Late Night Music Club with Ed Shaughnessy and Buddy Rich
By driftglass Monday Aug 25, 2008 10:30pm
My old man (now many years dead) was deeply flawed in many ways. But one thing he always did was make sure I stayed up with him to watch "The Tonight Show" whenever Buddy Rich was ripping skins.
Thanks, Dad.
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Twin Cities!
frist!
(still doing that?)
buddy rich was a supreme horse's ass but DAMN he could play.
i did a clinic as a very young man with schaughnessy. very cool dude, major sideburns.
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Twin Cities!
. . .is the new Frist. :)
Rich was a horse's ass but DAMN he could play.
Schaughnessy taught a clinic I attended as a young man. major sideburns, cool dude.
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d'oh! pwned by the comment gremlin...
Buddy Rich was once paired against the former jazz great drummer Elvin Jones. As good as Rich was, he knew that Jones was the better drummer that evening and proved it by carrying Jones off as he exited the stage.
My uncle Sid filled in for Shaughnessy on many a night. We lived only a few blocks from NBC studios.
Knew some guys who played with Buddy. Apparently he wasn't much fun.
there was an older album I had of Max Roach and Buddy Rich doing a version of "Sing, Sing, Sing (with a swing)" that blows this away.
Buddy was a perfectionist prick. That said, he was one of and still is one of the best drummers of all time. Chops of an inhuman level.
I've always said, "The toughest gig in musical history would be Buddy's Bass Player." You'd never be able to relax for a second!
My two favorite Muppet Shows were Buddy and Alice Cooper!
Nice pick John. I have to replace my copy of live at ronnie scotts. One of the greatet live albums IMHO.
Glad to say I saw Buddy Play more than once as a kid. WOW!!!! I'd go home and work rudiments with renewed vigor every time.
Google the Buddy Rich rant, and you'll hear how he treated the band. Still, I saw him twice, one time from 6 feet away, and he was awesome.
Many people don't know that Buddy started in Vaudeville as "Traps the Drum Wonder" and he learned everything about performing. In the late 40s, he had his own big band, and he played, sang, and danced during his shows. The guy could tap dance up a storm.
I saw Elvin once on the set of the movie Jeremiah (an eminently forgettable acid trip waste of film), and he was amazing, but I don't think he had anything on Buddy.
But, if there was anyone out there who could eat Buddy's lunch, it may have been Chick Webb. It's a shame he died so young.
The great one has spoken from the grave once again
Ed Shaughnessey was a terrific drummer. Buddy Rich was an insane drummer. Thanks for that. I remember watching him also whenever I could and have always watched with my mouth agape. Thank you Thank you Thank you.
Props to the very cool ES, and of course 'Traps' himself...Another good battle is 'Figure Eights', from Rich vs. Roach.
Yeah, but how 'bout that band?!? Great horns...brings back memories of falling asleep with my parents watching Carson, embedding great horn sections into my subconscious. Doc Serverinsen, Clark Terry, Conde Condoli (sp?) Would have loved to be in the studio audience back then, hearing it live...
Thanks for the clip!
in honor of kucinich....WAKE UP AMERICA
LOVE ROLLER COASTER....OHIO PLAYERS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG7RWnB8stU
The Top Secret Drum Corps is also pretty cool. Different drumming, but cool to watch.
There's a joke that's told about Buddy Rich (by me, among others):
A few days after Buddy Rich died, his wife gets a call -- "Hi, is Buddy there?" "No, I'm sorry, Buddy died." "Oh. Okay. Bye."
The next day, she gets another call; it's the same guy -- "Hi, is Buddy there?" No, I'm sorry, Buddy died." "Oh. right. Bye."
The following day, a phone call; the same guy -- "Hi, is Buddy there?" Look, I told you, Buddy's dead! He died! He's not here!"
"Right. Sorry. I just like to hear you say it."
Great clip. Buddy Rich was a great drummer and I liked to watch him as a guest with Carson. I thought he was pretty funny in a smart ass kind of way.
I loved the crossovers he did in the second last solo. What a great drummer.
