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Session Musicians

AG/DC Jul 28 2008 02:51 PM

You see this person's name in the liner notes and you think, "This is probably OK. (S)He's always on good stuff."

sharpie Jul 28 2008 03:05 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 29 2008 07:27 AM

Larry Campbell, whose discography needs six parts http://members.cox.net/larrycampbell2000/

John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 28 2008 04:09 PM

Bass: Graham Maby Drums: Kenny Aronoff and/or Steve Gadd Trombone: Richard "La Bamba" Rosenberg

Frayed Knot Jul 28 2008 04:49 PM

Larry Campbell is the first (and really only) name that leaps to mind. Other than that, I remember reading a (long ago) article (probably in 'Rolling Stone') about session musicians. Mostly it dealt with living life on call, waiting around for word telling you to show up at some studio at some ungodly hour to play for who knows who - and sometimes getting there and realizing it's for Mick & Keith. Anyway, there's was/is a pecking to these things and the saying at that time was that those at the low end of the totem pole made their money playing on commercial jingles while the high end played on Steely Dan records.

AG/DC Jul 28 2008 05:43 PM

Different types of studio musician legends: Studio players who are producers in addition to sidemen --- Mitchell Froom, Bill Laswell. Studio guys who are tour players as well --- Nicky Hopkins, Waddy Watchell Guys who .have a regular gig with one band but appear everywhere else as well --- Kenny Aranoff, Benmont Tench. Guys who are studio folks almost exclusively. These guys tend to live in LA and have awful hair. The Talking Heads peripheral band in Stop Making Sense were all legends to me: Steve Scales, Bernie Worrell, Edna Holt, Lynn Mabry, Alex Wier.

metirish Jul 28 2008 05:48 PM

Davy Spillane - has a bunch of his own records but has played on a bunch more. Sharon Shannon

AG/DC Jul 28 2008 05:53 PM

Sharon Shannon is a world champeen. But yeah, I guess she spends as much time making other folks look good.

seawolf17 Jul 28 2008 06:21 PM

Benmont Tench was the first guy I thought of, but Mark Rivera and Liberty DiVitto from Billy Joel's band get around quite a bit. For a while, everything Kevin Shirley touched turned to gold, but that was on the production side, not the performance side.

TransMonk Jul 28 2008 06:51 PM

AG/DC wrote: The Talking Heads peripheral band in Stop Making Sense were all legends to me: Steve Scales, Bernie Worrell, Edna Holt, Lynn Mabry, Alex Wier. As a session musician, I share album credits with Bernie Worrell. Being a musician is fun.

RealityChuck Jul 29 2008 12:49 PM

Hal Blane and (alas) Jim Gordon on drums. Klaus Voorman on bass

AG/DC Aug 20 2008 08:29 AM

If you were recording in LA in the seventies, your liner notes would eventually read: Drums: Russ Kunkel Guitars: Danny Kortchmar It was, like, the law. I also wonder how many studio gigs Anton Fier showed up for when they actually meant to hire Anton Figg, and vice versa.

metsguyinmichigan Aug 20 2008 08:37 AM

Bob Kulick

John Cougar Lunchbucket Aug 20 2008 08:43 AM

Bass: Lee Sklar

AG/DC Aug 20 2008 09:04 AM

Larry Campbell Graham Maby Kenny Aronoff Steve Gadd Richard "La Bamba" Rosenberg Mitchell Froom Bill Laswell Nicky Hopkins It actually would be helpful if we listed our favorite contributions of these guys, or where we first heard them. Anybody want to do the photo hunt for... Waddy Watchell Benmont Tench Steve Scales Bernie Worrell Edna Holt Lynn Mabry Alex Wier Davy Spillane Sharon Shannon Liberty DeVito Kevin Shirley Hal Blane Jim Gordon Klaus Voorman Russ Kunkel Danny Kortchmar Bob Kulick Lee Sklar

John Cougar Lunchbucket Aug 20 2008 09:17 AM

Lee Sklar Danny Korchmar

RealityChuck Aug 20 2008 10:09 AM

Jim Gordon in better days. Hal Blaine Klaus Voorman Klaus Voorman's most famous work.

Vic Sage Aug 20 2008 11:00 AM

Paul Simon did a movie called ONE TRICK PONY (1980). It was about the music business, and it featured him with a backup band of top session musicians, including Eric Gale on lead guitar, Richard Tee on piano, Tony Levin on bass, and Steve Gadd on drums. The movie was pretty good, and so was the soundtrack album it generated, with hits "Late in the Evening" "Ace in the Hole" and the title song. I saw Tony Levin back up Robert Fripp in a KING CRIMSON concert and Peter Gabriel on the SECURITY tour. He played the "stick"... an electronic base that just looked like a stick.