“Is that REALLY Gene’s?”

I was recently asked to comment on the “authenticity” (or lack thereof) of a few pieces of drum equipment alleged to have belonged to Gene. Needless to say, my initial (dare I say, “knee-jerk”) reaction was my usual deep skepticism.
To put it simply, it’s a complicated process. Any historian faced with these tasks is up against, not only ferreting out shreds of solid, irrefutable evidence wherever possible but also fielding an array of, at times, long ingrained misconceptions, lack of logical thinking, personal bias and just plain old deliberate deception. The level of all these complications as it relates to Gene’s history has been considerable.  The misinformation floating around out there has, in so many instances, long overshadowed the whole process of getting to the factual truths, thus creating a nearly impenetrable ‘wall’ of myth.
As far as I am concerned, it has become a ‘mission’ of mine to try to break down this wall whenever possible. In order to get to the right stuff, it’s essential (i think) to also jettison the wrong stuff. To that end, I start a series of posts called, “Myth Flush”. (I’ll see if I can locate an appropriate image later…..HA!)
MYTH FLUSH 1:
A so-called “Gene Krupa” snare drum….   (stay tuned…)