first Vox Continental



Gibson G101



and Hammond B3



which sound is best?

The Continental and Kalamazoo are highpitched organ compared to The Hammond, a real fat organ.

What about the Fender Rhodes?

It depends on the mood.

BOT solo is hard as nails as is the tune and Hyacint House is sad emotions like the sound from the Hammond.

yeah Ray´s bass:



the silver one,

that bass is invented by Harold Rhodes. First proto came 1959 and Fender bought Rhodes
lately Harold get Alzheimer´s disease and He´s now gone, but he invented great instrument.

and Piano bass is acoustic instrument, not electric

Isn´t this used for solo on Riders on The Storm?

Alesis for D21C/ROTS

i love that picture...and not just cuz i took it...ok, maybe a little bit cuz i took it...its been almost 3 months and i still cant get over that show...

Nice picture Mike, I know how you feel about the last three months. I was at the Vh1 show and I still can't get over that

yeah man, i feel for ya; if the chicago show were taped and didnt/couldnt air...man o man....what a downer

DISCLAIMER: notice the lack of profanity/insults to anyone in the band...if this were a week ago, the post would probably include a immature comment or two...but i do think these new rules are completely needed and valid...

yes, that Rhodes piano, it have unique sound

the questions isnt "which sound is best?"
cos vox gibson and hammond are great"!!!!!!!!!!( I prefear Hammond )

I think the gibson g101 its more Live DOORS sound....
VOx its more Album doors sound.

yep, Vox is more studio and G101 is live, but Ray used it on studio as well
and Hammond organ was used example on Wild Child and Changeling.

I love the Gibson's Sound...it's like an electric piano...it's very great to play blues...in Roadhouse blues live version that sound is very very great...

I choose the Gibson one...


And of course, i love too the Fender Rhodes Piano Bass sound...very original...

Where was this at?

I always used to wonder how Ray's bass used to stay firmly positioned on top of his Gibson G101.
It looked like it was just toppling on there, one untimely bump having the ability to send it flying.

It never fell off though, maybe he used blu-tac.

I thought I heard somewhere that he just relied on gravity.
Those things are rather heavy, I'm told.

Rhodes weight is 66 lbs

Although the Gibson G101 has a great tone, I love the sound of the Continental better. Gibson is perfect for some songs, yes. But can you really tell me that Light My Fire sounds better on a Gibson than a Vox, I think not. The Vox's sound is MUCH more powerful. When we played, I would choose the Gibson if I was having an off night because it covered up bad notes well. If you hit one wrong note on the Vox, everyone knows.

Yep

So when are we going to get a chance to hear some of you guys on keys? I know we'd all be interested. I'd love to hear some of you guys playing Doors stuff on the organ.
Dave

I was at the Vh1 show also and Jimbo...WE WILL NEVER get over that show! It was one of the Greats!!!
By the way I just love the Hammond B-3 sound.....with the leslie! But Ray makes a;; the keys sound great on whatever keyboard he decides to tickle at the time!!!
M-B

I dont play organs, but i know all about them! Especially Hammond B3

I think it's time to take the next step and learn to play! Do you own any? Or do you just admire them from afar? I have a keyboard, but I have trouble getting any real authentic sounds out of it.

I once have synth but i sold it, i adore old electric organs, i know all about them

I still laugh every time I see this topic title. Reminds me of the comment of Jims that Danny told me about. Jim said of Ray's playing, "I'd recognise that man's organ anywhere."

haha, Jim was a funny guy, too bad thats never been portrayed and not many people know it

Jim was very sweet, sensitive, intelligent, and had a wonderful sense of humor......it was said in many readings "that once you met him you felt he was your friend for life and that he would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it!" I also remember hearing how he would carry $100 dollar bills around and give them out to people who were kind to him......because he appreicated their kindness. Jim was/is a real cool dude!

My website is not up and running at the moment, but will be after I get the server up and running again. We have some sounds there for you to check out. http://jokerdoom.com

My Favorite is the Fender Rhodes Keyboard bass. Without that, I probably wouldn't be here. That was one of the big parts of the "Doors sound" that set them apart from everybody else.
Dave

yeah, i remember a robby interview (maybe the recent Guitar Legends?) where robby talks about how because ray had to concentrate on both the organ and bass sound, he played more "hypnotically" which in turn made the rest of the band play more "hypnotically." i remember that part because that is, above everything that i love about the doors, what always gets me: those moments during riders on the storm, WTMO, LMF, and everything else where the whole band's in a trippy groove and you literally get lost in their melodic waves. the feeling, especially live, is unmatched, IMHO.

That's the "hypnotic river of sound" that Jim talks about in the '69 Critique interview. I always referred to that as the band "settling into a groove". They just ride and ride and ride. That's usually where Jim's best improvs occurred.
Dave

Which model Alesis does Ray use w/ ROTS? And how are the emulations of his classic sounds? I've noticed that he's only got the Alesis on stage. Is it MIDI'ed up to any other modules?

Well, the Vox Continental is IT for me. I've owned Farfisas, Elkas, and Voxes (Jaguar, Continental, and Super Continental), and the Vox just does it like no other organ. I've been playing for quite a while, and the Vox Continental is the only instrument I use (I play thru a Leslie). Although I'm a lifelong fan of The Doors, my band doesn't sound like the Doors (more 60's garage than psych). If you're interested, go to www.mondotopless.com or www.myspace.com/mondotopless.

Here are some pics of me playing (or, otherwise 'using' the organ):









OK, the last one was a Jaguar (the Continental was being repaired )

Great thread, tremendous knowledge in here.
But let me say the very last more precisely:

The Fender Rhodes Piano Bass is an electric instrument,
not an electronic one.
It has some kind of harp. The tines and bars give the tone's frequencies.
The rest is done via pickups.
The whole thing thus is electric as a E-bassguitar is - or a tone-wheel-organ.

