Louie Bellson’s Rogers drum set, Charlie Watts collection.

I managed Charlie’s collection of drums from 2007-2014. Over the course of that time he purchased many sets and other items from me. His desire was to purchase items that were owned by drummers he admired. One of those was Louie Bellson. I sold this set to Charlie and wanted to share it here as a piece of our drumming history. For those who have never heard of Louie, check out this video. It’s a grainy black and white from 1967, but check out Louie’s playing. https://youtu.be/feF0DzZiwzQ?si=w_pSC9wCCqlLH2qz

Below is a description of the set I sold to Charlie:

This drum set is Louie Bellson's Rogers drum set used in the later 60s. Louie was one of the most incredible players of all time, and to have one of his sets in our shop is a true honor. The set consists of  9x13, 16x16, 2-14x22, 5x14 chrome dyna, canister throne, bass drum pedals and high hat stand. This set has been authenticated and originally came from a person who got the set from Louie and had it for many years. The set is a Fullerton era Rogers kit designed to Louie's specifications in that all of the shells are natural interiors, not the speckled interior usually found on Fullerton era drums. Additionally, all knobby brackets with the exception of one cymbal bracket are the old Pat Pend variety, and all collets are the older, sturdy, machined variety. Set is white marine pearl of course, and consists of the following: Two 14x22 bass drums, each with two sets of spurs. The right bass drum also has a knobby bracket for the cymbal arm, and includes the cymbal arm and tilter. There are a few extra holes on top where Louie had moved brackets around. These are plugged with bolts. The left side bass drum has a knobby bracket and the L cymbal arm and tilter. There are a few extra holes on top where Louie moved the bracket once. These are plugged with bolts. This bass drum also has a knobby bracket that was used with an extension arm to secure his high hat to the shell so that he could move it closer to his left foot. The bracket is present, but the extension arm that attaches to the high hat is missing. Both bass drums have the Louie Bellson logo heads. These heads have a silhouette of Louie behind his kit with the words: "The dyna-sonic sounds of Louie Bellson" The Rogers logo name on the heads is a stick on decal. Both of his swivomatic bass drum pedals are included, as is his high hat stand. The toms are 9x13 and  16x16. The 5x14 chrome dyna is in nice shape with a couple of minor dings in the shell. The canister throne is included and it has the initials "L. B." written on the inside. Original Rogers batter heads on the toms. Set sounds wonderful! Truly a historic set!