Yamaha CP-80

The Yamaha CP-80 was an acoustic/electric grand piano launched in the mid-1970s. It is the bigger version of the Yamaha CP-70, with 88 keys instead of 73 (an extra octave). Like the CP-70, the piano is an acoustic grand piano fitted with an electronic pickup resulting in the distinctive piano sound.

Peter Gabriel's Yamaha CP-80
The Yamaha CP-80 was Peter Gabriel's choice for grand piano, after the CP-70. As photos & reports indicate, he seems to have transitioned to the CP-80 during recording of the So album at Ashcombe House in 1985. Like with the CP-70, he plugged the CP-80 into a Boss Chorus effects pedal to produce a distinctive tone which none of the newer pedals could match.

The CP-80 was Peter's go-to instrument for both studio and live work until the mid-1990s. It features on the Passion soundtrack (1989) and the Us (1992) album. Peter played the CP-80 on Robbie Robertson's "Fallen Angel" (1987), where the CP-80 was routed through the Boss Chorus and a Deltalab DL-2 delay.

Joni Mitchell played Peter's CP-80 at Ashcombe on "Beat Of Black Wings", released on Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm in 1988.

While making Up, Peter obviously decided to shift away from the Yamaha grand and gravitated more towards Roland digital pianos and the acoustic Bosendorfer grand for a change. As of 2007, the CP-80 remains in storage.