Here is an amazing drum set. This set was owned and used by Larry Bunker during his time with the great Bill Evans trio.

Larry was a "first call" drummer in LA and played with the likes of Bill Evans, Zoot Sims, Gerry Mulligan, Art Pepper, Gary Burton, Peggy Lee, and so many more. What some people do not know is that Larry was an extremely accomplished orchestral player as well, and at one point was timpanist for the LA Philharmonic. And, as if that isn't enough, Larry was also a highly sought after studio musician for movies and was a favorite player of composers such as Henry Mancini, Johnny Mandel, Jerry Goldsmith and John Williams.

UPDATE 9/1/22: I forgot that I had already done a video on this cool set. I am linking it here. Please note that in the video I mention that this set was likely refinished. Once I had a chance to examine it more closely this is actually factory and would have been a special order. Extra cool! See the video HERE. 

This drum set consists of a Gretsch "round badge" era 8x12, 14x14, 14x20, plus a Ludwig chrome over brass pre serial number 5x14 snare. In addition, we have all of Larry's cymbals from this era as well as the cases for the drums. Larry's set is a natural maple finish. As I mentioned in the video I did when I first got the set, I assumed this was refinished: Reason: In the RB era natural finishes were not offered, however, Gretsch would honor a special request. Upon closer inspection after the video I can say that this set is an original natural maple finish, which makes it even more interesting and rare. Larry made certain modifications for tom holders, and he later swapped out the old spurs for heavy duty bass drum spurs as the photos show.

For the cymbals, these are all Avedis Zildjian and include; 10' 247g, 15" extra HH bottom 1400g, 16" 1142g, 17" 1249g, 19" 1808g, 15" high hats 895/954, 20" swish with rivets 1960g, 20.5 ride with 7 rivet holes 2340g, 20" ride with 8 rivet holes 2186g (concentrated on about 2/3s of the area of the cymbal, but with about 1/3 of the area with no rivets, which is where Larry would play the cymbal). These cymbals were matched with great care. 

Larry passed away in 2005, but he left behind an incredible legacy. Contact Steve at vintagedrums@aol.com or by text at 630 865 6849. Please note that we are selling this set in its entirety as seen here. We are not splitting out any of the items. This set must remain together. Here is a link to a Bill Evans trio (Bill, Larry and Chuck Israels) performance where you will see Larry playing this exact set and the some of cymbals. Please note that this is a low resolution black and white clip, so the color of the kit doesn't reflect the natural wood and looks somewhat "white": HERE.

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