Watch Buddy Rich deliver an impossible drum solo
Buddy knew how to use every inch of the kit to his advantage. In 1982, the game-changing jazz drummer flew to the Dominican Republic to perform for 5,000 people at the open-air Altos de Chavón Amphitheater. This was the Concert for the Americas, which featured a phenomenal setlist from Frank Sinatra and Buddy Rich, who, with the help of Vincent Falcone Jr., Gene Cherico, Tony Mottola and Irv Cottler, performed a selection of jazz hits, extended numbers, and cuts from musicals like New York, New York and West Side Story. In the below footage from the concert, Rich delivers one of the most mesmerising drum solos of his career.
Born in 1917, Buddy Rich was performing in his parent’s vaudeville act before he could speak. At 18 months, he was playing simple rhythmic patterns and was already a seasoned performer by the age of four. But being one of the best-paid child stars of the day had its downsides. According to Rich’s sister Marge, interviewed in Mel Torme’s biography Traps The Drum Wonder: The Life of Buddy Rich: “He never had a childhood.”
In 1937, in pursuit of his dream to play drums in a swing band, Rich joined bandleader Joe Marsala, later jumping ship to perform with Artie Shaw and record hits such as ‘Begin the Beguine’. When Shaw abandoned his band mid-show in 1939, Rich joined Tommy Dorsey, the most revered bandleader of the swing era. A young singer called Frank Sinatra joined shortly after, and Rich began complaining about the band’s new direction, bemoaning the addition of what he felt was an inessential string section.
Rich and Sinatra became bitter rivals – and for good reason. They were both considered stars of the show, after all. At one especially tense rehearsal, Sinatra threw a plate of drinks at Rich when he played the drums too loud. At a later live concert, Frank – a smaller man than Rich – reportedly lay into Buddy as if he were a punching bag, an incident that made it into the press.
Of course, Rich and Sinatra were also close friends and roommates on the road. Indeed, Sinatra continued performing with Buddy Rich well into his 60s. In this footage from the Concert for the Americas, Rich powers through a five-minute drum solo with extraordinary skill, using a plethora of innovative techniques to transform his humble drum kit into a powerhouse of sound and rhythm.
Check out the footage above if you haven’t already.
