Mellotron - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic

Polyphony (instrument)

Polyphony Instruments that are not capable of polyphony are monophonic.-Synthesizer:Most of early synthesizers were monophonic musical instruments which can play only one note at a time, and are often called monosynth as opposed to polysynth...

tape replay keyboard

Tape replay keyboard

A tape replay keyboard is a musical instrument that uses pre-recorded analog tapes to produce sound when a key is pressed. Examples of tape replay keyboards include the Chamberlin, the Mellotron, and the Birotron....

originally developed and built in Birmingham

Birmingham

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...

, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master

Chamberlin

The Chamberlin is an electro-mechanical keyboard instrument that was a precursor to the Mellotron. It was developed and patented by Iowa, Wisconsin inventor Harry Chamberlin from 1949 to 1956, when the first model was introduced. Various models and versions of these Chamberlin music instruments...

, which was the world's first sample-playback

Sampling (music)

In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...

keyboard intended for music. The concept of the Chamberlin was itself modeled after the Laff Box

Laugh track

A laugh track is a separate soundtrack invented by Charles "Charley" Douglass, with the artificial sound of audience laughter, made to be inserted into television programming of comedy shows and sitcoms.The term "laugh track" does not apply to the genuine audience laughter on shows that shoot in...

invented by engineer Charlie Douglass in order to insert prerecorded laughs into TV and radio programs more easily in the then-developing field of post-production

Post-production

Post-production is part of filmmaking and the video production process. It occurs in the making of motion pictures, television programs, radio programs, advertising, audio recordings, photography, and digital art...

.

The heart of the instrument is a bank of parallel linear magnetic audio tape strips. Playback heads underneath each key enable the playing of pre-recorded sounds. Each of the tape strips has a playing time of approximately eight seconds, after which the tape comes to a dead stop and rewinds to the start position. A major advantage of using tape strips, as opposed to tape loops or cassettes (cf. the Birotron

Birotron

The Birotron is a tape replay keyboard conceived by Dave Biro of Yalesville, Connecticut, USA, and funded by Rick Wakeman of the progressive-rock group Yes, and Campbell Soup Company-Pepperidge Farm Foods in the mid-late 1970s....

) is that the Mellotron can reproduce the "attack" transient of the instruments recorded on the tape. A drawback is the short "decay" time of the note.

A consequence of the eight second limit on the duration of each note is that if one wants to play chords that last longer than eight seconds, one must release different notes in sequence in a process that has been compared to a spider crawling across the keyboard.

The MKI, MKII, and MKV models contained two side-by-side keyboards: The right keyboard accessed 18 "lead/instrument" sounds such as strings

String instrument

A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...

, flute

Flute

The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...

s, and brass

Brass instrument

A brass instrument is a musical instrument whose sound is produced by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips...

; The left keyboard played pre-recorded musical rhythm tracks in various styles.

The tape banks for the lighter-weight M400 models contain only three selectable sounds including (typically) strings, cello

Cello

The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...

, and an eight-voice choir

Choir

A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...

. The sound on each individual tape piece was recorded at the pitch of the key to which it was assigned. To make up for the fewer sounds available, the M400 tapes came in a removable frame that allowed for relatively quick changes to new racks of sounds.

History

Although tape samplers had been explored in research studios, the first commercially available keyboard-driven tape instruments were built and sold by California-based Harry Chamberlin

Chamberlin

from 1948 through the 1970s.

Things really took off, however, when Chamberlin's sales agent, Bill Fransen, brought two of Chamberlin's instruments to England in 1962 to search for someone who could manufacture 70 matching tape heads for future Chamberlins. Harry Chamberlin was unhappy with the fact that someone overseas was copying his idea, and that one of his own people (Bill Fransen) was the reason for this. Fransen approached a UK company that was skilled enough to develop the idea further and a deal was struck with brothers Frank, Norm, and Lesley Bradley of engineering company Bradmatic Ltd. This resulted in the formation of a subsidiary company named Mellotronics, which produced the first Mellotrons in Aston

Aston

Aston is an area of the City of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. Lying to the north-east of the Birmingham city centre, Aston constitutes an electoral ward within the council constituency of Ladywood.-History:...

, Birmingham

Birmingham

, England. The music sessions for Mellotrons were recorded by the Eric Robinson Organisation at IBC Studios, 35 Portland Place in London England. Mellotronics had offices there and the recordings were made using a customized 9 into 3 recording desk built by IBC's Denis King. Magician David Nixon partly funded it. Manufacturing company Bradmatic later took on the name Streetly Electronics. By the early 1970s 100 of the instruments were assembled and sold by EMI

EMI

The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...

under exclusive license. Many years later, following financial and trademark troubles through a U.S. distribution agreement, the Mellotron name became unavailable and resided with the American based Sound Sales, and later manufactured by Bomar Fabricating Ltd. while Streetly manufactured instruments after 1976 were sold under the name Novatron.

Throughout the 1970s, the Mellotron had a major impact on rock music

Rock and roll

Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...

, particularly the 35 note (G-F) model M400. The M400 version was released in 1970 and sold over 1800 units, becoming a trademark sound of the era's progressive bands. The earlier 1960s MK II units were made for the home and the characteristics of the instrument attracted a number of celebrities. Among the early Mellotron owners were Princess Margaret, Peter Sellers

Peter Sellers

Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...

, King Hussein of Jordan

Jordan

Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...

and Scientology

Scientology

Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...

founder L. Ron Hubbard

L. Ron Hubbard

Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...

.

Mellotrons were normally pre-loaded with string instrument and orchestral sounds, although the model 400's tape bank could be removed with relative ease by the owner and loaded with banks containing different sounds including percussion loops, sound effect

Sound effect

For the album by The Jam, see Sound Affects.Sound effects or audio effects are artificially created or enhanced sounds, or sound processes used to emphasize artistic or other content of films, television shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, or other media...

s, or synthesizer

Synthesizer

A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...

-generated sounds, to generate polyphonic electronically generated sounds in the days before polyphonic synthesizers.

In the late 1990s, a Calgary

Calgary

Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...

-based company began producing new Mellotrons. These new MKVI Mellotrons were similar to the M400, with some modifications. The company also released sample discs featuring WAV

WAV

Waveform Audio File Format , is a Microsoft and IBM audio file format standard for storing an audio bitstream on PCs...

files of each individual note sampled from an original Mellotron. These files, when played using a sampler

Sampler (musical instrument)

A sampler is an electronic musical instrument similar in some respects to a synthesizer but, instead of generating sounds, it uses recordings of sounds that are loaded or recorded into it by the user and then played back by means of a keyboard, sequencer or other triggering device to perform or...

, enable keyboardists to recreate a part of the sound of the original Mellotrons using cheaper and more reliable modern keyboards.

In 2009, Streetly Electronics released the M4000. The most recent machine to offer a cycling mechanism, an updated design of the system used in the 1960s MK 1, MK 2 and M300 machines.

Operation

The unique sound of the Mellotron is produced by a combination of characteristics. Among these are tape replay artifacts such as wow

Wow (recording)

Wow is a relatively slow form of flutter which can affect both gramophone records and tape recorders. In the latter, the collective expression wow and flutter is commonly used.-Gramophone records:...

and flutter, the result being that each time a note is played, it is slightly different from the previous time it was played, somewhat like a conventional instrument. The notes also interact with each other so that chords or even just pairs of notes have an extremely powerful sound. The attack of the tape head engaging is often considered a characteristic part of the Mellotron sound.

The adjustments of mechanical parts, such as pinch rollers, pressure pads and tape head azimuth, combined with equalization of recordings sourced from different tape libraries make some notes sound brighter or smoother than others. This quality makes each and every Mellotron instrument unique, and is a large factor in why all Mellotrons will sound different in music recordings, despite the same sound (like the 3 violins) being used. The use of tube pre-amplifiers (MK II Mellotron used by King Crimson), transistorized pre-amplifiers (MK II Mellotron used by Moody Blues) or modified instruments (Mellotron MK V prototype used by Yes / Rick Wakeman) also enhances the sonic colours of each instrument.

Another factor in the strangely haunting quality of the Mellotron's most frequently heard sounds is that the individual notes were recorded in isolation. For a musician accustomed to playing in an orchestral setting, this was unusual, and meant that he had nothing against which to intonate. Thus, the temperament

Musical temperament

In musical tuning, a temperament is a system of tuning which slightly compromises the pure intervals of just intonation in order to meet other requirements of the system. Most instruments in modern Western music are tuned in the equal temperament system...

of the Mellotron is always somewhat questionable when it is used in the context of other instruments. Perhaps for this reason, and perhaps also to allow easy transposition of the instrument's limited range, the pitch control is placed closest to the keyboard on the M400 model.

This temperament issue has led to the Mellotron being regarded, rather unfairly, as a difficult instrument to tune. There certainly could be mechanical problems that would also contribute to this. The original varispeed servo design was poor, for instance, but later improved dramatically. The tapes would stick inside their frames and refuse to rewind if the frame became distorted due to careless handling of the machine. Smoke, temperature, and humidity also played a huge factor as well. Such problems gave rise to Robert Fripp

Robert Fripp

Robert Fripp is an English guitarist, composer and record producer. He was ranked 42nd on Rolling Stone magazine's 2003 list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" and #47 on Gibson.com’s "Top 50 Guitarists of All Time". Among rock guitarists, Fripp is a master of crosspicking, a technique...

