Farfisa is a brand name for a series of electronic organs and later multitimbral keyboards, made in Ancona in the Marche region of Italy. The organs were marketed for years in the United States by the Chicago Musical Instrument Company.

With several compact, easily-portable, and inexpensive models available, and their distinctive "cheesy" sound, Farfisa organs became popular among rock bands and other combos during the 1960s. Many listeners first heard a Farfisa on 1966's "Talk Talk" by Sean Bonniwell and The Music Machine. The instrument was integral to the sound of Pink Floyd's early albums, from The Piper at the Gates of Dawn through Dark Side of the Moon. Clint Boon of Madchester band Inspiral Carpets was also famous for using a Farfisa, giving the band its signature sound. (Though often claimed as Farfisa pioneers, ? and the Mysterians actually used a Vox organ on "96 Tears", their best-known work.) Rod Argent of The Zombies was pictured using a Farfisa on stage during the band's later years (although it seems the Farfisa never made it onto any Zombies recordings). John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin used a Farfisa on Dancing Days from Houses of the Holy, as well as occasionally using a VIP-255 or a professional model onstage.

With the advent of synthesizers, organs such as the classic Farfisa seemed to be headed for obsolescence, but time proved otherwise. In the late 1970s, with older models going cheap, numerous punk rock and New Wave bands, such as Blondie, The B-52s, Suicide, and Talking Heads embraced Farfisas as substitutes for more sophisticated keyboards. Their classic sound, in turn, became a staple on multitimbral instruments, first synthesized, then sampled from the originals.

The Farfisa sound is today used to impart a stereotypically kitschy, 1960s-retro essence to music, and has appeared recently on albums by artists such as Electrelane, Green Day, The Blood Brothers, Smash Mouth, Stereolab, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, The American Analog Set, Cadallaca, Tom Waits,Yo La Tengo and Neptune Towers. The Farfisa brand name, meanwhile, continues to appear on contemporary MIDI keyboards.

-wikipedia- Date 31 January 2007, 13:56 Source Farfisa._Made in Italy Author Louis Araujo from Berlin, Germany