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What Keyboard is Elton John playing in this video?


Loufrance

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No, not a mellotron. There's no room for the tapes.

 

Is that a Wurlitzer? Or a Hohner?

 

Well, regardless, he's not really playing it...wasn't TOTP always lipsynced?

"For instance" is not proof.

 

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Originally posted by Loufrance:

Thanks guys!

No problem. :)

 

Why do you suppose they lip synched the shows?
Live music on TV has a ton of logistical concerns... it's MUCH easier to just play the tape and have everyone mime to it.

 

And is that same keyboard the one used on the original recording of "Daniel"?
No.
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Actually, there was one performance that was not lipsynched...he was playing to backing tracks, but the vocal was live.

 

If you look at that elton john clip, scroll down the side and you'll see a Nirvana clip.

 

I really like Nirvana, but what a hypocritical jerk he is in that clip. Not even pretending to play and singing like total crap...yet he wasn't disdainful enough of the show to NOT appear. That's not being anti-establishment - it's being immature.

"For instance" is not proof.

 

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Originally posted by 09:

Actually, there was one performance that was not lipsynched...he was playing to backing tracks, but the vocal was live.

Right, it's not always lipsync, some performances on TOTP are live, some are "karaoke". IIRC, in the 90's there was more of a shift towards live performances.

 

Incidentally, the BBC just announced the TOTP will end its run in July. Not sure what, if anything, that means for the future of music.

 

I really like Nirvana, but what a hypocritical jerk he is in that clip. Not even pretending to play and singing like total crap...yet he wasn't disdainful enough of the show to NOT appear. That's not being anti-establishment - it's being immature.
As if such anti-establishment "philosophies" were "mature" to begin with...?
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Originally posted by daBowsa:

Originally posted by soundscape:

As if such anti-establishment "philosophies" were "mature" to begin with...?

Yeah, our founding fathers were such babies ! :rolleyes:

 

Some serious names are associated with Anti-establishment thinking. :thu:

The key word was such. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I very much doubt Nirvana's "political philosophies" are/were of a remotely comparable standard to the founding fathers of the United States.

 

(This, of course, has nothing to do with the quality of their music.)

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Originally posted by Loufrance:

Thanks guys!

 

Why do you suppose they lip synched the shows?

 

And is that same keyboard the one used on the original recording of "Daniel"?

It's the sort of show that people watch while eating dinner, and artists appear on it for promotional reasons. (As with much "free" entertainment, it's really an advert.)

 

There are many live performances on the BBC's Jools Holland show.

 

http://youtube.com/results?search=jools+holland

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Originally posted by soundscape:

The key word was such. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I very much doubt Nirvana's "political philosophies" are/were of a remotely comparable standard to the founding fathers of the United States.

Hmmm.... The Founding Fathers on TOTP. ;)

 

Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson would've played it like it was real, but you just know that troublemaker James Madison would've been dissing the whole production... :cool:

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Originally posted by soundscape:

Originally posted by 09:

[qb] Actually, there was one performance that was not lipsynched...he was playing to backing tracks, but the vocal was live.

Right, it's not always lipsync, some performances on TOTP are live, some are "karaoke". IIRC, in the 90's there was more of a shift towards live performances.

 

Incidentally, the BBC just announced the TOTP will end its run in July. Not sure what, if anything, that means for the future of music.

 

[qb]

 

Yes I read that it was ending at Wired Magazine, I followed a link there to Youtube.

 

09 Stated:

"Actually, there was one performance that was not lipsynched...he was playing to backing tracks, but the vocal was live.

 

If you look at that elton john clip, scroll down the side and you'll see a Nirvana clip.

 

I really like Nirvana, but what a hypocritical jerk he is in that clip. Not even pretending to play and singing like total crap...yet he wasn't disdainful enough of the show to NOT appear. That's not being anti-establishment - it's being immature."

