Drumming News Network to Exhibit Carmine Appice’s Rare Drum Kit at Chicago Drum Show

A rare piece of drum history will sit on the Chicago Drum Show floor when Drumming News Network opens booth #114 in partnership with Donn Bennett’s Drum Vault. The display centers on Carmine Appice’s iconic kit, the one tied to the Realistic Rock era and to a stretch of hard-rock drumming that still shapes how players talk about feel, power, and stage presence. DNN says the set had not been publicly displayed in more than 15 years.

That makes this year’s Chicago Drum Show more than a weekend of buying, selling, and browsing vintage gear. The 2026 edition is scheduled for May 16 and 17 at the Prairie Events Center at the Kane County Fairgrounds in St. Charles, Illinois, with doors open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. The show bills itself as the longest running drum show in the United States, started by Rob Cook in 1991 and now run by Johnny and Brian Drugan of Drugan’s Drums & Guitars. For drummers who build their year around rare shells, signature hardware, and direct access to people who know the history behind the gear, that kind of gathering still matters.

The Appice exhibit gives the show a centerpiece with real weight. DNN says the kit is the one immortalized on the original cover of Appice’s Realistic Rock instruction book and associated with his work with Rod Stewart. Appice’s official site says The Realistic Rock Drum Method sold more than 400,000 copies, which helps explain why this particular set carries meaning beyond collector value. DNN’s follow-up announcement said the featured 10-piece Ludwig Natural Maple Thermogloss kit was used extensively from 1976 to 2003 and prominently during Appice’s Rod Stewart years from 1976 to 1981, including appearances in multiple music videos.

The booth also shows how the community around drumming has changed. DNN has positioned itself as the official media sponsor for the 2026 Chicago Drum Show, moving from coverage of the scene to a physical presence inside it. That shift matters in a culture where some of the best learning still happens face to face, through a close look at a legendary kit, a conversation about finish and hardware, or an educational clinic that sends players home with fresh ideas. The 2026 program includes clinic sessions with six world-renowned artists, giving collectors, players, and younger drummers a reason to spend the full day on the floor instead of making a quick pass through the aisles.