How come Wakeman did not have a Modular Moog

And yet, he seems to have never been attracted to the big modular synths which in principle were the dream of any keyboard freak in the early 70's. No Modular Moog, no ARP 2500 or 2600, no modular PPG... not even a humble EMS Synthi A.

The relatively limited Minimoog seems to have been enough for his synth thirst until the late 70's when he embraced more advanced instruments such as the RMI Keyboard Computer (which in any case was not really a synth but a Rompler). Being considered as one of the world's top rock keyboardists and given his rather megalomaniac traits at the time, it's surprising that he did not feel like getting all those hi-tech gadgets. Pictures of keyboardists showing all their gear off were a sign of prestige, see Keith Emerson, Jean-Michel Jarre, Klaus Schulze of Wakeman himself in the inlay pic of The Six Wives Of Henry VIII.

Anybody has ever heard any comments as to how did that come?

 

1. As a trained pianist (more so than Emerson) Wakeman prefered polyphonic instruments [there is an amusing anecdote that when he forst played a Moog he thought it was broken because it was monophonic]

2. Wakeman was more interested in instruments that you put on stage and rely on night after night - the Modular was too complex for that. [Great for studio work, not so great on stage].

3. Wakeman was a jobbing keyboard player in the early 70s and could not afford to buy a Modular 'C' series [his first Moog was a secondhand Minimoog]

 

...of course all those are pure speculation and guess work, as are everyone elses ideas.

I've read the funny thing about Emo's modular is Bob Moog built him a crude analog "preset box" which allowed him to change sounds without unplugging and replugging the wires and recalibrating the knobs.  Once he had this, the giant modular patch bay (and oscilloscope wave monitor) was really just for show...but what a show!

Ya that's an important point.  Banks especially would build compositions with sustained mellotron chords with vocals/solos on top where Emo created a more aggressive attack based on staccato chord stabs and flying riffs/scalar runs.  I love 'em both  

                                now  

I gave favourable reviews to both albums so I wouldn't be averse to Rick completing a 'trilogy' as it were.