Upcoming on BBC Radio 4. Should be available on Listen Again via the
interweb (
www.bbc.co.uk/radio4):
BBC Radio 4 Saturday 3 June 2006
Sampledelica! The History Of The Mellotron
10.30-11.00am BBC Radio 4
"Launched in 1963, the Mellotron was the first music sampler - an
instrument that could capture and play back other sounds. In this
fascinating feature, which contains new interviews with Sir Paul
McCartney, Paul Weller and Tony Banks from Genesis, Mark Radcliffe
examines the history of the Mellotron and the part it played in British
pop music history.
The programme examines the history of the instrument, investigates its
impact on the music business as the earliest sampling technology and
particularly how it was adopted by bands in the early Seventies
progressive rock era. Tony Banks, the keyboardist with Genesis, talks of
his love/hate relationship with the instrument, which proved notoriously
difficult to take on the road. Other contributions come from Andy
Partridge and David Gregory of XTC, Ian McDonald, the keyboardist from
King Crimson, and Justin Haywood from The Moody Blues, who famously used
the instrument on Nights In White Satin."
via Jordan Gibson on AH