John Lennon - Ambrosia (Mike's Mix) (1980)

OK. you asked for it, and so here is the next in Mike's series.

Hey Kids, It’s Mike here, back with more of my coolest remixes of Beatles and reletated tracks culled from over 300 shows I produced for a now defunct internet station called Beatles-arama. This time it’s John Lennon’s 'Double Fantasy' and 'Milk And Honey' albums (plus bonuses of course!). The thing I always found most fun (and still do) in working with Beatles tracks, is using the most modern equipment out there to rip the commercially released tracks apart… and then finding out what is hiding in the cracks and crevices of the music. The stuff buried beneath. The stuff you never usually get a chance to hear. Until now! That’s what this collection is all about. Here's a brief track by track summary of what I’ve included in this remix of just the Lennon songs from each album. Enjoy!! Michael 

01 (Just Like) Starting Over (12' Promo): My remix of the 12” promo single that took the original 'Double Fantasy' album ending, and changed it to a much more fun and unusual one. You’ll hear the massive influence Elvis had on this fantastic tune. A much more acoustic based version here than the original and promo versions.

02 Cleanup Time: John having fun on this very rocking tune! Great guitar work is brought to the fore! 

03 I’m Losing You: Possibly my favorite mix on the whole album. I really reduced this one down and dig how simple it is but how BADASS it sounds. I love the unexpected quiet part in the middle! A great John song! 

04 Beautiful Boy: I upped the harmonies, lost some of the main vocals to give it an even mellower Caribbean feel than on the album…and made it acoustic. 

05 Watching The Wheels: I actually did this two ways, but picked the solo piano version for here for an intimate finished demo kinda feel. (the other was the Bass version…also very cool!) I love the jazzy ending! 

06 I Don't Wanna Face It: Rockin tune. I dropped most of the vocals to focus on the great backing on this one. Love that guitar! 

07 Woman: Ok… here’s a bass version, with extra harmonies from a later remix added back in. 

08 Dear Yoko: Just a fun tune here for the folks back home. I bumped up all the buried harmonies, left the wonderful harmonica track and basically made it a much more acoustic deal. 

09 Every Man Has A Woman Who Loves Him: The original version was a solo Yoko track but I found a lovely dreamy mix with Lennon’s demo vocals buried in the background… so I brought those up and intertwined them with Yoko’s to continue the half awake, half not semi conscious theme. I dig this version a lot. 

10 I’m Stepping Out: Love the driving guitar and bass in this one. This was a fun one to mix…lots going one while still retaining an overall mellow feel. 

11 Nobody Told Me: Why are there Nazi’s in the bathroom just below the stairs? Most similar to the released version but I made this a bit more acoustic by leaving out most of the drums except for fills. 

12 Borrowed Time: Upped the guitars, bass and congo’s at times for that wonderful Caribbean feel again. 

13 Forgive Me My Little Flower Princess: Love the beat of this one… so tried to leave in parts to focus on this aspect of the song. Pretty guitar at the end. 

14 Grow Old With Me: I remember the first time I heard this… I’m not crying… you’re crying. This one took a lot of work and not only from me. My friend and fellow mixer extraordinaire Lord Reith did amazing things to the demo version of John’s song to bring it up to the beautiful sound quality you hear here. I isolated that and moved it onto right channel, the more piano focused channel, of the orchestral mix. This is the way it should be on the album… they just didn’t have the tech to pull it off back then. 

15 Help Me To Help Myself: Another interesting creation. John’s demo, recorded during the 'Double Fantasy' sessions, mixed with a backing by the Beatles tribute band Apple Jam, which features drummer Alan White (Yes, John Lennon, George Harrison). The original demo version was released on the 2000 re-release of 'Double Fantasy' as a bonus track. I took the vocals and removed the heavy reverb from the original…and reinserted them back in. Hope you enjoyed these!