's widely circulated quote, "Tuning a Mellotron doesn't." Properly maintained though, the machines behave a lot better than their reputation suggests.

Although they enabled many bands to perform string, brass and choir arrangements, which had been previously impossible to recreate live, Mellotrons were not without their disadvantages. Above all, they were very expensive: they sold for £1,000 (approximately £ today) in the mid-1960s, and the official Mellotron site gives the 1973 list price as US$5,200 (approximately $ today). Like the Hammond organ

Hammond organ

The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...

, they were a roadie's nightmare – heavy, bulky and fragile. The tape banks were also notoriously prone to breakages and jams and those groups who could afford to, like Yes

Yes (band)

Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...

, typically took two or more Mellotrons on tour to cope with the inevitable breakdowns.

The original Mellotrons (MkI/MkII) were not intended to be portable – they often become misaligned when jostled even lightly – but later models such as the M300, M400 and MKV were designed for portability.

The American Mellotron distributor, Sound Sales, produced their own Mellotron model, the 4-Track, in the mid 1970s. At the same time Streetly produced a road cased version of the 400 – the T550 Novatron. By the mid 1980s, both Sound Sales and Streetly Electronics suffered severe financial setbacks, losing their market to synthesizers and solid-state electronic samplers

Sampler (musical instrument)

, which rendered the Mellotron essentially extinct.

All models, when installed permanently in a studio, provided a very realistic effect. Many examples abound, such as Elton John

Elton John

Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...

's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, released in 1973, is the seventh studio album by British singer-songwriter Elton John. It has come to be regarded as Elton John's best and most popular album, and is his best selling studio album with worldwide sales of at least 15 million copies.Recorded at the Château...

album. Despite their shortcomings, Mellotrons were (and still are) prized for their unique sound, and they helped pave the way for the later sampler.

Many bands such as Counting Crows

Counting Crows

Counting Crows is an American rock band originating from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1991, the group gained popularity following the release of its debut album in 1993, August and Everything After, which featured the hit single "Mr. Jones"...

and The Musical Box

The Musical Box (band)

The Musical Box is a prominent Genesis tribute band.-Covering the Peter Gabriel era of Genesis:Taking their name from the 1971 track of the same name, The Musical Box formed in Montreal, Quebec in 1993 to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the 1973 album Selling England by the Pound...

have toured using samplers to avoid transporting and maintaining original Mellotrons on the road. The Musical Box, being a tribute band dedicated to visually reproducing early Genesis

Genesis (band)

Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...

shows, have taken great pains to hide the fact that they do not use a real Mellotron by hiding a Kurzweil synthesiser

Kurzweil Music Systems

Kurzweil Music Systems is a company that produces electronic musical instruments for professionals and home users. Founded in 1982 by Raymond Kurzweil, a developer of reading machines for the blind, the company made use of many of the technologies originally designed for reading machines and...

in a wooden box made to look like a Mellotron.

1960s and the psychedelic era

British multi-instrumentalist Graham Bond

Graham Bond

Graham John Clifton Bond was an English musician, considered a founding father of the English rhythm and blues boom of the 1960s....

may have been the first rock musician to record with a Mellotron, beginning in 1965. The first hit song to feature a Mellotron MKII was "Baby Can It Be True", and Bond performed live with the machine in televised performances.

Mike Pinder

Mike Pinder

Michael Thomas "Mike" Pinder is an English rock musician, and is a founding member or the British rock group, the Moody Blues. He left the group following the recording of the band's album, Octave, in 1978...

of The Moody Blues

The Moody Blues

The Moody Blues are an English rock band. Among their innovations was a fusion with classical music, most notably in their 1967 album Days of Future Passed....

had done an 18-month stint as an employee of Streetly Electronics as a quality control and test driver. He later made the mellotron a "signature sound" for the Moody Blues (at a later time, the instrument was even called the "Pindertron"). Pinder used it extensively and systematically on almost each of their songs from 1966 to 1972 ("Love And Beauty", "Nights In White Satin

Nights in White Satin

"Nights in White Satin" is a 1967 single by The Moody Blues, written by Justin Hayward and first featured on the album Days of Future Passed.It is in the key of E minor Aeolian.-Single releases:...

", "Question

Question

A question may be either a linguistic expression used to make a request for information, or else the request itself made by such an expression. This information may be provided with an answer....

", "I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)

I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)

"I'm Just a Singer " is a hit 1973 single by the English progressive rock band The Moody Blues. It was first released in 1972 as the final track on the album Seventh Sojourn. "I'm Just a Singer " was later released as a single in 1973, with "For My Lady" on the B-side...

", etc. Pinder claims to have introduced John Lennon and Paul McCartney to the Mellotron, though they had heard of it before Pinder's mention. Pinder tried to convince the Beatles to begin to use the instrument on their songs.

After visiting the Mellotron studios on August 12, 1965, John Lennon bought one for use in his Weybridge home, and it was received on August 16, 1965. The Beatles

The Beatles

The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...

first use of Mellotron sounds was on the song "Tomorrow Never Knows

Tomorrow Never Knows

"Tomorrow Never Knows" is the final track of The Beatles' 1966 studio album Revolver but the first to be recorded. Credited as a Lennon–McCartney song, it was written primarily by John Lennon...

" where they used reel to reel recorders to record Mellotron brass and string sounds which, along with other sounds, were then brought into the studio. The heavy weight of the Mellotron prevented the machine from easily being transported. The Beatles hired in a machine and subsequently (and more prominently) used it on their psychedelic rock

Psychedelic rock

Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...

single "Strawberry Fields Forever

Strawberry Fields Forever

"Strawberry Fields Forever" is a song by The Beatles, written by John Lennon and attributed to the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership. It was inspired by Lennon's memories of playing in the garden of a Salvation Army house named "Strawberry Field" near his childhood home."Strawberry Fields...

" (recorded November–December 1966). The Beatles continued to compose and record with various Mellotrons for the albums "Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band", "Magical Mystery Tour", and "The Beatles

The Beatles (album)

The Beatles is the ninth official album by the English rock group The Beatles, a double album released in 1968. It is also commonly known as "The White Album" as it has no graphics or text other than the band's name embossed on its plain white sleeve.The album was written and recorded during a...

" (White Album).

Their manager Brian Epstein

Brian Epstein

Brian Samuel Epstein , was an English music entrepreneur, and is best known for being the manager of The Beatles up until his death. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Remo Four & The Cyrkle...

also purchased one, but later gave or sold it to George Harrison

George Harrison

George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...

in 1967. Paul McCartney purchased two EMI models, Ringo Starr never purchased his own. Collectively, these Mellotrons were featured on Beatles solo efforts such as Harrison's "Wonderwall Music

Wonderwall Music

Wonderwall Music is George Harrison's first solo album and the soundtrack to the film Wonderwall. The songs are virtually all instrumental, except for some non-English vocals and a slowed-down spoken word track. The songs were recorded in December 1967 in England, and January 1968 in Bombay, India...

", Lennon's "Two Virgins", "Mind Games

Mind Games

Mind Games is John Lennon's fourth post-Beatles album, and was recorded and released in 1973. Like his previous album, the politically topical and somewhat abrasive Some Time in New York City, Mind Games was poorly received by music critics...

", etc. and McCartney's "McCartney (album)

McCartney (album)

McCartney is the debut solo album by Paul McCartney. Apart from Linda McCartney's vocal contributions, McCartney performed the entire album solo...

" "Wings at the Speed of Sound

Wings at the Speed of Sound

Wings at the Speed of Sound is the fifth album by Wings and was recorded and issued in 1976 in the midst of a large world tour as the follow-up album to the popular Venus and Mars.- History :...

" etc. (which features both instrumentation and sound effects).
Ian McDonald of King Crimson

King Crimson

King Crimson are a rock band founded in London, England in 1969. Often categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, the band have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation during their history...

, Rick Wakeman of Yes

Yes (band)

, and Tony Banks of Genesis

Genesis (band)

also became major Mellotron users at this time, infusing the violin, cello, brass, flute and choir sounds as a major texture in the music of their respective bands.

Other artists utilizing the Mellotron on hit records in this period included Greenslade

Greenslade

Greenslade is an English progressive rock band. It was originally formed in the autumn of 1972 with the following line-up:* Dave Greenslade - keyboards...

(all studio and live albums between 1972 and 1976), The Zombies

The Zombies

The Zombies are an English rock band, formed in 1961 in St Albans and led by Rod Argent, on piano and keyboards, and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The group scored a UK and US hit in 1964 with "She's Not There"...

("Changes," "Care Of Cell 44," "Hung Up On A Dream"), Donovan

Donovan

Donovan Donovan Donovan (born Donovan Philips Leitch (born 10 May 1946) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...

