Chris Rendall - Synth Magic
Philicorda GM758
This place became my favourite place to 'hang out' and eventually I got a Saturday job there, earning a whopping £5 per day, plus commission. Though it wasn't going to make me a millionaire I had a lot of fun there and learned a lot. I also met my first organ celebrity who became a big inspiration, Tony Peglar who actually gave me quite a bit of advice in how to demonstrate organs and also playing techniques. I also had a few of his LP's too. A great guy.
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Moving on, I had various jobs in the organ trade, my first 'real job was working for a company known as 'Western Music' in Sutton, I was there about a year until it went bankrupt and all the stores had closed down.
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I went through some tough times back then took on some real crappy jobs that I hated.
The Gigs!
Welcome to my website Synth magic, well, it's all about, yup you guessed it, synthesizer music, both software and hardware.
I'm Chris, and have been playing keyboards for around 45 years.
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I remember my first ever electronic organ, it was a 'Western Duo', at the time I thoughtit was the bees knees which was exchanged about a year later for a Philips Philicorda GM758, though it has a lot of fans I wasn't that keen on it, it sounded a bit too 'tinny'. But it was an instrument.
I had to endure this organ for several years.
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While in my early days at school I decided to take several days off to scout for different organ shops and one day I ventured into a small organ shop in East Dulwich South London, who dealt solely in Thomas organs. They described me as looking like a drowned rat as it had been raining pretty heavily that day.
I still remember when I went in there they asked the usual, can I help you, and do you play, I told them I did and they asked if I would like to have a go on one, I picked the Thomas Trianon organ, a beast of an instrument, I loved it!
Ah yes, the gigs, my first ever gig, well it was more a spot at a posh pub called the Cherry Orchard in Shirley, Croydon. I played a lowery Contempo 80, a very expensive instrument costing over four and a half grand, and that was back in 1979.
Since then I worked at a large hotel in Elephant and castle, I was the resident organist there, every evening, 7 days a week, it was bloody knackering I can tell you and it didn't do well for my social life, which was nil so it didn't matter, but it earned pretty good money though.
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From there I played at a pub called the 'Two Brewers' in Croydon, the instrument was a Yamaha C55. Wasn't bad.
So, in my life I have played literally hundreds of gigs, from clubs to pubs, to ships, to high class restaurants. Not to mention a fair share of shit holes too!
Even Entered Contests!
Back in the good old 1980s My parents thought that it would be a good idea to send me on a little holiday at Caister, Great Yarmouth instead of volunteering for drug testing for colds etc. A pretty good move I guess, as they had a talent contest, which I won woohoo!, it was an organ festival and they had some awesome instruments I got hooked playing the Hohner D200, what was also good is that no one told me to get the fuck off it! Which was what I was told in many organ shops that I visited.
After this I entered the Yamaha Electone Festival, twice, both times I got through to the National finals and theat was as far as I got. On the second entrance I knew I wasn't going to get anywhere so I decided to get myself pissed as by that time it didn't really matter what happened.
Now and the future
You know, years ago my brother Gordon bought a cassette tape (remember those) of some music that was played on an ARP synthesizer
I used to listen to that every chance that I ever got, the sounds were just amazing. I think it was the 2600, I think. From that time I was hooked, I wanted a synth so bad. When I worked at East Dulwich (the Saturday Job) I was loaned a Thomas/Moog synthesizer, oh man this was like a god send, all those warm fuzzy sounds, but sadly it had to be returned :-( But it was a great start. Anyway where was I? Oh yes, a few years ago after having a belly full of the south I moved up north to South Yorkshire, at the beginning it was a friking disaster was homeless, yup, I lived on the street, rough, but it didn't take long to get back on my feet.
I got myself a little regular gig in a wine bar in Sheffield, wow these Yorkshire folk are so wonderful, love 'em to bits, and got a little room which was quite tidy and comfy but then a dark cloud once again appeared this time it was very serious, I started becoming sicker by the day, I ignored it thinking that it was just a little bug, but I eventually went to see a doctor who 'ordered' me to get to the hospital QUICK! My kidneys had stopped working, I was again out of work, and fell back on my rent and lost the place I was at. But with the helpfulness of the staff at Northern General hospital not just getting me right again but with my welfare as well.
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These days I do my performances on Youtube. I use a Technics GX5 Organ, A Yamaha DGX 200 76 note keyboard and a PC.
With the PC there is a Steinberg UR22 audio/midi external interface connected to it, and a LOT of VSTi instruments too. So, why not pop over to my you tube channel and have a listen. tell me what you think.
Technics GX5 Organ
Yamaha DGX200
Keyboard
