Skip to main content
Music Radar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
  • Guitars
  • Amps
  • Pedals
  • Drums
  • Synths
  • Software
  • Pianos
  • Controllers
  • Recording
  • Buyer’s guides
  • Live
  • DJ
  • Advice
  • Acoustic
  • Bass
  • About Us
  • More
    • Reviews
Magazines
  • Computer Music
  • Electronic Musician
  • Future Music
  • Keyboard Magazine
  • Guitarist
  • Guitar Techniques
  • Total Guitar
  • Bass Player
More
  • Take our survey to win a £300/$350 Ticketmaster gift card
  • Type beats
  • 86000+ free music samples
  • How to make an AI cover song
  • Three-chord trick

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

  1. News

Verden Allen's 10 favourite organ rock songs

By Matt Parker
published 26 June 2013

Mott The Hoople man's picks

Verden Allen's 10 favourite organ songs
Mott The Hoople's organist talks us through his picks
(Image credit: Tom Callins /Retna Ltd./Corbis)

Verden Allen's 10 favourite organ songs

Whether it's Green Onions, Like A Rolling Stone or Many Rivers To Cross, there a few instruments that seem to cut directly to classic pop music's soul like the electric organ.

Ahead of a string of massive reunion shows at London's O2 we caught up with Mott The Hoople organist Verden Allen and asked him for his 10 favourite organ rock songs. First up, Alan Price's masterpiece, House Of The Rising Sun…

Mott The Hoople's 2013 tour hits the following venues:

11 November - Birmingham, England - Symphony
13 November - Glasgow, Scotland - Clyde Auditorium
16 November - Newcastle, England - City Hall
17 November - Manchester, England - O2 Apollo
18 November - London, England - The O2

You can grab tickets for the tour from AEG Live.

Page 1 of 11
Page 1 of 11
House Of The Rising Sun (1964)
The Animals
(Image credit: Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS)

House Of The Rising Sun (1964)

"The first one would be House Of The Rising Sun, with Alan Price from The Animals. At that time he used a Vox Continental and it was a great sound. When I heard that, I thought, 'You've got to change on to organ now.' It was a classic song."

The Animals - The House Of The Rising Sun

Page 2 of 11
Page 2 of 11
A Whiter Shade Of Pale (1967)
Procol Harum
(Image credit: Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS)

A Whiter Shade Of Pale (1967)

"Whiter Shade Of Pale was a big hit and brought Hammond organs straight up to the top of the list. Guy Stevens, the producer of Mott The Hoople, was involved in the [song's] beginning. It was about his wife. His wife came home and Guy said, 'What's wrong with you darling? Your face has gone a whiter shade of pale!'"

Procol Harum - A Whiter Shade Of Pale

Page 3 of 11
Page 3 of 11
Light My Fire (1967)
The Doors
(Image credit: Bettmann/CORBIS)

Light My Fire (1967)

"The Doors didn't have a bass player, so Ray Manzarek had to use his left hand for the bass and that again is very much an influence. It just showed at the time what could be done with the use of an organ, which is a driving force, an essential sound of the band."

The Doors - Light My Fire

Page 4 of 11
Page 4 of 11
Half Moon Bay/Laugh At Me (1969)
Mott The Hoople

Half Moon Bay/Laugh At Me (1969)

"The Band had a loose feel to them, but that approach suited Mott The Hoople. When we were doing Half Moon Bay, I put some raspy organ on that. There was also Laugh At Me on that particular album, it was more about the complete feel of the album when it comes to the style I had then. We recorded on eight-track, so there wasn't much dubbing on it… I always liked to get it with the one take."

Mott The Hoople - Half Moon Bay

Page 5 of 11
Page 5 of 11
Many Rivers To Cross (1969)
Jimmy Cliff
(Image credit: John Van Hasselt/Sygma/Corbis)

Many Rivers To Cross (1969)

"Before we had our deal I was [playing live] with Jimmy Cliff. He was writing songs like Many Rivers To Cross and there's some lovely Hammond organ on that. I was with him for three years, and I said to Jimmy, 'I want to record something', so we actually did A Whiter Shade Of Pale! I recorded A Whiter Shade Of Pale with Jimmy Cliff. It's on one of his albums, I forget which."

Jimmy Cliff - Many Rivers To Cross

Page 6 of 11
Page 6 of 11
Hold Your Head Up (1972)
Argent
(Image credit: Jacob Blickenstaff/Corbis)

Hold Your Head Up (1972)

"He was a good player, Argent. That song sticks in my mind a lot. I remember going over to France with Mott The Hoople and on the way back we had a rough crossing - the waves were as high as a double-decker bus, if not higher - and everybody was ill. And they kept playing that track, 'Hold your head hiiiigh!' [laughs]."

Argent - Hold Your Head Up

Page 7 of 11
Page 7 of 11
Gimme Some Lovin' (1966)
Spencer Davis Group
(Image credit: Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS)

Gimme Some Lovin' (1966)

"Steve Winwood didn't play any marvellous solos on that, but it was the raspy sound of the organ. That inspired me to look for a different type of organ sound. I started to use a Leslie 145 with a Hammond C3… I used to override the speakers to get it to raw. They didn't like it much at the BBC!"

