Mellotronists

-----Original Message-----
From: tony [mailto:amoffet1@...]
Sent: Monday, April 07, 2003 12:00 PM
To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com; Pishock, Jimmy
Subject: Re: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD


He's been known to play Moog Taurus pedals with his hands.
 
Tony
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Pishock, Jimmy 
To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Monday, April 07, 2003 10:57 AM
Subject: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD


I managed to pick up "Yessongs" on DVD this weekend and noticed that, during
the ending of "Starship Trooper" I see Jon Anderson next to the drum set
playing some sore of weird "keyboard".  Does anyone know what that is?  I
don't know if it is some sort of bass pedal or what.
 
 
Jimmy Pishock

----- Original Message -----

From: Pishock, Jimmy

To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Monday, April 07, 2003 10:57 AM

Subject: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD

I managed to pick up "Yessongs" on DVD this weekend and noticed that, during the ending of "Starship Trooper" I see Jon Anderson next to the drum set playing some sore of weird "keyboard". Does anyone know what that is? I don't know if it is some sort of bass pedal or what.

Jimmy Pishock

To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
Mellotronists-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com



Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.

----- Original Message -----

From: Gene Stopp

To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Monday, April 07, 2003 7:16 PM

Subject: RE: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD

But - did Taurus pedals exist at the time the Yessongs tour was filmed? I
think they came later... (better go dig up the DVD!)

- Gene

> I think that the Moog Taurus was introduced in 1975,
> or 1976, but other manufacturers, such as Fender,
> had bass pedals before this point.  Aidan
>   ----- Original Message ----- 
>   From: Gene Stopp 
>   To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com 
>   Sent: Monday, April 07, 2003 7:16 PM
>   Subject: RE: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD
> 
> 
>   But - did Taurus pedals exist at the time the
> Yessongs tour was filmed? I
>   think they came later... (better go dig up the
> DVD!)
> 
>   - Gene
>

From: zappaboggs [mailto:zappaboggs@...]
Sent: 07 April 2003 20:53
To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD


FYI

http://www.sonicstate.com/synth/moog_taurus1.cfm

The Taurus 1 Bass Pedals were released in 1971.


Sorry, but the Mark 1 Taurus was absolutely not released in '71. The guy
that wrote the summary on that site obviously doesn't know his arse from his
elbow anyway, given that he's under the impression there were three
different models. '75 sounds like a more reasonable release date. Visually,
they match the MultiMoog and possibly the MicroMoog - mid-'70s instruments.
I believe they were originally going to be part of Moog's uber-synth
project, the Constellation, consisting of a polysynth, possibly a mono, and
pedals. When it fell through, they carried on with the development of the
pedals. First known recording, Genesis, 'A Trick of the Tail', recorded that
year.

Both Genesis and Yes used pre-Taurus bass pedals from about '71 onwards,
then switched to Moog when they became available.

Andy T.
M400 #1145
Moog Taurus Mark 1 #2-something and #3-something.  :-)

'The Ultimate Mellotron Recordings List (Possibly)'