Track listing

01 (Just Like) Starting Over

02 Cleanup Time

03 I’m Losing You

04 Beautiful Boy

05 Watching The Wheels

06 I Don't Wanna Face It

07 Woman

08 Dear Yoko

09 Every Man Has A Woman Who Loves Him

10 I’m Stepping Out

11 Nobody Told Me

12 Borrowed Time

13 Forgive Me My Little Flower Princess

14 Grow Old With Me

15 Help Me To Help Myself

The Beatles - Now And Then (1993)

I stumbled on an interesting compilation on Youtube the other day, consisting of various unreleased songs from all four members of The Beatles from their solo careers. There were demos, out-takes, and rejected recordings spanning the years from 1970, through the 80's, and ending in 1993, and while it was great to hear songs that even I, as a massive Beatles fan, was unfamiliar with, the difference in the sound quality of the demos compared to the studio recordings was somewhat grating. While researching one of the songs to find the year that it was recorded, I found that someone had posted a version of it online with a full band backing over-dubbed onto the piano and vocal demo, and as it sounded pretty good, it prompted me to try to find out if there any more of these fan-made recordings. It turns out that there are, and so I was therefore able to upgrade the solo demos to band versions of a number of the tracks, and when slotted into the studio recordings it made for a much better listen. They are mostly the John Lennon demos that have been augmented in this way, and in some cases more than once, so I've picked what I think are the best versions for this album. 

One McCartney track was given the treatment as well, but the recordings by George Harrison and Ringo Starr were all studio quality and needed no enhancement. The only demo that I've left as it was is Lennon's 'Sally And Billy' from 1970, because as well as the piano and vocal, it also had a click track on it, and so by boosting the bass it gave the whole song a bit more depth, and then I just added a fade to it (which sounds like it was his intention anyway), and it sounded fine.  All of Ringo's contributions are from his aborted sessions with Chips Moman in Memphis in 1987, where he recorded around 14 retro rock covers and original tunes, with Bob Dylan even joining him on harmonica on 'Wish I Knew Now (What I Knew Then)'. With no sign of the album appearing, Starr finally kicked his debilitating alcohol dependence eighteen months later, and he formed the All-Starr Band, touring for the first time since the Beatles quit the road. Moman had bankrolled the aborted sessions to the tune of $146,239 and had nothing to show for his investment, so he decided to issue the LP on his own CRS Records. Starr got wind of the news and offered him $100,000 to halt manufacturing, as he considered the recordings substandard, but Moman refused, believing that he stood to lose $3.5 million, a fanciful figure upon survey of Starr's moribund record sales. Starr therefore sued Moman, and the Court ruled that Starr owed him $74,354, but that the master tapes would the be turned over to Starr, and yet despite him now owning the original copies, five tracks have circulated on bootleg for some years. They certainly don't sound the result of some drunken recording sessions as was claimed in court, and so I've included three of them here. 

George Harrison's contributions mostly come from out-takes that were recorded during his 'Somewhere In England' studio sessions, where four songs were rejected by his record company as being too un-commercial. A re-recording of 'Lay His Head' eventually appeared on the flip of the 'Got My Mind Set On You' single, while two of the songs have only ever appeared on the CD which accompanied the second volume of the book 'Songs By George Harrison'. The fourth song 'Tears Of The World' was originally included on the CD that came with the first volume of the book, along with another out-take 'The Hottest Gong In Town', but that eventually turned up on the soundtrack to the film 'Shanghai Surprise', while 'Tears Of The World' was added as a bonus track to the re-issue of Harrison's 'Thirty Three And A Third' album. Paul McCartney's tracks are a couple of out-takes, an augmented demo, and a live performance of a song that was originally written in 1991, but which was only performed the once at The Liverpool Sound concert in 2008, to celebrate the city's year as the European Capital Of Culture. Although the album is bookended by one song from 1970 and one from 1993, the bulk of the tracks date from 1978 to 1987, and so the album flows nicely through the various musical styles, and if you've already heard the Lennon demos in their original form, then do check out these versions, as they've all been done with much love and respect.   

  
Track listing

01 Now And Then (1978 John Lennon demo augmented by Paul Newell)

02 Sat Singing (George Harrison out-take 1980)
03 Your School (1993 Paul McCartney demo augmented by Octavio Cavalli & Max Gonzales)
04 Hard Times (Ringo Starr, from the Memphis sessions 1987)
05 Hottest Gong In Town (George Harrison, from the soundtrack to 'Shanghai Surprise' 1986)
06 Help Me To Help Myself (1980 John Lennon demo augmented by Carlos Zabai)
07 Yvonne's The One (Paul McCartney out-take 1986)

08 Sally And Billy (John Lennon demo 1970)
09 Lay His Head (George Harrison out-take 1980)
10 I've Changed My Mind (Ringo Starr, from the Memphis sessions 1987)
11 In Liverpool (1991 Paul McCartney song played live once in 2008)
12 Grow Old With Me (1980 John Lennon demo augmented by Anton Popov & Vitaly Flippov)

