Favorite Mellotron Albums!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 พ.ค. 2024
- Join Pete Pardo, Ken Golden, and Scot Lade as they discuss some of their favorite albums featuring the Mellotron. #mellotronrules #mellotron
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Ken's picks:
Schicke Fuhrs Frohling - Symphonic Pictures
Spring - Spring
Rainbow Theatre - The Armada
Pulsar - Halloween
Beggars Opera - Waters Of Change
Canarios - Ciclos
Museo Rosenbach - Zarathustra
Anglagard - Epilog
Cathedral - Stained Glass Stories
Anekdoten - Vemod
Pete's picks:
King Crimson-In the Wake of Poseidon (1970)
Gracious-This is Gracious! (1971)
Barclay James Harvest-Live (1974)
Anglagard-Hybris (1992)
Epidaurus-Earthly Paradise (1977)
Earth and Fire-Song of the Marching Children (1971)
Celeste-Principi De Un Giorno (1976)
Museo Rosenbach-Zarathustra (1973)
Cathedral-Stained Glass Stories (1978)
Wobbler-Hinterland (2005)
Scott's picks:
Dukes Of Stratosphear - 25 O’Clock
England - Garden Shed
All Traps On Earth - A Drop Of Light
Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused To Sing
Wobbler - Rites At Dawn
PFM - Storia di Un Minuto
Built To Spill - Perfect From Now On
Harmonium - The Five Seasons
The Rolling Stones - Their Satanic Magesties Request
Spock’s Beard - The Light
Absolutely more homework/ I’ll nickel and dime it in between. Sundays FIREFALL. Pete, thank you for your time & these lists 👍💯
Are adding Scott’s picks?
I’m trying to make a playlist
Definitely some listening to check out, What we love of lists of music and great show to get all the damn time. It's all good. Scott we can watch and see what he picked. No listing of them anyway in comments I see . If he didn't want to be or to lace them in later. Love the 3 of you. Have a great day.
Dukes Of Stratosphear - 25 O’Clock
England - Garden Shed
All Traps On Earth - A Drop Of Light
Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused To Sing
Wobbler - Rites At Dawn
PFM - Storia di Un Minuto
Built To Spill - Perfect From Now On
Harmonium - The Five Seasons
The Rolling Stones - Their Satanic Magesties Request
Spock’s Beard - The Light
@@TheProgCorner / thank you Scot for your list 👍💯
Back in the last century, I read an interview with Woolly Wolstenholme - original keyboardist with Barclay James Harvest. Woolly said that it was a nightmare taking his Mellotron keyboard on the road. The Mellotron was susceptible to changes in temperature. During cold weather, when the roadies took the band’s equipment from the back of their van and into the warm concert venue, the Mellotron used to attract moisture/condensation. More often than not, it wouldn’t work. Woolly said it was enough just overseeing the roadies to treat the Mellotron with care since the mechanism was “delicate”in comparison to BJH’s other stage gear. Woolly came up with a solution to the condensation problem. He would remove the back of the keyboard cabinet and carefully place an electric fire/heater a couple of feet away. This slowly raised the temperature of the tape mechanism, dried off any condensation and got the instrument ready for the gig. Maybe the Mellotron was never meant to be taken out on the road!
Stuart John “Woolly” Wolstenholme 15/4/47 - 13/10/10 Thank you for your music. May you Rest In Peace.
I'm here for the Moody Blues.
As I heard once said.. the Mellotron is the most "human" sounding instrument ever created.. It's terrific! Love it !
Moody Blues. In Search of the Lost Chord.
Absolutely!
@@HawklordLITotally!
Anything up through SEVENTH SOJOURN.
King Crimson gets their rightful share of credit but let's spare a moment for Mike Pinder's Mellotron epic, "Have You Heard- The Voyage." Absolute canned orchestral perfection!
