First rock drummer to mount two toms on their bass drum?

[flamthrower]

I was playing in a rock and roll band since 1957. By 1964, I was playing drum sets with two toms up top. I don't think that I was a trend setter as much as a trend follower of an emerging trend. View attachment 377982

The low caliber bass spurs with a drum anchor and flat base stands. Man, that brings back memories.

 

[Radio King]

I believe it's Eddie Hoh in this clip from Monterey Pop

It is indeed.

 

[VintageUSA]

Cubby O'Brien...perhaps not technically a "rock" drummer at the time and the toms are on a stand since it's a double bass drum set but still this is 1955. A year before Elvis released Heartbreak Hotel and the same year as Rock Around the Clock was a hit, it's not Cubby's fault that "rock" was just then being invented. View attachment 377842
Later he played live with the Carpenters (among others, I saw him once in the early 70's at Six Flags over Mid America backing John Davidson), probably with a lot more than two mounted toms by then.

I was a sound system roadie on tour with the Carpenters in 1973....................Cubby was the drummer at that time.
Nice guy and a good player -- he was using a Ludwig Octa-Plus on that specific tour.

On an unrelated note, I gotta say.......................that Bellson drum set looks completely stupid.

 

[W&A Player]

No more stupid than the drum sets used by some rock gods such as Mr. Bonham. Louie Bellson was an innovator who experimented with many different drum set configurations. The pictured drum set with a cocktail drum used for the center tom and the beer can depth twin bass drums is certainly weird looking. but, Louie could make any drum set sound great.

 

[swarfrat]

Looks stupid because you're looking at 70 years of tradition based on what shook out of that early experimentation.