Ludwig Drums History and Review
Here is a little Ludwig Drums history:
First of all, some of the most notable drummers that play, or have played, Ludwig drums were Ringo Star (The Beatles), Mitch Mitchell (Jimi Hendrix), Nick Mason (Pink Floyd), Ginger Baker (Cream), John Bonham (Led Zeppelin), Clive Bunker (Jethro Tull), Dino Danelli (Young Rascals), Tre Cool (Green Day), Hal Blaine (1960s Studio Legend), Joe Morello (Dave Brubeck), Alex Van Halen (Van Halen), and Buddy Rich.
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The Ludwig Company was established in America by two German-born brothers, the older, William F., and the younger, Theobald Ludwig, in 1910.
Working as a vaudeville drummer in Chicago in 1908, William Ludwig became dissatisfied with the clumsy foot pedals of the day. He began designing pedals capable of fast tempos and high power, and had them made out of wood by a cabinet maker. The Ludwig & Ludwig Company started out by mass producing durable metal versions of William’s pedals. The brothers’ pedal production was followed by timpani, then expanded into other types of drums.
Ludwig Drums were selling strong throughout the 1920s, but the invention of the talking movie, which decreased demand for live percussion, and the US market crash in 1929 severely curtailed Ludwig’s sales.
William Ludwig then sold his company in 1929 to the GC Conn Manufacturing Company of Elkhart, Indiana. Ludwig continued working under GC Conn until 1937, when he became dissatisfied and left to start a new drum manufacturing operation with his son, William F. Jr. They named their new company, The William F. Ludwig Drum Company.
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In February of 1964, Ringo Starr appeared on the Ed Sullivan show playing a Ludwig Drum Set that he picked out at a central London location of the Drum City Store. The words, “The Beatles,” were centered on the bass drum with the Ludwig Logo printed above. This exposure gave Ludwig instant recognition, and it became the number one drum manufacturer in the world until Japanese manufacturers started making major headway in the early 70s.
There you have a little Ludwig Drums history. Ludwig Drum reviews can be obtained by doing a simple Google search in order to see what many drummers have to say about Ludwig Drums.