Sure glad Steve Hackett talked Genesis into buying King Crimson's MKII Mellotron.. Nursey Cryme and Foxtrot would NOT have sounded the same with out. They(Genesis) later moved to the M400 with Selling England by the Pound.🙂
Here's a contrarian choice: Phaedra by Tangerine Dream. A lot of people assume they are a synth band but they used a Mellotron alongside Moog and VCS3 on their recordings and in concert throughout the 70s and early 80s. They had multiple sets of customised tapes (as did Patrick Moraz) so you hear some pretty unique sounds. When the Fairlight sampler came along and their peers like Klaus Schulze used it, they stuck with their customised Mellotron, preferring the sound.
Anything from 60’s/70’s Moody Blues. Long live the Mellotron!!
Hawkwind-Warrior on the Edge of Time was maybe the first time my ears really stood up as young fledgling teenager in the 70s
Opeth’s Damnation or The Raven That Refused To Sing from Steven Wilson is probably my favorite. Air’s soundtrack for The Virgin Suicides is an underrated mellotron based album.
Steven Wilson is awesome
April 1968
Odessey and Oracle
Studio album by The Zombies
My top picks - The Moody Blues "A Question of Balance", Barclay James Harvest "Time Honored Ghosts", The Strawbs "Hero & Heroine"
Correction:
Barclay James Harvest did actually tour the US...
I saw them in 1976 at the old Scottish Rite Cathedral, here in Philadelphia. The lineup was Be-Bop Deluxe, Crack The Sky and BJH in the opening slot. It was back when (in some cases) there would be 2 shows a night, so I got to see them twice !
All three bands were phenomenal that evening, btw...
saw BJH open up for Papa John Creach at the Bottom Line { NYC } in March of that same year (still have my stub}.
I love the way Ken consistently remembers when and where he acquired particular albums! That's quite a feat when one considers how many tens of thousands he must have bought in his life.
Anything Pinder with the Moody's or solo..........RIP......MP
This was an amazing presentation. I saw ELP in Ludwigshafen Germany while in High School on their Trilogy Tour. I was a bass player in a prog band at the time and helped load them in and out as well. After Stray Dog completed their opening set, a huge painted curtain went up and when ELP came on, Greg Lake was playing the Mellotron as they kicked off with "Abaddon's Bolero". Amazing show and venue (Friedrich-Ebert-Halle).
This is a wonderful topic, and incredibly timely for me. Last week I bought a used Casio CT-S500 keyboard by mail and it’s due to show up today. I have been watching TH-cam demos of these new Casiotone keyboards (the CT-S1 and the CTS500, each about $220 and $370 new respectively) because they have a patch called ‘Tape Flute’. It is a PERFECT Strawberry Fields Forever mellotron sound! I’m so thrilled to be getting this budget keyboard with a Mellotron hidden in it!
In the early 1980s, my neighbors had a 1960s cover band. They were really into using authentic instruments from 1960s records, so my friend Chris and his bandmates had a Rickenbacker 12 string, a real Sitar he got from an Indian restaurant, a dulcimer, an autoharp, Vox SuperBeatle amps, a Vox Continental organ…and then came the day the keyboardist got a real Mellotron. I remember him showing me how by holding down on the keys you only had 8 seconds of sound. I totally agree, I love those sounds more than a lot of actual orchestration and they really help define that era of rock music.
I vote for more of these too, especially a Moog album chat, a Hammond organ chat, but also an ARP 2500/2600 chat!!! That synth was such a rock/prog instrument, and there are now affordable clones of it that Behringer makes…I hope to get one eventually, as they only run $500-$700.
Congratulations on your Casio purchase. I’ve got several modules and synthesizers with quite a collection of mellotron samples. I wanna put it on every song!
For me, my love of the Mellotron is the individual songs that its used on, not necessarily a whole album
That is exactly right.
Same here, loved Rush's use of it on "Tears"
I’m waiting for the review of the best cowbell albums.
Any early Quo album.
Strawbs -Hero and Heroine is a masterpiece showcase for the mighty tron! RIP John Hawken
SOOOOOOO happy you put Spring on the list. This group made one album and it could have passed by unnoticed. It has really loads of mellotrons, so in a tier list, this one should be on top.
I bought the album back in the 70s just because it had a cool cover.
Great show. I never knew ELP toured with a Mellotron for the Trilogy tour. I did know that Keith was not a fan. I'll never forget hearing a mellotron in concert with the band Tranquility.
