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July 03, 2009
From Frank’s Vinyl Museum 3
I’ve been using synthesizers since the late 70’s. The first one I ever played was an ARP 2600. (I still don’t know what the letters and numbers mean…)
I still own a couple of “vintage synths” from the early 80’s that I will always keep. If you come into my studio, you’ll see them there, leaning against the back wall, ready to be called into action should anyone want some authentic early synth sounds.
But even before I ever played a synth, there was the Moog. You can hear this pioneering synthesizer on the Beatle’s “Abby Road” album, and there were some intrepid musicians who produced entire albums using the instrument, despite the fact that you could only play one note at a time.
Here’s one from Frank’s Museum:
Here’s what Frank has to say about it:
Claude Denjean demonstrates his Moog skills on this Phase 4 Stereo Spectacular.
Some guys take a traditional record, throw in a few notes from their Moog Synthesizer, and call it a Moog album. Not Claude Denjean. The Moog takes center stage in this 1970 London Records release, in all its raw beauty.
Electronic music never quite "made it" into mainstream culture -- that's probably because it took so much work to produce these albums. For all its wizardry, the mainframe-sized Moog could only produce one sound at a time. Artists like Claude Denjean recorded track after track, probably sitting up late into the night hunched over Moog keyboards and sixteen-track tape machines.
Sounds like these might seem ordinary in today's world of digital sound manipulation, but I try to imagine how radical and exciting the Moog must have seemed in the 60's and 70's before everyone had MIDI cards and polyphonic Korg synthesizers.
(Not to mention ProTools and virtual instruments!)
Hear some examples!
Proud Mary You can almost hear the Moog mouthing the words... wah weft wha wha whob whin wha whitty... ok maybe not.
Sugar Sugar Claude knows how to make your life so sweet... yeah!
Venus A heavy-handed Moog version of the classic tune.
Posted by leonolguin at July 3, 2009 02:09 PM
Comments
This is a little more guitar-oriented than keyboard-oriented, but your Beatles reference made me think of it.
I just read through a book called "Beatles Gear." Great information about all the guitars, amps and even the Moog that the Beatles used throughout their recording and performing career.
I was too cheap to buy the book, but it was fun sitting at Borders with a cup of coffee, reading through it!
Posted by: charley at July 3, 2009 09:56 PM