Rogers Drum Company Ad--Downbeat magazine

Drum Companies, like all other businesses, have used various means to get their message out to the public. In the 40's, 50's, and 60's, the print media was particularly effective. But unlike today, there were only so many outlets that were available  that made sense.

Downbeat Magazine was the choice of many, if not all, of the music manufacturers at the time. The magazine was very influential in the jazz and dance band circles. Musicians read it constantly, for it was one of the only magazines that focused on the subject matter. It seemed that every page had an  advertisement calling attention to a specific instrument and the company that manufactured it. Which brings us to the ad you see pictured here.

Up until the late 50's,  the Rogers Drum Company was a weak sister compared to Ludwig and Slingerland.. Even the Leedy Drum Company had more presence than Rogers. Things changed dramatically when Henry Grossman bought the company in 1955. Joe Thompson, an employee with Grossman Distribution, agreed to join  the company as chief designer and engineer.  Ben Strauss, another employee, joined the Rogers team as the head of marketing and publicity.  They immediately set about changing the drumming world landscape.

The pictured ad appeared as a two page (double truck) ad in Downbeat magazine in the early 1960's. This is only one page. As the ad states, Rogers held a 5 day percussion exhibit at the Edison Hotel on Times Square. Nearly 2000 percussionists attended the event, including the Company's principal endorser, Buddy Rich.  Rogers used the occasion to feature the new Swivomatic hardware, which was revolutionary for the time. Nothing like it had ever been seen, or used for that matter. Nevertheless, the introduction of this hardware skyrocketed the Rogers brand from an also-ran to a major player in the field.

Rogers Drums quickly became the "Cadillac" of American Drums. The shells and hardware  were  the envy of the drumming world. The drums were not cheap, clearly they were the most expensive American made drums at the time. But you "got what you paid for.".

Today, Rogers Drums continue to shine like a beacon so many years after their splash in the early 60's.

The Rogers Brass Lug Dynasonic

The Rogers Dynasonic Snare Drum was, depending on who you  talk  to, the epitome of American Snare drum manufacturing.  It was  the flagship snare drum for the company and it was advertised as :"the drum with the smile built in." Ads also stated that the,  " Rogers Dyna-Sonic's got  it! You get it, too ". This referred to the drum's pinpoint definition, choke free sound, and, according to Rogers, simple snare adjustment.

The drum quickly became identified with Rogers main endorsers. These included  Buddy Rich, Louie Bellson, Cozy Cole, and Jack Sperling. Indeed, Rob Cook, author of the Rogers Book, talks extensively about Ben  Strauss, the head of the company, consulting with Buddy Rich to build the most sensitive snare drum possible.

The whole idea was to have the snares wires float against the snare head, rather then be pressed up against it.The metal bridge allowed this to occur and added stability to the whole snare mechanism. The feeling among Rogers engineers was that the snare wires would vibrate more freely, thus be more sensitive. Or at least, that was the theory.

The pictured beauty is 50 years old. She is  one of  finest examples of an early Brass Dynasonic. She has the heavy brass shell, the drawn brass lugs and the swivo-matic perma tension strainer. Collectors refer to this strainer as the clockface strainer. She also has the original steel " Tall Hoops." that early Rogers drums were fitted with.  The lugs, though beautiful, tended to crack and they were a weakness with this drum. She still has her original snare head. This model came in 5 x 14 and 6 1/2 x 14 sizes,  in either a wood or brass shell.  List price on this cupcake was 150.00, a princely sum in 1962. It was clearly one of most expensive snare drums of its time.

Later models substituted the steel beavertail lugs  for the brass ones. Many of these later models were made and it's not difficult to find them at  very reasonable prices.  But this only applies to the brass models.  The wood shell models are much rarer and very, very expensive.This sweetheart is not as rare, but you don't  see them everyday, particularly at this age and in this condition.

One thing is for sure about the Dyna. No other drum created as much controversy as this one did at its inception. You either loved it, or you hated it. And as for its simple snare adjustment? For many drummers, this was the joke of the century.

 And the arguments continue to the present day.  Pointless discussions about snare tension, head selection, and the like abound  wherever drummers gather.  The real story is this. The Dyna is versatile and can be used in a variety of musical settings. Finicky yes, but one great snare drum,

The Rogers Dynasonic Snare Drum-Big R badge

Perhaps no other snare drum has created as much controversy among drummers as the Rogers Dynasonic Snare Drum. This flagship snare drum of the Rogers Drum Company still is "making waves" some 28 years after the last one rolled off the assembly line. (See blog dated Nov. 17th). Nevertheless, the drum had a good strong run and its place is assured in drum history.

