A little humor...

[Kevin Lightner]

[unfiltered37]

A friend just posted this a couple hours ago on facebook, where did it come from?

[Kevin Lightner]

My wife found it, so I'm not really sure.
Tried a reverse image search and found 8 of the same synth pic (Roger Luther's old Moog I think), but none had that text on it.

[Rob Smith]

That's Great!

[stiiiiiiive]

Great indeed

[Christopher Winkels]

Of course the riposte to that are those great YouTube videos or Keith Richards and Ozzy Osborne, both looking rather befuddled by a Moog modular and a 2600, respectively.

[MC]

My wife found it, so I'm not really sure.
Tried a reverse image search and found 8 of the same synth pic (Roger Luther's old Moog I think), but none had that text on it.

Yes that is the Roger Luther modular. The pic is from the old Audities website. Pic was taken at (JL) Liemsieder's place.

[Kevin Lightner]

Of course the riposte to that are those great YouTube videos or Keith Richards and Ozzy Osborne, both looking rather befuddled by a Moog modular and a 2600, respectively.

When I restored Ozzy's 2600, his manager first put him on the phone with me.
I swear, I could hardly understand anything he was saying.
I felt that same schoolgirl "OMG... I'm talking to Ozzy Osbourne" feeling others might, but it was like talking to an alien.
It was a very uneasy feeling all around.
He did however say clearly that he used it during Black Sabbath, but couldn't recall the song(s.)
Just sort of a drift off into babbling and me intensely trying to understand him.
I finally had to try and get off the phone by asking him to put back on his manager.
I'm certain Brian Kehew would instantly know which songs used that 2600 btw, so if he reads this I hope he chimes in.
The man is an authority on Black Sabbath and synths and I've only one later Ozzy cassette tape.

For the tech types, that synth arrived here having had all the original Arp oscillators inside replaced with Doepfer VCOs mounted on the case bottom.
That work was done somewhere in the UK and I don't recall the name they provided.
But there was someone's brute force attempt at repairs.
Entire Doepfer modules screwed down and patch cords just plugged into the jacks, the other ends soldered to the 2600 main board.
I removed them and installed 3 original 4027-1 Arp VCO submodules which I was very lucky to have had then.

So this particular job really was more of a restoration.
I put back in originals. Cool.
It felt a lot better doing that than talking to Ozzy to be honest.

[thealien666]

...I felt that same schoolgirl "OMG... I'm talking to Ozzy Osbourne" feeling others might, but it was like talking to an alien.

Kevin, if I ever get the privilege to talk to you on the phone,(BTW, I'm prepared for the schoolgirl feeling of "OMG... I'm actually talking to the legendary tech Kevin Lightner !"), I hope you can understand me despite my alias...

Thanks for the humorous anecdote. I, too, could never quite understand everything he said, watching his show on TV.

[dan thacker]

The first synthy stuff I heard from the Sabs was from the Sabbath Bloody Sabbath lp,I seem to recall it was none other than Rick Wakeman tickling the Pratt & reeds,ahem.

[Rob Smith]

During the recording of Tales from topographic oceans Wakeman would hang out with Black Sabath, While Anderson and Howe were Writing. I believe he played on the song Sabra Cadabra / Sabath Bloody Sabath.

[unfiltered37]

I wonder why ozzy wanted the 2600 restored, he had no idea how to use it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVlvds9nV-8

[Christopher Winkels]

I used to think Ozzy was hard to understand because of where he was from. Then I remembered that several members of Duran Duran are pretty much from the same neck of the woods and they are as lucid as Stephen Fry giving elocution lessons.

I can only imagine the work that went into being his manager.

[Kevin Lightner]

Thanks for the kind words, alien666.
No legend exists here tho.
Every person in the credits of a movie could share similar stories.
It's just biz with some passion for doing a good job.

As far as Ozzy, I have to believe that he probably subconsciously drifts into such babble.
I understand he's fairly well read and appears to be able to speak with some clarity when he wishes to.
I also have great respect for his voice and writing ability, even if it's not composing in the traditional sense.
He's very melodic and in my opinion, very much underestimated in the same way that David Lee Roth was when it came to crafting a rock song.
I don't believe for a second either one of these singers is an accomplished instrumentalist, but they both know how to produce well arranged songs.
Jackie Gleason and Michael Jackson shared similar traits and output as well.
Neither had real chops, but could sing or describe a melody sufficiently that other musicians could realize the arrangement they envisioned.
So playing instruments is one thing.
Coming up with what to play and performing it well is where the art lies.

[unfiltered37]

David lee Roth, though an idiot, was a tremendously energetic singer who had the very rare ability to sing harmonically like Mongolian throat singers. Cheesy and ridiculous as Van Halen is, hearing Jump or Panama comes on the radio, I still get off, even though I listened to every Van Halen song at least 100 times while working on Guitar Hero Van Halen. I actually met Eddie while working for Activision, they sent a memo out to all of us to not be surprised if he lit up a cigarette in the office and to by no means try to approach him. He never did, but was outside smoking the whole time. I went up to him to use his lighter, tried to hold a conversation, but he was way faded. I think that might be why I got laid off.