Buddy Rich trap case

WhoIsTony?

Member
pretty cool story of what happened to me this morning .... thought a few of you may enjoy

I have a family friend who I have know my entire life.
I have also known my entire life that from the early 1960s into the 1980s he worked for Buddy Rich .... he to this day works in the music industry

this particular gentleman has been very instrumental in my music career and has introduced me to many people around NYC who have kept my career moving at times in many ways and found me work during the slow times and made sure that I could provide for my family.

I knew we were going to be in his area this morning so my daughter, my wife and I stopped by his house to bring he and his wife a bottle of wine.... they are very into certain wines.

after a short visit catching up and chewing the fat I mentioned to him.... hey you should show Andrean ( my wife) your Buddy Rich room .

he has a room in his beautiful finished basement dedicated to Buddy Rich ... who was his childhood idol and boss for many many years.

he says.... oh absolutely ... we go down .
and wow.... I had not been down there in maybe 10 years and it was more beautiful than I remembered it .
wall to wall Buddy memorabilia ..... some equipment... some clothing.... shoes...
you name it he had it .
everything from drums to cigarette packs and cigarette butts

he had one very funny line when my wife asked ... "wow so you worked for Buddy ?"
he replied with his very dry humor....
"oh no no no ... I was fired by Buddy twice a month for nearly 30 years ."

anyway.... we looked around his mini museum of Rich and admired his stuff for a few minutes.
I never ever ask him to sell because to me that is just tacky .... but I have thought about it believe me .... some of the items are very attractive to me .

my wife walks over to this one trap case .... she is a restorer of vintage furniture and interior designer so I know where her mind is going....

she says to him.... "this piece is really beautiful, you should put it up in your house as decor ."

he replies ..."you like that .... take it"

we both laugh as if he was joking and he says ..."no no seriously.... I can't take all of this with me and I know it would be going to a nice home... take it !"

he then gives us the back story of that particular piece which was interesting to me

after coming off a long tour in 1969 Buddy said to my friend ... take all this stuff over to Mannys....
Mannys Music was a famous music shop in NYC where Buddy sometimes would apparently store some of his things at the time .
... so my friend and another fellow packed up the stuff and took it to Mannys...
Henry who was Mannys son and who took over the shop when Manny passed away in 1968 called Buddy and said.... I don't have room for this stuff you have to take it back .... to which Buddy replied.... then sell it!!!!!

well ... when my friend heard this he took most of it for himself and this trap case was part of that lot and was used extensively on that 1969 tour.

he also gave me a few other small items .... but here pictured is the trap case

pretty cool to me to own a piece of history like this ... I hope some of you dig

enjoy

Buddy_1.jpg

BUddy_2.jpg

BUddy_3.jpg
 
I believe it (and the story) is real, but Rick Harrison over at Gold and Silver Pawn in Vegas would ask for more documentation, anyone could get an old trap case and spray paint Buddy Rich and Slingerland on it.

Aside from a cymbal, or drum that Buddy used on tour, I'd be real happy with a pair of his gigged sticks, signed would be really sweet too.
 
I believe it (and the story) is real, but Rick Harrison over at Gold and Silver Pawn in Vegas would ask for more documentation, anyone could get an old trap case and spray paint Buddy Rich and Slingerland on it.

Aside from a cymbal, or drum that Buddy used on tour, I'd be real happy with a pair of his gigged sticks, signed would be really sweet too.

I have the documentation
didn't think I needed to mention it ... not really dealing with lawyers nor am I trying to convince anyone that it is real

the man worked closely with Buddy for nearly 30 years and has items of his that noone outside of his family would have

almost all of his stuff is authenticated and certified..... some even graded

over the years Cathy Rich has hounded him to buy some of his stuff and has offered him ridiculous amounts of money ... but he won't sell

he frequently lends out to museums and Buddy exhibits
 
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Anthony, that is an amazing artifact. Congrats, man!
 
Congratulations Anthony!

What a great relationship to have and a wonderful gift to someone who knows what it's all about and can appreciate the significance.

This made me laugh out loud......

.... "oh no no no ... I was fired by Buddy twice a month for nearly 30 years ."

So Buddy.....
 
