From bw@ashbysolutions.com Sun Mar 18 15:22:11 2012
Subject:Re: Chicago in Chicago: XK3-c

Chicago was very Hammond-driven on the couple of albums, then less so.
Bear in mind that in say, 1968-72, any 'serious' band had a console
Hammond on stage. That was when Chicago was still called the 'Chicago
Transit Authority.' Listen to I'm A Man, It Better End Soon, or South
California Purples from the first two albums: lots of B-3 going on in
there!

By the late '70s/early '80s, though, the Hammond sound had fallen out of
favor, and was even been considered 'dated' by some. Some of it was
probably just saturation: when *everyone* is playing a B-3/C-3, the
sound loses it's edge. Plus, the general view was that the B-3 was kind
of a one-trick pony -- at least, compared to DX-7s, Jupiter-8s, and
Fairlight CMIs -- and being a Hammond player only was somehow
'limiting.' And finally, piano had a big comeback in ballads.

Fortunately, the Hammond sound had a strong revival in the '90s, or this
group probably wouldn't exist. :-)

________
But let's face it: The newest B-3 anyone can get there hands on is
approaching 40 years old. Some of them are pushing 60. Parts are
getting harder to find, as are qualified techs to keep 'em running. Big
acts may be able to demand a B-3 in their riders, but there's still a
question of what shape the rental organ will show up in. Switching to
clones eliminates some of the risk: The best-kept 'Bs that I've ever
played are superior to any clone out there. The worst-kept ones,
though? I'm not so sure.

And I agree about mic'ing the Leslie: always a crap shoot on a stage.

Regards,

-BW

Bruce Wahler
Ashby Solutions.com™
bw@ashbysolutions.com
http://music.ashbysolutions.com
877.55.ASHBY (877.552.7429)

On 3/18/2012 5:24 PM, j a wrote: