Thursday, Mar. 18, 2010

Hey, Mello out

There are times when I bring story concepts to the Weekly Surge team for discussion and I get blank stares in return or the Dave Chappelle-ish "mmmmm-ok," response.

It doesn't happen often, but this week's cover story is one of those occasions.

They've even made fun of me a little bit.

But here's the deal: Part of our mission as an alternative weekly is to bring our readers stories that you're not going to see anywhere else.

According to the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, alt-weeklies "produce high-quality journalism that offers a valuable alternative to the mainstream media in their area."

Furthermore, according to Web site www.altweeklies.com, which aggregates the best stuff from 130 member alt-weeklies from North America, an alt-weekly's content should have "a different perspective from what is generally found on wire-service and daily-newspaper Web sites."

If it sounds like I'm rationalizing, well, I am.

But I wouldn't present to you, the reader, a lame-ass story for any reason (even at gun-point), so you've just got to trust me as I think what we've uncovered, starting on page 14, is something quite unique and entertaining, like the Mellotron itself.

The Mello-what?

Have you ever listened to the warbled-sounding intro to the Beatles' "Strawberry Fields Forever" and thought, "what the heck is that?"

Have you envisioned Led Zeppelin backed by a 50-piece orchestra when recording the seminal track "Kashmir"?

Are you a movie geek and love the Arcade Fire's soundtrack to the 2009 film "The Box" or love Kanye West's "Gold Digger"?

Do you remember The Moody Blues' "Nights in White Satin - The Trip" dark ride at Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach that debuted in 2008?

If you answered yes to any of these, then the sound you were hearing was not an orchestra, brass section, strings or synthesizer. Rather, you've unwittingly been mesmerized by the sound of a rare keyboard known as the Mellotron, a forerunner to the modern-day sampler.

And one Myrtle Beach man wound up as a baby sitter of sorts for one of these vintage instruments, one that has an alleged past steeped in rock 'n' roll history. The Moody Blues, who pushed the Mellotron to the forefront of the '60s/'70s progressive rock movement, will pay the Coastal Carolinas a visit on Saturday at the North Charleston Performing Arts Center. But it seems the band left something behind in Myrtle Beach. Most specifically, the Mellotron featured in the ill-fated "Nights in White Satin - The Trip" is in the possession of a Myrtle Beach musician and custom instrument case maker.

Will the Moodies - who haven't performed along the S.C. coast since a 2008 gig at Hard Rock Park - slide up U.S. 17 to collect?

When our correspondent/Music Notes columnist Paul Grimshaw first told me about this somewhat mythical instrument being left behind as Hard Rock Park was shuttered and changed hands, I knew we had to find a way to tell this story. I'm somewhat of a retro-geek when it comes to musical instruments and gadgets, so all you have to say to get me excited are words such as Theremin, Mellotron, Chamberlin, Vox, Moog, Rickenbacker, Crybaby, and anything that makes weird, wonderful sounds, and I'm hooked.

The story started gaining steam when I found out documentary filmmaker Dianna Dillworth had produced a flick entitled "Mellodrama: The Mellotron Movie" and when I got a press release from the North Charleston Performing Arts Center announcing that the Moody Blues 2010 spring tour would be making a stop at that venue.

So, we dispatched Grimshaw to roll up his sleeves and you can read the unfolding Mello-drama starting on page 14.

He even got Moodies drummer Graeme Edge on the line to get his take on the often cantankerous machine, and noted keyboardist Ben Folds, who performed March 13 at the House of Blues in North Myrtle Beach, chimes in, too.

If you're still not sure what we're talking about, we've got a list of some of the most notable Mellotron-soaked tunes in pop/rock history on page 16.

And to cap it off, this week's Recliner Reviews on page 22 takes a look at "Mellodrama" on DVD.

I'll leave you with these words from Beach Boys mastermind Brian Wilson: "The Mellotron stays cool."