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Auction of Bonham's Black Diamond Ludwig kit from 68/69


porgie66

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https://www.rosswoodhall.com/john-bonhams-led-zeppelin-drum-kit/2017/07/24/

 

Anyone here know about this supposed auction of one of Bonzo's kits to raise $ for a statue of him to be placed in Redditch?   The notes on this photo page say this kit was used to record When The Levee Breaks. (???)  That seems like a specious claim.  Common knowledge is that a new drum kit, or newly delivered kit was opened up at Headley Grange and they were set up in the entry way to the house. Page specifically mentions this in It Might Get Loud. However, Andy Johns claims that he and Bonzo moved the drumkit from one room to the hallway while the rest of the guys took a break during recording at HG. He says nothing about a new kit so the stories differ a bit there and Bonzo already had green sparkle kits by summer of '70. So, whether or not it was a newly delivered kit,  it would've most likely been a larger green sparkle kit... not this smaller kit that was most likely used only for the first few weeks of the first US tour. 

There is a slight chance that Bonzo may have used this black pearl kit for some studio work but that seems impossible to know, unless there is a confirmed statement from the band or Andy Johns etal. Not that all of this would make much of a difference, they are still apparently Bonzo's drums and Plant seems to be part of this event.  I wonder who owned the kit. Plant?? Jason? 

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From what I read a few months ago, Robert Plant owned the kit and was possibly going to auction off for charity.

By the way, the drum kit that Bonzo used for When the Levee Breaks was a green sparkle kit that was just purchased around late 1970 early 1971. 

I believe this kit is the one Bonham used for Led Zeppelin I.

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49 minutes ago, sixpense said:

From what I read a few months ago, Robert Plant owned the kit and was possibly going to auction off for charity.

By the way, the drum kit that Bonzo used for When the Levee Breaks was a green sparkle kit that was just purchased around late 1970 early 1971. 

I believe this kit is the one Bonham used for Led Zeppelin I.

I used to think  the same but now  I doubt he used this kit for Zep 1 as there is no proof he owned this kit before going to the US in Dec.  He was using a Slingerland kit on the first shows they did in Scandinavia and there are no photos of him playing, that I've ever found, of them playing in the UK in fall/ winter of 68.  If anyone can point me to a pic of the band in performance in the UK during the fall of 69, please do.  It would make sense that the Slingerland kit was used for Zep 1.

I seem to recall reading he got this kit for the US tour and it was a rental (?), but then why would he have kept it once he got the maple finish kit in mid - January of 69?  Who knows?!  

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 I have never seen that kit in any picture with the band or Bonzo. Of course there is a chance it was used during recording only, maybe something went wrong with his maple or green sparkle which necessitated the use of another kit temporarily during recording but I have never heard of Bonzo ever using a black diamond kit for anything. I did hear, on this forum a couple years back that Bonzo had purchased a black diamond kit (I believe) for use on the 1980 American tour which never came about. I seriously doubt it would have been the kit being auctioned here as it was mentioned the ordered kit had not been derived by the time of Bonzo's death. Plus I doubt he would have used such a small kit with such a small bass drum for a live setting.

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1 hour ago, porgie66 said:

I used to think  the same but now  I doubt he used this kit for Zep 1 as there is no proof he owned this kit before going to the US in Dec.  He was using a Slingerland kit on the first shows they did in Scandinavia and there are no photos of him playing, that I've ever found, of them playing in the UK in fall/ winter of 68.  If anyone can point me to a pic of the band in performance in the UK during the fall of 69, please do.  It would make sense that the Slingerland kit was used for Zep 1.

I seem to recall reading he got this kit for the US tour and it was a rental (?), but then why would he have kept it once he got the maple finish kit in mid - January of 69?  Who knows?!  

Documented in John Bonham A Thunder of Drums

Bonzo had used a Ludwig Kit as far back as the Band of Joy days. (He was using one when with Tim Rose in summer of 1968)

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24 minutes ago, IpMan said:

 I have never seen that kit in any picture with the band or Bonzo. Of course there is a chance it was used during recording only, maybe something went wrong with his maple or green sparkle which necessitated the use of another kit temporarily during recording but I have never heard of Bonzo ever using a black diamond kit for anything. I did hear, on this forum a couple years back that Bonzo had purchased a black diamond kit (I believe) for use on the 1980 American tour which never came about. I seriously doubt it would have been the kit being auctioned here as it was mentioned the ordered kit had not been derived by the time of Bonzo's death. Plus I doubt he would have used such a small kit with such a small bass drum for a live setting.

 

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Spokane 1968:

spokane1.jpg

 

I also have a couple of unpublished color pics from the Whisky that I'll try to dig up.