That is bleeping awesome! What I'd give to see that room.

the room is insane ....

the one thing I was really attracted to ... besides some of the drumming stuff.... was a really nice framed piece .... in the frame is a black and white picture of Johnny Carson and Buddy .... a candid picture taken in what looks like a backstage area in maybe the early 1970s... maybe in a green room ...
Johnny looks to be showing Buddy some sort of magic trick pushing a pencil through a pack of cigarettes .

two really cool things about the framed piece

1) my friend is in the background of the shot laughing
2) the actual pack of cigarettes that is in the picture is in the frame below the picture with the pencil still through it .... and the pencil is a drumstick pencil.
I was told that Buddy gave Johnny a couple pairs of drumstick pencils that day.

lots of cool stuff
 
the room is insane ....

the one thing I was really attracted to ... besides some of the drumming stuff.... was a really nice framed piece .... in the frame is a black and white picture of Johnny Carson and Buddy .... a candid picture taken in what looks like a backstage area in maybe the early 1970s... maybe in a green room ...
Johnny looks to be showing Buddy some sort of magic trick pushing a pencil through a pack of cigarettes .

two really cool things about the framed piece

1) my friend is in the background of the shot laughing
2) the actual pack of cigarettes that is in the picture is in the frame below the picture with the pencil still through it .... and the pencil is a drumstick pencil.
I was told that Buddy gave Johnny a couple pairs of drumstick pencils that day.

lots of cool stuff

Man, that is ultra cool.
 
Freaking awesome Anthony, congrats on your acquisition. I can imagine that staying in your family for generations to come. Do you have it displayed in your home?
 
Freaking awesome Anthony, congrats on your acquisition. I can imagine that staying in your family for generations to come. Do you have it displayed in your home?

yes.... I have it it my drum studio right now.... but my wife is making a strong case for bringing it out into the living area

I opened it up last night and took out the upper compartment and found some stick shavings a few washers a cymbal felt and a Marlboro cigarette butt .... knowing it has not been used since buddy used it that was pretty exciting for me
I'm a sucker for that kind of stuff
 
That's probably the best story I ever heard of about piece of memorabilia. Really freakin cool Ant.

It just seems to me that for this to have fallen in your hands....I mean what better omen can you ask for? Like he's sprinkling a little google dust on you man.
 
Cool story Tony.

I bought a hardware case that once belonged to Tony Thompson.
Although I have gigged with it so much you can barely read his name on it anymore.
(I bought it years and years before he passed).
 
What a great story Tony. I particularly like the ethos of your friend, passing it on to a good home, someone who will treasure it and appreciate it.

Out of interest exactly how do you get something of that ilk authenticated and what sort of documentation do you then recieve? I never really thought of that angle before. I guess I would just take people at their word!
 
What a great story Tony. I particularly like the ethos of your friend, passing it on to a good home, someone who will treasure it and appreciate it.

Out of interest exactly how do you get something of that ilk authenticated and what sort of documentation do you then recieve? I never really thought of that angle before. I guess I would just take people at their word!

there are multiple companies around the country who authenticate memorabilia and you would employ one who has expertise in the area of your item.

my friend knows all of his items are authentic because he was there when they were being used.... but he has 3 children who he plans to pass this stuff to and doesn't want them to have trouble with it if they ever planned to sell it.
he looks at it as money in the bank in a sense

the documentation you get is basically a letter from a reputable authenticator describing the item as far as the manufacturer, some distinct markings or damage, and stating that this item is indeed legitimate.
they then number the item and put it in their records along with who owns it.
 
That is an amazing piece and story behind it.

I heard a story from another drummer this past weekend; he says as a child in 1984?, he had a chance to meet Buddy and later unload Buddy Rich's equipment for a show in Lynn, MA. He mentioned cases such as the one you now have. As he unloaded gear, he described Buddy's equipment was thrown together haphazardly, mixed together and disorganized, piles of items which could have easily shifted around and broken. Mics, whatever else. I thought that was an interesting story because I would have imagined Buddy being more, well, rigid about such things.

Anyway, congrats Tony.
 
That is an amazing piece and story behind it.

I heard a story from another drummer this past weekend; he says as a child in 1984?, he had a chance to meet Buddy and later unload Buddy Rich's equipment for a show in Lynn, MA. He mentioned cases such as the one you now have. As he unloaded gear, he described Buddy's equipment was thrown together haphazardly, mixed together and disorganized, piles of items which could have easily shifted around and broken. Mics, whatever else. I thought that was an interesting story because I would have imagined Buddy being more, well, rigid about such things.

Anyway, congrats Tony.
Mike Clark described Tony Williams' trap cases the same way; rusted pieces of hardware, old cigars, etc. It's probably instructive that some of the best drummers in the world play their gear and don't obsess about taking fanatical care of it!
 
Stuff like that is priceless.. I think you'd have to pry it out of my hands as Charlton Heston would say! I have a Buddy Zildjan cymbal bag that was given to me many years ago.. By a close friend that worked his shows.. No 'documentation', but I don't care as :
- i know it's authentic as the guy worked his show and it was a throw away.. Pretty basic bag by todays standards.
- I'd never let it go due to sentimental value. I know it's real and that's all that matters to me !

Nice find!
 
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