern Drummer interview, are some interesting insights from the master drummer and storyteller.
Asking drummers their memories of great drummers who preceded them was a key part of my interviews. In hindsight, I wish I had dug deeper into those memories.
This Q&A exchange with Mel is verbatim from the typewritten pages transcribed by me from his taped interview.
When I was a youngster, a little kid, he came through Buffalo. I got to see him once. Of course, I got to hear him more on records later.
But, for me, see, out of Chick Webb the main man was really Gene Krupa. So really, through Krupa, you could hear Webb. If you missed Webb, you could hear it through Krupa.
Now, of course, there’s plenty of reissues of Chick Webb drumming.
Another important guy to me was Jimmy Crawford from Lunceford’s band.
But I heard all those guys.
I also was interested in listening to Lombardo’s drummer, George Gowans. I made sure I heard the society drummers too. I listened to everybody. I had to know all those styles.
And my father, who was a pit drummer, a show drummer, and also a good wedding band bar mitzvah drummer. I knew his style backwards. That was my first influence. And he was sort of a Dixieland style jazz drummer, and he was one of the best pit drummers in the City of Buffalo. And he was an excellent show drummer. He could read anything.
He wasn’t modern by any means, for his time, but he had excellent time. Bill Robinson was crazy about him, about his feel and all that. And I think I was blessed with that from him.
And my father had great taste too. He was a very tasty drummer. I think I got that from him.
My favorites were Krupa and Jo Jones from that era, from the Thirties. I was in love with those two guys.
And then after that I was in love with a whole lot of people, but they were my main loves.
And then, of course, in the Forties, Max [Roach] made a big impression on me. More than Klook [Kenny Clarke]. ‘Cause Max was very impressive then, you know.
Then Roy Haynes. In the Forties I heard Roy Haynes talking about what Elvin [Jones] was talking about later. Roy was really one of the first “out” drummers, man. He was really very good.
SKF NOTE: Sabian Cymbal’s Deal Support Program including Roy Burns as drum clinician. Seems like a win-win for drum retailers.
Based on what I’ve read, Burns said he entered into this deal with Sabian Cymbal Founder Bob Zildjian in or around 1984, to both help the new cymbal company and to help his own new Aquarian drumhead and accessories company.
I attended a Burns drum clinic in Moline, IL in 1974 and thoroughly enjoyed it. The man could play! Many years later I discovered I had taped that clinic and still had the cassette, which I digitized and have posted on my blog.
Scott K Fish 
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