 Mike Pinder worked at Streetly Electronics for 18 months in the early 1960s as a tester , and was immediately excited by the possibilities of the instrument . After trying piano and Hammond organ , he settled on the Mellotron as the instrument of choice for his band , The Moody Blues , purchasing a second @-@ hand model from Fort Dunlop Working Men 's Club in Birmingham and using it extensively on every album from Days of Future Passed ( 1967 ) to Octave ( 1978 ) . Pinder claims to have introduced John Lennon and Paul McCartney to the Mellotron , and convinced each of them to buy one . The Beatles hired a machine and used it on their single " Strawberry Fields Forever " , recorded in various takes between November and December 1966 . Though producer George Martin was unconvinced by the instrument , describing it " as if a Neanderthal piano had impregnated a primitive electronic keyboard " , they continued to compose and record with various Mellotrons for the albums Magical Mystery Tour ( 1967 ) and The Beatles ( 1968 , The White Album ) . McCartney used the Mellotron sporadically in his solo career , and his wife Linda played one while touring with Wings . The Rolling Stones ' Brian Jones played a Mellotron on some studio tracks , including " She 's a Rainbow " and " Jigsaw Puzzle " . 
