Mike Park
04-06-2001, 12:46 PM
Forgive an old dude for reminiscing.....
I got my first accordion at 4. Took lessons from age 7 to 11, once a week, and performed about once a month on the Harlen Bros. radio program on Saturday afternoons in Indianapolis.
I finally coaxed my mom into allowing me to purchase a Farfisa Compact on Nov. 1, 1966 - I was 14. It was red and black and came with a small Custom amp (15"). I had two close friends who played bass and drums, and the drummer's dad had a friend whose son played guitar, and The Coming Generation was born. Our first gig was a New Year's party and we earned $64.47 and a seashell (it was supposed to be $40, but the bass player's dad got drunk and passed a hat to get the rest). After that, we played teen dances and sock hops after games at schools in our area.
We played a lot of Animals, Rascals, Stones, etc and continued through high school. Our best set was our last, which included Light My Fire, Sunshine of Your Love with a drum solo, and a 20-minute Satisfaction with Fuzz guitar solo.
Later in college, I played in another band at a local bar: 5 sets a night, six nights, for $150 week. Talk about burning the candle at both ends - needless to say, studies suffered.
When the opportunity came to move to California, I sold my Farfisa and Gibson amp/speakers for $150, and was keyboardless for five years until I was able to coax my wife into letting me acquire a Fender Rhodes for $400 in '78. Oh, while in college, I had worked out and played along with the Yes Album, Fragile and CTTE. On the Rhodes I played along with GFTO and Tormato.
After moving to Oregon in '88, I wanted to get back to an organ, so the deal was I had to find an organ for the same price that I got for the Rhodes. (Priorities sure change when you have a wife, three kids and a mortgage). Anyway, I think I sold the Rhodes for $400 and skipped off to a piano/organ store. There were small Lowry's and Wurlitzers in my price range, but not what I had in mind. They told me there were more up in the attic and sent me up to a dark and dusty room with a bunch of dinosaurs. Way back in the corner I found a Hammond with two full manuals, drawbars and a full pedal board. It had a price tag of $199! When I asked what was wrong with it, they said nothing - nobody wants these monsters anymore.
And that's how I acquired my Hammond CV, built in 1949, with a refrigerator-size tone cabinet. Eventually I hope to get a Leslie for it, but you know...priorities.
Sorry for the length here and I hope I haven't abused the privelege of sharing - but that's my story.
I got my first accordion at 4. Took lessons from age 7 to 11, once a week, and performed about once a month on the Harlen Bros. radio program on Saturday afternoons in Indianapolis.
I finally coaxed my mom into allowing me to purchase a Farfisa Compact on Nov. 1, 1966 - I was 14. It was red and black and came with a small Custom amp (15"). I had two close friends who played bass and drums, and the drummer's dad had a friend whose son played guitar, and The Coming Generation was born. Our first gig was a New Year's party and we earned $64.47 and a seashell (it was supposed to be $40, but the bass player's dad got drunk and passed a hat to get the rest). After that, we played teen dances and sock hops after games at schools in our area.
We played a lot of Animals, Rascals, Stones, etc and continued through high school. Our best set was our last, which included Light My Fire, Sunshine of Your Love with a drum solo, and a 20-minute Satisfaction with Fuzz guitar solo.
Later in college, I played in another band at a local bar: 5 sets a night, six nights, for $150 week. Talk about burning the candle at both ends - needless to say, studies suffered.
When the opportunity came to move to California, I sold my Farfisa and Gibson amp/speakers for $150, and was keyboardless for five years until I was able to coax my wife into letting me acquire a Fender Rhodes for $400 in '78. Oh, while in college, I had worked out and played along with the Yes Album, Fragile and CTTE. On the Rhodes I played along with GFTO and Tormato.
After moving to Oregon in '88, I wanted to get back to an organ, so the deal was I had to find an organ for the same price that I got for the Rhodes. (Priorities sure change when you have a wife, three kids and a mortgage). Anyway, I think I sold the Rhodes for $400 and skipped off to a piano/organ store. There were small Lowry's and Wurlitzers in my price range, but not what I had in mind. They told me there were more up in the attic and sent me up to a dark and dusty room with a bunch of dinosaurs. Way back in the corner I found a Hammond with two full manuals, drawbars and a full pedal board. It had a price tag of $199! When I asked what was wrong with it, they said nothing - nobody wants these monsters anymore.
And that's how I acquired my Hammond CV, built in 1949, with a refrigerator-size tone cabinet. Eventually I hope to get a Leslie for it, but you know...priorities.
Sorry for the length here and I hope I haven't abused the privelege of sharing - but that's my story.