Vox musical instruments:

                                                            Vox musical instruments:
The Vox amplifier is famous around the world, leaping into prominence in the early 1960s when The beatles burst onto the world scene, followed by all the other British Invasion bands and solo performers!
It's not widely known that vox also made musical instruments, Electric Guitars, Bass Guitars, Guitar foot peddles and Organs!

                                                          Vox Organs:

The Vox Continental from the year 1962 had a distinctive sound that is now synominous with the sixties Pop and psychedelic era!

Groups such as The Animals , The Beatles, The Dave Clark Five, The Zombies, The Monkees, and many more made these organs popular! The vox range of organs had the colour of the keys reversed being the white keys black and the black keys white which gave them a very groovy look to match their very groovy sound. The Continental and other Vox organs such as the Jaguar, the Continental II, Super Continental, and the Continental 300 share characteristic visual features including orange and black vinyl coverings, stands made of chromed steel tubing, and reversed black and white keys.

  

                                                                Vox Guitars:

The first electric guitars vox produced were The Apache, Stroller and Clubman! Modelled after solid-body, bolt-neck Fenders, which wern't available in the UK at the time. A Clubman Bass followed these models shortly after!

 Vox president Tom Jennings commissioned the London Design Centre to create a unique new electric guitar, and in 1962 Vox introduced the pentagonal Phantom, originally made in England but soon after made by EKO of Italy. Aside from the unusual body and headstock shapes, Phantoms featured copies of the Fender Stratocaster neck and its attachment,

It was followed after a year by the teardrop-molded Mark VI, the model of which had just two pick-ups (instead of three) and was made particularly for Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones, again utilizing a Bigsby-like "Hank Marvin" bridge. Before the decade's end, Stones bassist Bill Wyman was demonstrated in Vox promotions playing a teardrop  hollow bodied bass made for him by the organization, consequently showcased as the Wyman Bass. Numerous guitar gear powers question that he ever really utilized the instrument for recording or live work. Vox explored different avenues regarding built affects and electronics, with guitars, for example, the Cheetah, Ultrasonic, and Invader offering various built in effects. Ian Curtis of Joy Division is known to have claimed two white Vox Phantom VI Special effects guitars which had push button effects switches on the scratch plate. Amongst numerous advancements were the Guitar Organ, which emphasized scaled down VOX organ hardware initiated by the contact of strings with fret contacts, delivering organ tones in key with guitar harmonies. This instrument was overwhelming and awkward with its steel neck and outer circuit boxes, and infrequently worked accurately, yet was a sign of the inventiveness of this organization.

In the mid-1960s, as the sound of electric 12-string guitars got to be prominent, Vox presented the Phantom XII, which has been utilized by Tony Hicks of The Hollies, Captain Sensible of early English punk band The Damned and Greg Kihn, and Mark XII electric 12-string guitars and additionally the Tempest XII, likewise made in Italy, which offered a more traditional body style. The Phantom XII and Mark XII both offered an extraordinary Bigsby style 12-string vibrato tailpiece, which made them, alongside Semie Moseley's "Wanders" show 12-string Mosrite, the main 12 string electric guitars to gimmick such a vibrato. The Stereo Phantom XII had split pickups looking like the Fender precision bass, each half of which could be sent to a different amp utilizing an installed blend control. Vox delivered various different models of 6 and 12 string electric guitars in both England and Italy. 

                                 

                                                      Effects Pedals:

Guitar effects pedals, including an early version of the wah-wah pedal used by Jimi Hendrix and the Tone Bender fuzzbox pedal used by Jimmy Page of the Yardbirdswere also manufactured. In 1967 Vox introduced a series of guitars which featured built in effects such as Distortion (fuzz tone), Repeat Percussion (percussive tremolo), Treble/Bass Booster and a wah-wah operated by the heel of the picking hand pushing on a spring-loaded lever over the bridge. The Delta phantom style guitar and bass, the Starstream teardrop 6-string, and Constellation teardrop bass had such effects.

Vox also pioneered the first radio microphone system, which freed singers from being connected by a microphone cable to their amplifier or PA.

http://youtu.be/J4sC_0kmHxs

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http://youtu.be/WvPhAIBeNNk

http://youtu.be/2M_Vwx-G7MA

http://www.theoompahroundabout.com/

https://play.google.com/store/music/artist/The_Oompah_Roundabout?id=A7v3kg4ev6776ld7lyudgvcxsbu&hl=en

https://itunes.apple.com/au/artist/the-oompah-roundabout/id682186123

http://www.amazon.com/The-Oompah-Roundabout/dp/B00E9RVZOK

http://www.jango.com/music/The+Oompah+Roundabout

Manfred Man.

                                                                     Manfred Man.

The Mann-Hugg Blues Brothers were formed in London  by keyboard player Manfred Mann and drummer/vibes/piano player Mike Hugg,  who formed a house band in Clacton-on-Sea that also featured Graham Bond.   Bringing a shared love of jazz to the British blues boom, then sweeping London's clubs (which also spawned Alexis Korner, the Rolling Stones and the Yardbirds), the band was completed by Mike Vickers on guitar, alto saxophone and flute, bassist Dave Richmond and Paul Jones as lead vocalist andharmonicist.  By this time they had changed their name to Manfred Mann & the Manfreds. Gigging throughout late 1962 and early 1963 the band soon attracted attention for their distinctive sound.