13 Cruisin' Ahead (Paul McCartney out-take 1979)

14 Wish I Knew Now (What I Knew Then) (Ringo Starr, from the Memphis sessions 1987)
15 Flying Hour (George Harrison out-take 1979)

Soulseek hint - now then aiwe

John Lennon - The Sleepy Blind Lennon Album (1980)

I stumbled on this bootleg when I was preparing the recent Julian/John duet for Mike, and had almost forgotten that I had it. I'd always meant to clean it up and give it a new cover before posting it, but somehow it slipped through the net. It's an actual bootleg CD which appeared in 1990, after 'The Lost Lennon Tapes' were aired on the radio, as all the songs are taken from those broadcasts, and they mostly come from the 'Dakota Demos' that were recorded around 1980. When 'Serve Yourself' was first aired I remember that it caused quite a commotion, as it was a pretty much complete song from Lennon that hadn't been heard before, and this version is an even rarer piano version. You'll recognise 'The Worst Is Over Now' as an early version of '(Just Like) Starting Over' from 'Double Fantasy', and we also get the original Lennon demo of 'Free As A Bird', but the rest of the tracks are all new to me, so I hope you find something you are not familiar with as well. I've given the album a new cover in keeping with the title, which I guess is taken from the introduction to 'John Henry', which I've edited slightly from the original Sleepy Blind Lemon Lennon, as that didn't really scan. I've removed one track, which was a short cover of 'Only The Lonely' which didn't really go anywhere, and just so you know, 'Howling At The Moon' and 'Memories' are the same song done in different styles. 

Track listing

01 John Henry (The Steel Driving Man)/I Ain't Got Time
02 Serve Yourself  (piano version)

03 You Saved My Soul (With Your True Love)
04 The Worst Is Over 
05 When A Boy Meets A Girl
06 She's A Friend Of Dorothy's 
07 One Of The Boys
08 He Got The Blues
09 Cookin' (In The Kitchen Of Love) 
10 Free As A Bird
11 People (Angela)
12 On The Caribbean
13 Well (Baby Please Don't Go)
14 Gone From This Place
15 Howling At The Moon (electric)
16 Memories (Howling At The Moon) (piano)
17 Mucho Mungo

Julian & John Lennon - Imagine (2022)

Michael Solof here again. A few days ago I was blown away by Julian Lennonʼs release of the track Imagine by his dad. After reading the accompanying note from his Twitter post (see below), I knew I just had to see if I could create a version that I wish existed, and try to
make Julianʼs version even more special. With that in mind, I decided to turn it into a duet with his dad. No easy feat I must say. I started out by tracking down every version of John singing Imagine that I could find. During my search I found many home demoʼs, studio outtakes, live cuts and TV appearances. My main concern was to find a version where the vocals acoustically matched, as closely as possible, those of the Julianʼs performance. It would sound unnatural to use a big echoing reverb drenched John vocal when Julianʼs recording had a beautiful, dry and intimate vocal. I finally found one that was darn close… but the music was completely different and clashed with Julianʼs sparse and haunting solo acoustic version. A few years ago that would have been a hugely insurmountable problem, but now a days there are websites that use really cool tech to separate the vocals from the instruments. Whats left is just crystal clear, beautiful sounding vocals! Using those same sites, I then separated out all the different parts of both versions so I was left with 4 tracks:
1. Julianʼs Lead Vocals
2. Johnʼs Lead Vocals
3. Nunoʼs guitar track
4. Nunoʼs Background Harmony Vocals
I knew I had to use Julianʼs vocal track as my base, and that I would need to edit Johnʼs vocals to match those as closely as possible. My next problem was Johnʼs phrasings were very different from Julianʼs. It wasn't a simple matter of playing both tracks, as is, at the same time. That sounded horrible and I wanted to make this sound as much like father and son sitting down face to face in a small intimate candlelit studio setting… and singing a beautiful
song together for the first time. Now I began The hours and hours I needed to accomplish this. I often had to break up Johnʼs phrases between words, and sometimes syllables, to match the timings and structure of Julianʼs song . Occasionally, when that didn't work, I would even
change the speed of the recording of Johnʼs vocal to extend the length of certain phrases slightly, for a better fit. It still didn't sound right. My original attempt had them both singing the entire song together. But then I watched a lot of different duets on YouTube and felt that if I switched back and forth between the verses and the choruses … that would be cool. So I did a version like that… but even that was missing the spark of these 2 guys just singing together.
So I started again. And this time, I had them trading off lines (starting with Julian since it is his release after all) and then having them both sing together on the choruses. That did it… that gave me tingles! 6 more hours of editing…matching up every word and every syllable of the
choruses until I was finally done. But I was still missing one last piece. 

