Car Reverbs

In the 1960s, audio engineers mixed rock songs for automotive audiences. They knew that commuters were a captive audience. Acoustic technology made the experience even better: Car reverb! But while car reverbs added depth, they didn't perform equally well with every type of music. How can you tell what would work best?

The trick. Look up hit songs from that era: Listen for a song with a strong soloist in the foreground. Does your song have a tight, but slow beat in the foreground? That tune might be a reverb champion!

In its 1967 catalog, Burstein Applebee (Kansas City, MO) led the pack with this handsome, stereo reverb unit. 4-watts. You could also buy the matching FM converter. (1967 catalog, p. 157, $22.45)

Reverb fans. Reverb is captivating. There are many types of spring reverb fans. But the most enthusiastic supporters of reverb nostalgia are low riders. We dedicate this section of the page to them. But the music is for everyone.

• [D--] Richie Valens dedicates himself to the woman he loved: Donna (1958)

• [IOH] Both dreamy & doo-wop: The Flamingos' I Only Have Eyes for You (despite a little reverb on the recording) (1959)

• [ITS] The Five Satins consider the possibilities for romance: In the Still of the Night (1956)

• [LLN] First-rate, finger-popping doo-wop by Lil Julian Herrera: Lonely, Lonely Nights (1956)

• [OSN] The Danleers' low rider is cruisin' for a steamy, August kiss: One Summer Night (1958)

• [SID] The Skyliners' famous lament: Since I Don't Have You (1958)

• [TM-] James Brown practices his magic pickup line, Try Me (1958)

• [WBT] Passionate love song by Ritchie Valens, who only lived to be 17: We Belong Together (1959)

• [CBP] Tommy James & the Shondells bliss out: Crystal Blue Persuasion (1968)

• [GOA] Young Rascals take the weekend off, Groovin' on a Sunday Afternoon (includes some plate reverb, 1967)

• [GUO] Thee Midnighters lament about a lost sweetheart: Giving Up on Love (1965)

• [IDL] Billy Stewart declares his feelings: I Do Love You (1965)

• [MAO] “All my life depends on you,” say James & Bobby Purify: My Adorable One (1967)

• [TA-] Thee Midniters promise, “I can only give you love that lasts forever.” That's All (1965)

• [YRG] Smokey Robinson & the Miracles in the grip of love: You've Really Got a Hold on Me (1963)

• [ANW] For the Four Tops, this girl is one of a kind: Ain’t No Woman (Like The One I Got) (1972)

• [BH-] The Commodores' fantasy of a powerful woman: Brick House (1977)

• [DIB] The Delfonics try to rate their amorous experience: Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time) (1970)

• [HYS] The Chi-Lites in search of a lost love: Have You Seen Her (1971)

• [LR-] The suaveness, the sleekness, the candy color: The vehicle we adore! War the ultimate automotive anthem: Low Rider (1975)

• [S--] Malo never met a girl like her: Suavecito (1972)

• [WTL] The Isley Brothers become infatuated: Who's That Lady (1973)

• [YIR] Barbara Mason contemplates a first romance: Yes, I'm Ready (1973)

• [PPP] James Brown sings his heart out, begging for his lover's forgiveness. Two earth-shattering, live performances. Not a song, as much as a cry, a wail, a howl: Please Please Please (1963)

• [C--] Roy Orbison loved her so much, but lost her. Powerful weeper: Crying (1962)

• [LMF] Jose Feliciano and his impassioned interpretation of the Doors' Light My Fire (1968)

• [HS-] Lonely, but not for long! Barbara Lewis' Hello Stranger (1963)

• [TYC] Bittersweet. The Casinos pop the question, but offer her an escape clause: Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye (1967)

• [WDI] That plaintive sax! Junior Walker and the Allstars, in What Does it Take (to Win your Love)? (1969)

• [BTN] A heart-breaker. Freddy Fender promises to soothe a woman that he loves. Before The Next Teardrop Falls (1975)

• [LST] Something even smoother? How about Al Green's Let's Stay Together (1972)

• [HT-] Dance the Stroll to Bill Doggett's magical, mesmerizing Honky Tonk (1956)

• [LP-] Billy Vaughn plays a classic on his butter-voiced saxophone, with a trumpet accompaniment: La Paloma (1952)

• [RR-] Duane Eddy fires the first salvo: Rebel-Rouser (1958)

• [TLB] Caliente! Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass dedicate their musical abilities to El Toro! The Lonely Bull (1962)

• [WB-] Watch out for large, angry hombres within fenced corrals! Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs present Wooly Bully (1965)

• [WDR] The Ventures left their signature on America's youth with the indelible statement: Walk, Don't Run (1960)

• Monster Latin hit! El Chicano's Chachita (1973)

Avoid studio hits with much processing: These are seldom the best candidates for on-the-road reverberation. Remember: Reverb can blur the sound slightly. Second, if the recording already has reverb, you probably shouldn't add more. For that reason, many psychedelic standards are probably better off without added reverb.

Most economical reverb: Only $4.99! From 1974 Olson Radio catalog, p. 141. Back/Front pot.