Anybody know of a good video of fly like an eagle.

[Baldwin Funster]

I'm not talking about a cool interpretation or steve miller doing his rap version. I'm trying to find a vid of someone nailing the Waheem Young groove on that. Nobody including me seems to come close even though there's now isolated tracks to check out.

 

Maybe it cant be done on a clone?

[The Real MC]

That's one of the wonderful extreme examples of Hammond technique, and an acid test for clones. The song does not sound right without a dual manual system. The smears and articulations highlight many subtle traits of a vintage Hammond - IE voice robbing - that many clones fail to replicate. Also the keybed feel of a Hammond just invites that kind of expression, which few clones bother to approach.

[Stokely]

I remember the day my band said "maybe we should do Fly Like an Eagle"...I was both excited and terrified, as I'm far from a real organ player but this would certainly be a challenge. Then came: "Let's do the Seal version, it's better". I just about killed the lot of them.

 

I like Seal, I think his first album is amazing, but his version of that song sucks IMO, at least compared to the original.

[zxcvbnm098]

I'm not talking about a cool interpretation or steve miller doing his rap version. I'm trying to find a vid of someone nailing the Waheem Young groove on that. Nobody including me seems to come close even though there's now isolated tracks to check out.

 

Maybe it cant be done on a clone?

 

Do you have link to the isolated tracks? I had not seem them....but I'd love to hear it!

 

This is the only version I've seen from that era, but as you can hear it does not come even close to the stuff that's on the album. I think this Kirshners Rock Concert versions done before they recorded the studio version when it was more of a jam?

 

This article talks about the creation of the tune:

https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-steve-millers-fly-like-an-eagle-took-off-11575474905

 

I don't know for sure, but I don't think Joachim ever played it live with the band?

[Baldwin Funster]

There is a synth one too but it's just beeps and boops I'm sure.

 

[video:youtube]

 

[video:youtube]

And just cause I wanna...

[video:youtube]

[zxcvbnm098]

Thanks for the links........that is some badass organ playing.

[mate stubb]

The playing is very percussive. There are times when you almost slap at a Hammond like it was congas. Fingers hit chords and then the palm bumps 4 or 5 keys for percussive effect. Get a little arm movement going. Use a flutier soft sound like 008060000 or something on the lower manual for swipes.

 

Another thing you'll do is sustained chords alternating between I, IV, and IV minor while moving drawbars in and out.

[AWkeys]

As I suspect the rest of you do, I spend a lot of time trying to make a clonewheel sound like a Hammond. They get close, even to the point of inspiring performance - let's face it, that's really what we want as the audience doesn't give half the s*** about it we do - but there still is NOTHING like the real thing. As our esteemed friend Mate said above, "there are times when you almost slap at a Hammond like it was congas". True story. It's like the busbars and so forth are inviting you to play that way. Maybe the newish XK-5 gets you close, but in my experience, there is no substitute for sitting at the actual console. I'll still do my best with what I'm using, but I don't know that I'll ever experience anything that truly replicates the real deal...yet.

[Doerfler]

The video Mike posted from Don Kirshner's Rock Concert is my all time fav version. Love the lyrics. I was in High School when the album came out, it was huge for my crowd.

 

Song is still popular with young folks today.

[synthizen2]

This is one of the tougher songs I do with my classic rock covers band. Certainly a challenge for any keyboard player... with not just the Hammond parts, but the spacey synth arpeggios (and a wind effect) as well. Enough to keep any keyboard player busy!

 

Although I'm not using a dual manual for the Hammond parts, I pretty much got the percussive stuff and the smears down pretty good. Yes, lots of "slapping" on the keys using underhand/overhand action. During the verse, I'm alternating the Hammond parts with the spacey synth arpeggios on every other verse line, like on the record.

 

During the chorus, I still haven't learned to hold the Hammond chords down while simultaneously doing synth arpeggios (on the "let my spirit carry me" line)... need more practice. For now, I'm just doing the Hammond chords on the chorus. Nobody in the audience seems to care, they enjoy it.

 

Love the song, both playing it and (of course) having it on turntable rotation during the 70s.

[Baldwin Funster]

This is one of the tougher songs I do with my classic rock covers band. Certainly a challenge for any keyboard player... with not just the Hammond parts, but the spacey synth arpeggios (and a wind effect) as well. Enough to keep any keyboard player busy!

 

Although I'm not using a dual manual for the Hammond parts, I pretty much got the percussive stuff and the smears down pretty good. Yes, lots of "slapping" on the keys using underhand/overhand action. During the verse, I'm alternating the Hammond parts with the spacey synth arpeggios on every other verse line, like on the record.

