Reviews, advice and tutorials
In this Hammond organ blog, I’ve gathered together as much news and practical advice as possible here to help you choose, buy, maintain, restore, gig and record these incredible instruments. In my view, Hammond organs deserve a place in every band and it’s up to us owners to keep that sound alive. In the posts and video below, I try to answer common questions and share a few playing tips that I’ve picked up over the years. I also review new products and try to give a gigging organ player perspective on how they would fit into my rig.
I hope you find this Hammond organ blog helpful. If there’s anything you’d like me to take a look at, just get in touch.
Modern Rock Organ: An interview with Andy Gotteri
Hi there, how are your holidays? Late December at time of writing this and I hope all is well with you and yours? Today I am chatting to Hammond and synth player Andy Gotteri, a busy UK musician on the gigging circuit over in Blighty. We deep dive into Hammond Organs as you might expect…
Interview with Jon Lord’s keyboard player: Nigel Hopkins
GMGAGE to you all and Happy Holidays! Today I was lucky enough to snag a little time with a great keyboard player and musician Nigel Hopkins. Nigel has toured the world with Chris DeBurgh, Bonnie Tyler and more and played a pivotal role in Jon Lord’s classical shows and his celebration concert at the Royal…
Hammond organ effects pedals – a deep dive with Greg Lounsberry of Lounsberry Pedals
Good morning, good afternoon and good evening wherever you are! Today we spend a pleasant half an hour chatting with Greg Lounsberry, maker of boutique effects pedals for all instruments but particularly for this channel the great ‘Tall and Fat’ and ‘Organ Grinder’ Pedals. The tall and fat is used throughout the USA but Europe…
Hammond Organ Inverse Keys – What do they do?
Have you ever wondered what that octave of black keys with white flats and sharps do? I get asked this all the time and so today decided to record a video showing you exactly what they do. Impress your friends with your insider knowledge! If you have anything you think I would be able to…
Understanding drawbars on a vintage Hammond organ
Good morning, good afternoon and good evening, how are you doing? I’m back from a rough bout of ManFlu ™ and really excited to talk to you! Today, I would like to take is slow and talk in-depth about Hammond Organ drawbars. They are fundamental to achieving your tone. Let me know what you think,…
Rock Organ Riffs played SLOOOOOOW
Good morning folks, I had a few people asking for me to slow my organ licks down so that they were easier to catch. I was very happy to oblige so today I have been through some of my trusty rock organ licks and played them slow and up close so that you can have…
Fender Rhodes vs Addictive Keys … with shock twist!
Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening wherever you are! I hope you are and remain well? Battling through a slight cold this week but I really wanted this week to finish what we started a few weeks ago and compare the vintage and mighty Rhodes piano to another pretender. Today is the XLN Addictive…
Dirty Hammond blues licks – new for 2022
Good Morning, good Afternoon, good Evening wherever you are. We are back again and this week its on the trusty beast, the Hammond C3. Many moons ago I produced a quick video on dirty blues licks and technically it wasn’t so good, perhaps it was not as easy as it should be to see what…
Rhodes Vs Synth: Vintage piano versus new Roland Juno DS
Today we are going to continue with our look at the Rhodes piano and the question that we asked a little while ago: will a clone do or so we need to take the real thing on tour with us? In the intro last time we discussed the cost, size and weight of this classic…
Do I need a Rhodes Piano?
In this episode I am not playing a Hammond Organ of any sort for a change! Well, many organists pair up their tonewheel with an authentic piano keyboard. And you can’t get more authentic that this. Here we have a Rhodes 73 Stage Piano and discuss do we NEED one, and if that a yes,…
Comparing early and later generations of the Leslie 3300
Today we have a unique opportunity to hear the earlier Leslie 3300 back to back against the brand new 3300. It’s pretty interesting to hear the differences although mic placement and drawbars probably make up for quite a bit of the change. Its a tricky one to demonstrate. Let me know what you think and…
Review of the Lounsberry Tall and Fat pedal
Today we review the new “Tall and Fat” by Lounsberry Pedals. This is an exciting one as it is designed for Hammond clonewheel users to emulate the pre-amp of an old B or C Hammond. For transparency, I am an endorsee for these products so you already know that I like them. There again, I…
Review of the Hammond SKX-Pro – Your questions answered
following the great reaction to my SKX-Pro first impressions video, i asked if any subscribers had questions or other items they wanted to know about. Today I work through the list of questions and try to address each point with a an answer and a quick hands-on demo.
Review of the Hammond SKX-Pro – First impressions
Hammond UK were kind enough to lend me their incredible new SKX-Pro to review. here are my first impresssions as a traditional Hammond organ player.
Profkon ZD-1 Overdrive review
An in-depth review of this amazing component overdrive system designed for the Hammond C3.