Roots Archives Forum

Pablo, Pablove Black, Dr. Pablo, Glen Brown, Joe White, Sonny Bins, the footsteps get smaller. I can't carry a tune with a shovel, but I keep a melodica handy for times like this. How does a music-fundamentals teaching instrument take hold like this?

well shoot, can i make a stab at it? cheap, accessible, different, easy to transport weed in, no no no

Well, it's only a guess on my part too, but affordability probably has a lot to do with it. That wouldn't be enough if it didn't also sound good, though.

To extend the guess a little farther, so many musicians came out of the the Alpha School--they may have been exposed to the instrument there in an early music class.

Those are all guesses. I'd be glad to hear from someone who knows!

The melodica was often used as an introduction instrument to the piano. Normal melodica's have 1 or 2 octaves worth of keys, so it is easier for kids to handle. It is also definitely cheaper than buying a piano. This is why the melodica was considered a childrens instrument back in the day. It took a genius like Augustus to really show the world the potential that this instrument has.

Rumble
Big up 619

Donald Fagen of Steely Dan plays a Melodica and it sounds great.