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3 responses so far ↓

• augie gonzales // Apr 4, 2007 at 10:46 am

  I regularly saw and rode the Santa Cruz Merry go Round when I was a kid in the 50’s. I bought a tape at the board walk of the organ and it sounded terrible. I made my own with a little pocket recorder and it sounded better. Of course being in a box confined the sound something awful. I hope the Santa Cruz organ and the Playland (which I also rode) will be put in a better location for acoustics and will be recorded.
  Augie in San Jose

• Chuck // Apr 6, 2007 at 7:44 pm

  I grew up in San Francisco on the beach about 2 miles from Playland. I remember the organ well, as well as Laughing Sal at the fun house. Listening to the music brings back lots of memories. My wife and I were frequent visitors to the Boardwalk and have of couple of the old cars from a kiddie ride in our front yard.

• John Kavanagh // Apr 7, 2007 at 12:46 pm

  As a child and to this very day, I love carousels and band organs. I grew up in Southern California, and heard Wurlitzer organs at Disneyland, Knott’s Berry Farm, the Santa Monica Pier, at Griffith Park and Lincoln Park (both parks had Wurlitzer 165 model organs). The Wurlitzer 165 is based on a great German Bruder organ, and is considered one of the best band organs ever manufactured, and the best in America. The German Ruth organ will be restored by Don Stinson, who builds his own band organs for carousels today. When it returns to accompany the Wurlitzer, it will sound like it did and should sound when it played many years ago at the Boardwalk.

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