Moog Liberation keytar / synthesizer reference sheet, 1980

Moog Liberation keytar / synthesizer reference sheet from 1980.

What do we have here? It's another member of the Moog 1980 reference sheet family!

And nope - it's still not the last one. There's even more in the series.  The others in the series that I have already posted include those scans below for the Polymoog, Opus 3, Minimoog, Micromoog, Prodigy and Multimoog. Click on the images to go to their respective blog posts!

    

    

These should really be re-printed as collector cards. Just sayin'.

Not sure why it took me so long to post the Liberation sheet - I'm a bit of a keytar freak. If I had been born in the 18th century, I probably would have been hangin' around with Beethoven and had an Orphica strapped around my neck.

But as much as I would have wanted to have had my own Liberation to riff with, it's never happened. The closest I've come is having a Poly-800 or a CZ-101 strung over my shoulder - and technically they're not even keytars because they don't have necks. Hrumph.


I love everything about that front photo. The way the Liberation seems to just be floating there (including the shoulder strap!) and the subtle shadows on that warm red background. So gorgeous.

But if there is one photo of the Moog Liberation I love more than the one in that reference sheet, its this classic photo of Devo holding FIVE Liberations (photo taken from Club Devo - go visit and become a member!).

Fun fact - according to the Liberation wiki page, Devo actually never used the instrument live or in recordings. It does say they used them in music videos... but I don't recall any off the top of my head, so I'll be trying to track one down as soon as I'm done this blog post. If you know of one, email me the link! ( retrosynthads[AT]gmail.com )

And, well, although the question of whether they used the Liberation specifically may be up for debate, it is well-known that Mark Mothersbaugh does love Moogs.  :)

Back to the reference sheet - after admiring that lovely photo, its just natural to flip the page over to read about all those yummy specs. And everything you need to know is there. Including the date of printing of the sheet itself!

But for me, the most curious of the specs is that "Burn in (aging)" section.

"Before final calibration, units are burned in for 72 hours at ambient of 72 F"

Similar info also appears on the back of the Prodigy reference sheet and I commented briefly about it in that blog post too. Interestingly, I'm pretty sure that info isn't referenced in the other sheets in this series. Just those two. Which kinda makes a sense since according to Wikipedia, the Liberation is most closely related to the Prodigy. But I wonder why they note that burn-in time for those two specifically.

Anyways, that's it for now. Time to go down that Devo video rabbit hole!

Moog Retail Price List, June 28, 1980

Moog 2-page fold out Retail Price List from June 28, 1980.

What isn't to love about this price sheet?

A list of awesome Moog synths? Check!  Retail prices for those synth history buffs like me? Yup!  And last but definitely not least, Tom Schuman from Spyro Gyra. No wonder he is smiling, by the time this price list came out, the guy was still barely into his twenties and already had three albums under his belt.

AND he's playing a Moog Liberation keytar. That would definitely make me smile too.

click image for more info

If this photo of Tom appears familiar, it probably means you are old.

Or a fan of vintage synth ads.

Or both.

Because a full colour version appeared in a July 1980 Moog Liberation advertisement, around the same time this price list did. As mentioned in the blog post for that ad, 1980 really was the year that the Keytar broke out.

Which makes it a good year indeed.

As mentioned above, as a synth history buff, I love to see prices listed. Most ads don't include prices and its like a puzzle missing one of the most important pieces.  I've posted a few other Moog price lists (with more to come!) and its fun (and a little terrifying) to watch inflation unfold.

click image for more info

For example, The July 1, 1974 Moog Retail Price List contains some of the same products, and I've included a few of those below for comparison. 

Minimoog:
1974 - $1,595.00
1980 - $1,995.00

Percussion Controller:
1974 - $249.00 
1980 - $350.00

Ribbon Controller:
1974 - $295.00
1980 - $$395.00

click image for more info

Also, the March 1, 1976 Moog Professional Systems Price List gives us a good comparison for their modular systems.

System 15:
1976 - $3,845.00
1980 - $4,960.00

System 35:
1976 - $5,935
1980 - $7,980

System 55:
1976 - $9,675
1980 - $12,000

Time to look for more Keytar ads.

Moog Liberation "Is coming..." pre-launch ad, Contemporary Keyboard 1980

Moog Liberation pre-launch 1/2-page advertisement from page 52 in Contemporary Keyboard June 1980.

Update: added to the Moog interactive advertising timeline.

