Post by orioles70 on May 23, 2019 1:23:07 GMT
I just learned today that the Mellotron was first introduced in Birmingham. So I Googled "Mellotron and ELO" and up came this terrific interview (likely it's been posted before).
The article bounces around, but the part I enjoyed most was Jeff talking about his early days. And sure enough - Jeff had a Mellotron in the front room of his parents home.
GM: What instruments did you have in your makeshift studio in your parent’s front room at your house in Birmingham?
JL: It was a primitive set up. I had an acoustic and electric guitar, a piano, a Mellotron. I got a bass by then, one of those Hofner Beatle basses. So in ’68, I could make complete records in my front room, even in those days, with bass, drums, guitar, piano, vocal, harmonies. The sound might not have been top-of-the line studio quality, but you could still hear the ideas. I was also learning a lot about mic placement. For example, to get this great snare drum on the piano stool, I’d have to put the mic in a certain place. I realized it sounded much bigger if you placed it the wrong way, so you were getting the sound reflection off the wall. It sounded like, “WHACK!” It would be a revelation to me. And then, for the bass drum, I’d put a mic with some foam rubber over it and punch it for the bass drum sound. It was a really powerful bass drum sound. So that was all a great education for me. I was teaching myself everything without leaving the front room of my mom and dad’s house (laughs.) And it was brilliant learning how to construct a song and make it so you could play it for somebody.
www.goldminemag.com/articles/jeff-lynne-revisits-his-roots-with-elo-and-classic-covers-projects
The article bounces around, but the part I enjoyed most was Jeff talking about his early days. And sure enough - Jeff had a Mellotron in the front room of his parents home.
GM: What instruments did you have in your makeshift studio in your parent’s front room at your house in Birmingham?
JL: It was a primitive set up. I had an acoustic and electric guitar, a piano, a Mellotron. I got a bass by then, one of those Hofner Beatle basses. So in ’68, I could make complete records in my front room, even in those days, with bass, drums, guitar, piano, vocal, harmonies. The sound might not have been top-of-the line studio quality, but you could still hear the ideas. I was also learning a lot about mic placement. For example, to get this great snare drum on the piano stool, I’d have to put the mic in a certain place. I realized it sounded much bigger if you placed it the wrong way, so you were getting the sound reflection off the wall. It sounded like, “WHACK!” It would be a revelation to me. And then, for the bass drum, I’d put a mic with some foam rubber over it and punch it for the bass drum sound. It was a really powerful bass drum sound. So that was all a great education for me. I was teaching myself everything without leaving the front room of my mom and dad’s house (laughs.) And it was brilliant learning how to construct a song and make it so you could play it for somebody.
www.goldminemag.com/articles/jeff-lynne-revisits-his-roots-with-elo-and-classic-covers-projects