 

During the chorus, I still haven't learned to hold the Hammond chords down while simultaneously doing synth arpeggios (on the "let my spirit carry me" line)... need more practice. For now, I'm just doing the Hammond chords on the chorus. Nobody in the audience seems to care, they enjoy it.

 

Love the song, both playing it and (of course) having it on turntable rotation during the 70s.

 

 

I think you could just record a wav of random synthy delay and let it run through the song. It seems pretty random to the audience anyways. The hard part on the chorus is the build up with the drawbars and leslie. Sure I can do a build up but it falls short of the perfection of the OK (original keyboardist). The hard part on the percussive slapping is those fast triplet slaps. I very never heard any body cover that.

 

Anybody want to proclaim their greatness for all time by posting themselves covering this? The isolated drums are right here. I've seen the isolated guitar. And I bet the isolated bass is around somewhere.

[HammondDave]

I covered this song last weekend… and no, I will not post the video! Lol

 

[BEMcCut]

Here is a link to a video from 2011 Austin City Limits performance. Live with Joseph Wooten on keyboards. If I remember correctly he covered bass for all songs but Fly Like An Eagle.  https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=533374921785124

 

[stoken6]

On 5/18/2021 at 9:43 PM, Jr. Deluxe said:

Anybody want to proclaim their greatness for all time by posting themselves covering this? The isolated drums are right here. I've seen the isolated guitar. And I bet the isolated bass is around somewhere.

Woody's next community challenge?

 

Cheers, Mike.

[Baldwin Funster]

Funny to me that at least a couple guys here would take up the challenge if it were Roundabout or maybe Point of No Return. But FLAE daunts the greats.  

[CyberGene]

On 5/17/2021 at 3:55 PM, Stokely said:

I remember the day my band said "maybe we should do Fly Like an Eagle"...I was both excited and terrified, as I'm far from a real organ player but this would certainly be a challenge. Then came: "Let's do the Seal version, it's better". I just about killed the lot of them.

 

I like Seal, I think his first album is amazing, but his version of that song sucks IMO, at least compared to the original.

I realize I'm not as old as I sometimes think I am, since when I read the title of this (old) thread, my first thought was Seal 😀 As a matter of fact, I've been listening to a Seal playlist for the last 30 minutes (I used to like him a lot in the past) based on reading the title of this thread and not actually opening it. I think I may have known that he only covered it but I forgot. Shame on me, but I have never heard the original. Just did now. Well, crucify me but actually not very different than Seal's one except for slightly more "obtrusive" Hammond and some dubious synth outro 😛

[NosPup]

Funny enough I was listening to Seal yesterday too!  I loved his first two albums.

 

For FLAE, i've always loved the Neville Bros version.

 

 

[ABECK]

10 hours ago, BEMcCut said:

Here is a link to a video from 2011 Austin City Limits performance. Live with Joseph Wooten on keyboards. If I remember correctly he covered bass for all songs but Fly Like An Eagle.  https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=533374921785124

 

Damn that is just awesome.

[Outkaster]

This is probably the 3rd thread about this song.  It comes up every few years.  I think the guy that did it originally has passed on.

[SamuelBLupowitz]

7 hours ago, Jr. Deluxe said:

Funny to me that at least a couple guys here would take up the challenge if it were Roundabout or maybe Point of No Return. But FLAE daunts the greats.  

I've been having a blast doing one-man-band cover videos at home lately -- maybe I'll have to add this one to my list! Really fun bass part too. The trick is always whether or not I can manage the drums...

[Baldwin Funster]

4 hours ago, Outkaster said:

This is probably the 3rd thread about this song.  It comes up every few years.  I think the guy that did it originally has passed on.

I hope I'm wrong but I recall looking the session organ player up and reading he jumped off a bridge quite a long time ago. 

[jazzpiano88]

Tangential comment....   Miles dissed Steve Miller in his autobiography.    But some of Miller's pieces were just as groundbreaking and will stand the test of time as Miles's.

Fly Like an Eagle is one example.

 

 

[zxcvbnm098]

5 hours ago, Jr. Deluxe said:

I hope I'm wrong but I recall looking the session organ player up and reading he jumped off a bridge quite a long time ago. 

His name was Joachim "Jymm" Young (pronounced Wa-heem). He played in Box Skagg's band in the early 70's and some other albums. There is precious little on the web about him, only that he died in 1989. I seem to recall I saw something a few years back saying it was a drug related death; not sure about a bridge, but anything's possible. 

 

Near as I can tell there isn't much information on him playing on any records past the late 70's, which means there was 10 years of relative non-activity until his passing. I believe he was based in the SF area. Maybe someone here knows the full story?

 

Either way, to me that is one of the most creative and iconic Hammond parts of the rock era. Simply brilliant.....