ULTRA RARE 26” Vintage 1950s Zildjian BLOCK STAMP Ride Crash 4694 g Super DARK! Gorgeous!
Stan Kenton. Brian Blade. Both champion the virtues of the HUGE VINTAGE A, which unfortunately is damn near impossible to find. Not many were made. Not many survived. Fortunately you can now rest those weary feet:
Massive Vintage Early 1950s BLOCK STAMP 26”, yes, 26”! Just like the ones you see in the background of those black and white vintage Zildjian ads and wonder “what the hell is that!” Well…it’s THIS!
The 1940s and early 1950s is my favorite age of Zildjian - back when Thelonious Monk was a “new artist.” That’s crazy to me that you can not only hold a 75 year old 26” Zildjian but you can play it and make music with it right now! You may not have been around in 1951, but the cymbal you’re playing was. That’s incredible to me.
The alloy from this storied era has a soft, suppleness to it - it’s unlike any other era of cymbal making. I’ve always wondered why.
Wonderfully dark and steeped with a 7 decade patina that dries this 26” out perfectly. As you can hear, this Block Zildjian can easily be your main ride. Spectacular definition. Robust, cutting bell. Crashes like you ushered in the apocalypse. All 26 inches roaring.
I’ve only seen one or two of these Block Logo 50s 26s” in my life. Inspiring. A joy to play. Collectible.
And I know Stan Kenton used to travel with a huge 26” and 28” Zildjians and make his drummers play Stan Kenton’s cymbals. Maybe this is one of them…