Organ solo @ Springsteen @ Fallon

[marczellm]

The band lineup is new, I don't know the name of the keyboardist unfortunately, but he sure almost makes the Montage (MODX?) sound like it does have an organ sim.

 

[Reezekeys]

9 minutes ago, marczellm said:

I don't know the name of the keyboardist unfortunately

 

David Sancious, an original E-streeter. And that's my old bandmate Vaneese Thomas – daughter of Rufus, and Carla's sister –  singing bg vox (the left-most of the four singers in the first row).

 

13 minutes ago, marczellm said:

almost makes the Montage (MODX?) sound like it does have an organ sim

 

Just what are you implying here? 🙂 Maybe it's that the choice of instrument matters a little less when it's in the hands of a talented player. That's my take anyway!

[marczellm]

7 minutes ago, Reezekeys said:

David Sancious

Great! I know about some of his work just don't recognize him visually.

8 minutes ago, Reezekeys said:

the choice of instrument matters a little less when it's in the hands of a talented player.

Exactly what I meant.

[SamuelBLupowitz]

I posted about David Sancious about a year ago when I discovered Sting's 90s gem Ten Summoner's Tales. It's unreal watching clips from the tour behind that album and seeing how effortlessly and effectively he plays piano, organ, synth, you name it, all on one controller keyboard (and that was 30 years ago).

 

So cool to see him playing with Bruce again! I always think of Roy and Danny as the "classic" E Street keyboard players, but Sancious's playing on "The Wild, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle" is unparalleled in Bruce's catalogue, I think -- if nothing else, for the piano intro to "New York City Serenade."

[Outkaster]

Its David.  I think he may regret leaving Bruce to form tone in 1974.  David and Ernst Carter left and it was hard on Clarence. For awhile Bruce had culturally and racially mixed band.  That was highly unusual back then. I know that Dan Federici said that at one time he and David didn't get a long that well.  They weren't  called the E Street band back then either. David is a monster player and was extremely gifted at a young age.  

[Reezekeys]

1 hour ago, marczellm said:

1 hour ago, Reezekeys said:

the choice of instrument matters a little less when it's in the hands of a talented player.

Exactly what I meant.

 

Of course! I was commenting on what I took as an opinion of the Yam's possibly "less-than-authentic" sounding Hammond sound! 🙂

 

I'm betting David S could have had a real Hammond on that stage had he asked for one. Sounds like he had a split going on in the beginning of the song, with organ on top and pad below –  easier to do on one keyboard, I would think. Do I hear some acoustic piano in there too? Hard to tell from the mix through my crap computer speakers.

[Outkaster]

With Bruce he did a lot of the classic solos in Kitty's back for example, not Dan Federici.  Bruce and David met at the Student Prince for late night jam sessions.  Sancious was young and would sneak out to play music. 

[marczellm]

18 minutes ago, Reezekeys said:

Sounds like he had a split going on in the beginning of the song, with organ on top and pad below –  easier to do on one keyboard, I would think. Do I hear some acoustic piano in there too?

The first verse also has a faint wurly in addition to pad and organ, and there's acoustic piano in the second verse. But I have a suspicion the pad might be a backing track.

[Outkaster]

No there is another musician in the back you can't see.   This Fallon week is being debated over on the BTX Promised Land Forum.

[EscapeRocks]

The Yamaha sound really good.

 

For reasons not necessarily musical, I have an emotional connection to this song, and have a really hard time hearing it without Walter Orange, et.al., doing it.

 

Bruce and this band are not bad...but it is missing something

[ImproKeys]

10 minutes ago, marczellm said:

The first verse also has a faint wurly in addition to pad and organ, and there's acoustic piano in the second verse. But I have a suspicion the pad might be a backing track.

I second that. Listen how the drummer tries to keep the band in time in the first verse where the shakers are driving it. Sorry for being picky; it is a great performance.