Did someone say MELLOTRON?! Hell yeah!
There's a lot of mythology surrounding Mellotrons. The biggest one is that they are not reliable and are difficult to maintain. The MkI/MkII models were designed for home use only and should never have been taken on the road. Mike Pinder was the only person touring with MkII's who was able to maintain his Mellotrons on the road and even then, problems were few and far between. The portable M400, which most every Mellotron band had, is very reliable and requires very little maintenance. The problem bands had with them was not with the Mellotrons, but with the people handling and abusing them. I spend way more time maintaining just one guitar than I do my current Streetly M4000, which is much more complex than the M400. I know dozens of people who own both vintage and new Mellotrons. We have discussed this subject to death and all agree that they are very reliable and easy to maintain.
Watcher of Skies
That eerie introduction is the best thing on the album !
I went to see the Strawbs around 1973 looking forward to hearing the mellotron. Imagine my disappointment when it was announced before the show that the mellotron wouldn't be used due to RF interference from a local radio station. Im still angry that they neglected to put an RF filter on the power supply.
I saw the Moody Blues many times in the 60s and Mike Pinder gave his mellotron a good workout on Legend of a Mind. Gypsy was a standout tune, also.
King Crimson in 1973 had two mellotrons, played by Fripp and Mel Collins, who memorably rocked his back and forth while thrusting his sax in the air during Cirkus. He came close to tipping the thing over!
Great idea for an episode. I'd love to see one similar featuring the Hammond organ!
Wobbler - Silence To Somewhere
IQ - The Wake
Genesis - Foxtrot
Steve Hackett - Voyage of the Acolyte
Moody Blues - Days of Future Passed
Yes - CLose to the Edge
Spock's Beard - The Kindness of Strangers
Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour
Moody Blues - In Search of the Lost Chord
Barclay James Harvest - Live
This is by far the episode that touched me the most! I took a pencil and paper and will learn so much. Thank you guys, please milk this series the best you can whenever a great album comes to your minds.
The mellotron in the Beatles Story exhibit in Liverpool is alleged to be the one used on Strawberry Fields Forever. Mike Pinder introduced Lennon to the instrument
The Zombies Odessey and Oracle. Rod Argent is so underrated.
Agree Pete BJH live is a classic live album dripping in Wooly
mellotron 👍🏻👏
Have some, must buy others. Finally someone actually mentioned Scotland's own Beggars Opera. And yes, first 3 are the best. Heading off to play my mellotron vst. Wife running out door....
I remember buying Soundgarden - Superunkown and reading the credits. The song Mailman credits Matt Cameron playing Mellotron. I was 16. Never heard of the instrument before and so I did some digging (asking at local record stores) that was the day I bought Genesis - Trespass & King Crimson - In the Court…. My life has been more full filled since that day. Opeth - Damnation is one of the best modern Mellotron albums imo. Great show!
Love that England Album, found an original copy at my local record shop 2-3 years ago
Built to Spill yea great so see the band got a mention.."Perfect from Now On"..just an.amazing album!
👍👍👍
Yes, that surprised me. I don’t have that album but I’m gonna check it out. Dinosaur Jr. ‘Green Mind’ has mellotron on it as well.
The ending of Seven Stones on Genesis' Nursery Cryme is mellotron bliss. Also the end of Rush's Tears from 2112 is a great mellotron moment.
The "Cannibal Holocaust" Soundtrack has some creepy Mellotron .
Good call. I must admit I like the soundtrack album a lot more than the movie.
Strawbs - Ghosts (1975) Life Auction has the best in your face mellotron chords ever.
Fantastic show gents. Scot picking across the decades was enlightening. The album (well... Compact Disc, I don't believe it was ever transferred to vinyl) of choice is: The MELLOTRON album - The Rime of the Ancient Sampler. The who's who of well-known mellotron players.
The only trouble with that album - NOT enough MELLOTRON !!
Excellent discussion. Thank you.
Love the Built to Spill pick Scott!
And of course Moody Blues!
- King Crimson: In the Court of the Crimson King (1969)
Of course, this needs no explaining as it's been discussed plenty of times, no doubt about it "Epitaph" and the title track are simple some of the greatest Mellotron moments.
