Bandleader and drummer
He was innovative. It was his idea to create the tunable tom-tom; he went to the Zildjian company and asked for thinner cymbals; he was the first drummer to record using a bass drum; he was one of the first drummers (if not the first) to use a hi-hat as we know it today; and the modern drum kit basically stems from his.
Inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1983.
Inducted into the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame in 1975.