The Mellotron

The Mellotron emerged from an act of industrial espionage to inadvertently create the defining instrument of progressive rock. Before it arrived, bringing orchestral textures into rock music required hiring a live orchestra and arranging parts by hand. The Mellotron solved this by placing 35 physical tape-playback mechanisms inside a single keyboard chassis, giving bands the ability to play flutes, choirs, and strings live in the studio. Its mechanical quirks, detuned flutter, and eerie textures fundamentally changed the sound of rock music in the 1960s and 1970s.

This episode follows the strange history of the instrument, from Harry Chamberlin's garage in California to the Bradley brothers' Streetly Electronics factory in Birmingham. It covers the mechanics that made the "crawling spider" playing technique necessary, Mike Pinder's textural innovations with the Moody Blues, the Beatles' use of the flute sound on "Strawberry Fields Forever," to Ian McDonald's amplified aggression with King Crimson.

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Sources and Further ReadingFeatured Articles & Interviews- "Tape Heads." JSTOR Daily

- "An Orchestra at your Fingertips." Amplify

- "Sounds of the psychedelic: the tale of the Mellotron." Happy Mag

- "Classic Tracks: The Moody Blues Nights In White Satin." Sound on Sound

- "Q. Did Mellotrons use tape loops or not?" Sound on Sound