- Yes: Close to the Edge (1972)
No explaining needed, some of Wakeman's best Mellotron playing can be found here, same for Tales From Topographic Oceans
- Ange: Guet Apens (1978)
Ange was often referred to as a Mellotron band, but they barely used it at all, preferring that strange Viscount organ. The big exception being this 1978 released where Ihe Mellotron is upfront and not hidden and a truly great Mellotron album (Francis Décamps still used the Viscount). It's a bit strange that their most Mellotron-heavy album would appear in 1978 when their debut appeared in 1972 (and what little tron heard on those previous albums are barely noticeable or not used at all).
- Änglagård: Hybris (1992)
The 1980s were not exactly a good time for the Mellotron, but this Swedish band helped bring the tron back from the grave in the 1990s.
- Cathedral: Stained Glass Stories (1978)
Amazing prog with tons of Mellotron, plenty of tron choir, and Änglagård never made it a secret about this album being a big inspiration when they recorded Hybris.
- Beggars Opera: Waters of Change (1971)
- Quarteto 1111: Cantamos Pessoas Vivas (1975)
- José Cid: 10.000 Anos Depois Entre Vénus E Marte (1978)
- Spring: Spring (1971)
- Wobbler: Rites at Dawn (2011)
- Lars Fredrik Frøislie: Fire Fortellinger (2023)
I was always imagining what a solo album from Lars Fredrik Frøislie would be like, my wish came true. Had no idea he could sing and play drums as well. No surprise this emphasizes his keyboard playing, so unsurprisingly he uses his Mellotron and plenty of it. I forgot he also used Chamberlin as well (I remembered very well in 2009 watching a TH-cam video of him purchasing a Chamberlin model M1 from an American seller).
- Barclay James Harvest: Live (1974)
The first BJH album I picked up was Once Again. I was told they used Mellotron, but I didn't notice it on that album. Turns out it was used on that album, I simply wasn't familiar with the sound of the M300, which Woolly Wolstenholm used, but there were plenty of real strings as well. At least with this 1974 Live album, as the band couldn't afford a real orchestra, Woolly let the Mellotron do the work in place of real strings.
- Edgar Froese: Epsilon in Malaysian Pale (1975)
Tangerine Dream were a major user of the Mellotron, but on his own, Froese really let the Mellotron loose on his second solo album, about 75% Mellotron, even when the synths kick in.
- Museo Rosenbach: Zarathustra (1973)
- Canarios: Ciclos (1974)
This Spanish band started off as a regular pop rock band, apparently "Get On Your Knees" from 1968 was apparently popular in Spain. By the time Teddy Bautista return from military duty, he resurrected Canarios with a drastic change in sound, in this case a full prog take on Vivaldi's The Four Season, with tons of added on stuff that Vivaldi would never dream of. Teddy Bautista uses plenty of Mellotron throughout.
- Epidaurus: Earthly Paradise (1977)
- Ethos: (Ardour) (1976)
Two keyboardists, who used plenty of Mellotron and Chamberlin.
- Ethos: Open Up (1977)
Down to one keyboardist, who played Chamberlin, but not Mellotron, but it runs pretty much the same, and sounds similar.
Great concept guys. Looking forward to more episodes.
Great Show, guys! Opened my eyes to a few new things.
Great show guys love this, will hopefully discover some new stuff thank you
When sampling arrived, Rick Wakeman set fire to his mellotron. Great in the studio but a nightmare on tour. Genesis actually bought one of King Crimson's mellotrons. I hope it wasn't the one that was always breaking down. KC were IMHO the kings of the instrument. What a great discussion.
How cool thank you guys love this mellotron topic! Great discussion; Ken - great mellotron purchasing story!
Fun topic and presentation. Thanks for doing it.
Faaaaaaaantastic show! Tons of music and lots of research, upcoming... 👏👏👏
Great show! Does anybody know Belgium’s best prog band Machiavel?’ ‘Jester’ and ‘Mechanical Moonbeams’ are classics and the mellotron is all over them. In the second part of ‘After the Crop’ the mellotron is used in a AC/DC type theme. You must hear it to believe it but it works! I hope these albums will be featured in a part II episode.