("Celeste," "Breezes of Patchule"), Manfred Mann

Manfred Mann

Manfred Mann was a British beat, rhythm and blues and pop band of the 1960s, named after their South African keyboardist, Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band...

(several Mike D'abo-era recordings, including "So Long Dad," "There Is A Man," "Semi-Detached Suburban Mr. James"), The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

("2000 Light Years from Home

2000 Light Years from Home

"2000 Light Years From Home" is a song from The Rolling Stones' 1967 psychedelic rock album Their Satanic Majesties Request. Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it also appeared as the B-side to the U.S. single "She's a Rainbow". Jagger reportedly wrote the lyrics in Brixton prison following...

," "We Love You," "Stray Cat Blues

Stray Cat Blues

"Stray Cat Blues" is the eighth song on the Rolling Stones' album Beggars Banquet. It was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards and produced by Jimmy Miller...

,") Deep Purple

Deep Purple

Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...

("Anthem"), The Bee Gees ("World," "Every Christian Lion-Hearted Man Will Show You," "To Love Somebody"), Traffic

Traffic (band)

Traffic were an English rock band whose members came from the West Midlands. The group formed in April 1967 by Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason...

("House for Everyone," "Hole In My Shoe"), Small Faces ("Happiness Stan"), Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...

("A Saucerful of Secrets

A Saucerful of Secrets (song)

"A Saucerful of Secrets" is a multi-part instrumental composition by the rock band Pink Floyd from the album A Saucerful of Secrets, released in 1968. The track lasts 11:52 and was composed by band members Roger Waters, Richard Wright, Nick Mason, and David Gilmour...

," "See-Saw

See-Saw (song)

"See-Saw" is a song from Pink Floyd's 1968 album A Saucerful of Secrets. It is the third Pink Floyd song written solely by Richard Wright, and the second on the album as such, and features Wright on vocals...

, "Julia Dream

Julia Dream

"Julia Dream" is the B-side of the Pink Floyd single "It Would Be So Nice". It was later issued on several compilation albums: The Best of the Pink Floyd, Relics, and The Early Singles disc included in the Shine On box set...

," "Atom Heart Mother

Atom Heart Mother (suite)

"Atom Heart Mother" is a six-part suite by progressive rock band Pink Floyd, composed by all members of the band and Ron Geesin. It appeared on the Atom Heart Mother album in 1970, taking up the whole first side of the original vinyl record...

" and "Sysyphus

Sysyphus

"Sysyphus" is an avant-garde, instrumental four part suite written and performed by rock band Pink Floyd's keyboardist Richard Wright. The song is featured on his portion of the studio half of Ummagumma...

"), Procol Harum

Procol Harum

Procol Harum are a British rock band, formed in 1967, which contributed to the development of progressive rock, and by extension, symphonic rock. Their best-known recording is their 1967 single "A Whiter Shade of Pale"...

("Magdalene (My Regal Zonophone)"), The Pretty Things

The Pretty Things

The Pretty Things are an English rock and roll band from London, who originally formed in 1963. They took their name from Bo Diddley's 1955 song "Pretty Thing" and, in their early days, were dubbed by the British press the "uglier cousins of the Rolling Stones". Their most commercially successful...

(on their album S.F. Sorrow
S.F. Sorrow
S.F. Sorrow is the title of the fourth LP by the British rock group The Pretty Things, released in 1968.One of the first rock concept albums, S.F. Sorrow was based on a short story by singer-guitarist Phil May. The album is structured as a song cycle, telling the story of the main character,...

), Cream

Cream (band)

Cream were a 1960s British rock supergroup consisting of bassist/vocalist Jack Bruce, guitarist/vocalist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker...

("Badge

Badge (song)

"Badge" is a song performed by Cream, written by Eric Clapton and George Harrison. It was included as a track on Cream's final album, Goodbye. Peaking at number 60 on Billboard's Hot 100, "Badge" was a minor hit after its release as a single in April 1969...

," "Anyone for Tennis," "Doing That Scrapyard Thing"), The Left Banke

The Left Banke

The Left Banke is an American baroque pop band that formed in New York City in 1965 and disbanded in 1969. They are best remembered for their two U.S. hit singles, "Walk Away Renée" and "Pretty Ballerina"...

("Myrah"), Simon Dupree and the Big Sound ("Kites"), Nilsson

Harry Nilsson

Harry Edward Nilsson III was an American singer-songwriter who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings he is credited as Nilsson...

("The Moonbeam Song"), The Kinks

The Kinks

The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a...

("Phenomenal Cat," "Autumn Almanac," "Sitting By The Riverside," "All Of My Friends Were There," "Animal Farm," "Starstruck," "Days"), David Bowie

David Bowie

David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...

("Space Oddity"), and The Flower Pot Men ("Let's Go To San Francisco

Let's Go To San Francisco

"Let's Go to San Francisco" is the only UK-charting single by the British pop group The Flower Pot Men. A light-hearted pastiche of the work of Brian Wilson, the song achieved a similar musical level and has remained popular...

").

1970s and progressive rock

The Mellotron was widely used to provide backing keyboard accompaniment by many of the progressive rock

Progressive rock

Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...

and hard rock

Hard rock

Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...

groups of the 1970s and, alongside the Hammond organ

Hammond organ

, it was crucial to shaping the sound of the genre. Notable examples include: Never Argue with a German If You're Tired or European Song by Jefferson Airplane

Jefferson Airplane

Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....

, "Tuesday's Gone

Tuesday's Gone

"Tuesday's Gone" is the second track on Lynyrd Skynyrd's first album, "". One of the band's most popular songs, its relaxing pace and serenading guitars have made it a fan staple. The lyrics, featuring themes of a relationship ending because of extensive touring, are similar in mood to the band's...

" and "Free Bird

Free Bird

"Free Bird" is a song by the American southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd...

" by Lynyrd Skynyrd

Lynyrd Skynyrd

Lynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band prominent in spreading Southern Rock during the 1970s.Originally formed as the "Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964, the band rose to worldwide recognition on the basis of its driving live performances and signature tune, Freebird...

, "Turn the Page" by Bob Seger

Bob Seger

Robert Clark "Bob" Seger is an American rock and roll singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist.As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as Bob Seger and the Last Heard and Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s...

, 10000 Anos Depois Entre Venus e Marte
10,000 Anos Depois Entre Venus E Marte
-Personnel:* José Cid: -Personnel:* [[José Cid]]: -Personnel:* [[José Cid]]: [[piano, [[synthesizer]], string ensemble, [[Mellotron]], [[Moog synthesizer]], [[Singing|Vocals]];* Ramon Galarza: [[Drum kit|drums]]...

by Jose Cid

José Cid

José Cid is a Portuguese singer and composer. Outside of his home country, Cid is best known for performing "Um grande, grande amor" at the Eurovision Song Contest 1980 and for the progressive rock album 10,000 Anos Depois Entre Venus E Marte.Over his longlasting career, Cid has been awarded...

, Once Again by Barclay James Harvest

Barclay James Harvest

Barclay James Harvest are an English progressive rock band. They were founded in Saddleworth, Lancashire, in September 1966 by John Lees, Les Holroyd, Stuart "Woolly" Wolstenholme , and Mel Pritchard .-History:...

, Music in a Doll's House
Music in a Doll's House
-Side two:- Personnel :* Roger Chapman – lead vocals, harmonica, tenor saxophone* John "Charlie" Whitney – lead guitar, steel guitar* Jim King – tenor and soprano saxophone, harmonica, vocals* Ric Grech – bass guitar, violin, cello, vocals...

by Family

Family (band)

Family were an English rock band that formed in late 1966 and disbanded in October 1973. Their style has been characterised as progressive rock, although their sound often explored other genres, incorporating elements of styles like as folk, psychedelia, acid, jazz fusion and rock and roll...

, Grave New World
Grave New World
Grave New World is a studio album by English band Strawbs. It was the first album to be released after the departure of Rick Wakeman, under circumstances about which band leader Dave Cousins was very bitter. Cousins has admitted that the track "Tomorrow" was written about Wakeman...

and Bursting at the Seams
Bursting at the Seams
Bursting at the Seams is a studio album by English band Strawbs. It contains their two most successful singles and reached number 2 in the UK Album Chart.-Side one:#"Flying" – 4:49#"Lady Fuchsia" – 3:59...

by The Strawbs

The Strawbs

Strawbs are an English rock band founded in 1964. Although the band started out as a bluegrass group they eventually moved on to other styles such as folk rock, glam rock and progressive rock...

, seven albums from In the Court of the Crimson King
In the Court of the Crimson King
In the Court of the Crimson King is the 1969 debut album by the British progressive rock group King Crimson. The album reached No. 5 on the British charts, and is certified gold in the United States....

through Red
Red (King Crimson album)
Red is a 1974 album by progressive rock group King Crimson.It was their last studio recording of the 1970s and the last before the lead member Robert Fripp temporarily disbanded the group....

by King Crimson

King Crimson

, "Stairway to Heaven

Stairway to Heaven

"Stairway to Heaven" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released in late 1971. It was composed by guitarist Jimmy Page and vocalist Robert Plant for the band's untitled fourth studio album . The song, running eight minutes and two seconds, is composed of several sections, which...

