On Jan 12, 2007, at 12:48 PM, David Jacques wrote:
Yeah, right… Just listen to some of the live recordings and you will hear how great he was… Ever play a real Mellotron? Try that before you judge how others play…
David, I think that Frank was just being funny -- well, trying to be...
Both Frank and Mike Dickson have extensive experience playing mellotrons, so I think they can express their opinions from at least a mellotronistically accurate viewpoint.
Frank really is a nice guy, as is Mike Dickson (and a swell danced, to boot). Martinge Smith deserves the Nobel Pizza Prize, too, but there you go.
From my standpoint, I think Pinder plays mellotron quite well. Working within the Moodies "framework", his parts fit well and certainly improve the songs. If nothing else, he understands HOW to play a mellotron, and that's not all that common. Most keyboard players approach it like any other keyboard -- but it's not. I also think Fripp and McDonald play it very well, but then they're not keyboard players. Hmmm...
Rick