[Outkaster]

Apparently these performances are one or two versions of a song.  I think performed each once or twice.  This isn't the band he tours with or even on the new Album "Only the Strong Survive" which is an album of soul covers,  with the exception of the horns, and two of the singers.  Ron Aiello plays on a lot of the album tracks and multiple instruments. 

[JohnH]

The second keyboardist is Henry Hey, who posted on his FB he was playing this week. I saw him on keys  in 1995 with David Clayton Thomas and BST in the Bahamas.

 

As far as i know this is not a "new E street " it's just people he got to do the show. He is going to bring a horn section on the road. But the rest of the Estreet band isn't changing.

[Outkaster]

It's the E-Street horns.  That is the only band members going on the next tour.

[AUSSIEKEYS]

2 hours ago, Outkaster said:

This isn't the band he tours with

 

Band...?

 

I thought it was a whole village.

 

Never seen a more packed stage hee hee.

[mate stubb]

Love Sancious. I am forever grateful that he left Bruce long enough to do Tone. True Stories is one of the finest prog albums I ever heard, and has a unique gospel flavor I've not heard elsewhere.

 

But rompler organs still suck. That cheesy plinky percussion makes me ill. 

[Dave Bryce]

16 minutes ago, matted stump said:

Love Sancious. I am forever grateful that he left Bruce long enough to do Tone. True Stories is one of the finest prog albums I ever heard, and has a unique gospel flavor I've not heard elsewhere.

 

GREAT record. 😎

 

dB

 

[nursers]

So glad he's taking the E-Street Horns out on tour again. I saw two shows on the Oz leg 2013-ish and was just amazing.

[Steve Nathan]

5 hours ago, EscapeRocks said:

Bruce and this band are not bad...but it is missing something

Not really fair to compare a live performance with a studio recording, but I too was disappointed in this.  Some good players and some not so good.  Violins for show only, and the bass player is pretty "pocket challenged".  I enjoyed hearing that 80s synth pad in broad stereo glory, though like others, suspect it was a backing track.  Solo sounded like clones sound, and I don't know enough about the particular board to comment on whether it was above or below par.

[Bobadohshe]

I'm with Steve and David. The groove wasn't as good as it could be.

 

That organ patch was fine. The extra overdrive dialed in helps the medicine go down. I have found that it helps with the Montage organs. Certainly passable in many situations, though you'd think on stage with Bruce you might opt for a Hammond XK something instead.

 

There are a couple Hammond patches on the Montage I've been able to make some real music with. It ain't the easiest thing in the world though!

[Piktor]

6 hours ago, Dave Bryce said:

 

GREAT record. 😎

 

dB

 

I agree Dave. It was on my desert island list for a long time.
Long ago I managed to find a used copy of Sancious’s pre debut sort of demo album (1974?). I think that he did not expect it to be released. For some reason in the early 1980s I also bought spare vinyl copies of  Forest of Feelings, Transformation, and True Stories. I think that I thought that I might wear the first copies out.  I still have those UNOPENED vinyl albums in storage. Am I now old enough to crack the shrink wrap? I wonder if anyone here did manage to acquire Dance of the Age of Enlightenment (the album that was pulled from shelves immediately after it was released. 
 

I think that in this performance DS did a good job of capitalizing on whatever the Yamaha has to offer in the way of Hammond-ness. I have too often heard piano players play a non-clone wheel instrument without consideration of the fact that the high note is C something. Artists can do whatever they want, but notes sounded higher than that usually make me cringe. 

[niacin]

Dave playing an organ solo on a better day (and on his own rig):

 

 

And tearing up the solo we all associate with Kenny Kirkland, not easy shoes to fill:

 

[Al Quinn]

David Sancious is brilliant. Such a great career. Tone was awesome. Love his playing with Sting and concert videos on YT playing with Clapton are wonderful too. Super talent! I saw him play in the late 70's in the gym of a local college. My memory's a bit fuzzy on his bandmates but I'm thinking either Billy Cobham, Jake Bruce, or perhaps both. 