" (live performances), "The Rain Song

The Rain Song

"The Rain Song" is a ballad song from English rock band Led Zeppelin's fifth album Houses of the Holy, released in 1973.-Recording:"The Rain Song" is a love ballad of over 7 minutes in length. Guitarist Jimmy Page originally constructed the melody of this song at his home in Plumpton, England,...

" and "Kashmir

Kashmir (song)

"Kashmir" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin from their sixth album Physical Graffiti, released in 1975. It was written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant over a period of three years, with the lyrics dating back to 1973.-Overview:The song centres around a signature chord progression...

" by Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...

, Catch the Rainbow
Catch the Rainbow: The Anthology
Catch the Rainbow: The Anthology is a compilation album by Rainbow, released in 2003.-Disc one:#"Man on the Silver Mountain"#"Sixteenth Century Greensleeves"#"Catch the Rainbow"#"Tarot Woman"#"Starstruck"#"Stargazer"#"Light in the Black"...

by Rainbow

Rainbow (band)

Rainbow were an English rock band, controlled by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore from 1975 to 1984 and 1994 to 1997. It was originally established with American rock band Elf's members, though over the years Rainbow went through many line-up changes with no two studio albums featuring the same line-up...

, 2112
2112 (album)
2112 is the fourth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1976.The album features an eponymous seven-part suite written by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, with lyrics written by Neil Peart telling a dystopian story set in the year 2112. The album is sometimes described as a concept album...

by Rush

Rush (band)

Rush is a Canadian rock band formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart...

, I Robot
I Robot (album)
I Robot is a progressive rock album recorded by The Alan Parsons Project, engineered by Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson in 1977. It was released by Arista Records in 1977 and re-released on CD in 1984 and 2007. It was intended to be based on the I, Robot stories written by Isaac Asimov, and Woolfson...

by The Alan Parsons Project

The Alan Parsons Project

The Alan Parsons Project was a British progressive rock band, active between 1975 and 1990, consisting of singer Eric Woolfson and keyboardist Alan Parsons surrounded by a varying number of session musicians....

, Fragile
Fragile (Yes album)
Fragile is the fourth studio album from the English progressive rock band Yes, released on Atlantic Records. It is the first to feature keyboardist Rick Wakeman, who replaced Tony Kaye in 1971, and the first to feature cover art by Roger Dean, who would design many of the band's records.Upon its...

, Close to the Edge, Tales From Topographic Oceans
Tales from Topographic Oceans
-2003 CD re-issue:A remastered edition was released in 2003, which restored a two-minute ambient section at the beginning of the album's first song. This section was deleted at the last minute before the album was originally pressed...

, Relayer
Relayer
-Personnel:*Jon Anderson – lead vocals*Steve Howe – acoustic and electric guitars, vocals*Patrick Moraz – keyboards*Chris Squire – bass guitar and vocals*Alan White – drums, percussion-Production:*Produced By Yes & Eddie Offord...

(along with Orchestron), Going For The One
Going for the One
Going for the One is the eighth studio album from the English progressive rock band Yes, released in 1977 on Atlantic Records. It was produced after an extended break for solo activity from the group, and marks the return of keyboardist Rick Wakeman, who had departed in 1974 after the Tales from...

, Tormato
Tormato
Tormato is the ninth studio album by British progressive rock group Yes. Issued as the follow-up to 1977's acclaimed Going for the One, Tormato received less than charitable reviews upon release and its virtues are still a matter of debate for Yes fans and critics...

(Birotron), and Drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...

by Yes

Yes (band)

, Trespass
Trespass (album)
Trespass is the second studio album by Genesis and was recorded and released in 1970. Their last with guitarist Anthony Phillips, Trespass had a folk-flavoured progressive rock sound that was a marked departure from their earlier work....

through …And Then There Were Three… by Genesis

Genesis (band)

, all of Greenslade

Greenslade

Greenslade is an English progressive rock band. It was originally formed in the autumn of 1972 with the following line-up:* Dave Greenslade - keyboards...

's albums, Hawkwind

Hawkwind

Hawkwind are an English rock band, one of the earliest space rock groups. Their lyrics favour urban and science fiction themes. They are also a noted precursor to punk rock and now are considered a link between the hippie and punk cultures....

's Space Ritual

Space Ritual

The Space Ritual Alive in Liverpool and London is a 1973 live double album recorded in 1972 by UK rock band Hawkwind. It is their fourth album, reached #9 in the UK album charts and briefly dented the Billboard Top 200, peaking at #179....

, and Hall of the Mountain Grill

Hall of the Mountain Grill

Hall of the Mountain Grill is the fourth studio album by space rock band Hawkwind, released in 1974. It is regarded by many critics and fans as a career highlight.-Overview:...

, "Rainbow Song" by America

America (band)

America is an English-American folk rock band that originally included members Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek. The three members were barely out of their teens when they became a musical sensation during 1972, scoring #1 hits and winning a Grammy for best new musical artist...

, In Search of Space

In Search of Space

In Search of Space is the second studio album from Hawkwind, released in 1971. It reached #18 on the UK album charts.- Band changes :Bass player John A Harrison left just after recording the first album, replaced by Thomas Crimble who in turn was replaced by Dave Anderson from Amon Düül II for this...

by Hawkwind

Hawkwind

and The Pillory by Jasun Martz

Jasun Martz

Jasun Martz is an American record producer, composer, musician, fine artist, creative director and sculptor who has worked on several international hit records. He has recorded with Michael Jackson, toured with Frank Zappa and helped arrange the hit "We Built This City" by Starship.Martz has lived...

as well as various works by Barnstorm (band).

The Mellotron was also used extensively by pioneering German electronic band Tangerine Dream

Tangerine Dream

Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music group founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The band has undergone many personnel changes over the years, with Froese being the only continuous member...

through their prime, including solo work by Edgar Froese

Edgar Froese

Edgar Wilmar Froese is a German artist and electronic music pioneer, best known for founding the electronic music group, Tangerine Dream. Although his solo and group recordings prior to 2003 name him as "Edgar Froese", his solo albums from 2003 onward bear the artist name "Edgar W. Froese".Froese...

. Their albums Phaedra
Phaedra (album)
-Personnel:* Edgar Froese – producer, Mellotron, guitar, bass, VCS 3 synthesizer, organ* Christopher Franke – Moog synthesizer, VCS 3 synthesizer* Peter Baumann – Organ, electric piano, VCS 3 synthesizer, flute-Chart performance:-References:*...

, Rubycon
Rubycon (album)
Rubycon is an album released in 1975 by German electronic music group Tangerine Dream. It is widely regarded as one of their best albums. Rubycon further develops the Berlin School sequencer-based sound they ushered in with the title track from Phaedra.Although not quite matching the sales figures...

, Ricochet, and Encore
Encore (Tangerine Dream album)
TD performed Cherokee Lane and Monolight, or some variants thereof, at every concert in 1977. The released version of Monolight has been identified as being recorded in Washington, D.C. on 4 April. The spoken introduction of the album also comes from here. A fantape of this complete concert was...

as well as Froese's Epsilon in Malaysian Pale provide archetypal examples of Mellotron playing.

Continuing from the late 1950s, the American Chamberlin

Chamberlin

instruments continued to be used as well. And often, like the Mellotron, these were used as an orchestral backdrop too. In the view of many musicians of the time, the two instruments were considered as interchangeable, since both instruments did orchestral sounds, and both were limited to eight seconds, and it did not matter necessarily which was available at a studio. This also led to confusion occasionally as to which instrument was being used.

Further to this confusion was the 1976 sale of the name "Mellotron" to the Mellotron distribution company via a legal blunder in writing the international distribution contracts. As a result the name "Mellotron" could not be used and the name "Novatron" was adopted for instruments produced after 1976. Novatrons are identical to Mellotrons but with the name "Novatron" badged on the control panel. Other than this, Novatrons continued in the same design specs as Mellotrons.

Also around this time, it became occasionally difficult to obtain service for Mellotrons as parts and service were intermittently available. Presumably this occurred out of legal wrangling over details between the British and American based companies and distributors.

Other alternate versions of the Mellotron, Novatron and Chamberlin

Chamberlin

were touted by competitors in the early to mid-1970s. One of these was the Vako Orchestron

Orchestron

The Vako Orchestron is a keyboard instrument, which produces its sound through electronic amplification of sound pre-recorded on an optical disc...

which used light scanning technology of disks with pre-recorded orchestral looped sounds on them. This was basically a professional and updated version of the Mattel

Mattel

Mattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company based on revenue. The products it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, and, in the early 1980s, video game consoles. The company's name is derived from...

