In an early-1920s vaudeville theater, an 18-month-old in a sailor suit played snare and bass drum to The Stars and Stripes Forever, then tap danced for the finale. By 15 he was earning $1,000 a week, the second-highest-paid child entertainer in the world behind Jackie Coogan. This episode explores how Buddy Rich, billed as Baby Traps the Drum Wonder, grew into one of the most technically gifted drummers who ever lived, and why a childhood of roaring applause produced a man who refused to be subordinate to any bandleader.

We cover his clash with Artie Shaw, his fistfights and lifelong bond with Frank Sinatra, and the baffling fact that he never learned to read sheet music, instead mapping entire arrangements by ear after a single listen. We dig into his contrasting dynamics and grip switching, the 1942 rudiments book he co-authored with Henr ...