CBS Musical Instruments

Bob Bull held many positions throughout the music products industry over his long career. However, he is perhaps best known as the president of the Steinway & Sons piano company during the early 1970s. At the time, Steinway was owned by CBS Musical Instruments. Bob, as the president of Steinway, reported to Bob Campbell, the president of CBS Musical, a division of the broadcasting company.  

Robert Campbell began his career in the music industry working for Conn Organ in 1947, the year the company gave a unit to President Harry S. Truman. Bob later worked with Don Leslie, the inventor of the famed Leslie organ speaker. Bob played an important role in the Leslie Speaker Company being purchased by the musical instrument division of CBS. Don and Bob made a dynamic duo in the promotion and marketing of the speaker products; they had several obstacles to overcome and yet still wound up on top. He stayed on with the Leslie product under CBS for five years before he was promoted to President of CBS Musical Instruments. He retired from CBS in the early 1980s to Bloomington, IN.  

Roger Cox was a pioneering product engineer with Fender Musical Instruments in the 1990s when he brought the Passport system to the market. The project caped a long career with Fender that included working on several landmark projects with many of the icons in the industry. Rodger enjoyed success at a number of companies during his career including CMI (staying on during the Norlin days) and CBS Musical Instruments.

Dave Gupton has had a long career with a number of companies and a rather impressive list of innovators who helped pioneer our industry. Dave worked in retail with Karl Bruhn before joining Fender--before the CBS Musical Instruments buyout in the mid 1960s. As a result he was able to work with Leo Fender. Dave also worked with other industry innovators who became close friends, such as Harold Rhodes, Don Leslie and Arnold Brilhart. Dave also worked with Danny Henkin and the Rico Reeds Company before retiring in 1990.
 

Don Leslie, the inventor of the very successful Leslie Speaker, was pleased with the concept of the product that was a simple idea but a tricky design. As a child, Don was fascinated by the large pipe organs and how the sound traveled all around the listener. He had the goal of bringing that experience into the home. His speaker, which has a rotating sound-cone, uses the Doppler effect to create its unique sound. The speaker became popular when used with the Hammond B-3 organ and both seemed to be created for each other, even though they were not originally.  

John McDermott could sure sell pianos! His knowledge of the products and his strong relationship with music retailers made him an ideal and successful sales rep. John worked for the Gulbransen Piano Company during the company’s innovative era of the mid 1960s through the 1970s. After his retirement he stayed active in the industry and can still often be found at the National Piano Travelers Association’s annual meeting lending his support and hearty hand shake to new comers.  

Bill Mendello retired as president of Fender Musical Instrument Corp in the fall of 2010 after a long career in the industry. He was hired in the accounting department of CBS Musical Instrument Division in 1978. Bill soon began working with Bill Schultz who was hired by the president of the musical division of CBS in order to help the Fender Guitar segment of the company, which had been neglected for several years. Within a few years CBS announced they were going to sell Fender. Bill and Bill pulled a team together to purchase the company, which they did. The new owners outlined a five year plan to bring Fender back as an industry leader. Bill Mendello was proud to have worked side by side with Bill Schultz for so many years. When Mr.

Lloyd Meyer is the president of Renner US, the world-renowned provider of piano keyboard actions. His long and productive career began with retail experience in Minnesota at the large Dayton Company. When the Dayton chain began carrying organs and pianos, Lloyd took a great interest in the instruments and has worked in the music industry ever since. He played a key role in the Lowrey Organ Company as they branched out into malls in the 1970s, and worked for CBS Musical where he was President of Steinway & Sons for several years. Over the years Lloyd has been a strong supporter of the NAMM Oral History program, providing invaluable resources and ideas.
 

Peter Perez represents a lot of musical history. A former head of CG Conn and CBS Musical Instruments, Peter went on to become the President of Steinway & Sons. His career also included the purchasing of Aeolian Pianos in Memphis and Lyon & Healy in Chicago while he was working for CBS. Another fascinating aspect of his history is his family connection to the industry. Peter married Carroll Greenleaf, the daughter of Leland who was the former owner of CG Conn.  

William Schultz turned the struggling Fender Musical Instrument Corporation into an industry leader after purchasing the famed guitar company from CBS in 1985. Born in McKeesport, PA on July 30, 1926, he began playing the saxophone professionally before World War II and then opened his own musical instrument repair business within the Progressive Music store. He later joined Yamaha Musical Products Co., rising to president before being lured to CBS Musical Instruments, a division of the broadcasting company. He served many roles within the industry including on the boards the American Music Conference and the Museum of Making Music.