Musical instruments in popular music

[T42]

A shout-out goes to the double bass*.

*Whenever someone comes into my house and sees my bass on its stand, or if I mention to
someone that I play a double bass, they always (100% of those occasions) ask me
if I play in a band. Not once has someone asked me if I play in an orchestra.

Either they don't know what an orchestra is, or they don't think I look posh enough to play in one.

My son's instrument, and he used to play with a couple of orchestras.  Nowadays he's more into guitars.

---o0o---

Chap in The Dead South plays the cello, slung round his neck on a strap.  Not just plunk-plunk but uses the bow as well.

[MattH]

Harpsichords are under rated.
Sky obviously used one on Toccato - which is perhaps cheating in this topic, as Sky use a variety of classical instruments, Tuba Smarties being one of my favourites.
But also in Golden Brown by the Stranglers.

[Ian H]

Harpsichords are under rated.
Sky obviously used one on Toccato - which is perhaps cheating in this topic, as Sky use a variety of classical instruments, Tuba Smarties being one of my favourites.
But also in Golden Brown by the Stranglers.

 “The sound of a harpsichord – two skeletons copulating on a tin roof in a thunderstorm. ”
― Sir Thomas Beecham

[Ruthie]

So much new-to-me music 🎼 on this thread!! Fabulous stuff 

[Robh]

Re: harmonica and Toots Thielemans, I've been listening to a lot of Bill Evans these past few days, and this just came up in a mix: https://youtu.be/-xc72YKNrms?si=uUIR9LtjLNE4Q_7w

[Pingu]

cf Jethro Tull.

The thread title says "popular music" 

[Basil]

*Throws things at Pingu*
 

[Pingu]

I had Minstrel in the Gallery playing when I was making dinner tonight 

[fimm]

If we're being really pedantic, the implication of the thread title is that guitars and drums are not musical instruments...

[citoyen]

Surely more a reflection on the fact that since the 50s, the standard formula for popular music has been guitar, bass guitar, drums, plus keyboards from the mid 60s onwards, and what ruthie is asking for is examples of bands working outside that formula.

Roxy Music's use of oboe is a great example, eg on the magnificent Ladytron - still sounds way out there 50 years later:
https://youtu.be/XCzhAeukF1A?si=KZCp36UzoADsiNv6

Also note Brian Eno twiddling away on his crazy synths.

[Hot Flatus]

Roxy Music's use of oboe is a great example, eg on the magnificent Ladytron

[citoyen]

Ah, you got me. 

[Snakehips]

Returning to Jethro Tull for a moment , I have read that Ian Anderson played the sopranino sax on A Passion Play.

[Robh]

We could have an entire sub-genre based on the use of the mellotron (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mellotron). Or the Moog synthesizer (Keith Emerson, Stevie Wonder). Also, the theremin ('Good Vibrations').

[nicknack]

Returning to Jethro Tull for a moment , I have read that Ian Anderson played the sopranino sax on A Passion Play.

Not an instrument to be taken lightly.

[fimm]

Surely more a reflection on the fact that since the 50s, the standard formula for popular music has been guitar, bass guitar, drums, plus keyboards from the mid 60s onwards, and what Ruthie is asking for is examples of bands working outside that formula.

Yes, I know. I was

being really pedantic

[Mr Larrington]

The bloke in Royal Blood who uses a bass instead of a regular guitar as the lead instrument.  Although dog knows why as it ends up sounding like, well, a guitar.  It’s the opposite of the riff in “Seven Nation Army”.

[Woofage]

The Snow Goose by Camel features many orchestral instruments, notably oboe and bassoon. There's also a nice bit of French Horn.

Other tracks coming to mind:
All About Eve's cover of The Witch's Promise has a violin in place of flute.
Coz I Luv You by Slade - also violin solo
Parallels by Yes - proper church organ
Rehab by Amy Winhouse - bari
Inca Roads (for example) by Frank Zappa - tuned percussion (poss. marimba)

[Cudzoziemiec]

Surely more a reflection on the fact that since the 50s, the standard formula for popular music has been guitar, bass guitar, drums, plus keyboards from the mid 60s onwards, and what ruthie is asking for is examples of bands working outside that formula.

Roxy Music's use of oboe is a great example, eg on the magnificent Ladytron - still sounds way out there 50 years later:
https://youtu.be/XCzhAeukF1A?si=KZCp36UzoADsiNv6

Also note Brian Eno twiddling away on his crazy synths.

There's a whole other topic in there: when and why did we fall out of love with the future? Or, I suppose (being pedantic!), with that cusp of the present that seemed like a promise of the future?

[Mr Larrington]

Florian Fricke of Popol Vuh got rid of his synths after only two albums, so the answer is clearly “1972”

[Cudzoziemiec]

I'm far from convinced the musicians shown in this video https://youtu.be/ldQpRMegYc0?si=5uxk2RN9u9871GQn are actually playing on the recording, but there's definitely more than guitar n drums.

[Mr Larrington]

Since the page utterly refuses to load for me it’s hard to disagree

[citoyen]

I'm far from convinced the musicians shown in this video https://youtu.be/ldQpRMegYc0?si=5uxk2RN9u9871GQn are actually playing on the recording, but there's definitely more than guitar n drums.

Great song. They probably did play real instruments on it originally, before the producer got their hands on it…

(Out of idle curiosity, I looked up who was the producer on that record. Apparently it was Mike Howlett, who at one time was a member of Gong.)

[Cudzoziemiec]

I'm far from convinced the musicians shown in this video https://youtu.be/ldQpRMegYc0?si=5uxk2RN9u9871GQn are actually playing on the recording, but there's definitely more than guitar n drums.

Great song. They probably did play real instruments on it originally, before the producer got their hands on it…

(Out of idle curiosity, I looked up who was the producer on that record. Apparently it was Mike Howlett, who at one time was a member of Gong.)

Yes, someone was playing real instruments on it, but not necessarily the ones in the video!

I'm not sure about "great song" but they're one of the few bands I liked as a teenager and still think are good now.

Since the page utterly refuses to load for me it’s hard to disagree

I think the internets are not getting down your wires because the voles have built a dam. No, hang on, it's beavers that build dams. Well, I dunno...

[citoyen]

I'm not sure about "great song" but they're one of the few bands I liked as a teenager and still think are good now.

I'm not sure I remember any of their other songs. Just vaguely remember them being part of that Liverpool scene of the early 80s. Very much of their time. Obviously didn't make as much of a lasting impact as some of their contemporaries.

The comment about the producer getting their hands on the record was prompted by thoughts of one of those contemporaries, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, who did originally record their stuff themselves but then it was all basically rerecorded by Trevor Horn. Think that kind of thing happened a lot around that time. Probably still does.