B3 Hammond Keyboards

danphxariz

Any keyboardists or organists on here? How about Boom Gaspar fans? I've been piano and organ since I was little, and I got good pretty quickly, I started touring for Hammond when I was 14... graduated high school from the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, and then went to conservatory at the Univ. of Michigan, so i've played and studied everything from classical to current. I've also taught. As far as organs and Hammonds, I've owned the H series, L series, and X-66 series. I played a C series in college, which is very similar to the B, I think only the pedal board was different. The C, H and L all had Leslies, but my X did not. I sold my X-66 on eBay a couple years ago and currently own a Rodgers Marquis. I haven't played in any groups in a long time, but if any Phoenix residents would like to form a PJ cover band or something, I could probably be talked into purchasing a B3...

Let's talk keyboards -

Dan

Pearl Jam and toast

Bump


I don't live in Phoenix or play keyboards (i can play one but nothing special..).

I'd suggest putting an ad for that band on the Porch cuz it gets like 10 times the traffic as here and constantly.

Baeta

Yeah!
Well... In fact, I play keyboards and piano. ...I wish I could play some organ (like Hammonds with those Leslie speakers) and eletric pianos too, but I never had the opportunity to own one. ..and I´m not so good with keys to say the truth, but I started myself in music with those instruments.. and then switched to bass guitar definitely.
I appreciate Boom´s work in Pearl Jam, despite I think it could be better, as I said in the "Benmont Vs Boom" thread (http://forums.pearljam.com/showthread.php?t=204360).

Pacomc79

I freakin love organs. I had a model M that didn't work I rescued from people moving out of a house. My dad and I took it apart, and the tone wheels were going to cost more than the organ was worth to fix, so I took out the tubes, some really nice lightly used RCA black plates, and kept them around, eventually giving them to my local amp tech to pay it foward.

If I ever do manage to put a good blues band toegther, I'm hoping my piano player can learn to use a B3 or at least the digital version, but it's just so cool to have those leslies, on stage 2 is always better than one, and especially if the guitar player gets one too!

Have you ever tried out any of the "fake leslies" like the H&K rotosphere for instance with keyboard?


I hope to one day own a Hammond Organ, a Vox Jaguar and a Fender Rhodes.

keeponrockin

My friend's school had a Fender Rhodes, but they sold it for some reason.

Baeta

Hammonds are the best organs!
I don´t appreciate too much the transitor organ´s sound like the Vox...
And I do prefer a Wurlitzer than a Fender Rhodes. =P
I think Boom should really use much more something like a Wurly in the songs...

danphxariz

I don't know about the "fake" Leslies ... I haven't heard one that really sounded right to me. Maybe there's something out there I don't know about though, thats more than possible.

What I like about Boom's playing is that it seems to fit in so well with the style that the band had already established. He's not really drawing that much attention to himself or doing anything too different. There's not a lot of virtuosity or anything in his playing (although he may be - I haven't heard him do anything but play with the band), but I doubt that would be the right thing. What he's doing now sounds great with the rest of the band, and he plays off Mike particularly well I think. The way he plays really adds something good to the band's sound, but doesn't mess with the overall sound that much.

I was kind of kidding about wanting to get a PJ cover band together - it would be a lot of fun though but I don't know if I'm really up for that again after all this time (I'm 45 now and haven't really played seriously in public since my 20's). And moving an organ around from show to show gets really *heavy*... it's not like moving a guitar - lol. It's a thought though, I could probably be talked into it, but ...

If I'd stayed with keyboards, I probably would have ended up playing the pipe organ and being chiormaster of a church. I did a lot of substitute work in churches when I was younger, while I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. Playing in bands is fun, but I was really good at the pipe organ and that's the way things were headed. I got out of it though because I really couldn't see myself being a career church musician. The weirdest thing I did was try the pizza parlor thing, if anyone has ever been to a pizza parlor with a pipe organ in it ... how embarassing.

Dan

Pearl Jam and toast

keeponrockin wrote:

My friend's school had a Fender Rhodes, but they sold it for some reason.

Because the american education system puts as much value on art and music as Coca Cola puts on human rights. (If that went over your head do a little research on it)... that is to say, none at all.

My art class last year was so poor that we had to re-use paper towells at least 2 or 3 times each if possible. Of course our teacher was taking money out of her own pocket from day 1 for erasers..

They might as well be robbing us.

keeponrockin

Pearl Jam and toast wrote:

Because the american education system puts as much value on art and music as Coca Cola puts on human rights. (If that went over your head do a little research on it)... that is to say, none at all.

My art class last year was so poor that we had to re-use paper towells at least 2 or 3 times each if possible. Of course our teacher was taking money out of her own pocket from day 1 for erasers..

They might as well be robbing us.

Ya, it's Canada, but I know what you mean. Its sad.

danphxariz

That's really sad about the arts program in your school. I think some public schools are doing pretty well in the arts, but primarily they may be magnet schools, at least around here they are.

Here's the website for where I went to high school, it was an amazing place and I was really blessed to be able to go there. Their arts programs are incredible and there's an unbelievable number of well known musicians and artists who are graduates ... Norah Jones, Jewell, Josh Groban, Jessye Norman, lots of actors too, like Felicity Huffman, Sean Young and way many others. :

http://www.interlochen.org/

If anyone is interested in finding out more about Interlochen or maybe going there, PM me and I'll try to hook you up.

Dan

Pearl Jam and toast

Yeah there are some schools that are pretty good with art programs but they're nowhere near the majority.. i'd be hardpressed to say they make up half a percent of our schools.

I'd also think that those schools wouldn't be your standard public schools like you said.

I was in jazz band in 7th grade. It was the greatest music experience of my life until I found pearl jam and started playing guitar.

Our teacher brought in high school kids along with us to play, and it was only the best of the band classes and with volunteers, so not only did we sound great but I got to play with some great improv players (including an amazing stand up bass player and a sax player). I played sax/clarinet.

In 8th grade the school stopped the program. It wasn't costing them a dime as far as i know (i don't see how it could!), but i guess they figured it was worthless.