[DJkeys]

20 hours ago, SamuelBLupowitz said:

I posted about David Sancious about a year ago when I discovered Sting's 90s gem Ten Summoner's Tales. It's unreal watching clips from the tour behind that album and seeing how effortlessly and effectively he plays piano, organ, synth, you name it, all on one controller keyboard (and that was 30 years ago).

 

So cool to see him playing with Bruce again! I always think of Roy and Danny as the "classic" E Street keyboard players, but Sancious's playing on "The Wild, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle" is unparalleled in Bruce's catalogue, I think -- if nothing else, for the piano intro to "New York City Serenade."

I saw David perform this live on a beat-up old upright piano in Max's Kansas City.  Probably 40 people there-

 

-dj

[Outkaster]

On 11/18/2022 at 9:28 PM, Steve Nathan said:

Not really fair to compare a live performance with a studio recording, but I too was disappointed in this.  Some good players and some not so good.  Violins for show only, and the bass player is pretty "pocket challenged".  I enjoyed hearing that 80s synth pad in broad stereo glory, though like others, suspect it was a backing track.  Solo sounded like clones sound, and I don't know enough about the particular board to comment on whether it was above or below par.

That is the argument, that he is going to be touring with this band. The next tour is E-Street. Ron Aiello is doing most of the stuff on the album.  I don’t think the bass player is as solid either. The drummer is just OK.  I believe a lot of people try to overplay and over think old soul music, they don’t understand their role in the music. 

[AnotherScott]

On 11/18/2022 at 7:50 PM, matted stump said:

But rompler organs still suck. That cheesy plinky percussion makes me ill. 

 

When I read the OP, before even listening, I was thinking, it's so hard to tell what you're hearing. You could see him playing a Montage/MODX but be listening to a VST. But when I heard the percussion, I said, nope, it's the Yamaha. ;-)

[stoken6]

On 11/18/2022 at 9:20 PM, ImproKeys said:

Listen how the drummer tries to keep the band in time in the first verse where the shakers are driving it

The shakers are played by the singer in the second row nearest the centre? (Or a track?) Yeah, they're in time with the congas, and the drummer seems to be trying to slow the pace down?

 

On 11/19/2022 at 2:28 AM, Steve Nathan said:

the bass player is pretty "pocket challenged"

Yup. I wish you hadn't mentioned that, because I can't not notice it now.

 

On 11/19/2022 at 1:12 PM, Al Quinn said:

David Sancious is brilliant. Such a great career. Tone was awesome. Love his playing with Sting and concert videos on YT playing with Clapton are wonderful too. Super talent!

No argument from me on any of that. But am I the only one who thinks Sancious is struggling in that solo? Odd/stiff finger position, tentative attack, and some note choices... let's just say I wouldn't have made them. I am absolutely not hating on the guy - his achievements are immense - but it felt like I was watching a player whose best years are behind him. 

 

Cheers, Mike.

[Outkaster]

Yeah sometimes it's strange how he plays simpler things. I am pretty sure this is David on this track below because of the phrasing. Dan didn't play like that and the solo was changed to Roy live if it's in the set list now. It's at the 3:35 mark:

 

 

 

[jazzpiano88]

On 11/18/2022 at 6:50 PM, matted stump said:

Love Sancious. I am forever grateful that he left Bruce long enough to do Tone. True Stories is one of the finest prog albums I ever heard, and has a unique gospel flavor I've not heard elsewhere.

 

But rompler organs still suck. That cheesy plinky percussion makes me ill. 

 

To my ears, it sounds exactly like the DX7 stock organ patch with a Leslie sim.  I got enough of that in the 90's burned into my head with my TX7 and Korg pedal.  The percussion signature is the giveaway and fits your description (plinky).   I've not explored the organs on the Montage to know if they are a mixture of the AWM (rompler) and FM-X, or what.

[AnotherScott]

49 minutes ago, JazzPiano88 said:

I've not explored the organs on the Montage to know if they are a mixture of the AWM (rompler) and FM-X, or what.

Montage has both AWM and FM-X organ patches.