I let some friends listen to my mix and one comment I got completely transformed the song. I canʼt believe I didn't think of it first. My mix had both vocals centered, but a friend suggested I pan Julianʼs vocals to the left and Johnʼs to the right. First I tried hard pans all the way to the left and right, but this sounded weird. I wanted them to sound like they were sitting side by side, not across the room from each other. So I switched to a softer pan of each vocal just a bit to the left and right. That was MAGIC! After a lot of internal debate, I also decided to include at the end of the song, the extra harmony vocals provided by Julianʼs friend and co-guitarist Nuno Bettencourt. It really makes for a much fuller and powerful ending. So now hereʼs my version of the duet I wish, more than anything, could have existed. Being a huge and lifelong John Lennon fan, I was always touched by the fact that Julian has spent much of his life following in his dadʼs massive footsteps, fighting against the many injustices occurring around the world.
Itʼs just downright inspiring to me. Julian was moved enough by the current situation in Ukraine to record this song. I thought the least I could do was let John join in the protest too!
I think he would have liked that.

In a first for both of us, Paul at albumsthatshouldexist and this site are posting Mike's superb effort on the same day, not only to get the song out to as many people as possible, but also to highlight the reason that Julian released it in the first place, which is to show support for Ukraine in their current struggle.

You can listen/download using the player, or download using Soulseek/Yandex and the folder includes Mike's pdf.  

Julian & John Lennon - Imagine

If the player doesn't work use the pop-out version

The War on Ukraine is an unimaginable tragedy... As a human, and as an artist, I felt compelled to respond in the most significant way I could. So today, for the first time ever, I publicly performed my Dad’s song, 'IMAGINE'. Why now, after all these years? I had always said that the only time I would ever consider singing ‘IMAGINE' would be if it was the ‘End of the World’…But also because his lyrics reflect our collective desire for peace worldwide. Because within this song, we’re transported to a space, where love and togetherness become our reality, if but for a moment in time…The song reflects the light at the end of the tunnel, that we are all hoping for...As a result of the ongoing murderous violence, millions of innocent families have been forced to leave the comfort of their homes, to seek asylum elsewhere. I’m calling on world leaders and everyone who believes in the sentiment of 'IMAGINE', to stand up for refugees everywhere! 

Please advocate and donate from the heart. #StandUpForUkraine @glbltczn @nunobettencourtofficial 

— Julian Lennon

David Spinozza - ...and on guitar (1976)

David Spinozza was born on 8 August 1949 in Port Chester, New York, and began his professional recording career as a teenager in the 1960’s, swiftly becoming a sought after New York studio musician and soon signing with A&M Records as a solo artist. He has become known for being a versatile musician, with credits that span every facet of the music and entertainment industries, and as well as adding guitar to numerous recordings over the past 50 years, he's also produced, arranged, orchestrated, conducted, co-written and played guitar for a Who's Who of acclaimed artists such as James Taylor, Carly Simon, Garland Jeffries, Aretha Franklin, Roberta Flack, Bonnie Raitt, Bette Midler, B.B. King, Judy Collins, Jim Croce, George Benson and three out of four Beatles. His guitar is heard on countless classic hits, most notably Don McLean’s 'American Pie', John Lennon’s 'Mind Games', Paul McCartney’s 'Another Day', Paul Simon’s 'Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard' and his iconic solo on Dr. John’s 'Right Place Wrong Time'. One of his earliest gigs was playing with Paul McCartney during sessions for his 'Ram' album in 1971, and when the chance came to work with Lennon two years later, as Yoko Ono prepared her 'Feeling The Space' album and Lennon his 'Mind Games', Spinozza discovered that Lennon was not aware he had previously worked with McCartney, and was afraid he would be fired if Lennon found out, given their recent feuding in the media, but when Lennon did learn of it his only comment was that McCartney "knows how to pick good people". The relationship with Ono carried on after 'Feeling The Space', where he contributed to her 'A Story' album, recorded during 1974 but not released until 1998, served as her bandleader during a residency at Kenny's Castaways, and rehearsed her band to tour her native Japan, although they parted ways when the tour began. In 1978 he released his first solo album 'Spinozza' on A&M, which was a jazz-oriented album with some vocal tracks, and he has also made contributions to the soundtracks of the movies 'Dead Man Walking', 'Happiness', and 'Just The Ticket'. Spinozza has played on literally hundreds of albums in his career, and so for this post I've only selected tracks from 1970 to 1976 where he was a featured soloist, and to show his versatility in a variety of genres I've split this three disc set into one album of jazz, one of soul and one of pop music.   