I've come to love pre-launch advertisements. The Sequential Circuits Pro-One series of pre-launch ads were simple but fun, and the Korg Sigma pre-launch ad was just gorgeous looking. Pre-launch ads usually just run in one issue, and I'll never think one month of advertising is enough for a magazine audience in the 70s or 80s, but I can't deny their appeal.

I love them so much I've created a new blog label called "pre-launch".

And the Liberation's simple but effective pre-launch advertisement doesn't disappoint either. I can't help but compare it to Moog's earlier Minimoog "KISS" (Keep It Simple, Stupid) ads - this September 1979 "When you've got the sound" colour ad, and this July 1979 "You know what this is" black and white ad (it doesn't even include a logo!). Simple. Effective.

This time, its the outline of the Liberation that is the focus of the ad. And any keyboardist even remotely (no pun intended) familiar with some of the more recognizable custom "keytar" instruments that had already been developed and played by Powell and others, would know what type of instrument Moog was about to launch. But, I wonder how good Moog was at keeping the actual specs of the Liberation a secret. I would have to think that prior to the Internet... pretty good.

I didn't cover any of the specs in my first Liberation ad blog post because the stats are pretty well documented on the Web. A simple Google search will bring up the familiar results:

• Vintage Synth Explorer Liberation page
• SynthMuseum.com Liberation page
  
• Moog Liberation Wikipedia page

And of course, if you want photos, look no further than a Google Images Search. And, really, all you need is this rather recent June 2011 MATRIXSYNTH auction post. It includes a wack of great close-up colour photos of the instrument, front panel and back. Just look at the shiny flashes of color on those controls!

Beautiful. Drool.

Lots more photos of other Liberations on MATRIXSYNTH too.

Wait a tick! I just noticed something that I had never clued into before... the logo-type font on the back of the Liberation in that MATRIXSYNTH auction post looks *nothing* like the Liberation logo-type font used for the word "Liberation" in this pre-launch ad or the Tom Schuman "Treat Yourself to FREEDOM" ad.

Here's a good photo of the back on the Liberation from that MATRIXSYNTH post.

Gah! I crave consistency!

But, even more interesting - Tom's Liberation definitely has that 60's style logo-type on the back panel - not that typical Moogy-looking font.

I did a quick scan through Google Images, and can't find a photo of a Liberation with the 60's style logo. Either Tom is playing a pre-production model or there are a few rare production Liberations with the old 60's style logo-type floating around out there.

Either way - Boo to the change! The Liberation was meant to be a fun instrument. And a fun instrument should have a fun 60's style logo! They should have kept it.

If you've seen one of these special Liberations (or own one!), please let me know.

End note: I just realized why exactly I get a little confused by Tom Schuman's photo in that other Liberation ad. He really does remind me of that guy from one of my favorite early 80's shows when I was a kid "The Greatest American Hero" - William Kat. I think Tom just needs to trade in the feathered hair for a perm.

And, if you look at the T.V. show's intro, six seconds in you get to a familiar shot:

Look familiar? Remember that Syntar brochure cover...?

Hmmm. I'm starting to see connections everywhere.

Enough blogging for today :D

Moog Liberation, Contemporary Keyboard 1980

Moog Liberation 1-page advertisement from page 43 in Contemporary Keyboard July 1980.

Update: added to the Moog interactive advertising timeline.

Let's face it - 1980 was the year of the Keytar. Sure, independent designs and ideas started popping up years earlier, but it was around 1980 when the gates really opened in respect to advertising and promotion.

Just how popular? Flip the page this ad appears on and you see a large photo of Roger Powell playing his custom-designed Probe (which, I still maintain is an awful name for a car, keyboard or anything for that matter). And earlier is this issue is another keytar manufacturer's ad.

Two keytars are top-of-mind for me, and probably for most keytar history buffs, when 1980 is mentioned: George Mattson's (of Mattson Mini Modular fame) wicked looking Syntar, and of course, Moog's very... er... Moogy-looking... Liberation.

Jump forward more than thirty years later, and we somehow get to a point where this advertisement has become almost as iconic as the Liberation itself. You see it everywhere. e-Bay auctions. Scans online. It's probably safety-pinned on to the back of someone's satin jacket somewhere in the world.

For me, this ad has both a lil' bit o' good and bad in it. No, seriously - since first coming across this advertisement, that open-mouthed look on Tom Shuman's face has been permanently burned into my cranium. And the chest hair doesn't help either. What was it with Moog and body hair back in the day?!?!

