04/28/2026
It's Jazz Appreciation Month!
Arthur "Art" Blakey was born on October 11, 1919 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Blake began his music career playing the piano when he was a teenager before switching to drums in the 1930s. There is a story about the origin od the switch where he was forced to play drums during a gig, though this is not confirmed. He played for several bands until he co-founded the Jazz Messengers in 1954. Around this time, Blake began playing Gretsch drums. He started off on Broadkaster model kits, which consisted of one bass, one snare drum, and two toms with theee K. Zildjian cymbals. In a 1958 catalog, he is listed as playing the Broadkaster "Progressive Jazz" drum outfit, though by 1966, it is shortened to Progressive Jazz. Some say that he played the Round-Badge drums and he did, though it was not a different kind of model. The round-badge is used for all Gtetsch drums from the 1930s to 1971 when they switched over to the "stop-sign" badge. He stayed with the Jazz Messengers until shortly before his death on October 16, 1990.