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48 minutes ago, sixpense said:

Documented in John Bonham A Thunder of Drums

Bonzo had used a Ludwig Kit as far back as the Band of Joy days. (He was using one when with Tim Rose in summer of 1968)

 Yes, he played a Ludwig green sparkle sparkle kit before Zep, but he is clearly playing Slingerland drums in Sept of 68, weeks before their recording sessions for Zep 1, in Oct.   There are only a handful of photos of this BDP kit, a couple shown above by Sam. By the time they played Boston in Jan of 69 he was using the maple Thermogloss kit Carmine Appice hooked him up with from Ludwig. There are no photos of Zep playing dates in the UK from fall of 69, that I know of and no mention of the BDP specifically being played in Olympic studios in Oct of 69. Who knows, maybe he used his old Ludwig green sparkle kit from the mid 60's on the first album? 

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48 minutes ago, sam_webmaster said:

 

1969-01-whisky-005.jpg

Spokane 1968:

spokane1.jpg

 

I also have a couple of unpublished color pics from the Whisky that I'll try to dig up.

I'd love to see those pics from the Whisky!  It appears that he has a Slingerland snare in this picture from the Whisky. Are there any pics that you know of from any of their UK shows between Oct and Dec 68? I have never seen one. 

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1 hour ago, Bozoso73 said:

Looks like a 24". . Knowing what a 26" was doing for him, I don't think he used this for very long. . 

Maybe but the 13 tom would look smaller on a 24. That's most likely the kit in the pics with Plant that will be auctioned, which looks to me like a 22. 

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1 hour ago, Mook said:

I wish I was rich, I would be all over this.

Interesting to see him using the Slingerland snare in that picture with the Ludwig kit.

I thought the same. That's why I wonder if that Slingerland kit seen on the very first dates in Europe wasn't a rental but actually owned by him. 

Wonder if this kit will get auctioned soon? I would be all over it too , if I were a rich man....yaha deedle deedle

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11 hours ago, porgie66 said:

I'd love to see those pics from the Whisky!  It appears that he has a Slingerland snare in this picture from the Whisky. Are there any pics that you know of from any of their UK shows between Oct and Dec 68? I have never seen one. 

I was searching for photos for this project last year, but haven't found any in the UK. There's a few pics from the Marquee 1968, but it looks like the Slingerland kit?

 

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10 minutes ago, sam_webmaster said:

I was searching for photos for this project last year, but haven't found any. There's a few pics from the Marquee 1968, but it looks like the Slingerland kit?

 

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Yes, Slingerland. I did come across that color pic yesterday night in my online search. That's the only pic I've ever seen from the fall 68 UK shows. More of a case for the Slingerland kit being the one used for Zep 1 although there is a chance he had the Ludwig BDP kit at the same time. I think he got that Ludwig BDP kit when he arrived for the tour of the US in Dec 68. I'm really puzzled by the claim that he used this kit on Zep 4. Who said that?? 

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54 minutes ago, porgie66 said:

Yes, Slingerland. I did come across that color pic yesterday night in my online search. That's the only pic I've ever seen from the fall 68 UK shows. More of a case for the Slingerland kit being the one used for Zep 1 although there is a chance he had the Ludwig BDP kit at the same time. I think he got that Ludwig BDP kit when he arrived for the tour of the US in Dec 68. I'm really puzzled by the claim that he used this kit on Zep 4. Who said that?? 

Looks like a Ludwig to me. (It is subjective and difficult) But compare the metal lugs on the Tom-Tom. The Ludwig looks larger.

 

 

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3 hours ago, sixpense said:

Looks like a Ludwig to me. (It is subjective and difficult) But compare the metal lugs on the Tom-Tom. The Ludwig looks larger.

 

 

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Not to me.  The hoops in the Marquee pics are definitely Slingerland round over style, not Ludwig. Also the lugs in the B and W Marquee picture are clearly more rounded, Slingerland. Those are definitely not Ludwig lugs.  The color pic shows the bass drum spurs which are much different than the Luddy's , there are two larger spurs... the Ludwig has 4 smaller spurs. The color pic also looks like green sparkle which would be consistent with other descriptions of the Slingerland kit. Again, I wish there was just one clear pic of Bonham's drums from this time. 

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1 hour ago, Walter said:

Is this the same kit?

 

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This is what I'm after.  This must be the kit that was used for the first few weeks of the first US tour. I'm trying to find out who claimed this was used for recording the 4th LP.  We went off on a tangent about whether or not this was used to record the first LP. I think it was not. I think it was most likely the Slingerland kit seen in all known pics from the beginning of the bands existence. 

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8 hours ago, sam_webmaster said:

I was searching for photos for this project last year, but haven't found any in the UK. There's a few pics from the Marquee 1968, but it looks like the Slingerland kit?

 

1968-marquee-cl-02.jpg

1968-marquee-cl-01.jpg

Sorry, meant to quote this post. Are there any more photos from the Marquee gig?

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