Track listing

Some Jazz
01 Ahunk Ahunk  (from 'Consummation' by Thad Jones & Mel Lewis 1970)
02 Man's Hope (from 'Push Push' by Herbie Mann 1971)
03 Lover Man (from 'All The King's Horses' by Grover Washington, Jr. 1972) 
04 Monkey (from 'White Elephant' by White Elephant 1972)
05 Hanky's Panky (from 'Superstition' by Shirley Scott 1973)
06 A Sunday Afternoon Feeling (from 'Journey' by Arif Mardin 1974)
07 Draggin' The Line (from 'Until It's Time For You To Go' by Rusty Bryant 1974)
08 Chile Con Carmen (from 'Joy Of Cookin'' by Joe Thomas 1974)
09 Who Knows What Goes When The Doors Close (from 'Brother Where Are You' by 

                                                                                                             Oscar Brown Jr. 1974) 

Some Pop
01 Come To My Bedside, My Darling (from 'Donal Leace' by Donal Leace 1971)
02 Roller Derby Queen (from 'Life And Times' by Jim Croce 1973)
03 Something So Right (from 'There Goes Rhymin' Simon' by Paul Simon 1973)
04 Get On The Right Thing (from 'Red Rose Speedway' by Paul McCartney & Wings 1973)
05 A Man Can't Always Be (from 'Lifesong' by Cashman & West 1974)
06 Rainy Day Man (from 'Streetlights' by Bonnie Raitt 1974)
07 Genesis (from 'The Second Coming' by Jerry LaCroix 1974)
08 Think I'm Gonna Have A Baby (from 'Hotcakes' by Carly Simon 1974) 
09 Me And My Guitar (from 'Walking Man' by James Taylor 1974)
10 Great Big Man (from 'Homeless Brother' by Don McLean 1974)
11 The Closest Friends (from 'Lucy Simon' by Lucy Simon 1975)
12 Angel Spread Your Wings (from 'Judith' by Judy Collins 1975)
13 Let Me Just Follow Behind (from 'Songs For The New Depression' by Bette Midler 1976)
14 Say The Words (from 'This One's For You' by Barry Manilow 1976)
15 Early Evening Light (from 'Marriott' by Steve Marriott 1976) 

Some Soul
01 Too Many Days (from 'Labelle' by Labelle 1971)
02 You've Got A Friend (from 'Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway' by 

                                                                                  Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway 1972)
03 Cold Sweat (from 'Get On The Good Foot' by James Brown 1972)
04 The Get Out Of The Ghetto Blues (from 'Free Will' by Gil Scott-Heron 1972)
05 I'm Only A Woman (from 'Margie Joseph' by Margie Joseph 1973)
06 Right Place, Wrong Time (from 'In The Right Place' by Dr. John 1973)
07 Grind It Out (from 'The Soulful Crooner' by Nick Holmes 1973)
08 As Long As He Will Stay (from 'New Beginnings...' by Morgana King 1973)
09 I Know It's You (from 'Extension Of A Man' by Donny Hathaway 1973)
10 The Masquerade Is Over (from 'Let Me In Your Life' by Aretha Franklin 1974)
11 Somebody New Is Lovin' On You (from 'I'm In Need Of Love' by Lou Courtney 1974)
12 Early Ev'ry Midnight (from 'Feel Like Makin' Love' by Roberta Flack 1975)

Earl Slick - ...and on guitar (1998)

