Died On This Date (March 22, 2008) William F. Ludwig Jr. / Built Ringo’s Drums
themusicsover William F. Ludwig Jr.
1916 – March 22, 2008
William Ludwig Jr. was the son of the founder of the Ludwig Drum Company, and eventually become its leader. Ludwig Jr.’s most celebrated contribution to rock ‘n’ roll came in the form of a drum set that he built for Ringo Starr. It has been reported that Starr was so proud to play a Ludwig set, that he asked the company to build a special kit with the their logo on the bass drum for the Beatles’ first televised appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. This of course, contributed to Ludwig’s tremendous growth in the ’60s, with Ludwig Jr. at the helm. William Ludwig Jr. died of natural causes on March 22, 2008. He was 91 years old.
Dave Guard was an influential American folk singer, best remembered as a founding member of the Kingston Trio. Formed in 1957, the group helped launch the folk revival of the ’60s while becoming one of the first groups to enjoy big sales on the LP format. Their first hit single, “Tom Dooley” is considered one of the most important songs of the era. Artists like Brian Wilson, Joan Baez, Lindsey Buckingham, Jimmy Buffet, and 
One of nine siblings, Mark Dinning recycled an old song written by one of his sisters (of the Dinning Sisters) and turned it into an early rock ‘n’ roll hit. That song was “Teen Angel” which is one of those classic tragedies that tells the chilling story of a young lover killed when her car is stalled on the train tracks. It went to #1 on the Billboard charts even though some stations felt it was too morbid to play. Dinning died of a heart attack at age 52.
