Lately I have been on a real roll... no pun intended. Some of the terrific and rare finishes of the past should return. We need to band together and get it done.

What are these great finishes and who should we talk to? Second question first. I think that most, if not all, of the finishes are made in Italy and imported here by distributors. The largest one, Delmar Plastics, is located in Berlin Connecticut.

My first vote is for champagne sparkle and not the "washed out" version that's around now. True champagne sparkle is about 75% copper sparkle and 25% silver sparkle. The current offering, Bermuda Sand, is a 50/50 mix.

I've listed a few other colors that should be considered. I'd love to hear from anyone else interested in this subject. Rob Cook (rebeats@aol.com) publishes a booklet showing most of these colors.

2. Original Black Sparkle (purple sparkles on black)
3. Diamond Sparkle (black with gold sparkles)
4. Silver Sparkle (Rogers glitter)
5. Gold Veil
6. Original Oyster Black (blacker than today's translucent version)
7. Original Oyster Blue (bluer than today's translucent version)
8. Capri
9. Mardi Gras
10. Slingerland White Marine Pearl (no blue tint)

If they don't bring back the colors, we may never be able to match the originals. I guess that will just drive the prices up higher. Decisions, decisions, decisions.

For more information on the great drums of the past, I invite you to purchase my book for Modern Drummer entitled The Great American Drums ! You can order the book through any music store or you can e-mail me and I'll send you an autographed copy.