Frank Madeloni, aka Earl Slick, was born in Brooklyn, New York, on October 1, 1952, and first began to be noticed on the New York music scene in the early 70's while playing guitar in a band called Mack Truck, featuring both singer-songwriter Jimmie Mack and his brother, drummer Jack Mack. It was in 1974, however, that his name was plastered all over the press when the 22 year-old Slick was chosen by David Bowie to serve as his first proper replacement for Mick Ronson, after Bowie had split up The Spiders From Mars. Although Bowie supplied most of the guitar work for his hit 1974 release 'Diamond Dogs', he sought the then-unknown Slick to replicate his and Ronson's previous guitar parts on tour, and not only did Slick duplicate them, but the incredibly versatile guitarist managed to expand on them and inject his own style into the tunes, resulting in one of the greatest rock guitar live albums of all time 'David Live', recorded at the Tower Theater in Philadelphia. Slick remained with Bowie for his next two studio albums, which saw the singer transform into his "Thin White Duke" persona and take on the funk genre, resulting in the classic records 'Young Americans' in  1975 and the more experimental 'Station To Station' the following year. Almost immediately he started to be asked to guest on studio sessions, with Leo Sayer being the first to spot his ability, followed quickly by Ian Hunter, and in 1977 he added guitar to his wife's collaboration with her sister on June and Jean Millington's 'Ladies On The Stage'. Leaving Bowie's band just as the singer decided to pack his bags and relocate to Germany, Slick continued on as a 'gun for hire', and appeared on records by other more obscure hard rock artists such as Bad Boy and Tonio K. Also during this time, he attempted briefly to launch a solo career, resulting in the albums 'Razor Sharp' and 'Earl Slick Band', but it was his next job that would be one of the high points of his entire career, when in 1980 he was asked to play on what would become John Lennon's final all-new studio recording, the chart-topping 'Double Fantasy'. After Lennon's death the same year, Slick returned to the studio with Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, and appeared on what would become her highest-charting solo release, 1981's harrowing 'Season Of Glass', and his work can also be heard on the posthumous releases 'Milk And Honey' in 1984, as well as the CD box sets for both Ono, with 1992's 'Onobox', and on Lennon's 1998 'Anthology', including his own choice as some of his best work on 'I Don't Wanna Face It'. 

The early to mid-'80s saw Slick return briefly to Bowie's band for the Serious Moonlight world tour in support of 1983's 'Let's Dance', as although Stevie Ray Vaughan had played guitar on the album, he'd left the band right before the tour due to a dispute between his and Bowie's management, so Slick was asked to step in as a last-minute replacement, due to his prior working relationship with Bowie. When the Bowie tour was over he teamed up with ex-Stray Cats musicians Lee Rocker (bass) and Slim Jim Phantom (drums), replacing Bran Seltzer in the re-named trio Phantom, Rocker & Slick, with the short-lived outfit issuing a pair of moderately successful albums, in 1985's 'Phantom, Rocker & Slick' and 1986's 'Cover Girl', before disbanding. This allowed Slick to carry on his session work throughout the late '80s/early '90's, and after a break from the music biz to sort out his personal life (allegedly to kick a serious drug problem), he returned stronger than ever, and founded his own record label, Slick Music Inc., which specializes in his own solo releases, as well as archival sets by other artists, like Fanny and Kasim Sulton. In 1990, he collaborated with David Glen Eisley in the band Dirty White Boy, which released their only album 'Bad Reputation' in 1990, and he then played in Little Caesar during 1991/1992. Working with mentor Michael Kamen, he contributed to several film soundtracks in the 1990's, including 'Hudson Hawk' and 'Nothing But Trouble', as well as releasing another solo album in 1991. Although it might seem like Slick has had extraordinary luck in being catapulted into the spotlight after only paying his dues for a few years, you can hear from these tracks that he crammed a lot into that short time, and by the time he was nabbed by Bowie he was already a guitarist of some talent.  

