Mellotron

The Mellotron emerged from an act of industrial espionage that inadvertently created progressive rock's defining instrument. In 1946, Harry Chamberlin had an epiphany while setting up a tape recorder to capture his organ performance: what if each piano key triggered its own tape playback? By 1949, he had built the first sample-based keyboard in his Upland, California garage—hand-placing tape strips that played back organ, strings, and choir sounds. Chamberlin built 500-700 units by hand, selling to Bobby Darin and Elvis Presley among others.

In 1962, Bill Franson—Chamberlin's former window cleaner turned salesman—absconded to England with two Chamberlin Model 600s, allegedly removing the nameplates and presenting the machines as his own invention. He approached Bradmatic Ltd. in Birmingham, whose three Bradley brothers were "staggered" by the concept but saw the Chamberlin as "a sideboard with keys" with serious manufacturing limitations. They refined the design, added innovations, and created the Mellotron Mark I in 1963.

A 1965 legal settlement required Streetly Electronics (formerly Bradmatic) to pay Chamberlin royalties and restricted territorial sales. But the damage was done—and so was the opportunity. The Mellotron's 35 keys each triggered independent tape playback heads, dragging 3/8-inch tape past replay heads at 7.5 inches per second for up to 8 seconds before spring-loaded rewind. Three-track tapes allowed switching between flutes, strings, and choir with a single lever.

The Beatles used a Mellotron for "Strawberry Fields Forever" in 1967—Paul McCartney's flute introduction becoming one of rock's most recognizable sounds. King Crimson bought two Mellotrons when forming in 1969, and the instrument's orchestral textures defined progressive rock from "Nights in White Satin" to "Stairway to Heaven." The machine's quirks became features: minor pitch fluctuations made each note unique, stiff action forced deliberate playing. Streetly closed in 1986, overcome by digital samplers, but reformed in 1997. The bugs-as-features aesthetic that the Mellotron pioneered would influence synthesizer design for decades.