There’s a wonderful article in the March 20, 2005 edition of the Sunday “Philadelphia Inquirer,” written in the first person, about a man who went into a major electronics store in search of a boom box that played CDs and tapes. Surprise! Those units are not made anymore. While you can certainly get tape players, they are no longer being included as a part of portable units. Reason? The kids don’t want, buy or need tape anymore. 

This development, which is really nothing new, might someday apply to VHS video tape. Certainly, VHS will always be “around” — just like LP records — so those who have VHS tapes will always need something to play them on. However, in terms of motion pictures and all other commercial product that you see in your local Blockbuster, VHS has been phased out and is pretty much gone. 

DVDs? They take a while getting used to, especially for those who were born long before the digital revolution. In the case of JazzLegends.com, though, there are distinct advantages. VHS is a mechanical medium, and because it is, things can and do go wrong. Copying a VHS tape always means losing a generation of quality. Consider the terrible quality of some of those Buddy Rich tapes that have been floating around for so many years. That probably wouldn’t have happened if the dupes were made from a top quality DVD. And of course, they take up less space, you can get to the programs’ “good parts” instantly, and they don’t deteriorate in quality. Just don’t scratch them. 

Warner Bros./DCI Music video is now in the process of putting most of their catalog on DVD. “Buddy Rich: Jazz Legend” and “Gene Krupa Jazz Legend” are already on DVD, “Legends of Jazz Drumming” will be shortly, and in the DVD process are the famed, “Buddy Rich Memorial Scholarship” concerts. All Hudson Music product has long been on DVD. 

We don’t know the age of our supporters at JazzLegends.com nor are we aware of how these friends of ours feel about the new technology or DVD versus VHS. What we do know is that the time has come where we have to offer our line of videos on DVD. These will be in the DVD-R format, which we understand is the most playable format in this country. They will not, we are told, play on foreign systems. So for our international customers and for those who want to continue with the good, old VHS system, will will continue to carry all our titles on VHS as well. And we always will. Let us know how you feel about this, and start ordering!

Through the years, we’ve gotten some interesting requests, including “the video” of the 1938 Benny Goodman Carnegie Hall Concert and “the video” of the 1952 “Gene versus Buddy” drum battle. But what people have asked for the most is more video of Buddy Rich on “The Tonight Show.” 

It is not totally common knowledge that for some years, Johnny Carson only owned “The Tonight Show” programs from 1980 on. It wasn’t until relatively recently that he made a deal with NBC, and that deal gave him sole ownership to every “Tonight Show” in existence. Although few programs exist on tape before 1969-1970, there’s plenty of absolutely prime Buddy Rich in the decade of the 1970s. We are in the process of offering some of it on Jazzlegends.com 

Our association with Mr. Carson and his office was always wonderful. When it came to Buddy, the Carson people were quite generous. Johnny Carson, by the way, was my first choice of narrator for “Buddy Rich: Jazz Legend.” I almost had him, but he decided against it. 

Taking all this into account, the good folks at Hudson Music, and yours truly, recently came up with what we believed was one heck of an idea. The concept? Buddy Rich drum solos from “The Tonight Show.” No music, no talking (maybe just a little), just Buddy doing solo after solo after solo. That is why we watched him, wasn’t it? And with over 60 “Tonight Show” appearances, there would be no shortage of material. What a DVD this would make. 

I contacted the same folks I dealt with in the Carson office years ago. Way back when, they were great, open, generous and helpful. After Mr. Carson passed, however, these same folk “turned.” Like curdling milk. They suddenly told us that “absolutely none of this material” was available for licensing, especially after they heard our idea. 

Wow. None of it. And no reason given, except mention was made of the fact that “it’s a shame that much of this music will go unheard.” Not only is that a disgrace, but it’s bull. 

I believe that while Johnny Carson was alive, he saw to it that all of the available “Tonight Shows” would be preserved–and viewed–exactly as they were aired. I’m sure he didn’t want three decades of timeless material cut-up, ala “The Best of Motown on Ed Sullivan.” Well, I get the very strong sense that’s going to happen, which is the only possible reason I can think of to flat-out refuse us the opportunity to license Buddy Rich footage. 

I remember years back trying to make a deal for footage of Buddy with The Boston Pops. They wanted $60,000 for two minutes’ worth of film. I told them that no one had $60,000 and that my fear was that the film that existed would eventually turn to dust. I remember this gentlemen’s reply. “Yes, it will turn to dust,” he said. 

If you want to see this material–and it must be seen–I urge you to log on to www.JohnnyCarson.com and e-mail the folks in charge. All you have to say is “we want to see Buddy Rich.” I know I do. 

Bruce Klauber