“What fresh hell is this?”
"A man who picks a cat up by the tail learns something which he can learn in no other way." - Mark Twain
The Wrecking Crew. I'm kinda in a Leon Russell rabbit hole and thought this should be mentioned.
The group came together in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s under producer Phil Spector, whose orchestral pop arrangements -- an approach dubbed the "Wall of Sound" -- required trained musicians of great skill. The group comprised of a rotating cast of nearly 30 musicians. However, the nucleus of the Wrecking Crew was storied drummer Hal Blaine, guitarists Glen Campbell and Tommy Tedesco; bassists Carol Kaye and Ray Pohlman; along with Don Randi and Leon Russell on the keyboard.
Together, along with various other musicians like James Burton, Al Casey, Barney Kessel, Larry Knechtel, Plas Johnson, and Earl Palmer, they formed the most successful pop band that never played live.
Wrecking Crew leader Hal Blaine is said to have played on 6,000 singles, including 150 Top Ten hits and 40 chart-toppers. A very small sampling of The Wrecking Crew's most memorable tracks would include "Surfin' U.S.A." by The Beach Boys, "Da Doo Ron Ron (When He Walked Me Home)" by The Crystals, "Surf City" by Jan and Dean, "Be My Baby" by The Ronettes, "I Get Around" by The Beach Boys, "Everybody Loves Somebody" by Dean Martin, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'," by The Righteous Brothers, "Mr. Tambourine Man" by The Byrds, "California Dreamin'" by The Mamas And the Papas, "I Got You Babe" by Sonny & Cher, "River Deep – Mountain High" by Ike and Tina Turner, "Strangers in the Night" by Frank Sinatra, "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" by Nancy Sinatra, "Never My Love" by The Association, "Up, Up and Away" by The 5th Dimension, "The Beat Goes On" by Sonny & Cher, "Wichita Lineman" by Glen Campbell, "MacArthur Park" by Richard Harris, "Mrs. Robinson" by Simon & Garfunkel, "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" by Tiny Tim, "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In" by The 5th Dimension, "The Boxer" by Simon & Garfunkel, "(They Long to Be) Close to You" by The Carpenters, "Cracklin' Rosie" by Neil Diamond, "Bridge over Troubled Water" by Simon & Garfunkel, "Don't Pull Your Love" by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds, "Indian Reservation" by Paul Revere & the Raiders, "Half-Breed" by Cher, "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia" by Vicki Lawrence, "Rhinestone Cowboy" by Glen Campbell, and "Love Will Keep Us Together" by Captain & Tennille.
Originally Posted by Sting
I researched the Wrecking Crew last week and I think you're right.
They also recorded basically all of the music minus the vocals on Pet Sounds.
Speaking of 4 albums:
https://www.spin.com/2020/03/difficu...and-pearl-jam/
There are certain clichés associated with the triumphs and pitfalls of a recording artist’s first or second album – the confident debut often gives way to the sophomore slump. But career arcs vary more as bands go a bit further down the road, and patterns become less reliable. That said, the fourth album tends to be a point of inflection, the moment where an artist’s early sound has run its course or rising tensions in a band lead to a lineup change. Sometimes it was torture to make, and sometimes it was simply difficult to sell, but the Difficult Fourth Album has, over the last few decades, become a recurring theme in some of the most celebrated careers in popular music, from The Beatles and Bruce Springsteen to Radiohead and Kanye West.
Here are a dozen notable Difficult Fourth Albums throughout pop history – not all of them are masterpieces, and only one of them is the artist’s biggest seller. But, all of them are key transitional albums that make a before and after point in their discographies.
In contrast is Led Zeppelin IV. I haven’t read a ton on Zeppelin as I have on some other bands, but they completely stole away to a mansion in the English countryside and turned it into a studio. It’s amazing. For example, I know the drum track on “When The Levee Breaks“ was recorded with natural reverb from, I believe, the top of the steps to the second floor of the mansion’s main foyer.
Damn, this is a good song!
I need to listen to more Talking Heads.Choice cut: “Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)”
I thought maybe Steely Dan is a 4-album'er. The first two are outstanding, and Aja makes a third. None of the rest felt as powerful, cover to cover. But maybe.
I really need to come to terms with Springsteen. I think I'm making a mistake. But the heart wants what it wants.
Oh, btw, I think the British punk/goth band The Damned is a four-album band (Black Album, Strawberries, Machine Gun Etiquette, and Phantasmagoria), but I have never offered this opinion because it's a darling of mine, and this isn't about darlings. Too many people are just flat turned off by Vanian's singing voice.
Originally Posted by Sting
There's a great memoir of it somewhere, the band tucking away to record amidst stardom. Wiki is all I have for now.
III
IVThe acoustic material developed from a songwriting session between band members Jimmy Page and Robert Plant at Bron-Yr-Aur cottage in Wales, which influenced the musical direction. The songs were recorded in three locations. Much of the work was done at Headley Grange, a country house, using the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio. Additional sessions were held in more traditional recording studios, such as Island Studios and Olympic Studios in London.
It was produced by guitarist Jimmy Page and recorded between December 1970 and February 1971, mostly in the country house Headley Grange. ...
The informal setting at Headley Grange inspired the band, and allowed them to try different arrangements of material and create songs in a variety of styles
Originally Posted by Sting
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