The Dyna was "born" in the early 60's and initially both wood and metal shells were offered. Great drummers, like Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson, played and endorsed it. But in the mid 60's, CBS bought the Rogers company and changes were afoot. By the early 70's, the wood shell model was dropped. The traditional Rogers Script badge was replaced with what is now known as the "Big R" badge. The snare mechanism, despite some minor changes, basically stayed the same.

In the early 80's, the wood shell model was reintroduced and that is the drum you see pictured here. This beauty differed significantly from the 1960's models. Earlier Dyna wood shells were made up of a 5 ply maple/poplar mix. These early models also had reinforcing rings and lacquered inner shells. The pictured drum sports a 10 ply maple shell, no reinforcing rings, and isolation gaskets around each lug. Also, the inner shell is clear. There is no lacquering whatsoever.

This Dyna marked the end of the line for the model. By the mid 80's, Rogers was a shadow of its original self. There have been attempts to revive the line, but only as a budget line, and so far, these attempts have not been very successful.

But perhaps that's as it should be. Rogers drums were never budget line drums. They were the"Cadillacs" of their time. They weren't cheap. They were of the highest quality and Rogers drums are still played and sought after by drummers everywhere.

The Rogers Dynasonic Snare Drum

Perhaps no other snare drum from the 1960's has created as much controversy as the Rogers Dynasonic snare drum. Every drummer who has played the drum has an opinion. And the opinions are varied to say the least. One drummer will claim that the Dynasonic sounds best tuned high and tight with Diplomat heads. Another will say that the drum sounds better with medium to low tensioning with Ambassador heads. And still others, some who don't even know anything about the drum, will say the drum sounds " terrible" in any tuning range. There simply is no middle ground.

To my way of thinking, all of this quarreling is really a " tempest in a teapot." The Dynasonic was designed to be the most responsive and sensitive snare drum of its time. Rogers designers, in particular Ben Strauss, did their best to make a snare drum that was playable "right out of the box." A special sheet indicating how to tune the drum was included with a Dynasonic purchase. As with any product, some Dyna's were better than others. If you happened to purchase a "good" one, you bought a hell of a snare drum. And the drum could be tweaked to no end.

The drum you see pictured is from the mid 60's. This beauty is wrapped in red sparkle and she still sports her original heads. The clockface strainer has a black background around the logo which indicates a pre 1964 vintage. After 1964, the black background was dropped and the shape of the strainer changed somewhat. Every Dynasonic was outfitted with a metal snare bridge that, theoretically, would keep the snare wires flat and in even constant contact with the snare head.

The drum came in wood and metal shells and in 5 x 14, 6 1/2 x 14, and 8 x 15 sizes. The shell was a 5 ply maple/poplar mix and was finished in a clear varnish. Rogers tom and bass drums, on the other hand, were finished with either black or grey speckled paint. Early Rogers Dynasonics came with brass "bread and butter" lugs. This model has the "Beavertail" lugs which replaced the earlier brass ones.

Many famous drummers played the Dynasonic, including Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson. Perhaps because of this association, the Dyna has become a very collectible drum, particularly the wood shell model.

To read more about the Dynasonic, kindly click on the following link

http://www.vintagedrumsandmore.com/media-drum-articles-rogers-dynasonic-snare-drums.htm

The Rogers Wood Powertone Snare Drum

Every Drum Company in the 60's had its "workhorse" snare drum. It was usually a drum that was competitively priced and one that was offered as standard equipment on the majority of drum kits one could purchase from a specific company. For the Ludwig Drum Company, that drum was the Ludwig Supraphonic 400 ( See blog dated Jan. 5th). In the case of Slingerland, both the Radio King ( See blog dated Feb 27th.) and the Gene Krupa Sound King ( See blog dated June 29th) shared the limelight. And in the case of the Rogers Drum Company, it was the drum you see pictured here--- the Rogers Powertone Snare Drum.

Both the wood shell model and the metal shell model were featured in Rogers catalogs. Indeed, in the 67-68 catalog, the wood shell Powertone is standard on the Headliner kit, the Cozy Cole Constellation kit, and the Dave Clark Londoner kit. The metal shell is standard on the Rogers Timbale-Twin double bass outfit. The Rogers Dynasonic is also featured, but that's a story for another time.

