In memory of this week's passing of Bob Moog, one of the four or five most important names in electronic music, I was looking around for the earliest pop-music use of the moog (you pronounce it "Mogue," rhyming with "rogue"). It was batted around in experimental music circles for forever, and then of course there was Walter Carlos's Switched-On Bach--which I think may still be the best-selling classical album of all time. But when did the Moog synthesizer pop up in rock?
The Monkees!
The album is called Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. It's best known for containing the track "Pleasant Valley Sunday." But on two tracks, Michael Nesmith's "Daily Nightly" and Goffin/King's "Star Collector," Mickey Dolenz introduces the sound of the Moog to the rock world.
The Prefab Four. The idols of the small screen. The little band that was put together for no other reason than to be on TV. The proto-Partridge Family. (Except that this one got tired of just being pretty faces and actually learned to write songs and play instruments. Oh, and experiment with electronic music.)
Just a quick tidbit to remind you never to completely write off a pop band. Sometimes they manage to sneak a bit of real musical evolution past you.
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