Gibson G-101
Encyclopedia
The Gibson G-101 is a model of combo organ
, one of many makes and models of transistorized portable organs, most popularly used in rock & roll bands of the mid- and late 1960s, designed for use on stage or in the studio, for players that transported them frequently between performances.
The instrument was sold by Gibson
but produced in the U.S. for them by the Lowrey Organ Company
. It was first introduced in 1966 as the Kalamazoo K-101, the name was changed to Gibson G-101 shortly thereafter, and production continued until 1971.
The instrument was 38" long, 18" front-to-back, 10" top-to-bottom of the cabinet and weighed 62 lbs. It had two square, tubular, fold-out legs, and a "drop panel" that acted both as support for the legs when standing (via thumb screws that secured the panel to tabs on the back of the legs) and also as a cover for the folded-in legs during transport. The bottom of the organ was recessed 2½" to accommodate the folded-in legs and allow room for the power supply; when standing, the organ is 34" tall.
The Gibson G-101's external design featured a black plastic top, a multi-colored keyboard (specifications detailed below) and a vinyl-covered cabinet using a green-and-grey color scheme. While superficially similar in appearance to many of the transistorized organs used by rock groups in the 1960s, it can easily be distinguished from competing models (the Farfisa
Compact and Vox Continental
) by identifying the cabinet colors
The instrument offered the following controls across the cabinet top, listed from left to right:
. The volume pedal had a side-lever that could be used to permit it to control the Glide and Wow-wow effects. A jack also enabled users to connect an external reverb units made by both Gibson and Maestro (which manufactured the Echoplex
). The top of the unit contained a fold-down music stand.
The "Repeat Percussion" sounded similar to tremolo, but used a re-triggering circuit instead; the knob could be used to control its off/on and speed rate.
The "Glide" effect pitched the notes flat by a half-step when actuated by a side-lever on the expression pedal. This effect was used by organist Ray Manzarek
of The Doors
on the recording of "Not to Touch the Earth
" (see quote below.)
The "Piano" and "Harpsichord" tabs could be used to simulate the tones of those instruments. The tones could be given a short, striking attack (note-onset time) when the "Percussion" and "Staccato
" tabs were selected. The "Sustain
" could be used on these latter two voices to leaving a jingling "after-ring" sound when the key was released.
A Lowrey organ, using the "Harpsichord" tab, was used by the Beatles to perform the opening measures of their song Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds
. Because of its similarity to that model, the G-101 can be used to simulate that performance.
album, in 1968:
Jazz musician Sun Ra
also began using the G-101 at some point during the 1960s. The first documented use is on the Atlantis
album, which was released in 1969. Ra, who often invented names for his instruments, lists the G-101 as the "Solar Sound Organ" in the credits, but his discography correctly identifies the instrument.
Steve Nieve
, (a.k.a. Steve Nason) of Elvis Costello
has told interviewers he also owns a G-101 and has used it on unspecified recordings.
Combo organ
A combo organ is an electronic organ of the frequency divider type, generally produced between the early 1960s and the late 1970s. The combo organ concept, at least in the context of mass-production, is thought to have been born from the accordion, probably in Italy, as the brainchild of necessity...
, one of many makes and models of transistorized portable organs, most popularly used in rock & roll bands of the mid- and late 1960s, designed for use on stage or in the studio, for players that transported them frequently between performances.
The instrument was sold by Gibson
Gibson Guitar Corporation
The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...
but produced in the U.S. for them by the Lowrey Organ Company
Lowrey organ
The Lowrey organ is an electronic organ named after Chicago industrialist Frederick Lowrey.During the 1960s and 1970s, Lowrey was the largest manufacturer of electronic organs in the world. In 1989, the Lowrey Organ Company produced its 1,000,000th organ....
. It was first introduced in 1966 as the Kalamazoo K-101, the name was changed to Gibson G-101 shortly thereafter, and production continued until 1971.
Dimensions and appearance
Other than the change in nameplates and model numbers, there is no difference between the Kalamazoo K-101 and the Gibson G-101. Gibson, which still makes service manuals available for the instrument, supplies only the G-101 manual.The instrument was 38" long, 18" front-to-back, 10" top-to-bottom of the cabinet and weighed 62 lbs. It had two square, tubular, fold-out legs, and a "drop panel" that acted both as support for the legs when standing (via thumb screws that secured the panel to tabs on the back of the legs) and also as a cover for the folded-in legs during transport. The bottom of the organ was recessed 2½" to accommodate the folded-in legs and allow room for the power supply; when standing, the organ is 34" tall.
