Somewhat off topic, but an event has to be noted.
Mike Pinder, keyboard player and founder of The Moody Blues, has died. He was 82.
Mike was well known for playing the Mellotron, but he played all keyboards and guitar and was a main singer and songwriter for the band.
Mike claimed to have introduced The Beatles to the Mellotron, and they used it extensively. He had worked for a period at the factory that made the keyboard and understood more than most what it could be made to do. Their album Days Of Future Passed did use orchestra, but on most of the songs Pinder’s Mellotron was front and centre. It must have been the first rock album to feature the instrument so prominently.
There are many clips of Mike singing and playing, like this:
