RE: [AH] What did Roland etc. think the real-world use for drum machines was, pre-dance music? (calling old heads)

From Lorne Hammond
Sent Mon, Dec 24th 2018, 17:06

they were designed for solo and duo acoustic musicians playing in =
lounges and pubs. remember back when every bar had a musician with a =
microphone and an acoustic guitar? And no canned music? pre-DJ.
It started as those long designed to sit and do auto accompaniment for =
the tops of more inexpensive home organs and then the lounge musicians =
dragged a few to the bars but asked for something a bit more compact=20
and square to sit on narrower guitar amps and asked for an autofill =
switch and then a fade in/fade out. One man band, and then the many =
failed experiments in making an autobass machine as well, hello failed =
product TB-303
which was supposed to be a string bass (we all laughed at that).  We are =
talking cocktail lounge small 40-70 people places that were quickly =
gutted for Disco. Fire that musician, get me a mirror floor and lights.
The Wurlitzer Sideman said it all except portability. Minpops, =
doncamatic.=20
Lorne

-----Original Message-----
From: A. Horton <xxxxxx.xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx>=20
Sent: December-24-18 8:42 AM
To: AH <xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [AH] What did Roland etc. think the real-world use for drum =
machines was, pre-dance music? (calling old heads)

I recently got a CR-8000, and it is absolutely lovely. Along with other =
machines I have or love like the TR-77, CR-78, etc. it's insanely =
well-designed with the auto-fill functionality, crash cymbal reserve, =
etc.
What did the manufacturers really think these were being used for?
What were they designed FOR? Outside of Sly Stone and some more niche =
artists, you really didn't hear these things in recorded music. Did =
Roland et. al. think that these were being sold purely for practice?
For recordings? For electronic music? For traditional music? For =
cocktail acts?