As a teenager in the 80’s my musical pallet was expanding by leaps and bounds once I got to high school. Through all the different kinds of new music coming out, one thing that was happening was a bit of a 60’s revival. The Beatles were always popular as Paul, George and Ringo were all active in the 80’s. The Doors had a revival of sorts, The Grateful Dead were still big thanks to a hit that kept them current, the Monkees reformed and even the classic line up of Iron Butterfly did a tour. Another band that stayed popular as ever was Jimi Hendrix. Friends of mine turned me on to the albums and a little later on, I saw Jimi Hendrix’s performance at the Monterey Pop Festival on VHS. Mitch Mitchell was definitely someone that I took notice of and along with John Densmore, I was propelled to work on my weak hands as both of them displayed great technique in their playing. Mitch had a great fluid jazz approach with lots of creative ideas that cumulated in some of the best most organic drumming on record from the 60’s. As I got older and started playing out on a professional level, some of the bands I played with covered the music of Jimi Hendrix. It was there that I got to fully appreciate the things Mitch did in my attempts at covering the songs. To this day I have a great love and respect for his playing and Mitch is another one of the pieces of the puzzle that makes up my drumming DNA. While searching Facebook one day, I came across a group dedicated to Mitch Mitchell and immediately sent in a request to join.
Long time Mitch Mitchell admirer and drummer Major Kevin John Simon, who first heard Mitch in 1967 when he was in high school as Are You Experienced was just released, started the group. Kevin was a self-taught drummer until he joined the Marines in Washington D.C. to be in the drum and bugle corps at age 24. It was here that Kevin received the proper training that allowed him to better understand the things Mitch did. All these years later, Kevin started the group to keep Mitch’s legacy alive, educate younger generations about Mitch and offer people the chance to see some of Mitch’s famous sets through recreations of the originals. Kevin even hopes to have a YouTube channel at some point where people can learn to play the style that Mitch is so well known for. Kevin has also gone to great lengths to compile tons of rare photos, information and general knowledge on all things Mitch and decided to take things further when he took on the incredible task of recreating the three Ludwig sets Mitch used with Jimi Hendrix from 1967-1969. Kevin has studied photo upon photo to recreate all the little details of each set including the use of Rogers hardware and 1940’s cymbal tilters. Kevin breaks down his tribute sets in to 3 category’s; Historic, which is time period correct, cosmetic, which is correct looking for the time and cosmetic-historic, which has a mix of original and correct looking parts that make up the set. Mitch was known for using Rogers hardware so the arduous task of tracking down all the correct pieces was a must in making the sets period correct.
Having been a repair guy at Drums LTD in Chicago from 1981-85, Kevin had no problem doing the work these sets needed as all the wrapping and drilling hardware was an easy task for him. The first set Kevin attempted was the 1967 silver sparkle set that Mitch used. The set is comprised of classic maple shells with a vintage Ludwig rail mount and double straight spurs. The shells had to be wrapped in new silver sparkle and a matching canister throne was created as well, which includes a correct era red top for the seat. A 60’s 5x14 Ludwig Supraphonic snare completes the set along with A. Zildjian cymbals. The set turned out so well that Kevin decided to attempt a recreation of Mitch’s famous Ludwig thermogloss maple set from 1968. For this route, Kevin opted to order the correct sizes from Ludwig using the Legacy series Ludwig offers creating the famous three ply shells of the 60’s. Rogers hardware had to be sourced and Kevin added all the correct era Rogers hardware in the exact locations that Mitch had his. A maple canister throne was also fabricated to perfectly match the set and a 60’s Supraphonic snare and A. Zildjians were added. When Kevin made the decision to showcase the sets and the group at the famous Chicago drum show that happens in May, a decision was made to recreate the Black Panther Ludwig set that Mitch used at Woodstock. The set originally had two bass drums, but one was stolen along the way and Mitch played the set with one bass drum, one tom and two floor toms. Because the sizes of Mitch’s bass drums were 12x24 and very hard to source, Kevin used an original 1967 14x24 in champagne sparkle. He also had a 9x13, 14x14 and 16x16 on hand. All of the drums were wrapped over the original color using a Black Panther looking wrap that Kevin was able to locate. The covering can easily be removed at any time and Kevin also wrapped over a Black Pearl 1970 Ludwig canister throne for an added extra touch as Mitch did not have a canister throne with this set. Since Mitch used a Rogers Powetone snare at Woodstock, an original 60’s one was sourced and added to the set. All the correct hardware and stands were used as well as a set of A. Zildjians. The result is a beautiful display of the three Ludwig sets Mitch recorded and toured with from 1967-1969.
Kevin recently showcased the group as well as the three replica sets at the Chicago drum show this past May. T-shirts, stickers and business cards were made up. Each set had a banner behind it describing the details and the Vater drum stick company made special sticks in Mitch’s exact sizes. The stick design was a design Mitch approved just before his death and they will be available in the Mitch Mitchell Fan Club store that Kevin plans to launch soon. The proceeds of all the merchandise help bring this “living history” display (as Kevin puts it) to the people. The most exciting draw though was the presence of Mitch’s daughter Aysha Mitchell and her daughter Sophia Ross. Aysha was born a mere 18 days before Jimi’s untimely passing and he was her Godfather. Getting to meet Mitch’s family and watching them experience the many drummers that expressed gratitude for the influence of Mitch was a special thing to see.
Kevin hopes that the number of likes on the Mitch Mitchell fan club page increases and they are able to bring the display to other drum shows and events in the future. Kevin is also hoping to be able to recreate more of these sets for anyone in the future that is looking to buy one. Be sure to like the page by searching Mitch Mitchell and keep an eye out for a future store with merchandise. The legacy of Mitch Mitchell will live on for years to come.