Optigan

The Optigan was an electronic keyboard instrument designed for the consumer market. The name stems from the instrument's reliance on pre-recorded optical soundtracks to reproduce sound...

toy keyboard with slight improvements in sound quality and easier portability. The disk based system and its looped sounds were advertised as an advantage over the 8 second limits of the Mellotron and Chamberlin.
Another was the Birotron

Birotron

which featured improvements in the Mellotron and Chamberlin designs such as a robust cabinet, endless looping tapes (to surmount tape return jams), and a special Moog

Moog Music

Moog Music is an American company based in Asheville, North Carolina which manufactures electronic musical instruments. The current Moog Music is the second company to trade under that name.-R.A. Moog Co. and the original Moog Music:...

technician-designed electronic attack and decay for each note. A Mellotronics / Birotronics partnership was proposed and investigated between the two companies but the Birotron

Birotron

, was eventually never released to the buying public despite its use by Yes

Yes (band)

, Earthstar

Earthstar (band)

Earthstar was an electronic music group originally from Utica, New York, in the United States. Earthstar was encouraged by Krautrock/Kosmische Musik/electronic music artist, composer, and producer Klaus Schulze to relocate to Germany where they were signed by Sky Records. Schulze produced their...

and Rick Wakeman

Rick Wakeman

Richard Christopher Wakeman is an English keyboard player, composer and songwriter best known for being the former keyboardist in the progressive rock band Yes...

who, preceding Pepperidge Farm

Pepperidge Farm

Pepperidge Farm is a commercial bakery in the U.S. founded in 1937 by Margaret Rudkin, who named the brand after her family's property in Fairfield, Connecticut, which in turn was named for the pepperidge tree, Nyssa sylvatica. Since 1961, the company has been owned by the Campbell Soup Company...

, was one of the main investors.

1980s and post-punk

The advent of cheaper and more reliable polyphonic synthesizers

Synthesizer

and preset "string machines" saw the Mellotron's popularity wane by the end of the 1970s. Following the impact of punk rock

Punk rock

Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...

, the Mellotron tended to be viewed as a relic of a pompous era, or in the cases of the Chamberlin, Orchestron, and Birotron - as general obsolete technology. This was also due to the unavailability of new machines as both U.S. and U.K. manufacturers and distributors had declared bankruptcy, and older broken machines could not be serviced.

The belief that newer machines rendered older machines obsolete and uncool also encouraged many Mellotron, Chamberlin, Optigan, Orchestron, and Birotron owners to sell off or pitch their machines to the scrapheap. Rick Wakeman burned his two single Mellotron M400's in a bonfire in 1982. Three destroyed Birotrons were also found in a garbage bin around the late 1980s or early 1990s.
Optigans were often thought to be non-working because they would make no sound when turned on (unless a disk was on the turntable inside) and so these too were pitched into the garbage or sent to Goodwill stores. Orchestrons and Chamberlins that needed servicing were also consigned to the trashheap, their owners not willing to spend any more time or money repairing them.

Because of this, there are few Mellotron and Mellotron-related instruments used in recordings of the 1980s. The few instruments that are used are generally only partially operational and the lush chords and atmospheres that highlighted the music of the 1960s and 1970s are gone largely because of broken tapes, missing notes etc.

One of the few UK post-punk

Post-punk

Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...

bands to utilise the Mellotron was Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark are a synthpop group whose founding members are originally from the Wirral Peninsula, England...

, who featured it heavily on their platinum-selling 1981 album Architecture & Morality
Architecture & Morality
Architecture & Morality is the third album by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, released in 1981. It is the group's most commercially and critically successful album, selling over 3 million copies. Released just eighteen months after their debut album, it demonstrated both OMD's continuing musical...

. Joy Division

Joy Division

Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...

used its haunting quality to great effect on Decades from their seminal 1980 album Closer
Closer (Joy Division album)
Closer is the second and final studio album by the English post-punk band Joy Division, released , two months following the suicide of lead singer Ian Curtis. The album was originally scheduled to be released on . The record was originally released on the Factory Records label as a 12" LP and...

. It was also used by British bands XTC

XTC

XTC were a New Wave band from Swindon, England, active between 1976 and 2005. The band enjoyed some chart success, including the UK and Canadian hits "Making Plans for Nigel" and "Senses Working Overtime" , but are perhaps even better known for their long-standing critical success.- Early years:...

, Cardiacs

Cardiacs

Cardiacs are an English alternative rock/psychedelic pop band formed in 1977 and led by Tim Smith. Noted for their complex, varied and intense compositional style and for their eccentric, theatrical stage shows, they have been hailed as an influence by bands as diverse as Blur, Faith No More and...

, Nightwing

Nightwing

Nightwing is a name that has been used by several fictional characters in the DC Comics Universe. It was conceived as a Kryptonian analogue to the character of Batman, with Nightwing's frequent partner Flamebird based on Robin...

, and IQ

IQ (band)

IQ are a British neo-progressive rock band founded by Mike Holmes and Martin Orford in 1981 following the dissolution of their original band The Lens...

, but these were in a minority. It was also used by Talk Talk

Talk Talk

Talk Talk were an English musical group, active from 1981 to 1991. The group had a string of international hit singles including "Today", "Talk Talk", "It's My Life", "Such a Shame", "Dum Dum Girl", "Life's What You Make It" and "Living in Another World"....

(Life Is What You Make It), Wang Chung

Wang Chung (band)

Wang Chung are an English New Wave musical group.The group found their greatest success in America, with five Top 40 hits in the US, all charting between 1983 and 1987, including "Dance Hall Days" , "Everybody Have Fun Tonight" and "Let's Go!" .-Pre-history: The Intellektuals and 57 Men :Jeremy...

(Novatron string swells in Dance Hall Days), and in New Order's song Run 2

Run 2

"Run 2" was New Order's third and final single from their 1989 album Technique.-Overview:"Run 2" was remixed by Scott Litt from the version on Technique, hence the appendage of "2" to the title. The main difference is that the song has been made more radio-friendly by editing down most of the long...

from Technique
Technique (album)
Technique is the fifth studio album by New Order, released in 1989 via Factory Records. Partly recorded on the island of Ibiza, it incorporates Balearic beat and acid house influences into the group's electro/rock sound...

. In the U.S., Los Angeles avant-garde

Avant-garde

Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....

/art rock

Art rock

Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, with influences from art, avant-garde, and classical music. The first usage of the term, according to Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, was in 1968. Influenced by the work of The Beatles, most notably their Sgt...

band The Fibonaccis

The Fibonaccis

The Fibonaccis were an American art rock band formed in 1981 in Los Angeles. The band consisted of songwriter John Dentino , Ron Stringer , Magie Song , Joe Berardi and later Tom Corey .-Overview:...

made frequent use of a Mellotron, as did Los Angeles film/TV score and session musician Berington Van Campen. Marillion

Marillion

Marillion are a British rock band, formed in Aylesbury, England in 1979. Their recorded studio output comprises sixteen albums generally regarded in two distinct eras, delineated by the departure of original vocalist & frontman Fish in late 1988, and the subsequent arrival of replacement Steve...

also used the Mellotron during their tours in the early 1980s.

1990s resurgence / trademark infringement, rebirth and beyond

The Mellotron experienced a revival of sorts in the 1990s. A groundswell of music lovers, students, and musicians took an interest in Mellotrons and related paraphernalia, buying up old instruments, parts, advertisements, record LPs by "Mellotron bands", and seeking out otherwise obscure or unknown Mellotron recordings.

While a few bands and musicians (like Paul Weller, Richard Barone

Richard Barone

Richard Barone is a rock musician born in Tampa, Florida who gained attention as frontman for The Bongos. He works as a songwriter, arranger, author, director, and producer, releases albums as a solo artist, tours, and has created major concert events at Carnegie Hall, Hollywood Bowl and New York's...

, Oasis, Julian Cope

Julian Cope

Julian Cope is a British rock musician, author, antiquary, musicologist, poet and cultural commentator...

and Radiohead) managed to resurrect the actual Mellotrons, a plethora of newer bands began using the "static character" samples of the instrument made possible due to the release of Mellotron sounds in software form. Although the powerful sound dynamics due to wow

Wow (recording)

Wow is a relatively slow form of flutter which can affect both gramophone records and tape recorders. In the latter, the collective expression wow and flutter is commonly used.-Gramophone records:...

and flutter and random tape slither movement were lost, samples greatly appealed to many musicians who could not find, afford to buy, properly play, or correctly repair the surviving original Mellotrons.

The use of digital samples has also resulted in cases of trademark infringement

Trademark infringement

Trademark infringement is a violation of the exclusive rights attaching to a trademark without the authorization of the trademark owner or any licensees...

, trademark dilution

Trademark dilution

Trademark dilution is a trademark law concept giving the owner of a famous trademark standing to forbid others from using that mark in a way that would lessen its uniqueness. In most cases, trademark dilution involves an unauthorized use of another's trademark on products that do not compete with,...

, tarnishment, and likelihood of confusion. This occurs when the word "Mellotron" is used in song titles, band names, and CD liner notes to capitalize on, and exploit the name when no actual Mellotron instrument is played on or associated with the recording.
Instead digital samples are used but no rightful mention of the software source or sample manufacturers is referred to or credited, thus increasing potential to deceive the listener.