Great episode ! Can't wait for another one and some with the Mini-Moog, the Hammond and the Fender Rhodes ! Thank you guys ! Great trio !
The 'islands" era King Crimson live '71-'72 is the absolute peak in the history of my favorite instrument!
Islands-In the Wake-Studio Albumbs-K.C.-"Easy Money"-Live '73-'74--Cirkus live '71-'72-Sailors Tale-'71-'72.
Thanks, Pete for this brilliant show, always loved the sound of the mellotron, being a music prog fan that goes back to the late sixties. Was a massive ELP and Crimson fan. Just having three of you doing the show worked well for me, sometimes less is more. Hope there is many more shows to come.
Keep them coming.
Regards from the UK. 😊
What a panel!
very nice choices!!!! I'm such a sucker for the old cranky thing 😍
Great show!! Looking forward to more Mellow-Tronics. Thanks Scot for the Built To Spill choice-will investigate...
Cathedral...one of my all time favorite prog bands!
shout out to Ken...I'd never heard/heard of Rainbow Theatre before this episode. Both albums are now part of my collection. Thanks!
Coincidentally, this SOT video appeared the day John Hawken died - May 15, 2024. It was nice to see his mellotron work with Strawbs celebrated by a few commentators.
Mellatron heaven video. Kudos for Pete, Scot, Ken!
Excellent show fellas!
Scot's a phenomenal guest!
Really enjoyed the show. So good to see discussions of some great albums you don`t always hear about. But what really got my attention was Scott`s mention of Built To spill. That`s got to be a first on SoT. "Perfect From Now On" could be my favorite BTS album, but I never thought about it in terms of a mellotron album. I`ll hear it with new ears now.
Great show!
AWESOME !
My personal favorite mellotron album is Foxtrot by Genesis
Definitely more please!
Mellotron was made in Birmingham UK and Mike Pinder was an employee tester there.
Incredible knowledge and insight from everyone.
Great vid and commentary. Lots of mellotron to check out.
I do recall you did a video on the mellotron and the album covers that has the mellotron on them. I bought just a few 💿 CDs that you mentioned BJH,Cressida,Gracious and Earth and Fire. Great video though very informative video on what the instrument is and what it sounds like,it’s sounds haunting but it’s beautiful nonetheless.
The Moody blues to our children's children's children.
That album was taken to the moon !
Built to spill is a killer pick
Do more of this! Hanmond episode would be great aswell! And Rhodes and moog aswell! Do them all!
Did you guys mention Strawbs? The Grave New World album for one has gobs of mellotron.
So amazing listening to you three masters discussing about my favorite instrument. And the cherry on the cake : Harmonium picked by Scot !!! By the way, I own one ! Not an analog but a 4000 D. Serial number 0775 guys !
Not an album, but one of my all-time favorite 'tron songs is "Out in the Rain" by the German prog band JANE. Some glorious, breathtaking mellotron on that one.
Definitely has to be mentioned: 'In the Land of Grey and Pink' by Caravan !
Thank you Pete, Ken and Scot for a fun and informative favorite Mellotron albums episode. Would be cool to do a Hammond Organ favorite albums episode. Another possible episode would be to name the top few favorite musicians who transitioned from Mellotron to Hammond Organ and Moogs. Regards, Sal.
The very first “A Ha!” Moment I had with the Mellotron was seeing a Canadian band called Fludd when I was 14. “I’m On My Way” From that moment on, I recognized the sound on all my records.
Great episode and great picks by all. Bring on more. I would like to see episodes on the Moog and Hammond along with more Mellotron episodes. The Mellotron is one of my favorite sounding instruments. Here are some albums and songs that come to mind. Not all are my favorites but to me the 'tron really stands out on these albums and tracks.
Albums
Terje Rypdal - Whenever I Seem To Be Far Away (side one of LP).
Edgar Froese- Epsilon In Malaysian Pale
Songs:
Bee Gees - Every Christian Lion Hearted Man Will Show You (from Bee Gees' 1st)
Strawbs - New World (from Grave New World)
Michael Quatro - In Collaboration With The Gods (title suite from album of same title)
A bunch of new names for me to explore. Nice one, chaps! 👍
Hey Guys!