 

Yes when I went to the Elton clip I saw the Nirvana clip and watched it, I thought to myself what's going on he doesn't even seem like he's trying to sing the song he acted like he was worn out.(not to put them down though)

 

What keyboard was Elton John playing in the actuall recording of "Daniel"?

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I'll admit to just now watching the Nirvana clip.

 

Sorry to bring down the hammer over such a light affair - I forgot to turn off my quick pol response from dealing with an alternative forum.

 

Regardless, I really enjoyed the Nirvana TOTP performance. Obviously, "mainstream" acts like Nirvana are booked by their label and don't really have a choice whether to play or not.

 

I think its a great timecapsule of the band showing them not taking themselves, or the industry, too seriously. It probably did some good for them as they still showed up and "played," they had some fun, Kurt did actually sing the lyrics (rather than pouting or being fall down drunk) - personally, my respect for them remains intact, and I think any reference to anti-establishment should be stricken from the record.

 

-Ben.

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Yup. It's a RMI Electra-Piano. Made in my hometown by Rocky Mount Instruments - a subsidiary of Allen Organ Company.

 

But you all know the rest of the story. I've told it a hundred times. :rolleyes::)

"Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent." - Victor Hugo
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The RMI was played by one of the other busy keyboardists in Miami and he loved it. I hated the sound and feel of it and played a Wulitzer instead. I never could figure out why he liked that RMI.
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Maybe I should make another thread about this but.... I don't know the diffrence between a Rhodes and a Wurlitzer I haven't heard them enough independently to be able to say "Oh that's a Rhodes"

It be nice if I could tell the diffrence.

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Originally posted by Loufrance:

Maybe I should make another thread about this but.... I don't know the diffrence between a Rhodes and a Wurlitzer I haven't heard them enough independently to be able to say "Oh that's a Rhodes"

It be nice if I could tell the diffrence.

There is a definite difference and I doubt it would take you long to recognize it. I'm sure you can find some mp3s online of the different instruments to hear them for yourselves. Even if, for example, you listen to the sample sounds of a Nord Electro (on the Nord website) you can begin to get a good understanding of the difference.

 

The Wurlitzer's action is similar to that of a conventional piano. It has a series of metal reeds that are struck by hammers. Each of the reeds is surrounded by an oppositely charged reed plate. When you strike a key, the corresponding reed vibrates, creating a capacitive differential with the reed plate, which is then translated into a voltage oscillation in the amplifier. That signal is sent through a vibrato circuit and then out to an internal speaker as well as a speaker output. It sounds complicated, but the resulting sound is simply great a shade muted and understated, with a tough, honky bite that punches through a mix as you dig into the keyboard. The Wurlie has a hip and funky vibe and is well suited for percussive keyboard styles, though it is also good for sustaining long, gentle chords.

 

The Fender Rhodes piano's sound is brighter and more metallic than the Wurlie's. Notes are produced by hammers striking metal tines; the innards of a Rhodes can perhaps best be thought of as a series of tunable tuning forks. The sound is somewhat bell- or chimelike. Ubiquitous throughout the '70s in ballads as well as on jazz-fusion albums, the Rhodes can sound gorgeous and incredibly cool. Its action isn't quite as fast or smooth as the Wurlie's, but a Rhodes would nonetheless be my first choice for a jazz gig.

 

These last two paragraphs taken from: http://onstagemag.com/ar/performance_hammonds_wurlies_clavs/

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The clip sure sounds like the original song to me and not being played live. The keyboard on the original sounds like a Rhodes to me. As far as the difference between a Rhodes and a Wurly. Good examples of Wurlies are Supertramp's "The Logical Song" and Queen's "You're My Best Friend."

 

Fender Rhodes examples include Billy Preston's solo on the Beatles' "Get Back" and the main EP part on the Doors' "Riders on the Storm".

Yamaha CP4, MainStage 3 on MacBook Pro, Hammond A102 w/ Leslie 147, Fender Rhodes Stage Mark I, Wurlitzer 200a, Roland Juno 60, Nektar T6.
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