Track listing

Disc One
01 Reflections (from 'Endless Flight' by Leo Sayer 1976)
02 Stay (from 'Station To Station' by David Bowie 1976)
03 Wild 'n' Free (from 'Overnight Angels' by Ian Hunter 1977)
04 You Need This Woman (from 'Ladies On The Stage' by Millington 1977)
05 Keep It Up (from 'Back To Back' by Bad Boy 1978)
06 Life In The Foodchain (from 'Life In The Foodchain' by Tonio K. 1978)
07 Is It Right (from 'Van Dunson' by Van Dunson 1979)
08 I Put A Spell On You (from 'Simplicity' by Tim Currie 1981)
09 Goin' For Broke (from 'Silver Condor' by Silver Condor 1981)
10 Walking On Thin Ice (single by Yoko Ono 1981)

11 My Little World (from 'Heart On A Wall' by Jimmy Destri  1982)

Disc Two
01 East Of Eden's Gate (from 'East Of Eden's Gate' by Billy Thorpe 1982)
02 Running (from 'Running' By June Millington 1983)
03 Shark Pretty (from 'Dead Center' by Game Theory 1984)
04 Nobody Told Me (from 'Milk And Honey' by John Lennon & Yoko Ono 1984)
05 Imagination (from 'Some People' by Belouis Some 1985)
06 Dancing In The Street (single by David Bowie & Mick Jagger 1985)
07 Running Away (from '2wo' by Strange Advance 1985) 
08 Simple Man (from 'Junkyard' by Junkyard 1989)
09 Cry Little Sister (from 'Slamdunk' by Henry Lee Summer' 1993)
10 I Don't Wanna Face It (out-take from 'Anthology' by John Lennon 1998)

Jesse Ed Davis - ...and on guitar (1975)

Jesse Edwin Davis was born on 21 September 1944 in Norman, Oklahoma. His parents were both Native Americans, with his father, Jesse Ed Davis II, being Comanche, and his mother's side was Kiowa. His father was an accomplished painter in the "flat-style" tradition of Southern Plains painting, with his works being exhibited in the state capitol in Oklahoma City. Davis began his musical career in the late 50's in Oklahoma City and surrounding areas, with John Ware (later a drummer for Emmylou Harris), John Selk (later a bass player for Donovan), Jerry Fisher (later a vocalist with Blood, Sweat & Tears), Mike Boyle, Chris Frederickson, and drummer Bill Maxwell, amongst others. He graduated from the University Of Oklahoma with a degree in English Literature, but by the mid-60's he was touring with Conway Twitty. He eventually moved to California, living there for 8 years, and through his friendship with Levon Helm, he met Leon Russell, who introduced him to paying session work. As well as playing on sessions, he also joined Taj Mahal's band, playing guitar and piano on Mahal's first three albums. After Mahal's 1969 album 'Giant Step', Davis concentrated on the session work for artists such as Roger Tillison and Leon Russell's band The Asylum Choir, and in 1971 he recorded his first solo album after Atco Records signed a contract with him to record two records with the label. The first was '¡Jesse Davis!', where he called in favours from Gram Parsons, Leon Russell and Eric Clapton to contribute to the recording. He was also close friends with Gene Clark, and in 1971 he played on and produced Clark's second solo album 'White Light', as well as guesting with Russell on Bob Dylan's 1971 single 'Watching The River Flow'. This led to him working with George Harrison, performing at the ex-Beatle's 1971 Concert For Bangladesh at Madison Square Garden, along with Ringo Starr, Billy Preston, Leon Russell, Jim Keltner, Eric Clapton and many others. 

Two more solo albums followed, with 'Ululu' coming out in 1972 and 'Keep Me Comin'' in 1973, but he still slotted in the odd sessions here and there, culminating in him playing lead guitar on John Lennon's 'Walls And Bridges' and 'Rock 'n' Roll' albums, and almost completing the full set, he also played on Harrison's 'Extra Texture' and Starr's 'Goodnight Vienna'. In late 1975 he performed with the Faces as second guitarist throughout their final US tour, unfortunately becoming addicted to drugs during this time, and after the tour he continued to work as a session player on albums by Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart, Keith Moon, Steve Miller, Guthrie Thomas, Harry Nilsson, Ry Cooder, Neil Diamond, Rick Danko, Van Dyke Parks, Cher, and many others. In 1977 he moved to Hawaii, but was back in Los Angeles by 1981, broke and ravaged by drug and alcohol addiction, and was in and out of clinics throughout much of the 80's dealing with his addictions. In the ten years he was with Patti Daley, they never married, but after they split up he married twice, and in 1985, with his second wife, he formed and played in The Graffiti Band, which coupled his music with the poetry of the Native American activist John Trudell. In June 1988 he collapsed in the laundry room of an apartment building following a suspected drugs overdose, and died shortly afterwards. He was 43 years old. In his short life he made his mark on the music of many of his peers, with his contributions on Marc Benno's album in particular being outstanding. This two-disc set is just a brief example of his work, as he also played with many blues legends, such as B.B. King, Albert Collins, John Lee Hooker, and Albert King, but I've omitted those as they were all legendary blues guitarists in their own right, and so Davis would only be heard as a backing musician, whereas I wanted to showcase his own exemplary playing on these other recordings from the 70's, when he was at the peak of his powers. 

