What modifications did Keith Emerson make to his Hammond organ?

ELP has got to have one of the most recognizable signature sounds of any band of the rock era, and I would say that Keith Emerson's Hammond organ tone is a big part of that sound. When you consider all of the people that have played the Hammond organ and all of the classic rock hits that have featured the Hammond organ it's incredible when you realize that nobody else sounded like him and he didn't sound like anybody else. His sound was totally unique and instantly recognizable.

What was it about his Hammond C-3 that made it sound so different from every other Hammond back then? Did he swap out the preamps? Did he run it through another amplifier before going into the Leslie? Did he modify the percussion circuit to get more attack? I've looked around online but I haven't been able to find anything in regards to this subject. Does anyone have any info? Is there a website?

 

no real interest in elp but i've certainly enjoyed their music over the years (i even saw them once on the pirates tour), but i've never heard that there was anything special with the hammond sound... so, i'm curious if you can point me to a youtube clip which illustrates the point...

 

Keep in mind that Emerson used both a C3 and an L100, and there are differences between the two. The biggest thing was indeed modified Leslies. Bigger power amps. There was a marvelous article/interview in Keyboard back around the fall of 1977 that detailed a lot of stuff about his gear. You should look for that - and I believe it may even have been reprinted in one of the magazine's more recent book compilations.

 

you beat me to it

 

Is stabbing it with a knife considered a modification? Heh.
I too have felt his sound was a little different than most Hammonds.

 

FYI:

http://www.amazon.com/Keyboard-Presents-Hammond-Organ-Beauty/dp/0879304596

That's a quote from one section, but another section has over a page more from Emerson.

 

I could be wrong but I seem to recall that he used the C-3 on most of the ELP recordings while the L-100 was used live on stage as the "torture subject" and for special effects. The L-100 doesn't have that percussive attack like on the C-3/B-3 so you wouldn't be able to get that spitting/biting tone you hear on "Hoedown." I too believe that be probably modified the preamps in the C-3, , used gain stages, modified the Leslies, modified the percussion circuit, etc. I'll see if I can track down that Keyboard article - thanks!

 

Hammond organs have an almost unlimited number of variations with the drawbars and all, for changing the sound. It is unbelievable the different sounds you can make.

 

I think I read somewhere that he miked the Leslies very close to get a distorted sound like a distorted guitar.

I've always been fascinated by the "windmill chops." Although I've seen ELP several times over the years, I never noticed him doing it live. It must be hard on the keys, and on his hands.

Doug

 

I know and I miss mine every day! I had a beautiful 1957 B-3 at my studio for about ten years but I was had to sell it when we moved. I think that for most people the quintessential Hammond organ sound is that of the Leslie, slowing spinning around, speeding up, and then slowing down again. At first, that was my favorite sound also, and I fooled around with for days on end, but as I did more experimenting with the B-3 I came to love the straight organ sounds, as is, with no rotating speaker.

We had the less common Leslie 251 cabinet (originally designed for the A-100/M-100), which is essentially the same as the 122, except that it also had a 6x9 stationary speaker in the middle for reverb (you can see in the picture that it's taller than the Leslie 122). It had one volume control for the two rotating speakers and one volume control for the stationary speaker so I could turn off the main speakers and experiment with just the basic organ sounds. I discovered the most incredible sounds fooling around with the chorus and vibrato with reverb. I realized that while the Leslie may have been a key feature on a lot of Hammond recordings from the late '60s and '70s these stationary organ sounds with chorus and vibrato instantly transport you to space age bachelor pad heaven!

But anyway, back to Keith Emerson. Even with all of the sonic variations you can get on a C-3/B-3 I've still never heard anyone sound exactly like him.

 

Just like they say about many guitarists, it may well simply be in the man's hands. Nobody else sounds like Emerson because no one else is Emerson.

 

I recently saw a 1957 Hammond B-3 with the floor pedals and two Leslie 122 cabinets for sale at a "musician's" moving sale; he was asking $7,500.00 for the rig.

 

he's lying. he used the 2nd harmonic percussion like crazy on tarkus