http://freespace.virgin.net/andy.thompson/

> You folks are absolutely correct! Sorry for the
> confusion..  I do remember seeing bass pedals from the
> early 70's, but it was of the Fender kind...
> 
> http://www.geocities.com/jpjkeys/basspedals.html
> 
> 
> --- Andy Thompson <andy.thompson@v...> wrote:
> > 
> > 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: zappaboggs [mailto:zappaboggs@y...]
> > Sent: 07 April 2003 20:53
> > To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
> > Subject: Re: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD
> > 
> > 
> > FYI
> > 
> > http://www.sonicstate.com/synth/moog_taurus1.cfm
> > 
> > The Taurus 1 Bass Pedals were released in 1971.
> > 
> > 
> > Sorry, but the Mark 1 Taurus was absolutely not
> > released in '71. The guy
> > that wrote the summary on that site obviously
> > doesn't know his arse from his
> > elbow anyway, given that he's under the impression
> > there were three
> > different models. '75 sounds like a more reasonable
> > release date. Visually,
> > they match the MultiMoog and possibly the MicroMoog
> > - mid-'70s instruments.
> > I believe they were originally going to be part of
> > Moog's uber-synth
> > project, the Constellation, consisting of a
> > polysynth, possibly a mono, and
> > pedals. When it fell through, they carried on with
> > the development of the
> > pedals. First known recording, Genesis, 'A Trick of
> > the Tail', recorded that
> > year.
> > 
> > Both Genesis and Yes used pre-Taurus bass pedals
> > from about '71 onwards,
> > then switched to Moog when they became available.
> > 
> > Andy T.
> > M400 #1145
> > Moog Taurus Mark 1 #2-something and #3-something. 
> > :-)
> > 
> > 'The Ultimate Mellotron Recordings List (Possibly)'
> > 
> > http://freespace.virgin.net/andy.thompson/
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> 
> 
> __________________________________________________
> Do you Yahoo!?
> Yahoo! Tax Center - File online, calculators, forms, and more
> http://tax.yahoo.com

Subject:        	[Mellotronists] Re: Yessongs DVD

> Prior to purchasing a Moog Taurus unit around 1975, I had a very 
> nice sounding set of bass pedals made by a company in Texas, but I 
> don't remember the name of the company. The unit was basically a 
> black crackle textured metal box with some wooden pedals and only a 
> couple of settings. The only problem with them was they moved around 
> when played because they were so light. Anyone familiar with them?
> 
> Bernie
> 
> --- In Mellotronists@yahoogroups.com, zappaboggs <zappaboggs@y...> 
> wrote:
> > You folks are absolutely correct! Sorry for the
> > confusion..  I do remember seeing bass pedals from the
> > early 70's, but it was of the Fender kind...
> > 
> > http://www.geocities.com/jpjkeys/basspedals.html
> > 
> > 
> > --- Andy Thompson <andy.thompson@v...> wrote:
> > > 
> > > 
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: zappaboggs [mailto:zappaboggs@y...]
> > > Sent: 07 April 2003 20:53
> > > To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
> > > Subject: Re: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD
> > > 
> > > 
> > > FYI
> > > 
> > > http://www.sonicstate.com/synth/moog_taurus1.cfm
> > > 
> > > The Taurus 1 Bass Pedals were released in 1971.
> > > 
> > > 
> > > Sorry, but the Mark 1 Taurus was absolutely not
> > > released in '71. The guy
> > > that wrote the summary on that site obviously
> > > doesn't know his arse from his
> > > elbow anyway, given that he's under the impression
> > > there were three
> > > different models. '75 sounds like a more reasonable
> > > release date. Visually,
> > > they match the MultiMoog and possibly the MicroMoog
> > > - mid-'70s instruments.
> > > I believe they were originally going to be part of
> > > Moog's uber-synth
> > > project, the Constellation, consisting of a
> > > polysynth, possibly a mono, and
> > > pedals. When it fell through, they carried on with
> > > the development of the
> > > pedals. First known recording, Genesis, 'A Trick of
> > > the Tail', recorded that
> > > year.
> > > 
> > > Both Genesis and Yes used pre-Taurus bass pedals
> > > from about '71 onwards,
> > > then switched to Moog when they became available.
> > > 
> > > Andy T.
> > > M400 #1145
> > > Moog Taurus Mark 1 #2-something and #3-something. 
> > > :-)
> > > 
> > > 'The Ultimate Mellotron Recordings List (Possibly)'
> > > 
> > > http://freespace.virgin.net/andy.thompson/
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > 
> > 
> > __________________________________________________
> > Do you Yahoo!?
> > Yahoo! Tax Center - File online, calculators, forms, and more
> > http://tax.yahoo.com
> 
> 
> 
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
> Mellotronists-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> 
>  
> 
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ 
> 
>

From: Colin Crawford [mailto:g-colin.crawford@...]
Sent: 08 April 2003 07:28
To: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD



None of us want a Rogue on a Stick........... (Except Norm,
perhaps!!!!!)