I remember when Jimi Hendrix was on the Tonight Show and Shaugnessy played drums with him. They dressed him in a kerchief so he would look hip. He just looked like an escapee from an episode of Dragnet.
Thanks for the clip.
i had the privilege of hearing buddy & his band play live at disneyland a few years before he died. man, he was the shit, as the kids say nowadays.
and skippy's got buddy rich vs. gene krupa
and
buddy rich vs. jerry lewis...
My father used to play Buddy's "Give the people what they want" and I loved his solos. I was 10 years old but I'm sure it's what got me motivated to begin playing drums. I love listening to Jojo Mayer, Dennis Chambers, Steve Gadd, Carter Beauford, etc but when I see an old clip of Buddy I just can't help but gawk at the man's chops. The guy ripped.
Erroll @ 6:
Rich also did some "drum duels" with Max Roach, another monster, about 50 years ago.
Tip of the halo to Mr. Bernard "Buddy" Rich, one of the best who ever lived. Ever.
Thanks, that was a lot of fun to watch.
Fabulous, exciting musicianship. I hate to use cliches, but I don't think they make 'em like these guys anymore, and that's a shame. Classic stuff.
would like to dedicate the following to madonna
this comes from a time when a musician could compare an ahole pol to a nazi and molestor without getting pillaried in the press
less than zero...elvis costello
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msAIYGBzcks&feature=related
DRIFTY!!! :D
Yer pops was good peeps for that . . .
Way to honor that . . .
Rich was a hoss . . . Ty Cobb was an asshole too, but he was a hoss. And yes, I'd spike you too if it meant a play where I COULD spike you. It's how the game's played . . .
Big Hoss's are assholes . . . where's the news on that one?
Maybe in the future they won't be . . . but we can't change the past.
They were what they were . . . honor the talent.
And don't let the phrellin bully's NOW dog ya, just cuz you need a gig, a paycheck, or the job . . . face them full on.
Make them make you better . . . or walk away . . .
End of story. We're all adults here.
Great clip Drifty, thanks!! :D
Wasn't Johnny Carson a pretty good drummer as well?
Saw Rich 2 as a kid, saw him play a roll with his left hand. Amazing!! My fav though is Gene Krupa.
my dad told me about seeing a drum battle between Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich:
Krupa came out first to a huge ovation and played his drum solo, and then Buddy
came out and played the exact same thing with ONE HAND as he pretended to
adjust his hi-hat, just to be all like "ha ha, I can play your best effort one-handed!!"
Buddy Rich had the ego to match his immense chops, no doubt of it.
My brother-in-law played trombone for Buddy Rich in the early '70's. He had a tape recording of Rich threatening to throw a kid off the bus they were on in the middle of a snowstorm somewhere in the mid west. i don't care how much of a talent he was, an ass is an ass is an ass.
Fabulous! I loved it when the Tonight Show featured members of the band. Where's the double-kick set Eddie? Sweet! Didn't know that about Rich - I guess the old joke rings somewhat true - "What does a drummer use for contraception?" His personality. Favorite drummer joke: How many drummers does it take to change a light bulb? NONE! They have machines to do that now...(Alternate answer: Five. One to change the bulb and four to talk about how Neil Peart would have done it.) My favorite drummer of all time: Bun E. Carlos!
Thanks for this.
One of my favorite episodes of the Muppets growing up was the one starring Buddy Rich. I was mesmerized.
Tip of the hat to one of the all-time greats.
Sent a link of that clip to a friend who sent me this:
An amateur drummer died and went to heaven. He was waiting outside the pearly gates when he heard the most incredible drumming coming from within. Immediately he recognized the playing and rushed to ask St. Peter if that was Buddy Rich playing drums. St. Peter responded: "No, that's God. He just thinks he's Buddy Rich."
Driftglass,
My dad was the same way. He played bass in the jazz bnds of the 50's and took me to see Rich live in Milwaukee one time. Rich was the model for the phrase "he never misses a beat". Rich was also quite a character on the Tonight Show and Carson loved having him on. But I still cannot stand much jazz. Fortunately my older brother turned me on to the Doors and I traveled down a different road.
