THEREMIN
Electronic instruments have been around for decades; for example, in 1928, the patent was issued for the eerie-sounding theremin (which is played remotely by moving around in space). The 1960’s band Lothar and the Hand People named their theremin “Lothar”, and the bandmembers were the “hand people” who operated it. (March 2012) * * * John Bush in Allmusic says of the background behind this classic: “‘Good Vibrations’, the Beach Boys’ 1966 entry into the best-single-of-all-time sweepstakes, announced the coming era of pop experimentation with a rush of riff changes, echo-chamber effects, and intricate harmonies, plus the very first theremin ever heard on a pop record. The natural grace of the song belied the months of recording and mountain of tape reels it required, however. Though Brian Wilson’s self-described ‘pocket symphony’ was his masterpiece, its creation effectively put the coda on his production career, and he was never the same again. . . . In the end, ‘Good Vibrations’ cost over 50,000 dollars to produce, making it one of the most expensive singles recorded up to that point.”
(June 2013/2) |