Peversely, I still really like my Rogue, although it's best to work within
its limitations. It was my first 'real' synth, so I'll probably always have
a soft spot for it on those grounds alone. However, to use it as the guts of
the unneeded replacement for the Taurus 1... What were they thinking of? And
who needs pitchbend and modulation on a set of bass pedals? 'Why' will
probably always be one of those unanswered questions...

Andy T.
M400 #1145
Moog Taurus Mark 1 #s 2-something and 3-somthing.
MiniMoog #6609
Moog Rogue #????

'The Ultimate Mellotron Recordings List (Possibly)'

http://freespace.virgin.net/andy.thompson/

From: John McIntyre [mailto:mcintyre@...]
Sent: 08 April 2003 14:33
Cc: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD



> Jon Anderson probably wants better hand playability.

More likely he wanted easy access to the adjustable controls without having
to bend over.  That was the big improvement of the Taurus II: separating the
controls from the foot pedals.  The big mistake of the Taurus II was
omitting
the awesome presets of the Taurus I.


Trouble is, they picked their weediest synth as its sound source. Fatal.
Also, most players wanted hands-free controls, which the Mark 1 provided
admirably, in a stunningly well thought out design. Who else would've
realised that a filter amount foot slider would be so useful? However, I see
your point. Maybe a hybrid between the two would've been the best bit - and
still could be.

Andy T.
M400 #1145

'The Ultimate Mellotron Recordings List (Possibly)'

http://freespace.virgin.net/andy.thompson/

From: electra3682000 [mailto:jocke@...]
Sent: 08 April 2003 15:07
To: Mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [Mellotronists] Re: Yessongs DVD


> Jon Anderson probably wants better hand playability.

Ah, playing a Taurus with your hands -- I've always wondered how
common that was back in the old days. I seem to recall Phil Collins
doing it during the song 'Ripples' in 1978 and 1980. Any other
examples?


The obvious one is John Hackett - pics of Steve's band from the late-'70s to
early-'80s quite clearly show him playing them this way. I wasn't aware that
both Phil Collins and Jon Anderson had done the same thing. More obscurely,
I remember early-'80s UK band Tamarisk doing the same thing, usually at
inappropriate moments, as apparently 'they didn't want them to sound
cliched'. Oh no, what a crime.  :-)


> The big mistake of the Taurus II was omitting the awesome presets
> of the Taurus I.

Well, yes, but the basic sonic quality changed too. I've always
attributed the characteristic "purr" of the Taurus I to the unique
oscillator design it employs -- quite unlike any other Moog (a V/Hz
design with fairly slow sawtooth retrace, for those interested).


That explains a lot - so it's not a cut-down Mini at all?

Andy T.
M400 #1145

'The Ultimate Mellotron Recordings List (Possibly)'

http://freespace.virgin.net/andy.thompson/

From: John McIntyre [mailto:mcintyre@...]
Sent: 09 April 2003 13:07
Cc: mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [Mellotronists] Yessongs DVD


Andy Thompson wrote:

Maybe a hybrid between the two would've been the best bit - and
> still could be.

Definitely a possibility.  Bigbriar.com is conducting a survey on what
people
would like to see in a Taurus III.  Cast your vote.


Already have!

Andy T.

From: John McIntyre [mailto:mcintyre@...]
Sent: 09 April 2003 13:13
Cc: Mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [Mellotronists] Re: Yessongs DVD




When I saw Steve Hackett shortly after he left Genesis, his band had three
sets of Taurus pedals: one for Steve, one for the bass player, and one for
Steve's brother who also played flute (and sax, I think).  Steve's brother
had his set mounted waist high and played them with his fists.


Three? Outrageous! Steve played them in later days with Genesis (clearly
visible on the 'Seconds Out' cover shot), but I didn't know he used them
with his own band. And I thought *I* was obsessed with them! John's chief
role in the band was as flautist, with bass pedals as second instrument, and
rhythm guitar as third. I don't know anything about him playing sax, though.

Andy T.
M400 #1145

'The Ultimate Mellotron Recordings List (Possibly)'

http://freespace.virgin.net/andy.thompson/