Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Unusual Instruments : Penetration


The Stooges : Penetration

[Purchase]

     Invented in 1896, the celeste --best known for providing the soft "celestial" melody in Tchaikovsky's "Dance of The Sugar Plum Fairy"--has also been featured in recordings by some of the greatest rock artists of all time: The Beatles ( "Baby It's You"), Buddy Holly ("Everyday"), The Velvet Underground ("Sunday Morning") and The Stooges (in both "Gimme Danger" and "Penetration").

     When asked who played the celeste on "Penetration" by PopMatters.com's Greg Kot, Iggy answered "That was me! I played in the high school orchestra, so I had a little familiarity with these instruments lying around the studio in London."

   In the original CD mix of Raw Power, the celeste got buried , but now you can hear the instrument in all its glory. It shouldn't work with all of James Williamson's dirty guitar sounds and Iggy's nasty snarls... but it does!



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