I personally would rather have seen an up-close photo of the front-panel controls, although marketing gurus would probably argue that because a user can control other synths with the Liberation, a control shot isn't as important as trying to communicate the unique performance aspects of the machine - ie: standing along side a guitarist at the front of the stage. And they would probably be right. :)

But, there is one aspect of this ad that is unquestionably spot-on: the 60's-psychedelia-inspired "Liberation" logo-type. In fact, the whole "Freedom" campaign theme (including ad-copy!) fits so well with what the Liberation is all about, that the photo of Tom in a sweater, collar and slacks comes across as a little out of place for me. Where are the flowers and rainbows :D

With regards to the Liberation, Moog really did use every vehicle possible to promote it. Magazine advertisements and promotional literature, NAMM promotions with the Liberation strapped around a mannequin (page 36 in Vintage Synthesizers by Mark Vail), and of course, their Moog Interface newsletter.

In the September 1980 newsletter (fresh back from Chicago's NAMM show), The Liberation makes multiple appearances, including the big front page article that introduces readers to the technical aspects of the keyboard, including a nice line drawing of the front panel. Interestingly, Moog also mentions that "the Liberation is definitely a performance oriented instrument although it will lay flat on top of other keyboards". What? Why dirty the waters? This thing is meant to play over the shoulder. Stay on message! Stay on message!

In addition, page 2 has a photo of DEVO playing Liberations, as well as a mention for "Moog Mobile Wizard" Tom Schuman (star of this ad) and another mention of Liberation user Ronnie Foster. And page 3 has a photo of The Motel's keyboardist Marty Jourard in the Moog factory with a Liberation leaning against a Moog Modular.

Moog keeps the promos going in the December 1980 newsletter with a photo of Ronnie Milsap and a mention that he is on tour with the Liberation on page one. Page two has a question asking which Bob in DEVO is playing the Liberation on their appearance on Midnight Special (answer: Bob 2). Page 3 has a photo of two member's of Kenny Roger's group playing Liberations.

With a lot of this promotion occurring within a three month period, it's safe to say that awareness of the Liberation was a success.

Nice work, Moog!

Moog 1982 Product Catalog

Moog 1982 Product Catalog featuring the Memorymoog, DSC, The Source, Taurus II, Liberation, Opus 3, The Rogue, and the System 15 and 55 modular systems.

I thought I would try something a little different today and post a scan of a product catalog that I haven't seen around online too much - hopefully you will find it as enjoyable as I find Moog's 2009 catalog.

As always, you can click on the images above to view each page. I've also tried something else a bit different - I've put all the pages into a PDF for those that want to download and view all the pages in one document. Let me know if you have a preference.

This four-page catalog is great - it contains photos and some good descriptive text for each instrument. But what I find most interesting are the list prices. This helps me really understand how good we have it today. For example, the Memorymoog listed for $4,195 in 1982. That's around $7,800.00 in today's dollars.

Here's the others in today's dollars:

• DSC $1700
• The Source $2600.00
• Liberation $2700
• Opus 3 $2400
• The Rogue $900

The best example is the Taurus II. In 1982 it listed for $895 - the equivalent of around $1700 today. Moog recently announced a limited run of 1000 Taurus III's that will be faithful to the Taurus I sound, and also includes MIDI and CV, 48 programmable presents, and an arpeggiator for only $1,995. Seriously great stuff.

For the record, Moog isn't paying me for any of this... I doubt they even know this blog exists :o)

I also have an emotional attachment to this particular piece because it was one of the first Moog catalogs that I ever held in my hands.

I distinctly recall being in a friend's basement years ago where he was showing off his ever-expanding home-built modular. While noodling around with the machine I mentioned that I had recently bought a Pro-1 and, due to his generous nature, he immediately turned his attention to a nearby box to find a copy of a manual.

As he dug deeper and deeper into this container of wonders, more and more synthesizer manuals, catalogs, and magazines started appearing like rabbits out of a hat. The amount of synthesizer history that came out of that box was almost comical, and a copy of this catalog was among the treasure. If my memory is not mistaken, he mentioned that he received the catalog along with some other manuals during a gear trade with another member of the Analogue Heaven email list.

I remember spending hours in that basement reading material out of that box. Then, years later, a copy of the catalog fell into my lap. And I obsessed over it - all over again.

End note: This same friend retrofitted the Pro-1 I mention above with a blue LED while it was at his house for a good cleaning and check-up. Blue LEDs were very rare in synthesizers at the time, I think due to their cost, and his thinking was that if it was ever stolen and used on stage, I would be able to easily identify it as mine. A sincerely generous and thoughtful dude.