The Gibson G-101's external design featured a black plastic top, a multi-colored keyboard (specifications detailed below) and a vinyl-covered cabinet using a green-and-grey color scheme. While superficially similar in appearance to many of the transistorized organs used by rock groups in the 1960s, it can easily be distinguished from competing models (the Farfisa
Farfisa
Farfisa is a manufacturer of electronics based in Osimo, Italy.The Farfisa brand name is commonly associated with a series of compact electronic organs, and later, a series of multi-timbral synthesizers. At the height of its production, Farfisa operated three factories to produce instruments, in...
Compact and Vox Continental
Vox Continental
The Vox Continental is a transistor-based combo organ that was introduced in 1962. Known for its thin, bright, breathy sound, the "Connie," as it was affectionately known, was designed to be used by touring musicians...
) by identifying the cabinet colors
Features
According to the service manual, the G-101 had a single manual of five octaves (61 keys), which was divided into three sections:- A bottom octave (13 keys, from "C1" to "C2") provided fixed bass, using reverse-colored white-on-black keys similar to those on the Vox ContinentalVox ContinentalThe Vox Continental is a transistor-based combo organ that was introduced in 1962. Known for its thin, bright, breathy sound, the "Connie," as it was affectionately known, was designed to be used by touring musicians...
's entire keyboard to designate the area. - A second octave (11 keys, from "C#2" to "B2"), could be configured either for extended bass or 'treble' (standard organ) use, using white-on-grey keys to designate.
- Three octaves (37 keys, from "C3" to "C6") for the treble keyboard, using standard black-on-white keys.
The instrument offered the following controls across the cabinet top, listed from left to right:
- A rotary knob to control the volume of the bass keyboard
- A bank of five tabs (color-coded) for voicings of the bass keys:
- (Green) String Bass, Sax Bass, Fuzz Bass
- (Gray) Bass Normal/Percuss., Bass Sustain Off/On
- A rotary switch to select either 'extended bass' or 'treble' (normal) functionality for the grey octave
- A bank of 12 tabs, (color-coded) for voicings for the treble keys:
- (Red) GlideGlideGlide may refer to:* Glide , early 20th century American automobile company* Glide , to fly without thrust* Glide , synonym for semivowel* Glide, Oregon, census-designated place in the United States...
Normal/Trumpet Wow-Wow - (Yellow) Trombone 16'(Piano S-St-P), Clarinet 16's
- (Blue) String 8'(Harpcd S-St-P)
- (Yellow) TrumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
8', Kinura 8' - (White) Flute 16', Flute 8', Piccolo 4', Nazard 2-2/3', Mixture
- (Red) Brilliance Normal/Full
- A bank of eight tabs (color-coded) for signal processing for the treble keys:
- (Green) VibratoVibratoVibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. Vibrato is typically characterised in terms of two factors: the amount of pitch variation and the speed with which the pitch is varied .-Vibrato and...
Fast/Slow, Vibrato Light/Heavy, Vibrato Off/On - (Red) SustainSustainIn music, sustain is a parameter of musical sound over time. As its name implies, it denotes the period of time during which the sound remains before it becomes inaudible, or silent.Additionally, sustain is the third of the four segments in an ADSR envelope...
S Med, Sustain SS Long, StaccatoStaccatoStaccato is a form of musical articulation. In modern notation it signifies a note of shortened duration and separated from the note that may follow by silence...
St Off/On - (Gray) Reverb Off/On, Percussion Off/On
- A rotary knob to control the Repeat Off/On/Rate
- The instrument's on-off switch
Accessories
Three optional accessories were available for the G-101: a travel bag, an expression pedal and a set of bass pedalsBass pedals
Bass pedals are an electronic musical instrument with foot-operated pedal keyboard with a range of one or more octaves. The earliest bass pedals from the 1970s consisted of a pedalboard and analog synthesizer tone generation circuitry packaged together as a unit...
. The volume pedal had a side-lever that could be used to permit it to control the Glide and Wow-wow effects. A jack also enabled users to connect an external reverb units made by both Gibson and Maestro (which manufactured the Echoplex
Echoplex
The Echoplex is a tape delay effect, first made in 1959. Designed by Mike Battle, the Echoplex set a standard for the effect in the 1960s and was used by some of the most notable guitar players of the era; original Echoplexes are highly sought after....
). The top of the unit contained a fold-down music stand.
Sound
Because the G-101 was manufactured by Lowrey, its electronics — and thus, its voicings — are similar to Lowrey's own T-1 and T-2 models; the G-101 is not, however, identical and does contain several distinctive features.The "Repeat Percussion" sounded similar to tremolo, but used a re-triggering circuit instead; the knob could be used to control its off/on and speed rate.
