There’s a scene in a recent Led Zeppelin documentary in which the band’s powerhouse drummer, John Bonham, discusses how important an influence Gene Krupa was on his approach to playing drums. Regularly raised too has been the impact Krupa had on the thunderous, edge-of-your-seat style of other rock skin-bashers like The Who’s Keith Moon, Ringo, Rush’s Neil Peart or Mitch Mitchell of the Jimi Hendrix Experience, to name but a few.
Of course, inside tight swing circles Krupa’s influence casts wider still. Curious though is that despite his lofty success through his 30s and 40s heyday and the huge legacy he has left for music in general, it’s fair to say that Krupa’s story and stature has long since been overshadowed by other technical showmen from the era – in particular, Buddy Rich. Yet there’s a paragraph within this new biography by Elizabeth J. Rosenthal that documents a 1950s drum battle between Krupa, Rich and Max Roach in which “all three received applause, but it was Krupa that got people out of their seats and moving”. “You could have the fastest left hand and the fastest feet in the world,” Roach reports, “but it doesn’t mean anything unless you can communicate and make people feel something, which is what Krupa could do.”
Indeed, Krupa’s impeccable style, showmanship, technical prowess and power to project to an audience are just four of many areas under the microscope in this, the first book on Krupa’s career since Bruce Crowther’s Life And Times in 1987. Indeed, fine comb in hand, Rosenthal has overturned every stone, speaking to key players and associates to bring to the fore the never-before-heard stories, anecdotes, interviews and press snippets that pack out this richly researched book.
Covering the drummer legend’s early beginnings, the first chapters take us from his childhood in a cheerless, steelworks-dominated south Chicago, to his first experiences as a player prior to turning pro at the tender age of 13. From here, using descriptive prose to radiantly visualise the scene, Rosenthal rolls out a true American jazz success story, a musical tour-de-force that exploded between the 1930s and the 1950s. Despite the impact and challenges of a world war, economic downturn and segregation, Krupa’s star shone as brightly as his then-musical haven on Broadway.
Rosenthal, alongside many other talking heads, deftly reaffirm Krupa’s key role in jazz, defining the practice-mad drummer as being as important as Tommy Dorsey and “King of Swing” Benny Goodman in the triumphant big-band scene. Indeed, when not leading his own band Krupa often became the focal point of any orchestra, much to the great annoyance of Goodman, for example.
Through the latter chapters, the compelling text goes on to shine new light on the classic Carnegie Hall show Goodman of 1938, a stack of infamous recordings (including his tom-tom thumping Sing Sing Sing performance), news reports of teens across the state cutting class to attend his shows, his double-drum rumblings with Buddy Rich and the countless Hollywood movies he appeared in. Also here in great detail is Krupa’s much publicised drug bust during the infamous “Reefer Madness” era. It was an incident that led to public outcry, humiliation and, after a 90-day spell in jail, the cancellation of shows and big-money contracts, exclusion from various venues and a huge loss of earnings.
Rosenthal reports how Krupa miraculously bounced back from this fall to regain his position as one of the most famous and talked-about players of his time, right up to his death from heart failure at 64 in 1973. More than just a comprehensive account of a highly skilled drummer who would often leave his “audience’s eyes glittering and their mouths hung open”, this riveting, roller-coaster ride through Krupa’s career is a monumental survey on big-band jazz from an era that produced stars and suitably promoted peerless masters of their craft. Essential reading, even for the faithful followers and skin-bashers of rock.
The Master Of Drums: Gene Krupa And The Music He Gave The World by Elizabeth J. Rosenthal. Citadel Press, 376pp. ISBN 978-0-8065-4326-0
