THIS DRUM SOLD VERY QUICKLY. HOWEVER, IT IS HISTORIC AND WE FEEL THAT WE SHOULD LIST IT HERE FOR YOU TO SEE. A WOOD DYNASONIC THAT WAS OWNED BY BUDDY RICH DOES NOT COME ALONG EVERY DAY. ENJOY!

Here it is. The Holy Grail of snare drums for the Buddy Rich fans of the world. This drum is a 5x14 Rogers WMP wood dynasonic snare drum that was owned and used by Buddy. This drum comes complete with a document from the wife of Irv Kluger, the former owner of the drum. Buddy knew Irv, who was a Las Vegas based drummer, and often enlisted Irv to assist him in learning to read music. Irv tried, but Buddy was impatient and made the task difficult. One day during a lesson, Buddy gave his Rogers WMP dynasonic to Irv as a gesture of gratitude for Irv putting up with Buddy's impatience. Buddy inscribed the drum inside the shell as follows: "I give this fine drum to Irv Kluger as my friend, and who taught me to read.", and it is signed "Buddy Rich". Irv has passed on, but his wife has provided a document attesting to the facts stated here. After you finish reading this text section you will find two more photos at the bottom, including one with the inscription done by Buddy for Irv.

The drum is as follows: Rogers WMP dynasonic snare drum, serial number #8010. The drum is not drilled for a tone control. All Rogers wood dynas were drilled for tone controls with the exception of the ones built for Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson. Also, the interior of the shell is finished with extra coats of lacquer compared to standard issue wood dynas. The additional coats of lacquer were a specific request of Buddy's. WMP wrap has a nice mellowing to the color and is in excellent shape. Chrome is in good shape with a little flaking and slight pitting.

This drum is an extreme rarity and worthy of a home in a fine collection.   

Below are excerpts from an article that appeared in The Las Vegas Review Journal on July 8th, 2001, and it contains a reference to Irv teaching Buddy to read music.

Sunday, July 08, 2001
Copyright ? Las Vegas Review-Journal

The Jazz Man, a profile

Irv Kluger, 80, played with some on the 20th century's most influential jazz artists

By DOUG ELFMAN
REVIEW-JOURNAL

Far from the Las Vegas Strip, in the corner of a dark bar called Pogo's Tavern, a jazz band plays "Take the A Train" with kinetic energy.

It's Friday night. Drummer Irv Kluger is the funny, little old man with the white mustache, wire glasses and impeccable posture. And there's a secret in him. He played percussion with some of the 20th century's most influential jazz musicians, most notably Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington and Artie Shaw.

But life is funny, so Irv, as Pogo's regulars know him, also played drums for the TV show "Bonanza" and on the campy old hit "Purple People Eater."

Irv, who will turn 80 Monday, holds back little about his life, as long as you're listening. In a raspy but clear voice, he mentions he boxed as a preteen. He smoked pot as a kid. When he was older, he rarely hung out with famous people. Instead, he stayed married to one woman for 54 years, raised two kids, wrecked a motorcycle, flew a Piper Cub, learned karate and profited from the stock market.

He talks fast, laughs faster and jokes often, so try to keep up.

"I'm an old cat. ... My wife, I love her dearly. She's a beautiful woman, and she has great legs, hahaha. ... I'm a loner who likes people. ... I don't feel young for being old."

Altogether, there are three things you should keep in mind about Irv.

First, the good stories.

"He's probably about a dozen books in one brain," says one of his two daughters, a singer named Jessica. (Actually, Irv and wife Phyllis named her Jessie Jane. They still call her Jessie. Their oldest daughter, Deanna, owns a salon.)

Second, Irv is a family man.

He turned down various big jobs with Benny Goodman and Gillespie, largely so he could be home more often with his wife and kids in New York and California in the 1940s and 1950s. Irv is so family-focused that Jessica/Jessie Jane says, "I think my daughter, his granddaughter, gave him passion for life for another 20 years."

Third, Irv is a phenomenal drummer with a terrific resume.

Irv was around Sinatra mostly during the Rat Pack era. Irv also worked with singers Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, the Andrews Sisters, Nat King Cole, Peggy Lee, Johnny Cash, Bing Crosby, Pat Boone, Ricky Nelson and Ruth Etting. He played with groundbreaking instrumentalists at their peak, not the least of which were Stan Kenton, Charlie Parker, Woody Herman, Tommy Dorsey and Art Pepper. He also did stints with Count Basie, Goodman, Boyd Raeburn and Freddy Slack's big bands. He even drummed in "Guys and Dolls" in the early 1950s, when, he says, it was the first Broadway show with a fully integrated band. And he tutored drummers for years, including schooling Buddy Rich on how to read sheet music.

Irv never became famous for any of this, but he's been written up in books about jazz and drumming. Notably, he recorded with Gillespie when Gillespie was conceiving bebop in the mid-1940s, and he worked for years with Shaw and did major parts of Shaw's inventive "Gramercy 5" sessions.

Burt Korall, a retired drummer and jazz chronicler in New York, is including Irv in an upcoming book called "Drummin' Men -- The Heartbeat of Jazz -- The Bebop Years."

"He was a very important transition drummer from swing to bebop," Korall says. "He still is deeply dedicated to playing the instrument. He's got an extraordinary work ethic and energy level."