大象传媒

David in Ayr got in touch when we did synth night, to suggest Telstar by The Tornados and to ask if it really was a synth that featured on the song.

Telstar was released in 1962 and as well as topping the British charts it was the first song by a British band to reach number one in the US. The song was named after the Telstar satellite and it鈥檚 outer space sounding sound effects really captured people鈥檚 imagination at the time the space age was taking off. Pioneering producer, Joe Meek recorded the song at his home studios in Islington, where he also created hits for John Leyton and The Cryin鈥� Shames.

So were those sounds down to an early synth, or as a popular urban myth claimed at the time, were they captured by sending a satellite up to space and recording the sound effects?

I asked John Cavanagh, presenter of 大象传媒 Radio Scotland鈥檚 Songlines and a man who is a Joe Meek aficionado.

According to Cav鈥� there鈥檚 dispute over the actual instrument used and it seems even the band themselves don鈥檛 remember. There鈥檚 a school of thought that it鈥檚 a Clavioline but he reckons it鈥檚 most likely to be a Jennings Univox which was played on the single. It was one of the earliest mass produced portable keyboards and not strictly a synth. It was according to Beat Magazine, 鈥淎 monophonic organ with a range of tone selections and vibrato effects鈥�

So next time we do 鈥榤onophonic organs with a range of tone selections and vibrato effects鈥� as a theme, Telstar will definitely get an airing.

The documentary, A Life In The Death Of Joe Meek is one of the highlights of this year鈥檚 and there鈥檚 a special screening introduced by John Cavanagh on Sunday 24th Feb.