Hammond Model B3 in production 1955 to 1974
(This bad boy weighs in at 425 glorious pounds)

"Where is the first Hammond Organ?", you ask.

This article is from the December '68 "Hammond Times". Armed with this photo, I recently visited the Smithsonian Museum of American History in DC in search of this sacred beast. Unfortunatedly, it's in storage across the river in Maryland. But it can be viewed with about a weeks notice by contacting the Smithsonian Division of Cultural History on the 4th floor. Here's the entire Hammond Times article.












......Speaking of first organs, here's my very first organ when I was about 10 years old. It used a fan to blow air across "reids". If only Hammonds were this portable. Here's the rest of the advertisement from the Nov. 4, 1966 Life Magazine.

Undocumented Hammond Abuse

Here's my live Hammand/Leslie Setup

At a recent outdoor gig in Berkeley, California
I used one of my A100's along with a
122/147 Leslie "stack". Here's a closeup
view from the back and from the front.

I play with the very local
"Berkeley Lab Rhythm & Blues Band."
We're not much to look at but we've
each played long enough to finally
get it right when doing covers of
Allman Bros, Clapton, Santana,
Albert Collins, etc. and a few originals.
Had enough? If not, here's another shot.

"Look mom, those piano lessons
sure came in handy!"

Here's a pictorial history of my Hammond Organs

My very first B3 was an early 70's model that I picked up in '89, but it had been chopped.
That's Murph hamming it up for the camera. Like all good Lhasa Apso's, he can't get enough of
that Hammond sound. Bob Schleicher, a great SF Bay Area Hammond tech,
turned the ugly chopped B3 into a beautiful red mahogany A100 .
The A100 has 3 built-in speakers and 2 amps, including reverb.
I also have it hooked up to a Leslie 122RV.
Here's what the electro-mechanical guts of an A100 look like.

In '92, I found a real B3 in it's original case. It's a mid 60's model and screams.
It needed some maintenance, so Bob pulled the manuals out and left me the empty case to refinish.
Here's another view. That's an "Organmate" reverb unit hanging down from the top panel.
Now the B3 looks like this and can drive a Leslie122 and 147 at the same time.

Recently, I picked up an early 60's A100 to use outside the house. I made a
custom locking plywood cover which I stained to match. I call it
the "stealth cover" because radar can't touch it. Here's the cover half open
and fully open with a 122 in the background.
Besides my "poor man's Leslie switch" on the lower manual, I installed
a plug in foot switch for when your hands are tied up.

I've only started seriously playing the Hammond in a group in the past few years.
Before that, I played bass in a classic rock band named Wilcox. That's me on the left playing bass. Here we are playing a 50th birthday tribute to Jimi Hendrix at New George's in Marin County, California in '92. The show was MC'd by Wavy Gravy of Woodstock fame. He's one crazy, but lovable, dude.

Photos From Mark Vail's Hammond Book Party in June

Mark Vail with B3
Merl Saunders & Drummer
Mike Eppley playing drawbars
Dale Ockerman from the Doobies

Meanwhile, I'll be pullin' drawbars...

Thanks for stopping by.

This site created 8/16/97....updated 12/11/97, 6/22/98.