The name "Mellotron" is a recognized trademarked name referring only to the actual physical tape based machine, and historically to any sounds produced first hand from the instrument, and to and from the companies that manufacture or are legally and historically associated with manufacturing them. Mellotron sample users are therefore not entitled to use the name "Mellotron" because it refers to both the physical instrument and to the name of the company.
Further to this, additional legal restrictions and complications exist due to the 1976 sale of the Mellotron trademark name to the Mellotron distributorship.
Fewer than 1000 working Mellotrons are estimated to exist, suggesting that most Mellotron sounds heard in music produced from this era are not from actual Mellotrons, but from digital samples. The question of mis-representation or not is legally addressed on an individual basis.

Bands using either the actual instrument (usually rented) or samples include Michael Penn

Michael Penn

Michael Penn is an American singer, songwriter and composer. He is the eldest son of actor/director Leo Penn and actress Eileen Ryan, and the brother of actors Sean Penn and the late Chris Penn.-Career:...

, Guns N' Roses

Guns N' Roses

Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...

(on Chinese Democracy

Chinese Democracy

Chinese Democracy is the sixth studio album by American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, released in November 2008 on Geffen Records. It is the band's first studio album since "The Spaghetti Incident?" , released exactly 15 years before Chinese Democracy, and their first album of original studio...

), The Mars Volta

The Mars Volta

The Mars Volta is a Grammy award winning American progressive rock band from El Paso, Texas. Founded in 2001 by guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López and vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala, the band incorporates various influences including progressive rock, krautrock, jazz fusion, Latin American music, and...

, Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears are an English new wave band formed in the early 1980s by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith.Founded after the dissolution of their first band, the mod-influenced Graduate, they were initially associated with the New Wave synthesiser bands of the early 1980s but later branched out into...

(on Everybody Loves a Happy Ending

Everybody Loves a Happy Ending

Everybody Loves a Happy Ending is the sixth studio album by the British pop rock/new wave band Tears for Fears, released on 14 September 2004 in the US, and 7 March 2005 in the UK and Europe...

), Black Moth Super Rainbow

Black Moth Super Rainbow

Black Moth Super Rainbow is an American experimental band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Their music contains elements of psychedelia, folk, electronica, and pop...

, Zechs Marquise, Sigur Rós

Sigur Rós

Sigur Rós is an Icelandic post-rock band with classicaland minimalist elements. The band is known for its ethereal sound, and frontman Jónsi Birgisson's falsetto vocals and use of bowed guitar. In January 2010, the band announced that they will be on hiatus. Since then, it has since been announced...

, Dinosaur Jr

Dinosaur Jr

Dinosaur Jr. is an American alternative rock band formed in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1984. Originally called Dinosaur, prior to legal issues that forced the group to change their name, the band disbanded in 1997 until reuniting in 2005...

, Sleepy Hollow

Sleepy Hollow (band)

Sleepy Hollow is a rock band that formed in Lodi in 1999. Their music is an eclectic blend of classic heavy metal, progressive rock, and psychedelic rock influences. All members share vocal duties...

, Katatonia

Katatonia

Katatonia is a Swedish metal band formed in Stockholm in 1991 by Jonas Renkse and Anders Nyström .-1991-1993:The early Katatonia releases, such as the EP Jhva Elohim Meth.....

, Pulp

Pulp (band)

Pulp are an English alternative rock band formed in Sheffield in 1978. Their lineup consists of Jarvis Cocker , Russell Senior , Candida Doyle , Mark Webber , Steve Mackey and Nick Banks ....

, Marillion

Marillion

, U2

U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...

, Radio Massacre International

Radio Massacre International

Radio Massacre International are a trio of British musicians, Steve Dinsdale , Duncan Goddard , and Gary Houghton . They specialize in improvisational experimental electronic music, utilizing vintage synthesizers and sampled sounds alongside electric guitar. They are also leading exponents of the...

, Primus

Primus (band)

Primus is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, currently composed of bassist/vocalist Les Claypool, guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde and drummer Jay Lane. Primus originally formed in 1984 with Claypool and guitarist Todd Huth, later joined by Lane, though the latter two departed...

, The Smashing Pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan frontman and James Iha , the band has included Jimmy Chamberlin , D'arcy Wretzky , and currently includes Jeff Schroeder Mike Byrne , and Nicole Fiorentino The Smashing...

, Marilyn Manson

Marilyn Manson (band)

Marilyn Manson is an American metal band from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Formed in 1989 by Brian Warner and Scott Putesky, the group was originally named Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids with their uniquely theatrical performances gathering a local cult following in the early '90s. This attention...

, Counting Crows

Counting Crows

, Copeland

Copeland (band)

Copeland was an indie rock band, originally formed in 2001 by singer Aaron Marsh with his friend, bassist and backup singer James Likeness, in the city of Lakeland, Florida.-Inception:...

, Oasis

Oasis (band)

Oasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs , Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...

, Barenaked Ladies

Barenaked Ladies

Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian alternative rock band. The band is currently composed of Jim Creeggan, Kevin Hearn, Ed Robertson, and Tyler Stewart. Barenaked Ladies formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario, then a suburban municipality outside the City of Toronto...

, Sheryl Crow

Sheryl Crow

Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...

, Tori Amos

Tori Amos

Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...

, Spock's Beard

Spock's Beard

Spock's Beard is a progressive rock band formed in 1992 in Los Angeles by brothers Neal and Alan Morse. Neal played keyboards and was the lead vocalist, as well as being the primary songwriter before leaving the band in 2002 to pursue a solo career. Alan plays electric guitar...

, Lenny Kravitz

Lenny Kravitz

Leonard Albert "Lenny" Kravitz is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and arranger, whose "retro" style incorporates elements of rock, soul, R&B, funk, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, folk and ballads...

, Kevin Gilbert

Kevin Gilbert

Kevin Matthew Gilbert was an American songwriter, musician, composer, producer and collaborator born in Sacramento, California, later living in San Mateo, California where he attended Junipero Serra High School...

, The Flower Kings

The Flower Kings

The Flower Kings are a Swedish progressive rock group. Formed in August 1994 by veteran guitarist Roine Stolt as a touring band to support his solo album The Flower King, the band stayed together after the tour and have gone on to become one of the most prolific studio recording units in rock music...

, Nine Inch Nails

Nine Inch Nails

Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...

, Stone Temple Pilots

Stone Temple Pilots

Stone Temple Pilots is an American rock band from San Diego, California that consists of Scott Weiland , brothers Robert DeLeo and Dean DeLeo , and Eric Kretz ....

(in the song "Army Ants" from their 1994 album Purple

Purple (album)

-Notes:The opening of track 3, "Lounge Fly", was used as the theme for MTV News's short MTV News Break segments for several years in the mid-1990s....

.), Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. They are based in Portland, Oregon. Since their 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think...

, Ayreon

Ayreon

Ayreon is a project by Dutch composer and musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen.Ayreon's musical style derives mostly from heavy metal and progressive rock, but combines them with genres like folk, classical and electronica...

, Muse

Muse (band)

Muse are an English alternative rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The band consists of school friends Matthew Bellamy , Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard...

, Pearl Jam

Pearl Jam

Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...

, R.E.M.

R.E.M.

R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...

, Red Hot Chili Peppers

Red Hot Chili Peppers

Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...

, Soundgarden

Soundgarden

Soundgarden is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984 by singer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...

, Screaming Trees

Screaming Trees

Screaming Trees was an American rock band formed in Ellensburg, Washington in 1985 by vocalist Mark Lanegan, guitarist Gary Lee Conner, bass player Van Conner and drummer Mark Pickerel. Pickerel had been replaced by Barrett Martin by the time the band reached its most successful period...

, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers are an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. They were formed in 1976 by Tom Petty , Mike Campbell , Benmont Tench , , Ron Blair and Stan Lynch...

, Prick, Grandaddy

Grandaddy

Grandaddy was an American indie rock band, formed in 1992 in Modesto, California by singer, guitarist, and keyboardist Jason Lytle, bassist Kevin Garcia, and drummer Aaron Burtch. Guitarist Jim Fairchild and keyboardist Tim Dryden later joined the band in 1995...

, The Brian Jonestown Massacre

The Brian Jonestown Massacre

The Brian Jonestown Massacre is an American eclectic musical group led by Anton Newcombe, whose music spans multiple genres including psychedelia, electronica, folk music, blues, experimental music, and many others....

, The Charlatans, Paul Weller, Radiohead

Radiohead

Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...

; their song Exit Music (For a Film)

Exit Music (For a Film)

"Exit Music " is a song by Radiohead, written specifically for the ending credits of the 1996 film William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet. Although not included on either of the two soundtrack albums at the request of Thom Yorke, the song appears on the band's highly acclaimed third album, OK...

is a good example, using the 8 voice choir tape set, Porcupine Tree

Porcupine Tree

Porcupine Tree is a progressive rock band formed by Steven Wilson in 1987 in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England. Their music is difficult to categorise, being associated with both psychedelic rock and progressive rock, yet having been influenced by trance, krautrock and ambient due to Steven...

, Anekdoten

Anekdoten

Anekdoten is a Swedish progressive rock band, composed of guitarist/vocalist Nicklas Barker, cellist/keyboardist Anna Sofi Dahlberg, bassist/vocalist Jan Erik Liljeström and drummer Peter Nordins. They are notable for the use of the mellotron and their heavy sound dominated by a pounding bass guitar...