Great show, love the mellotron/deep cuts
I was surprised that my #1 didn't get a mention, the only line up I know where, all member play a mellotron
Morte Macabre (very spooky)
Reine Fiske / guitars, violin, Mellotron, Fender Rhodes (one of my favorite scandi.. guitar players, ou la la, also plays occasionally with Motorpsycho!!!
Nicklas Berg / Mellotron, Fender Rhodes, Theremin, sampler, guitar, bass
Stefan Dimle / bass, Mellotron, Moog
Peter Nordins / drums, percussion, Mellotron
Next: Steve Hackett - Voyage of the Acolyte (I believe Mr Hackett played at least some of the mellotron on the album who no doubt learned from one of the greatest)
15 from me (straying away from the more known bands):
Edgar Froese - Epsilon in Malaysian Pale
Lift - Caverns of Your Brain
Morte Macabre - Symphonic Holocaust
Barclay James Harvest - Live
SFF - Symphonic Pictures
Spring - s/t
Celeste - Principe di un Giorno
Limelight - s/t
England - Garden Shed
Gracious - This is... Gracious!!
Air - The Virgin Suicides
Litmus - You are Here
Cosmos Factory - An Old Castle of Transylvania
Fantasy - Beyond the Beyond
Cathedral - Stained Glass Stories
Air - The Virgin Suicides - nice relatively pick!!
Pete and Scott are my heroes when it comes to music archivists..
Agreed, Scot - PFM were at their best when they sang in Welsh.
I had no idea that Pick Withers was in Spring.
That’s a revelation.
Love the Zon -Astral Projector album in your background Scot Lade. Still have mine as well. Seen them a couple of times, many, many moons ago. First time opening for Max Webster, I believe. Great episode guys.
I love Zon!!!
Discipline - “To Shatter All Accord”. Specifically the song, “When she dreams she dreams in color.” The mellotron is incredibly beautiful.
This was a great show!! I think my favorite mellotron group is probably Anekdoten. They have some gorgeous songs. My favorite album of theirs is probably Gravity.
Agree 100%
Every Moody Blues Lp from the classic 7 era ‘Days of Future Past’ thru ‘Seventh Sojourn’ even though Mike Pinder switched over to playing a chamberlain in addition to his Mellotron on ‘Seventh Sojourn’
Also Rip Pinder🙏🏼
Yes, S S was SUCH a REFRESHING sound ! ALL ROUND !
'Epsilon in Malaysian Pale' by Edgar Froese has to be the ultimate pure mellotron album
Beggars Opera - Waters of Change. Great choice Ken. You were right about Martin Griffith's son Phillip being in the band Poor Genetic Material (he sounds remarkably like his father). Apart from Phillip the rest of the band are German. Some very nice albums over the last 20 years or so, some featuring Martin on guest vocals.
Edgar Froese’s Epsilon in Malaysian pale is my favorite
Hero and Heroine-Strawbs is the best Mellotron album. On the Threshold of a Dream and To our Childrens childrens children- Moody Blues. In the Court of the Crimson King and Red - King Crimson. Foxtrot and Selling England by the pound -Genesis
FINALLY!!!!! Somebody mentions The Strawbs, Hero and Heroine!! Not only is it the best mellotron album, it is one of the best prog albums of all time that too many have never heard! John Hawken, their keyboard player at the time (1974?) played some nightmarish tones on that album. C'mon guys!! We need more Strawbs love on the channel!!! 😄
I agree with you and the Mellotron on the title track is pure magic. Grave new world, Autumn and Ghosts are also fantastic
Italian Prog: 'Terra in Bocca', by I Giganti; a rock opera about the Sicilian Mafia. Drenched in Mellotron throughout!
Really dig Phaedra by Tangerine Dream and dig Ys by Il Balletto di Bronzo. Count me among the happily surprised to hear Built to Spill mentioned!
Barclay James Harvest Live are the best way to hear them as they sound a bit tame in studio .
Dark and Spooky mellotron.
Devils Triangel (King Crimson)