I have taken it upon myself to give Roland’s new VK-1 a nickname, one that Washington state residents may not find very humorous, but one that is appropriate nonetheless. I have decided after careful deliberation to call this organ the volcano in tribute to the incredible sound of the bass register of this instrument. Besides, I don’t know what VK means, but it sounds close enough to volcano to suit me. Anyway...

Down through the years there have been many noteworthy organs used in a rock ’n’ roll context. Of course, the behemoth Hammond B-3 is generally recognized as the grandaddy of them all, but alas, like many of the giant beasts that once roamed the continent, the noble Hammond B-3 fell victim to its own enormity. Seems like very few people are willing to carry them around anymore, although some players still won’t play anything else.

But let us not forget the spunky Farfisa Duo-Compact or the sleek Vox Jaguar. I am convinced that it was that cheesy organ riff that did the trick. And who can forget such dashing figures as Paul Revere or Mike Smith of the Dave Clark Five? Cheesy organ was never better.

But this is 1980. Musicians have gotten downright serious about rock ’n’ roll. These young upstarts don’t want to sign autographs, they want to sign deeds, contracts, and royalty checks. They don’t want to spend four or five grand on a bulky old organ, they want something that costs a fraction of that, sounds just as good, and fits in the back seat of a Rabbit Diesel. Fat chance, you say?

Actually, the chances are pretty good. Since the demise of the B-3, several companies have produced a lightweight portable organ that approximated to some degree the sound and richness of the B-3. Even so, these organs still sounded a hundred percent better when' run through a Leslie tone cabinet. Which puts the organ player back at square one, hauling around a huge wooden speaker enclosure that won’t fit into any passenger car ever built, with the possible exception of an Eldorado convertible with the back seat removed.

But just when it looked like organ players would be forced into the welfare lines, American technological genius came to the rescue. The chorus box was bom. This ingenious device, a version of which is now offered by many companies—MXR, Roland, Multjvox, etc.— puts the big sound of a Leslie in a small metal box. The classic sound of a rotating speaker has been preserved for future generations, when there will be no more wood to build Leslies out of, and no cars big enough to carry them in.

But what does all this have to do with the volcano? Okay, number one: the VK-1 is a single manual portable organ with drawbars and percussion, as well as three preset sounds. Drawbars and percussion are the mark of a serious organ, one that can be adjusted to suit the taste of the player, and not just some monotonous little toy. There are nine drawbars on the VK-1 that range from 16’ to 1’. The percussion section has buttons that bring out the 2nd, 3rd, and 5th harmonics. This section also has a Volume Soft button that pads the harmonics a little, so that fundamental tones are not overridden by the percussion sounds. Finally, the percussion section has a Decay Fast switch that gives the organ that “bite” of quick percussion that organ players use for soloing.

Reason number two: the VK-1 has an on-board chorus box, complete with variable Depth and Rate controls and an on/off switch. This means that the player doesn’t have to spring for an accessory chorus box that would cost as much as$250 extra. The only thing I find lacking with the chorus section is that there is no fast/slow switch that would enable the player to shift from slow chorus to a fast vibrato without lifting a hand from the keyboard. As it is, this maneuver must be performed by the left hand rotating the Rate control in Jhe chorus section. If this feature were offered with a footswitch control, the VK-1 would be complete. As it is, the organ is just outstanding, better than anything else I’ve seen in it’s class, and sure to be popular. The VK-1 has a five-octave keyboard and a bottom end that sounds like a volcano rumbling down below. It has the bite on the top end and the mellow tones needed for accofhpaniment. From one end to the other, the VK-1 cooks.

Ibanez has a new import electric guitar on the market that bears mentioning because it is at once inexpensive and worth playing. A rare thing these days, although it does happen from time to time. The Blazer series guitars bear strong resemblance to the Fender Stratocaster, but the body shape and the headstock shape have been slightly altered. The neck is made of maple, the body is ash, and the pickup and wiring configuration is straight-ahead Strat style, with just a twist thrown in.

The twist is a phase switch that Works in conjunction with settings two and four on the five-way toggle switch. By engaging the phase switch in either of these two positions, two of the three pickups are thrown out of phase with each other, and the Clapton sound is placed at your fingertips. The pickups are single-coil, and they are covered with a black plastic cover; thus there are no adjustable pole pieces to play with, but keep in mind that this is an inexpensive guitar, folks.

The Blazer has a bullet truss rod, a four-bolt neck joint, two string guides, a satin finish on both body and neck, and a black pickguard. One can’t be too critical of a guitar that plays and sounds this good for so little money, but there is one little thing that bothered me about the Blazer. The way the strings pass through the end of the bridge, they have to bend slightly around the adjustment screws on the bridge saddles. I’m not sure what effect this is going to have on strings breaking too fast or losing their tone, but it seems likeSt would be better jf they passed straight through to the fridge saddles. Anyway, that is just a minor detail, and I can honestly say that I have never played ah import guitar that sounded so much like a real Stratocaster. This would be a dream guitar for a beginner, and it would be a solid backup guitar for the pro who wants a second guitar handy in case he breaks a string in the middle of a set and doesn’t have time to stop and change it. This little guitar is a credit to the Ibanez line.

Guitar players will be happy to know that there is yet another company out there that offers a line of replacement parts for Fender and Gibson guitars. Guitar Man, Inc., of Santee, California offers a complete line of brass replacement parts. Bridges, tailpieces, pickguards, knobs, pickup, covers, nuts, jackplates and other parts are included in the line, which focuses on the Les Paul, Stratocaster, Precision Bass and Telecaster guitars.

Of particular interest to Les Paul players is the new tunematic brass bridge. Each string insert is locked Into place to minimize intonation error, and the inserts are arched to help prevent string breakage. The high mass properties of solid.brass mean increased sustain and clearer tone. Special height adjustment screws are also available that will lock the bridge down tight, further instiling a steady bridge and good intonation.

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Brass parts look great when they are new, but they often tarnish quickly and begin to look dull and worn. This particular company has recognized this annoying problem and solved it by applyinga baked epoxy finish to all their parts, so that the beauty of tfoe highly polished brass is retained. So, if you’ve got a hankerin’ to follow in the footsteps of Eddie Van Halen and build your own hot rod guitars from the ground up, or if you just want a brass tip for the tremolo arm on your Strat, Guitar Man has got the parts for you, handyman. And don’t forget to tin the solder gun, ace. '