, Air, Opeth

Opeth

Opeth is a Swedish heavy metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. Though the group has been through several personnel changes, singer, guitarist, and songwriter Mikael Åkerfeldt has remained Opeth's driving force throughout the years...

, Wobbler

Wobbler (band)

- History :The band was formed near Hønefoss , in the spring of 1999 with a burning desire to create or perhaps recreate some of the musical expressions of the early seventies, especially in the use of the instruments of that time and the somewhat "strange" compositions of the progressive rock...

, In Lingua Mortua

In Lingua Mortua

In Lingua Mortua is a norwegian band formed by Lars Fredrik Frøislie in 1999 at Hønefoss, Norway. The music could be described as a mixture of 1970s progressive rock and extreme metal, and vintage instruments like the Mellotron, Chamberlin, Minimoog, Clavinet, Hammond organ and prophet-5 is used...

, Waterclime

Waterclime

Waterclime is a project of Andreas Hedlund aka Vintersorg, of the band of the eponymous name, as well as Borknagar, Otyg, Cronian, Fission, and Havayoth. Unlike Vintersorg's other bands, Waterclime is in no way metal, but rather a unique blend of progressive rock and jazz with melody and atmosphere...

and Oceana Company

Oceana Company

Oceana Company is a Dutch indie rock band comprising Matthijs Herder , Michiel Ferweda , Han Schilder & Robert Koole . Their music is notable for its melancholic- and psychedelic overtones and the use of authentic keyboard instruments like a mellotron...

. Anekdoten utilizes the Mellotron heavily in their recordings. French electronic musician Jean Michel Jarre

Jean Michel Jarre

Jean Michel André Jarre is a French composer, performer and music producer. He is a pioneer in the electronic, ambient and New Age genres, and known as an organiser of outdoor spectacles of his music featuring lights, laser displays, and fireworks.Jarre was raised in Lyon by his mother and...

was particularly vocal in his love of the instrument, using it extensively in his 1997 Oxygène

Oxygene

Oxygène is an album of instrumental electronic music composed, produced, and performed by the French composer Jean Michel Jarre. It was first released in France in December 1976, on Disques Dreyfus with license to Polydor. The album's international release was in summer 1977...

tour, and often describing it as the "Stradivarius

Stradivarius

The name Stradivarius is associated with violins built by members of the Stradivari family, particularly Antonio Stradivari. According to their reputation, the quality of their sound has defied attempts to explain or reproduce, though this belief is controversial...

of electronic music". Avant-garde singer-song writer Tom Waits has also used the Mellotron on several albums such as Frank Wild Years, Bone Machine, Black Rider, Mule Variations, Alice, Blood Money, Real Gone and Orphans. Rockbeat poet Joe Linus used an original model M400 on his 2004 album Gunpowder Tea on track #7 (Ladybug Lady).

The related instruments such as the Chamberlin

Chamberlin

, Optigan

Optigan

The Optigan was an electronic keyboard instrument designed for the consumer market. The name stems from the instrument's reliance on pre-recorded optical soundtracks to reproduce sound...

, Orchestron

Orchestron

The Vako Orchestron is a keyboard instrument, which produces its sound through electronic amplification of sound pre-recorded on an optical disc...

, and Birotron

Birotron

also received revived interest during this time, but aside from the Optigan

Optigan

The Optigan was an electronic keyboard instrument designed for the consumer market. The name stems from the instrument's reliance on pre-recorded optical soundtracks to reproduce sound...

, they proved difficult to find for most musicians. This generally resulted in the same few Orchestron

Orchestron

The Vako Orchestron is a keyboard instrument, which produces its sound through electronic amplification of sound pre-recorded on an optical disc...

and Chamberlin

Chamberlin

owners doing most of the session work with these instruments on records. The Birotron

Birotron

was considered hopelessly impossible to find by this time. The acknowledged rarity of these instruments, and even then, after locating at least one of them, and then the struggle in getting them to completely function properly paved the way for the acceptance of (legal and illegal) digital samples of these instruments. Although the samples were of dubious quality (especially to those players who could cite the tonal differences), they filled a need at the time. As a result there is a wide range of varying quality examples of excellent to poor performing instruments, and also a wide range of good to bad sampled sounds in music of the 1990s to the present. This is due to tape or disk condition, instrument condition, and whether the sampled sounds were corrupted by digitally pitching up or down or altering them to compensate for missing notes that had broken or erased tapes. A lack of knowledge for adjustment of the machines and poor analogue to digital conversion is also a factor.

The Flaming Lips

The Flaming Lips

The Flaming Lips are an American alternative rock band, formed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1983.Melodically, their sound contains lush, multi-layered, psychedelic rock arrangements, but lyrically their compositions show elements of space rock, including unusual song and album titles—such as "What...

, in 2002, used Mellotron samples in the recording of their album Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
-Special edition DVD-Audio:-The Flaming Lips:* Wayne Coyne - guitar, vocals, artwork, mixing, production* Michael Ivins - bass guitar, keyboards, vocals, mixing, production, additional engineering...

. Eels

Eels (band)

Eels is an American indie rock band formed by singer/songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, better known as E...

used the Mellotron extensively throughout many of the Eels albums, most notable in the song "Souljacker, pt 2" with E (Eels leader) and a Mellotron and is also featured in the song "Dust of Ages". Film composer John Murphy

John Murphy (composer)

John Murphy is an English film composer. He is a self taught multi-instrumental musician who began his career in the 1980s working notably with The Lotus Eaters, Thomas Lang and Claudia Brücken....

has used the Mellotron in his scores for 28 Days Later

28 Days Later

28 Days Later is an acclaimed 2002 British horror film directed by Danny Boyle. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland, and the film stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns, and Christopher Eccleston...

and 28 Weeks Later

28 Weeks Later

28 Weeks Later is a 2007 British/Spanish film sequel to the 2002 post-apocalyptic horror film 28 Days Later. 28 Weeks Later was directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo and released in the United Kingdom and United States on 11 May 2007...

. American metal band System Of A Down

System of a Down

System of a Down, also known by the acronym SOAD and often shortened to System, is a rock band from Southern California. The band was formed in 1994. It consists of Serj Tankian , Daron Malakian , Shavo Odadjian and John Dolmayan...

has used the sound in their music, most notably on the song "Roulette". On Porcupine Tree

Porcupine Tree

's 2005 album Deadwing
Deadwing
American edition10. "Shesmovedon " – 4:59DVD-A edition10. "Revenant" – 3:04 11. "Mother and Child Divided" – 4:59 12. "Half-Light" – 6:20 13. "Shesmovedon " - 4:59 LP edition...

, track 6 is titled "Mellotron Scratch" and includes lyrics about the sound of a Mellotron causing a woman to cry. Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse

used a Mellotron sound for the song "Little Motel". Porcupine Tree

Porcupine Tree

's Steven Wilson

Steven Wilson

Steven John Wilson is an English musician, best known as the founder, lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of progressive rock band Porcupine Tree...

prominently used the Mellotron's haunting choral sounds on No-Man

No-Man

No-Man are a British art-pop duo formed in 1987 as No Man Is An Island by singer Tim Bowness and multi-instrumentalist Steven Wilson . The band has so far produced six studio albums and a number of singles/outtakes collections...

's 2003 album Together We're Stranger
Together We're Stranger
- Two disc Snapper edition :The two disc edition comes with the original stereo mix on CD and a DVD featuring the album in 5.1 DVD-A surround sound and in high resolution 24 bit stereo, with bonus tracks "Bluecoda" and "The Break-up for Real – drum mix" as well as the video for "Things I Want to...

. British indie rock band The Kooks

The Kooks

The Kooks are an English indie rock band formed in Brighton, East Sussex, in 2001. Formed by Luke Pritchard , Hugh Harris , Paul Garred , and Max Rafferty , the lineup of the band remained constant until 2008 and the departure of Rafferty...

also use a real Mellotron on their albums Konk
Konk (album)
-Technical information on songs:-Release history:-Charts:...

(recorded at Konk studios

Konk (recording)

Konk is the name of a recording studio and record label, established and managed by members of British Rock group The Kinks.- Konk Studios :In 1971, The Kinks left Pye Records for a five-album stint with RCA, who offered them a million-dollar advance...

in Hornsey) and Rak. The Strokes

The Strokes

The Strokes are an American indie rock band formed in 1999 in New York City. Consisting of Julian Casablancas , Nick Valensi , Albert Hammond, Jr. , Nikolai Fraiture and Fabrizio Moretti ....

also used a Mellotron on the song "Ask Me Anything" on their 2006 album First Impressions of Earth
First Impressions of Earth
First Impressions of Earth is the third album by the American indie rock band The Strokes. It was released in January 2006 , having been preceded by lead single "Juicebox" some weeks earlier...

. The Ataris

The Ataris

The Ataris are a rock band from Anderson, Indiana. They have released five studio albums, and their most recent E.P. was released on November 25, 2010 on the Gainesville, Florida based label, Paper + Plastick. It contained the brand new tracks "All Souls' Day" and "The Graveyard of The Atlantic"...

utilized the Mellotron on their 2007 album Welcome the Night
Welcome the Night
Welcome the Night is the fifth studio album by The Ataris, the long delayed follow-up to the previous release So Long, Astoria and marks the departure from melodic punk style to a more indie alternative rock...

