timperrett Posted May 30, 2005 Share Posted May 30, 2005 For all the lampies, riggers, LDs, chiefs etc who are a old enough to use let alone remember VL1...I am wondering if you could share some amusing stories from times gone by in your career when you had 'fun' using them! I was very privileged to have my head inside one and see it working (not at the same time obviously!) at Showlight in Germany last week and heard some stories, but would like to hear others. For a fixture which is as old as I am, I would love to hear how it was used and tales of it working/not working* (delete as appropriate!) Please do share! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamtastic3 Posted May 30, 2005 Share Posted May 30, 2005 yeah same here, I wanna hear stories too. Actually I want to see them being used in their first ever tour set back with Genesis in 1981. There's no pics online and if there was a DVD I'd buy it straight away. Any images would be great!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 VL1 A Brief history The VL1 was first used on the Genesis tour in 1981, by Showco, USA. In 1980 the Prototype VL0 was designed by Jim Bornhurst, to show this off a team flew to London to show the new automated light to Genesis who were in rehearsal for the tour. Genesis were well known for their cutting-edge technology on stage. So it was in a countryside studio, the VL1 as it became made its debut projecting onto an old barn. It had been programmed to run just two cues, a simple colour change and a move. Band member Mike Rutherford was quoted as saying "I expected the colour change, but, I didn't expect it to move." It was enough to convince Genesis and their manager Tony smith to invest in developing this new technology. So it was on 25th September 1981 in a venue known as the Bullring in barcelona, spain that a rig of 50 VL1's along with the conventional rig rocked the crowd on the Abacab tour. Production and lighting design I believe was by Alan Owen, Programmer/Operator of the main rig on an Artisan was Tom Littrell a long serving Showco and Varilite figurehead, now of ETC.(regular visitor to Plasa) The VL1 was controlled on its own controller by Bill Boswell. VL1 systems would run with around 20% spares and a separate crew, even local crew would not be allowed to tip the cases in the truck, VL crew only. You should find some good Pics a book called Lighting Dimensions and a few others that I cant remember, if I do I will post again. www.genesismuseum.com has old show programmes, videos etc Abacab Video is quite hard to find if it even exists at all, a good one to watch is the Mamma tour Video, the VL1 was used mainly for a look they called the mamma effect, (an audience sweep) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grahame Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 I remember seeing my first VL1 on a fashion show in a hotel in Glasgow, where we had about 6 of the beasties. It was strictly hands-off for the local crew - we weren't allowed to go near them, and the operator wouldn't even let us watch him relamping one! WE loved the furry flightcases! Much later, I had the opportunity to deal with a rig of 30 of them on The Big Picnic, a WWI epic in a Glasgow shipbuilding shed, where they were used mainly for cheapness as they were very long in the tooth by then. Original VL desk too - was it an Artisan?? I remember having to physically change a circuit card in order to save the show. I also remember how much fun it was changing units sixty feet in the air pafter scrambling out on the overhead track crane that ran the length of the shed. One particular unit was a complete pain, always failing at some point during the show. Every other day I had to derig the thing, strip it down and tweak the mechanics, then leave it on load test. Each time it was absolutely fine until going back up on the rig, whereupon it would inevitably fail once again. It took about a week of this before it clicked that the unit was operating fine on the workbench when it was sat upside down; it was only when it was hanging the correct way up in the rig that it had overheating problems.....!Ah, happy days.....! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ripley Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 I first saw the VL in a concert hall in Hamburg in I guess 1981 on the Abacab tour. The previous tour 'Duke' had a 3 walls of Pars as well as overhead in a conventional pattern. They also had a fair few fluorescent type fittings. The Abacab show didn't look any different for the opening of the show, with hindsight the deep purple UV that was the preset must have come from the VLs. The units didn't really do anything noticable until some way in when during 'Dodo/Lurker' with a keyboard sweep the whole rig suddenly moved sweeping across to Phil Collins. I was absolutely dumbfounded. We were so used to seeing banks of Pars change colour that to see the lamp itself actually move was astounding. The units then went through all their tricks (such as they were at the time) including fast colour changes, lots of sweeps and gobo changes. I next saw them on the same tour at Wembley Christmas '81 . This time I was ready had seats in the front row and a camera. I'll try and find the pics and post a few up here. I was next involved with them on the Peter Gabriel gig at Crystal Palace in '83? They came off the wagon in their nice grey carpet flight cases marked 'Instrument Case #' Naturally we humpers assumed they were full of guitars etc. The VL crew then retrieved them and set up the VL Hospital. This was all the cases on end to make an impenetrable wall so that the secret stuff could be done in private. This mainly consisted of keeping the damn things going! The actual VL Hospital flight case was about 6 feet high and had a spare bit of every part of a VL plus oscilloscopes, multitesters etc. Using the VL 1s on their own required a 3 day maintenance course. I've only used VL1's a couple of times and spent a lot of time servicing them, probably more time servicing than using! The most frequent fault was when the motors were slightly confused and the motors would 'chatter' ie move constantly between one position and another about 1mm apart. To fix this required an 'Anti - Chatter' chip to be fitted to the unit. They were also tremendously noisy for anything but Rock'n'Roll. Having said that the Artisan desk was really easy to use and intuitive. It only took a short time to set up a few looks and moves. I think that by the time of the Mama tour they may have been VL2s rather than VL1s which were getting a bit long in the tooth. The VariLite was undoubtedly one of the most important lighting fixtures of the last 30 years but I still have yet to see a real 'Theatre' moving light. If anyone wants a history of VL and Martin then Phil Norfolk and Chris West do a very good double act. I'll try and figure out how to upload an image if I can find these photos David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mush Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 Band member Mike Rutherford was quoted as saying "I expected the colour change, but, I didn't expect it to move." <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Remember, vaguley, something about earliest prototype having colour and gobo change and someone coming out with the line "2 more motors and the thing could move..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkfold Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 Have heard the same thing as well before. Must have been a real sight to see 'back in the day' Its much harder to really shock an audience now, pity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ripley Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 Ok Found them VL1s doing their stuff, Wembley Arena December 1981 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/CapnCad/GenesisDec81-1.gif As you can see the VLs are adding a bit of focus to the Pars http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/CapnCad/GenesisDec81-2.gif 'In The Cage Medley' with the VLs forming the cage http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/CapnCad/GenesisDec81-3.gif and now swinging round to focus on Phil Collins after an instrumental section of the medley http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/CapnCad/GenesisDec81-4.gif This is a song called Who Dunnit? where all the VLs changed colour only all through it, not one of their better tunes, Mike Rutherford on drums! http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/CapnCad/GenesisDec81-5.gif Lastly a solo VL picking out Phil Collins on drums. You can also see the banks of Pars still in use on this tour Hope this works and is of interest to anyone David (A Sad old git!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the kid Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 I have heard rumors of a copy of the show on the net... but judging the time of recording technology etc etc I think its not going to be found. In the Pilbrow there is still a referance or 2 to the VL2 but no VL1 and that the VL crew would have there own table. Its almost as if the VL0 and 1 were nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mac500 Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 The VL0 and VL1 were like the first generation of moving heads. The VL2C is the unit that is still available 2day and is still being used on productions such as The Lion King. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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