After changing their name to Manfred Mann at the behest of their label's producer John Burgess, the group signed with His Master's Voice in March 1963 and began their recorded output that July with the slow, bluesy instrumental single "Why Should We Not?", which they performed on their first appearance on television on a New Year's Eve show.   It failed to chart, as did its follow-up (with vocals), "Cock-a-Hoop."  The overdubbed instrumental soloing on woodwinds, vibes, harmonica and second keyboard lent considerable weight to the group's sound and demonstrated the jazz-inspired technical prowess in which they took pride.  

Early success (1964–1965)

In 1964 the group was asked to provide a new theme tune for the ITV pop music television programme Ready Steady Go!.  They responded with "5-4-3-2-1" which, with the help of weekly television exposure, rose to No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart.  Shortly after "5-4-3-2-1" was recorded, Richmond left the band,   though he would record with them occasionally later. He was replaced by Jones' friendTom McGuinness—the first of many changes. After a further self-penned hit, "Hubble Bubble (Toil And Trouble)," the band struck gold with "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", a cover of the Exciters' minor hit earlier that year.  The track reached the top of each of the UK, Canadian and U.S. charts (The Exciters' version had only charted No. 78 in the US).

With the success of "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" the sound of the group's singles moved away from the jazzy, blues-based music of their early years to a pop hybrid that continued to make hit singles from cover material. They hit No. 3 in the UK with another girl-group cover "Sha La La",  (originally by the Shirelles) which also reached No. 12 in the U.S. and Canada and followed with the sentimental "Come Tomorrow" but both were of a noticeably lighter texture than their earliest output. Meanwhile "B" sides and four-song EPs showcased original material and instrumental solos. The group also returned to jazz and R&B themes on their albums: their first, 1964's The Five Faces of Manfred Mann, included standards such as "Smokestack Lightning"  while the second and last with this line-up, Mann Made, offered several self-composed instrumentals and a version of "Stormy Monday Blues" alongside novelties and pop ballads. With a cover of Maxine Brown's "Oh No Not My Baby" began a phase of new depth and sophistication in the arrangements of their singles. The group began its string of successes with Bob Dylan songs with a track on the best-selling EP The One in the Middle, "With God on Our Side", next reaching No. 2 in the UK with "If You Gotta Go, Go Now". The EP's title track reached the British top ten singles, the last self-written song (by Jones) and the band's last R'n'B workout to do so. The run climaxed with a second UK No. 1 single, "Pretty Flamingo".

The group had managed an initial jazz/rhythm-and-blues fusion, then taken chart music in its stride but could not hope to cope with Paul Jones' projected solo career as singer and actor, and with Mike Vickers' orchestral and instrumental ambitions. Jones intended to go solo once a replacement could be found but stayed with the band for another year, during which Mike Vickers left. McGuinness moved to guitar, his original instrument, contributing the distinctive National Steel Guitar to "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" and "Pretty Flamingo", and was replaced on bass by Jack Bruce, who had been playing for the Graham Bond Organisation  for some time before a recent brief stint with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. In his brief tenure before leaving to form Cream Bruce played on "Pretty Flamingo" and on the EPInstrumental Asylum,(on which Jack Bruce and brass players Henry Lowther & Lyn Dobson were included in the group on the cover photo) which began the group's experiments with instrumental versions of chart songs. He was replaced by Klaus Voormann.  The band changed record companies just after, although EMI quickly released an EP of earlier unissued 1963-66 era songs titled 'As Was' (a pun on their current 1966 new studio album title), a hits compilation; 'Mann Made Hits' (1966) which included one unissued instrumental track, an instrumental compilation LP; 'Soul of Mann' (1967) and most controversially used session players to complete the unfinished track; 'You Gave Me Somebody To Love' c/w 'Poison Ivy' (both sung by Paul Jones) which made No.36 in the UK singles chart upsetting the group, hence Tom McGuinness wry comment; 'Manfreds disown new single' on the sleeve of their next studio album for their new record label.

The Animals

                                                                      The Animals

The Animals were an English band of the 1960s, formed in Newcastle upon Tyneduring the early part of the decade. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature song and transatlantic No.1 hit single, "The House of the Rising Sun", as well as by hits such as "We Gotta Get out of This Place", "It's My Life", "I'm Crying" and "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". The band balanced tough, rock-edged pop singles against rhythm and blues-oriented album material. They were known in the US as part of the British Invasion.

The Animals underwent numerous personnel changes in the mid-1960s and suffered from poor business management. Under the name Eric Burdon and the Animals, the much-changed act moved to California and achieved commercial success as apsychedelic and hard rock band with hits like "San Franciscan Nights", "When I Was Young" and "Sky Pilot", before disbanding at the end of the decade. Altogether, the group had ten Top Twenty hits in both the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100.

The original lineup had brief comebacks in 1975 and 1983. There have been several partial regroupings of the original era members since then under various names. The Animals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

The Animals PT1

                                                                  The Animals PT 1.

The Animals were an English band of the 1960s, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature song and transatlantic No.1 hit single, "The House of the Rising Sun", as well as by hits such as "We Gotta Get out of This Place", "It's My Life", "I'm Crying" and "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". The band balanced tough, rock-edged pop singles against rhythm and blues-oriented album material. They were known in the US as part of the British Invasion.

The Animals underwent numerous personnel changes in the mid-1960s and suffered from poor business management. Under the name Eric Burdon and the Animals, the much-changed act moved to California and achieved commercial success as apsychedelic and hard rock band with hits like "San Franciscan Nights", "When I Was Young" and "Sky Pilot", before disbanding at the end of the decade. Altogether, the group had ten Top Twenty hits in both the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100.

The original lineup had brief comebacks in 1975 and 1983. There have been several partial regroupings of the original era members since then under various names. The Animals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.