Roland CR-78 (Sound Samples)

Although primitive by later standards, the CR-78 represented an important advance in drum machine technology at the time, in particular by allowing users to program and store their own drum patterns. The wood effect cabinet and preset rhythms of the CR-78 such as Waltz, Bossa Nova and Rhumba suggest that it was seen by its designers as primarily an accompaniment for an electric organ, but the CR-78 became one of the favorite instruments of pop and electronic musicians in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It was used by artists including Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, Daryl Hall & John Oates, Blondie, Ultravox, Genesis, John Foxx, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Roxy Music, and Gary Numan.