The "Glide" effect pitched the notes flat by a half-step when actuated by a side-lever on the expression pedal. This effect was used by organist Ray Manzarek
Ray Manzarek
Raymond Daniel Manzarek, Jr., better known as Ray Manzarek , is an American musician, singer, producer, film director, writer, co-founder and keyboardist of The Doors from 1965 to 1973, Nite City from 1977–1978 and Manzarek-Krieger since 2001.Manzarek is listed #4 on Digital Dreamdoor's "100...
of The Doors
The Doors
The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...
on the recording of "Not to Touch the Earth
Not to Touch the Earth
"Not to Touch the Earth" is a 1968 song by The Doors from their album Waiting for the Sun. It stems from Jim Morrison's poem, "Celebration of the Lizard". A recording of the complete poem was attempted at the sessions for the album, but only the musical passage Not to Touch the Earth was deemed fit...
" (see quote below.)
The "Piano" and "Harpsichord" tabs could be used to simulate the tones of those instruments. The tones could be given a short, striking attack (note-onset time) when the "Percussion" and "Staccato
Staccato
Staccato is a form of musical articulation. In modern notation it signifies a note of shortened duration and separated from the note that may follow by silence...
" tabs were selected. The "Sustain
Sustain
In music, sustain is a parameter of musical sound over time. As its name implies, it denotes the period of time during which the sound remains before it becomes inaudible, or silent.Additionally, sustain is the third of the four segments in an ADSR envelope...
" could be used on these latter two voices to leaving a jingling "after-ring" sound when the key was released.
A Lowrey organ, using the "Harpsichord" tab, was used by the Beatles to perform the opening measures of their song Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is a song written primarily by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney, for The Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band...
. Because of its similarity to that model, the G-101 can be used to simulate that performance.
Usage
Several major recording artists have used the Gibson G-101. The first was Manzarek of The Doors, who told Contemporary Keyboard magazine (September, 1977 issue) that he began using it (switching from the Vox used on the first two albums) during the recording of the Waiting for the SunWaiting for the Sun
Waiting for the Sun is the third studio album by the American rock band The Doors. It was released in 1968 and became the band's first and only number one album and spawned their second US number one single, "Hello, I Love You". It also became the band's first hit album in the UK, where it peaked...
album, in 1968:
- "I used a Vox for about two-and-a-half albums. Then Vox was sold to somebody and the organs started falling apart. I'd go out on a gig and in half a set I'd break about six or seven keys. I eventually got a Gibson Kalamazoo. It had a little more versatility than the Vox; it could make the sort of piano-ish sound I used on "Back Door ManBack Door Man"Back Door Man" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon and recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1961. It was released by Chess Records as the B-side to Wolf's "Wang Dang Doodle"...
" (from The Doors (album)The Doors (album)The Doors is the debut album by the American rock band The Doors, recorded in August 1966 and released in January 1967. It was originally released in significantly different stereo and mono mixes...
, plus it had a little knob sticking up on the volume pedal which could bend the note a half-step down. We used it on "Not to Touch the Earth" . Even synthesizers don't really do that."
Jazz musician Sun Ra
Sun Ra
Sun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
also began using the G-101 at some point during the 1960s. The first documented use is on the Atlantis
Atlantis (Sun Ra album)
Atlantis is an album by Jazz musician Sun Ra and his Astro-Infinity Arkestra released in 1969.The album heavily features the "Solar Sound Instrument" - a Hohner Clavinet. One of the 4 compositions which originally featured on Side 1 of the original release was substituted by a different piece for...
album, which was released in 1969. Ra, who often invented names for his instruments, lists the G-101 as the "Solar Sound Organ" in the credits, but his discography correctly identifies the instrument.
Steve Nieve
Steve Nieve
Steve Nieve is an English keyboardist, best known for his work with Elvis Costello and the Attractions and Elvis Costello and the Imposters.-Musical career:...
, (a.k.a. Steve Nason) of Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
has told interviewers he also owns a G-101 and has used it on unspecified recordings.
External links
- Gibson combo organs - Gibson/Lowrey data page at the Combo Organ Heaven website
- 1960s organs - 1960s music blog (includes image of organ and sound samples of Manzarek using the G-101 in concert)
- Sun Ra Instruments - Page on the organ (with images) from blog devoted to Sun Ra
- Lucy mp3 - MP3 file of the opening of "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" played on the Lowrey T-2