Spencer Davis Group - Gimme Some Lovin'

Page 8 of 11
Page 8 of 11
Like A Rolling Stone (1965)
Bob Dylan
(Image credit: Toronto Star/ZUMA Press/Cor)

Like A Rolling Stone (1965)

"When Mott The Hoople got involved with [producer] Guy Stevens, the Dylan influence started to come into it - that nice weaving organ. I had to get into a different style of playing, which was no problem - I always play for the song. With that sort of song, it's automatic - the riffs on it, well, you couldn't really play anything else, you know?"

Bob Dylan - Like A Rolling Stone (live version)

Page 9 of 11
Page 9 of 11
The Journey (1971)
Mott The Hoople

The Journey (1971)

"I went over to an acoustic amp to give a real rusty type of sound for [fourth album] Brain Capers. The Journey is off that and there are some nice little organ bits. When we recorded that album it was more or less done live, and like I said, you do things automatically, but I was very proud of that one."

Mott The Hoople - The Journey

Page 10 of 11
Page 10 of 11
Green Onions (1962)
Booker T. & The M.G.s
(Image credit: Tim Mosenfelder/Corbis)

Green Onions (1962)

"Booker T. was such an influence for me and I still use a similar style to him. He used the sound of the Hammond very, very well. Green Onions is a classic really. The classic. [They had a song called] Slim Jenkins' Joint, I remember, and they had to change it Slim Jenkins' Place because joint wasn't a word you could use!"

Booker T. & The M.G.s - Green Onions

Page 11 of 11
Page 11 of 11
Matt Parker
Matt Parker
Social Links Navigation

Matt is a freelance journalist who has spent the last decade interviewing musicians for the likes of Total Guitar, Guitarist, Guitar World, MusicRadar, NME.com, DJ Mag and Electronic Sound. In 2020, he launched CreativeMoney.co.uk, which aims to share the ideas that make creative lifestyles more sustainable. He plays guitar, but should not be allowed near your delay pedals.

More about guitars
Prashant Aswani with his new Charvel signature guitar

Prashant Aswani on his guitar journey: “My brain was ready… I was driven. Greg Howe could play anything, anytime. I wanted to achieve that, so I had a standard to get to”

Rolling Stones Lady Gaga

Stevie Wonder plays Rhodes, piano and Moog as he and Lady Gaga cut loose with The Rolling Stones on new single Sweet Sounds Of Heaven

Latest
Layne Staley, lead singer of Alice In Chains performing on MTV Unplugged in 1996

Learn 4 key guitar chords from classic grunge songs

See more latest ►
Most Popular
Natal launches Zenith: a vintage-inspired, modern drum kit in five finishes

By Stuart Williams29 September 2023

Bandcamp is under new ownership once again, as Epic Games offloads it to music licensing company Songtradr

By Ben Rogerson29 September 2023

Jack White’s Third Man Hardware and CopperSound team up for a special anniversary edition of the Triplegraph Digital Octave pedal

By Jonathan Horsley29 September 2023

There’s no need to wait for Black Friday with these software savings - Waves just dropped a load of titles to $29.99

By Chris Barnes29 September 2023

Al Di Meola suffers heart attack onstage – guitar maestro in stable condition and plans return to the stage in 2024

By Jonathan Horsley29 September 2023

5 underrated DAWs that aren't Logic, Ableton or Pro Tools, and why you should consider switching

By Andy Jones29 September 2023

Modern life getting you down? Here are 10 atmospheric DnB tracks that keep the ‘90s dream alive

By Tim Cant28 September 2023

“For pianists, it's a magical feature”: StaffPad can now generate sheet music just by ‘listening’ to your acoustic piano playing, which sounds like an AI-powered tool we could get on board with

By Ben Rogerson28 September 2023

Best Christmas gifts for piano players 2023: the ultimate festive gift guide for pianists

By Daryl Robertson28 September 2023

Moog Music breaks its silence on rumours of layoffs at its US headquarters: “We are looking forward to getting past this painful phase with renewed energy and enthusiasm”

By Ben Rogerson28 September 2023

Bored at work? This Max for Live device will turn your spreadsheets into music

By Matt Mullen28 September 2023

  1. Underrated DAWs
    1
    5 underrated DAWs that aren't Logic, Ableton or Pro Tools, and why you should consider switching
  2. 2
    “For pianists, it's a magical feature”: StaffPad can now generate sheet music just by ‘listening’ to your acoustic piano playing, which sounds like an AI-powered tool we could get on board with
  3. 3
    Natal launches Zenith: a vintage-inspired, modern drum kit in five finishes
  4. 4
    “When I finished the solo to this one, Mustaine came into the studio, listened to it once, turned around and, without saying a word, shook my hand" – the story of Megadeth's Tornado Of Souls
  5. 5
    Learn 5 classic blues guitar licks from Albert, Freddie and BB King, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Eric Clapton
  1. It’s a revolution nein-09
    1
    If you’ve been holding out for a drumless version of Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories, you’re about to get lucky
  2. 2
    7 effects pedals that synth players need to try
  3. 3
    “For pianists, it's a magical feature”: StaffPad can now generate sheet music just by ‘listening’ to your acoustic piano playing, which sounds like an AI-powered tool we could get on board with
  4. 4
    “When I finished the solo to this one, Mustaine came into the studio, listened to it once, turned around and, without saying a word, shook my hand" – the story of Megadeth's Tornado Of Souls
  5. 5
    Interview: "I am really still a student of blues and soul" – the remarkable return of Paul Rodgers

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.