The Great Hammond B-3

Is there anyone else who just LOVES the sound of this instrument? It's all over music--from jazz to Floyd, and it's my hope that the thing is making a comeback. In a world of synths, the Hammond B-3 still stands out as a star.

BTW--assuming that I could get my hands on a B-3 or its cousin the C-3 (which seems to be fairly close from what I can tell), are there even people who continue to teach how to play it? I would hate to think the art had died to THAT extent. (Note: You CAN buy these instruments on eBay and the like...but they're expensive.)

So, any answers to that question? Or do you just happen to love the sound of the Hammond organ? If you do, this is the place!

Hey FloydWright:
I LOVE the sound of the Hammond B3 (and have to put up with some ribbing from my freinds for that... thay all hate the sound of an electric organ)!
I have never played one but I have messed around with other electric organs that were 'clones' of the B3. And let me tell you: nothing compares to the sound of a vintage B3 with a howling Leslie speaker!
I also love the drawbars. I really gives you a handle (no pun intended) on your sound.
Yes, I too greive that any Hammond you come across will cost you some money. I personally plan to buy a Hammond when I have the money (which will be a long time). I plan to get soemthing a little simpler and cheaper, like a Hammond A100 or something of that nature.
As for lessons, I'm pretty sure they are still available... I just don't know where.
Anyone else who loves the sound of this great, unique instrument?

I'm surprised they would hate it--is it because they were brought up on synthesisers, or because they are trying to compare it to a cathedral organ or something?

Anyway...I knew that someday I'd have to get the real thing when I was in a music store trying out the advanced synths--and noticing that I was trying to do things to the sound that these instruments wouldn't allow me to do. I was trying to make that "angry tiger" roaring noise that you hear in some songs, except even on the voice that supposedly allowed drawbar control (on a modulation wheel, of course), I couldn't get anything even close!

As for expense, it COULD be many, many years. But then, when it comes to luxury items, it's really only music where I really must have the top of the line things, because my ear is just too sensitive for my own good. I don't care about fancy cars, big houses, or lots of jewelery, or things like that. The only thing I want is this: in the house I retire in (wherever that will be), I basically want a working recording studio (or close to it) in the basement!

But someday, I definitely want the real thing!

my favorite keyboard sound is a hammond organ. i own a roland vk-7 which is a rotary organ and it is awesome. i would love to one day own a c-3.

Maybe you know, then, Thorin--how different does a C-3 sound from the B-3? Is it noticeably different? If so, is that necessarily bad? I'm just curious.

If you don't mind me stepping in, FloydWright, I think that the only difference between the two is the fact that the C3 has built- in speakers... but I'm not sure.
As for my freinds, I think they are particularly hateful of the high registers of the organ... you know, the high notes. They say it resembles a car horn... a resemblence I never got! They also think the electric organ sounds 'cheesy'.
Yeah... wait until I blast them in the eardrums with a B3 chained through a good ol' Leslie at max volume!
Then we'll see what's 'cheesy' or not...

actually the only difference that i remember now is the body of the organ. the insides are the same. there are no built in speakers.

they may have been talking about farfisa and vox kind of organs. cheesy when talking about these organs is descriptive and not a bad thing. that may have been what they were saying.

I know they were talking about the Farfisa or Vox. But I'm pretty sure they see a distinction between the Hammond and the others, but they still say the Hammond is cheesy!

oh. ok then.

I LOVE the sound of the Hammond. That's why I love Wright's parts and songs. I like his style with Hammond and I think it's a trademark of Floyd sound through the years.

That's why the middle part of Echoes gets stuck in my head all the time...
NAH NAH NAH, NAH NAH-NAH....
As for Rick's organ, he played a Hammond M102 in Pompeii, and a Farfisa console. (But you probably knew that...)
If I'm not mistaken, the M102 has built-in speakers, correct?

Well-played, a Farfisa is not always a bad thing. I particularly enjoy a certain bootleg of The Man and the Journey as an example of a good-sounding Farfisa.

But I admit, your friends confuse me, ESPECIALLY if they are aware of the distinction between the Hammond and other organs! I CAN see the "car horn" resemblance on a few notes--but that's not a BAD thing! It's not anything that makes me want to stop listening at all. Just an observation.

Also...that's funny, I get that same part of "Echoes" stuck in my head, too! VERY catchy! I usually end up singing something that is a combination between that and the bassline.

Thorin--then the B-3 and C-3 would have the same sound?

Funny... I get the bass line stuck in my head, too.
As for my freinds... I never got their logic!

Yes. You have very strange friends, indeed.

But I can't get the bass line in my head without the Hammond; I recall the Hammond first--and only then can I actually remember the bass sequence. They play into each other very well, don't they?