Regal Tip Founder Joe Calato Turns 100
March 20th marked a singular occasion: the 100th birthday of Joe Calato. And while anyone turning 100 is a remarkable achievement in itself, it’s all the more so because of who Joe is: an innovator who can rightly stand as the last of the genuine pioneers of the percussion industry.
Some drummers may not recognise Joe’s name, but it’s very likely that they’re familiar with his accomplishments. For it was this quiet, unassuming man – himself a lifelong drummer – who revolutionised drumstick design by inventing the nylon tip. And while he was at it, Joe also established the independent drumstick industry.
In the Beginning
Joe Calato grew up in Niagara Falls, New York, and took up the drums at the age of eight. When he was 13, the American congress repealed the prohibition of alcohol that had been in place since 1920. Saloons immediately opened and they wanted music. “I started playing and making money,” Joe recalls. “I never wanted to be a great drumming technician, I just wanted to
