We explore the entire life of the legendary Gene Krupa! I speak with Brooks Tegler about Genes beginnings in the early 1920’s through his false conviction in 1943, all the way up to his death in 1973. In addition to being being such a revolutionary musician, Gene was a true gentleman and had a very rich and interesting life. Gene is responsible for many innovations in drumming that took the drum set from the “trap drums” of the early 1900’s to what we now consider the modern drum set. Brooks Tegler is an expert on the subject of Krupa and his equipment and I’m honored that he took the time to share his knowledge with me!
As quoted from Brooks, Some of these innovations include: * Deserves huge credit for making drummers (as he put it) “high priced guys.” Brought drums to the forefront and more highly respected. *First (and Only) musician to be featured on the cover of instrument catalogs for 30 years straight *Fully tunable tom toms (top AND bottom) and other equipment innovations like cymbal stands and tom mount systems. *First to use two tom tom sizes that were not even cataloged (14 X 14 and 20 x 20). *Thinner cymbals but also larger (diameter) ones as well. *Set the ‘standard’ for drum set, set-up and drum sizes/depths (for close to 40 years and, in a way, even to this day!) *What has become the “standard” of front bass drum head art (shield/vertical stripes). Credit must also go to Bill Mather. *First to insist on a black musician being a regular member of the band, not just ‘featured’. * Created what Gershwin called his “Freeze-Beat”. (and a gazillion other drumming/musical innovations…) *Use of snare rim shots and a deep sense of dynamics.
You can check out Brooks website here: https://gkthehistoryofgenekrupaandhisequipment.wordpress.com
As mentioned in this episode, here is Bobby Scotts piece that reflects on Gene, titled “The World Is Not Enough” https://jazzprofiles.blogspot.com/2018/01/gene-krupa-world-is-not-enough-by-bobby.html?fbclid=IwAR3Z-RaDuBvdi6NJtqkxJCcsvokmSoiJJiRUS3aFIEktEup2jSQXGJXPOkU
I hope you enjoy this episode, find me on social media @drumhistory_podcast to see daily videos and pictures featuring the best drummers in the world. Give me a review and rating if you like what you hear! -Bart
