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Buddy rarely took a stick to his second floor tom – an extravagance not available to most of us!

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Cathy Rich has worked tirelessly to keep her father's legacy riding high. Now, coinciding with Buddy's 90th anniversary, she's joined forces with industry veteran Bill Morgan to form the Buddy Rich Drum Company and bring this Taiwanese replica kit to the market.

Build

The kit sticks faithfully with the sizes Buddy played pretty much throughout his long career. The only unusual item by modern standards is the bass drum, which, at 24"x14", is relatively shallow, reflecting the big band era Buddy grew up in.

Buddy mounted his ride and splash cymbals on his bass drum, just like with this new kit, although new hardware is vastly stronger than that available to Buddy. The two cymbal mounts and the vintage-style consolette are superbly made and reliable, while still mimicking Buddy's set-up. As for the floor tom legs, these are just about the longest we've ever seen. Parts of the hardware are monogrammed with the BR initials.

The 'beavertail' lugs are the same design as those fitted to Buddy's 1940s Slingerland Radio King kit - a restored model with which he was reputedly delighted. The White Marine Pearl is the stripy, oyster-like finish of the Ludwig kit that Buddy played when he endorsed Ludwig. It's the same material DW uses and, although historically at odds with the Slingerland lugs, it looks great.

The bass drum hoops are also pearl-covered, although they should really be inlaid for the correct look. The bass drum claws, though, are superb. Once again, significantly heavier than old fashioned ones and felt-lined to protect the hoops.

So far, so good. But the really important difference between this kit and Buddy's is in the shells. Just as the hardware has been beefed up and modernised, so have the shells. It's like finding a vintage E-Type Jag with a modern engine stuck under the bonnet where no-one can see it.

The lowdown is this: Buddy spent most of his career playing various kits with ultra-thin three-ply shells of mahogany or maple with thick reinforcing rings. The BR kit's shells, though, are thicker, modern, six- to 10-ply, straight-sided and with no reinforcing rings. This inevitably lends them a more contemporary, brighter sound.

For some drummers this will be a serious turn-off. But if you take the view that time has moved on and this is a tribute, not a replica, you won't be so upset.

Hands On

On playing, the modernised hardware comes into its own. Vintage consolettes bounced around like ships at sea, but this one, with its massive memory lock, is rock steady, as are the two cymbal arms. Ride cymbal position is restricted, but that's the way Buddy played it.

Heads, top and bottom, are single ply with a dense white coating. They're un-branded Taiwanese, although made from proper Mylar. They tune easily enough and, coupled with the slightly rounded, smooth bearing edges, the tom sound is invitingly rich and warm. A little more open than you get from real vintage kits with their hefty reinforcing rings and completely rounded bearing edges.