BTW the Vox Continental, having twelve transistor tone-generators (one for all the C, one for all the Cis and so on) is an electronic instrument.

AND I PREFER THE VOX (in combination with the FENDER RHODES)
1. for the hypnotical "cutting" bass
2. for the sharp & distinctive organ sound of the Vox.
The fourfold mixture (drawbar IV) gave this slim and really smart instrument something which it's followers did not have.

I heard that Ray left the Vox after No. 6 or so, because the plastic keys didn't resist.
Did he alwas get Italian ones? Did nobody tell him about the British ones with their wooden keys?

The sound is great and makes much from the Vox.
In Louise the breaks are both funny and a good style.
But the band to me sounds not that "retro". There is also a good portion of fresh Punk in it.
Respect, S.

Yes, the Rhodes electric Piano. You know it by his bell-like sound!

But my favorite is still the Vox. This is why y like the photo "The Doors on stage in The Scene, New York".

Hey, thanks! Yeah, we may have our foot in the 60's 'door' (pun intended), but we do have a lot of punk sensibilities, mainly stuff like The Stooges (hey, Iggy wanted to be just like Jimbo) and that ilk...

Sam

His first Vox had to have been a U.S. model; the Sepulveda plant manufactured Vox Continentals for a while and they were wood key models. I remember reading in his book about the band visiting the plant in Sepulveda. When they stopped making Continentals, he probably started playing Italian models ('cause they were cheaper), hence the plastic key problem. Yeah, somebody should've told him about the British ones. The one I play on stage is an Italian model (and yes, I have to keep re-gluing the keys), but I have a British one at home; it's too valuable to take out

You are so lucky having a vox! I spent ages looking for a vintage-style organ, I have a Yamaha YC-25D, do you know it? It's 1972 or 1973 I believe. I can get it to sound something like the Vox, and it has a lot more changeable sounds than a vox continental. I play it through a leslie-like yamaha amp (Which seems to be impossible to overdrive!) Voxes are so hard to come by, especially here in the UK...

Yeah, I'm pretty lucky. I picked up my Italian Continental for $150 10 years ago. Of course, they go for a lot more now! The Yamaha YC Organs are really good organs, and have a really great sound, but not quite Vox.

re: The Yamaha Leslie amp, take a look at the first photo I posted (the kind of blurry one). You'll notice that I'm playing through a Yamaha RA-100 (the grille is off and you can see the 2 spinning horns.

Sam

Yup I see your amp, mine isn't quite as big, and I believe it only has one spinning horn...although to be honest I've never bothered to look inside!

Just found 3 various Voxes for sale...might buy one...the only one in good working order is £300 though...hmm...

Voxes for sale (**fade away in dreams**). European ebay is an empty desert!
BTW can't we get the photo of Ray's really warm and loving brotherly smile to Jim over his organ in the board and perhaps in this thread?
I love it, but I have seen it only on paper, not electronically, by now.
S.

I just bought this so I would have to answer it's the Gibson. I got it last Tuesday, the day before my birthday and Ive been busy ever since so I only played it when I got it. I hope to briefly debut it with one of my bands this weekend...and then with Peace Frog in Venice the end of May. However, the Vox and Fender are the coolest I want those too eventually.

John

Where can I find these Organ's at?

Hey everyone. I'm a young musician who's recently entered the Doors catalogue -- bought L.A. Woman a few weeks ago and love it.. So I was wondering if you guys could tell me where these different organs could be found (on L.A. Woman?). I'm especially interested in the more psychedelic slow organ sounds as opposed to the faster 'circus-y' ones. Which organs am I talking about here?

Also, while I'm thinking about it, does anyone happen to know what Rick Wright used on Dark Side and WYWH?? I know it's somewhat off-topic, but I thought it might be a nice way to refresh the thread.

Ok, thanks for the help and I'm so glad to have finally checked out the Doors -- all the best


Oh yeah, one more thing, are there any synths out there today that actually succeed in emulating the late-60s / early 70s organs? For studio I'd want to go the authentic-route, but as time marches on it seems foolish to bring the relics on the road. Thanks again, and sorry to be a bother on first post

*bye*

i hear that the lungs and heart are pretty good....

also the kidneys make a cool sound....

"JUST KIDDING!!!""

the voxes are awesome.... i used one for the flash piece here...

http://members.ispwest.com/jdbob/ROTS2006/RAYCAL2006.html

jd

I appreciate them all. Although making the choice then it is easy, hands down, Hammond!!!

I love the Gibson G101 and hope to have one someday. There are days that I think the Vox is the most! Unfortunately, I only have a Vox Jaguar and not a Continental, but I will someday.

My fav of all is the Fender Rhodes Piano Bass. I have an early model just like Ray's


Here's my current set up.

I know this may be a stupid question to you pros, but I have to know the answer. I'm not sure how to explain this in musical/keyboard terms but here goes...

When Ray plays the 2 keyboards does he keep both hands in the same position and play different chords on the different keyboards? Or is he moving his fingers seperatley on each keyboard, like playing two different rhythems at once?

He's plays the bass lines and right hand solos independent of each other. Sometimes the left and right hands play the same thing, but it is rare.

If you want to the sound of a G101 or a Continental, you can buy samples from www.vintagekeyboardsounds.com.
All you need is a midi-keyboard and a program that handles samples like these (wave for example).
I have the Vox and the g101 samples and they sound just as the original !!
I use "Native instruments - Kontakt" as the program.

So if you cant find a original keyboard, get the next best thing