Mellodrama: The Mellotron Movie

A really fine document that covers the Mellotron as well as its older sibling the Chamberlin. Well researched with appearance by most of the big Mellotron players, and the complete story right up to 2008. There have been many developments since this documentary was made, both on the strictly software side as well as the continued production of the tape based Mellotron VI and the newer line of Digital Mellotrons headed up by the Mellotron M4000D. I am lucky enough to be a Mellotron owner and the instrument surprises me every day.If you have ever listened to the music of the 60s, 70s, or 80s there will be something here for you. Sadly the disk itself is SD, but the content more than makes up for the (by 2020 standards) low quality video. Buy it and support the producers, their love for these tape based keyboards is authentic and should be rewarded.

I am somewhat familiar with the Mellotron from listening to recordings of various progressive rock groups and of course the incredible sounds that Mike Pinder(Moody Blues) was able to get out of this innovative keyboard instrument! It took a long time to figure out what kind of device produced those amazing sounds that would give one chills when hearing those deep pitch bends and unusual chord changes.And the mellotron flutes on the Beatles Strawberry Fields,or the powerfull Strings on "In the Court of the Crimson King"Then there are the stringsand Brass on "Nights in white Satin" I could go on and on!I would like to thank everyone involved in the production of this video. A story that deserved to be told.I recommend it to all music lovers. the mellotron ranks right up there with the Hammond tone wheel organ. Harry Chamberlain Was truly the Father of what has become digital sampling. It is ironic that one can now have a virtual Mellotron on their laptop(as I do).(Cantabile VST host and Artifake Labs Red Tron(both Downloadable for free) and a tiny Korg microkey and inexpensive volume pedal to control it. Thanks Amazon for making this video available!PEACE !

When the Chamberlin and Mellotron became available to the consumer market, they were basically intended to be used as home entertainment. But when artists like the Beatles, Moody Blues, Gary Paxton, Brian Wilson, and Curt Boettcher started to use them in the studio, they added that certain something to their recordings. The sound of the instrument is still highly regarded and even today Mellotrons are being manufactured in analog and digital formats.As esoteric the subject of this documentary may seem, there is a lot here to hold the casual viewer's interest. The history of both machines are interesting. The simple idea that led Harry Chamberlin to create an instrument that utilized tape playback in 1949 was so innovative and revolutionary, it made one of his salesman steal two of Harry's machines and take them to England. This salesman went to the Bradley brothers and claimed the instruments to be his own design and the Mellotron was born.You have to watch the rest of the documentary to see how the story unfolds.The DVD also comes with a slew of extra material and anecdotes from Tony Banks, Ian MacDonald, Michael Penn, Brian Wilson, Rick Nielson, Matthias Olsen, David Kean, Matthew Sweet, Al Kooper, Jon Brion, Richard Chamberlin and others.

Who knew the Mellotron was used in so many familiar songs from the '70s through '90s?! It's fun to see many of the musicians talking about how they used it, why (really unique sounds -- from sublime to ridiculous), and what kind of trouble they went to dealing with this oddball mechanical "sampler." Don't be fooled by the slightly slow start. If you're at all interested in keyboard instruments and the history of electronic music in particular, this documentary is full of great stories and surprises. The instrument itself is a hoot, just wonderful.Four+ instead of a perfect five stars due to every-so-slightly funky production quality & editing... though in a way, that adds to its charm. It's lovingly done and the story is way too much fun to pass up. Enjoy!

I have followed bands for a while to see which ones use a Mellotron. My favorite is (was) the Moody Blues. Was waiting for this to come out on media as it did not play in my town. Really liked the discussions of the instrument and the interviews with those that played it on classic recordings. Just like the sound (that kinda dark slightly off low fi). I wish I could play an original, but I have one of the sampled Mellotron programs on my computer. Makes for great fills and even a lead if you need to be funky. Really liked to hear more about it and find out about how it was used over the years. I also have the soundtrack CD!

I thought there would be more of Mike Pinder and the use of the Melotron by the Moody Blues , then just a quick snippet.

I know most of the songs by heart, so the soundtrack in my head filled-in the missing music. Unfortunately for younger viewers, you'll have to stop by youtube to hear the classic examples of the mellotron in action. It costs money to get permission, so just listing these classic songs is probably the best a filmmaker can do on a realistic budget.It was exciting to hear the Buffalo Bill introduction. Who knew?

This is a good movie but I'd much rather have Dianna Dilworth's book which, she informed me, had been going through a few problems.The film is very watchable and I'd recommend it to any mellotron or musical instrument enthusiast. But I guess as more of a reader than a watcher, I want more and books that are films always give you that.