Pete C. @ 30:
Agreed. The great baseball manager Sparky Anderson, a standout good guy in an occupation that has seen its share of asses, once said "it doesn't cost a dime to be nice to people."
#11 greggp
I think that you meant "Zachariah", not Jeremiah, starring a VERY young Don Johnson (still a teenager I think). Electric guitars, Country Joe and Elvin Jones in a western. A definite "head" movie.
I remember another Buddy Rich spot on the Tonight Show where he put two wooden chairs back to back and played them.
I think that we would get a very long list if we named every talented person that was a taskmaster to anyone that worked with or for them. I think that is why their output IS so great and enduring. They would not compromise anything.
he WAS GREAT, but i wish people would quit with the crazy hyperbole. the whole thing with the one-handed rolls..... the speed, all that. there are no greater technicians in history than are alive today. Buddy did his thing as everyone does their things.... but as far as speed and musical lines, nobody beats the guys that are alive today. the solos are different and the sounds are different. the snares were looser, now tighter. i'm sorry, but my bet would be if you put Buddy Rich vs. Dennis Chambers on modern instruments, Buddy would sound like a piker. technique has flown out the window.... complex musical rhythms -- out the window. nobody knows sound like Weckl, nobody knows technique like Jojo/Chambers (as far as stick control and singles mastery respectively -- on his video out now, Jojo plays a clean "double-stroke"roll with one hand at 108-112 - that's 32nd notes, and plays a clean single stroke at 140, also shows a decent multiple bounce roll with one hand... on a tight ass snare drum, not some jazz snare with all the snares loosey goosey -- this is all very approachable nowadays with modern technique, both hands, matched grip), and nobody knows rhythm like Vinnie Colaiuta. no one likes to say this apparently because they either haven't transcribed all these players or they just enjoy living in the past, but i'm sorry, the greatest players, technical and musical, are alive right now.... :-) enjoy it!!!
christian @ 37:
Maybe, maybe not, but Chambers credits Rich with his practice technique.
To other folks, Rich was not the nice guy, sure, but it's important to remember that in those tapes he wasn't bagging on people because of race, religion, creed, bad taste in clothes, body odor or halitosis. Buddy was angry because they'd messed up the music. It's harsh, but please! You're getting onstage with one of, if not the, greatest jazz drummers of two or three eras. Bring the A game or don't play. And since Buddy was bandleader, it reflected on him as much as it did the musician. I'm not saying he handled it well, but comparing him to a violent racist like Ty Cobb is hyperbole.
>>I’m not saying he handled it well, but comparing him to a violent racist like Ty Cobb is hyperbole.<<
i don't disagree with that for sure, but i do have another take, and maybe another unpopular one. i am a drummer turned percussionist (4-mallet marimba player mostly, concert, studied with one of the best in the world), turned drummer again. my view about his musicality is not popular, i'm sure. this whole notion about him "never missing a beat" i find hyperbolic too. he made mistakes for sure. and the fact that he was a drummer and the bandleader in many ways made things easier on him. he famously didn't read music. so he memorized the chart structure of like 400 tunes... and let's also be clear here, Buddy Rich did very few things. he did them extremely, extremely well, but he did very few things. the drummer repetoire then was quite limited. he played great big band jazz time (though not so musical as his small group jazz contemporaries), and he played fast, amazing solos. he didn't play rock, he didn't play 50 different styles. he played big band jazz really well. so he memorized like 400 chart structures.... difficult task, but not so much for a drummer and not so much for a drummer of one style, and not so much for a percussionist who is not reading notes, but rather the structure of the tunes..... THEN, he expected some of the best players in the world to come in and read those charts down, man.... you know, those other musicians who HAD TO READ NOTES... LOTS OF NOTES... he would call a chart out that the band hadn't played in like 3 years, and when someone didn't nail it, he would be on him hard. that, my firend, is an asshole of the highest order. Buddy Rich played with many musicians, who on the whole, were much better musicians than he was. but he had the flash and the name.... my $.02
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