, most prominently on the songs "Cardiff-by-the-Sea" and "A Soundtrack for This Rainy Morning". Les Fradkin

Les Fradkin

Les Fradkin is a guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter, composer and record producer. He is best known for being a member of the original cast of the hit Broadway show Beatlemania...

uses the GForce M-Tron

M-Tron

M-tron is a software created by the Gforce software developers, that emulates the sound of a Mellotron instrument.This program functions with Windows as well as Mac OS, as a plug-in or a stand alone program....

software instrument on most of his current recordings. He triggers it from a Starr Labs Ztar which gives completely different musical results from the traditional keyboard approach. Opeth

Opeth

has a version of their song "Porcelain Heart" which consists entirely of Mellotron samples entitled "Mellotron Heart". This version was featured only on special editions of their 2008 album Watershed
Watershed (Opeth album)
Watershed is the ninth full-length studio album by the Swedish progressive death metal band Opeth. Published by Roadrunner Records, the album's special edition was released first as a music download on the Italian iTunes Stores on May 19, 2008.Watershed is the first studio album by Opeth to...

. A progressive rock group from Finland, Nurkostam, is also known for using a lot of Mellotron sounds on their recordings. Founded in 2008, MelloFest

MelloFest

MelloFest is a new festival that celebrates the Mellotron and Chamberlin keyboards and the music that they inspired as well as singer-songwriters in general...

is a UK-based festival celebrating music inspired by both the Mellotron and the Chamberlin. The Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

band Hooverphonic

Hooverphonic

Hooverphonic are a Belgian rock/pop group, formed in 1995. Though early on categorized as a trip hop group, they quickly expanded their sound to the point where they could no longer be described as a lone genre, but rather encompass alternative, electronica, electropop, rock, and mixture of others...

also made great use of the Mellotron on their 2008 album The President of the LSD Golf Club
The President of the LSD Golf Club
The President of the LSD Golf Club is the sixth studio album album by the Belgian band Hooverphonic. The title The President of the LSD Golf Club was originally intended for The Magnificent Tree, but the title was not allowed by Sony, Hooverphonic's label at the time.The album has quite a different...

. Dutch indie rock band Oceana Company

Oceana Company

uses a Mellotron M400 on their live shows and album For The Boatman. Canadian indie band Water Closet Phobia relies heavily on Mellotron sounds for texture, background sonic filler, and a plethora of odd sound effects. Psychedelic pop group Magic Hero vs. Rock People employed the instruments' sound extensively on their 2008 debut album. British rock band The Electric Soft Parade

The Electric Soft Parade

The Electric Soft Parade are an English psych-pop band from Brighton, comprising brothers Alex and Thomas White, the creative core of the band, as well as a number of other musicians with whom they record and perform live, most recently including Andrew Mitchell and Damo Waters, as well as...

has made extensive use of Mellotron samples throughout their career, both live and in the studio, though perhaps most prominently on their 2007 album No Need To Be Downhearted
No Need to Be Downhearted
No Need to Be Downhearted is an album by The Electric Soft Parade, released in 2007. The first single was "If That's the Case, Then I Don't Know".The album was named after a lyric from The Fall's song "15 Ways" from their album Middle Class Revolt....

. Also in 2007, the Canadian band Rush

Rush (band)

used Mellotron samples for their song "Good News First" on their Snakes and Arrows CD.

By the year 1999, availability of original Mellotrons had vastly declined. Discoveries of some commercial software sample sets using digitally pitched notes and magnetized tapes (revealed in A and B comparisons) caused a greater purist demand for authentic Mellotrons. As a result of this demand, (and because old models could not be located for re-sale), new Mellotron models were put into production: the American / Swedish Mellotron MK 6 model and the British Streetly Mellotron M-4000 model. Both resemble the M400 design, but with modern improvements to make them more reliable and roadworthy. An example of this is the recent purchase of a Mellotron M4000 for use by the band Arcade Fire who use it in the soundtrack for the 2009 movie The Box. Another example is Oasis' band member Noel Gallagher's purchase of a Mellotron MK 6 model in 1999 followed by his purchase of an original MK 2 model. Other bands such as A-ha (MK6 model), The Kooks (M4000) and Radiohead (original M400) are also part of this wave of musicians. Older musicians also continue to use real Mellotrons, one being Paul McCartney who still uses his on solo albums and in collaboration with Youth in his Fireman releases. Newer bands such as Sanctuary Rig use the M400 in their studio releases.

Of all the disk and tape instruments, the Mellotron has made the strongest comeback. The other related instruments such as the Chamberlin

Chamberlin

, Birotron

Birotron

, Orchestron

Orchestron

The Vako Orchestron is a keyboard instrument, which produces its sound through electronic amplification of sound pre-recorded on an optical disc...

, and Optigan

Optigan

The Optigan was an electronic keyboard instrument designed for the consumer market. The name stems from the instrument's reliance on pre-recorded optical soundtracks to reproduce sound...

live on (if at all) only as restored original instruments. No modern reproductions of these exist. The Mellotron is arguably the most ubiquitous and the Birotron

Birotron

almost a myth. The others fall neatly in between these two extremes, but all provide unique qualities and variations of sound colour like the Mellotron. Although the sounds from each instrument are similar, none of them truly duplicate each other. The resurgence in the Mellotron and the related tape and disk keyboards has caused a greater appreciation for their place in music history as well as being remarkable examples of mechanical engineering.
Because of this, the demand for Mellotrons and the other related instruments continues to remain high well into the 21st century.

List of models

Mark I (1963) - double manual (35 notes on each). Very similar to the Chamberlin Music Master 600
Chamberlin
The Chamberlin is an electro-mechanical keyboard instrument that was a precursor to the Mellotron. It was developed and patented by Iowa, Wisconsin inventor Harry Chamberlin from 1949 to 1956, when the first model was introduced. Various models and versions of these Chamberlin music instruments...

. About 55 were made.
Mk II (1964) - double manual. 18 sounds on each manual. About 300 were made.
FX console (1965) - double manual with sound effects. About 60 were made.
M300 (1968) - 52 note single manual, some with pitch wheel-control, and some without. About 60 were made.
M400 (1970) - 35 note single manual. The most common and portable model. About 1800 units were made. It has three different sounds per frame.
EMI M400 (1970) - 100 of this model were manufactured by EMI music company in Britain under license from Mellotronics. See M400.
Mark V (1975) - double manual. It's basically two M400's in one. Around 28 were made of this one, not including a special one-off machine made for Rick Wakeman.
Novatron Mark V (1977) - this is the same as the Mellotron Mark V just under a different name. About two were ever made - one owned by Paul McCartney and the other by Patrick Moraz.
Novatron 400 (1978) - the same with this one; it's a Mellotron M400 with a different name-plate.
T550 (1981) - this extremely rare model is a flight-cased version of Novatron 400. Four were made. Used by Tangerine Dream.
4 Track (1981) - very rare model. About five were ever made of this model.
Mark VI (1998) - an improved version of the M400. The first Mellotron to be produced since Streetly Electronics went out of business in 1986.
Mark VII - this is basically an upgraded Mark V. Like the MkVI, this one is produced on the new factory in Stockholm.
Skellotron (2005) - an improved m400 with a new look. Made by Streetly Electronics.
M4000 (2007) - one manual, 24 sounds. An improved version of the MkII with cycling mechanism. Made by Streetly Electronics.

Other related products

Band Master Powerhouse (1975) An 8 track drum machine manufactured by Bandmaster in Scotland and sold by Streetly Electronics.

Studio Symphony (1985) A one-off model with digital memory (no tapes). Only one experimental company model was made by Mellotron USA.

M4000D (2010) - a single manual digital
Digital
A digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...

product that does not feature tapes. Made at the mellotron-factory in Stockholm.

Sources

Mellodrama, documentary film by Dianna Dilworth
Dianna Dilworth
Dianna Dilworth is a filmmaker and journalist. She attended San Francisco State University and the European Graduate School....
Mellotron: The Machine and the Musicians That Revolutionised Rock, by Nick Awde
Nick Awde
Nick Awde Hill , is a British writer, artist, singer-songwriter and critic. The author, editor or illustrator of more than 50 books, he is based in London and Brussels...

, Desert Hearts, ISBN 978-1898948025.
The Mellotron Book, by Frank Samagaio, ProMusic Press, ISBN 978-1931140140

External links

Mellotron.com - US manufacturers and trademark owners
Mellotronics.com - Streetly Electronics, UK manufacturers
Planet Mellotron.com - List of Mellotron recordings and album reviews
Planet Mellotron.com
Mellodrama: The Mellotron Movie - Mellotron documentary by Dianna Dilworth

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

History

Operation

1960s and the psychedelic era

1970s and progressive rock

1980s and post-punk

1990s resurgence / trademark infringement, rebirth and beyond

List of models

Other related products

Sources

Further reading

External links