A closer look

It doesn't use pipes, and it doesn't use microchips; it basically uses gears. The legendary Hammond organ, a staple of gospel and early rock, creates its signature gritty sound via an internal array of spinning metal discs with rigidly scalloped edges. Electromagnetic pickups read the intense vibrations of these spinning wheels, turning highly mechanical, physical rotations into the incredibly warm, undeniably soulful tones that completely defined mid-century organ music.