The wood shell model came in two sizes, 5 x 14 and 6 1/2 x 14. The finish choices were either pearl, lacquer, or mahogany. The drum came with 8 Self aligning lugs and 20 strand wire snappy snares. The pictured Beauty is wrapped in the Black Onyx Pearl wrap. This Pearl finish was only available for few years in the 1960's. In addition to Black, Blue Onyx and Red Onyx were also offered. These wraps were exclusive to Rogers and only Slingerland sold anything that was remotely similar. Indeed, the Slingerland Blue Agate pearl wrap does resemble the Rogers Blue Onyx in a side by side comparison.

The shell was a composite of maple and poplar. Early models were 3 ply, but later models were 5 ply. Both had maple reinforcing rings. Originally, the interiors were sprayed with a flat gray sealant. Later models show a light gray speckled treatment.

This drum has skyrocketed in value over the last ten years. But the metal shell model has not kept pace. In any case, the Powertone is extremely versatile and over the years more and more drummers are discovering what a fine snare drum it is.

The Rogers Powertone Snare Drum--metal shell

The Rogers Drum Company occupies a special place in the history of American Drum Companies. Like its competitors, Gretsch, Ludwig, Leedy, and Slingerland, Rogers had a long illustrious run producing fine drums and accessories. Unlike these aforementioned companies, Rogers early ( 1930's) snare drums and drum kits were not as desirable as those from Slingerland and Ludwig. The great Gene Krupa saw to it that Slingerland ruled the roost during the 30's and 40's. Ludwig, and to a lesser extent, Leedy were always nipping at Slingerland's heels during that time. In the mid 40's, Ludwig signed Buddy Rich to an endorsement deal in an attempt to put a dent in Slingerland sales. At the same time, Gretsch attempted to ride the Be-bop revolution with the great Max Roach.

Rogers, on the other hand, quietly made drums and stayed out of the fray. Indeed, for a while, Rogers had a working relationship with the Camco Drum Company buying parts and hardware.On May 5th 1955, the world changed for Rogers. On that date, Henry Grossman, the owner of the Grossman Distributing Company, announced he had bought the Rogers Drum Company. Henry brought two gentlemen into the company with him, Joe Thompson, a musican/engineer, and Ben Strauss, a marketing and sales professional. These three proceeded to turn the Rogers Drum Company into a powerhouse.

By the early 60's, Rogers was offering top of the line drums and hardware. They had snagged two of the drum world's most famous names, Buddy Rich and Louis Bellson, as endorsers. But they didn't stop there. There list of endorsers included Cozy Cole, Irv Cottler, Jim Chapin, Roy Burns, Hal Blaine, Earl Palmer, Frankie Capp, and J. C. Heard.

The company was innovative....and very aggressive. Rogers offered something for everyone in the percussion world. Snare Drums, Drum Kits, Marching Drums, Glockenspiels, Deagan Marimbas, Vibraphones, a full line of drumsticks and mallets, Pasha and Zildjian cymbals, FIPS, (an early silent practice drum kit), Conga's, Bongos, Maracas, Timbales, Temple blocks, tuned bells, complete Rhythm outfits, twirling batons, and bugles (soprano, baritone, bass baritone, and French!!!!). They even offered a U. S. regulation Bugle for sale.

But it was the hardware and shells that made the Company's reputation. The Swiv-o-matic hardware was revolutionary at the time. There was simply nothing like it. The Dynasonic snare drum was a wonderment. And the various drum configurations and finishes were special.

Rogers offered 7 different snare drum model's. These included the top of the line Dynasonic, the Powertone, the Century, the Tower, the Luxor. the Banner, and the Student model. The Dyna and the Powertone came in both a wood shell and a metal shell. Over the years, the wood models have increased in value 5 to 25 times above the original price. The metal shell drums have not increased in value nearly as much.

The pictured drum is a metal Powertone. The 5 x 14 listed for 99.00 dollars and 6 1/2 x 14 listed for 102.00. At the time, this was a lot of money. If you figure in dollar devaluation and inflation, such a new drum would list for 1000.00 today. Given that, the drum is of quite humble origins. It's competitors in the marketplace, the Ludwig 400 and the Slingerland Gene Krupa, had brass shells and, in the case of Slingerland, brass hoops. The lowly Powertone was made of steel. The Powertone had no special strainer. It shared the Swiv-0-matic strainer that graced its more expensive sisters. There was only an 8 lug version.

Nevertheless, this drum could more than hold its own against its competitors in the most important category when talking about a musical instrument----the way it sounds. It's a solid, fine sounding snare drum. She will give you everything you ask of her, and then some.

The wood model is more desired ( I'll address that in a future blog). But no matter, and no apologies are needed. The Rogers metal Powertone is a fine snare drum. It's a fine example of a drum made in the golden age of the American Drum Company.




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