Track listing

Disc One
01 Funny Honey  (from 'Booker T. & Priscilla' by Booker T. & Priscilla 1971)
02 Poor Girl (from' Feel Your Groove' by Ben Sidran 1971)
03 Sweet Home Chicago (from 'Asylum Choir II' by Asylum Choir 1971)
04 Baby I Love You (from 'Minnows' by Marc Benno 1971)
05 Let 'Em Roll Johnny (from 'Roger Tillison's Album' by Roger Tillison 1971)
06 Rusty Toy (from 'Warm Waters' by Charles Lloyd 1971) 
07 Rollin' Mill Man (from 'She Used To Wanna Be A Ballerina' by Buffy Saint-Marie 1971)
08 Watching the River Flow (single by Bob Dylan 1971)
09 One In A Hundred (from 'White Light' by Gene Clark 1971)
10 Reno Street Incident (from 'Out The Window' by Jim Pulte 1972)
11 Heal Your Heart (from 'Recall the Beginning ... ' by Steve Miller Band 1972) 

Disc Two
01 Doctor My Eyes (from 'Jackson Browne' by Jackson Browne  1972)
02 Crossroads Of The World (from 'Rod Taylor' by Rod Taylor 1973)
03 Gypsy Davy (from 'Last Of The Brooklyn Cowboys' by Arlo Guthrie 1973)
04 Black Magic Gun (from 'Home At Last' by Wayne Berry 1974) 
05 Fair Play (from 'ST-11261' by Brewer & Shipley 1974) 
06 Grinning In Your Face (from 'That's A Plenty' by The Pointer Sisters 1974)
07 Subterranean Homesick Blues (from 'Pussy Cats' by Harry Nilsson 1974)
08 Open Up The Watergate (from 'L.A. Turnaround' by Bert Jansch 1974) 
09 Whatever Gets You Thru the Night (from 'Walls And Bridges' by John Lennon 1974) 
10 Only You (And You Alone) (from 'Goodnight Vienna' by Ringo Starr 1974) 
11 (What A) Wonderful World (from 'Midnight On The Water' by David Bromberg Band 1975) 
12 The Hits Just Keep On Coming (from 'Burnin' Thing' by Mac Davis 1975)

Suggested by Maybe The Devil, Maybe The Lord

For MAC users

Press command+shift+period (to show hidden files) and a grayed out folder '...and on guitar" will appear and the mp3s will be inside. Either drag those to another folder OR rename the folder without any periods at the beginning. Press command+shift+period to once again hide the hidden files.

Frank Zappa - ...and on guitar (1978)

Frank Vincent Zappa was born on 21 December 21 1940, in Baltimore, Maryland, and was often sick as a child, suffering from asthma, earaches and sinus problems. A doctor treated his sinusitis by inserting a pellet of radium into each of his nostrils, as at the time little was known about the potential dangers of even small amounts of therapeutic radiation, and that might explain why nasal imagery and references appear in his music and lyrics, as well as in the collage album covers created by his long-time collaborator Cal Schenkel. Zappa joined his first band at Mission Bay High School in San Diego as the drummer, and he was interested in sounds for their own sake, particularly the sounds of drums and other percussion instruments. At Antelope Valley High School, Zappa met Don Glen Vliet (who later changed his name to Don Van Vliet and adopted the stage name Captain Beefheart), and he played drums in local band the Blackouts, but he also started to develop an interest in the guitar, and in 1957 he was given his first instrument. Zappa's interest in composing and arranging flourished in his last high-school years, and by his final year he was writing, arranging and conducting avant-garde performance pieces for the school orchestra, and after he left high school he attempted to earn a living as a musician and composer. During the early 1960's, Zappa wrote and produced songs for other local artists, and in 1964 he moved into the Pal studio and began routinely working 12 hours or more per day recording and experimenting with overdubbing and audio tape manipulation. Aided by his income from film composing, Zappa took over the studio from Paul Buff, and renamed it Studio Z, although it was rarely booked for recordings by other musicians, and following a brief prison sentence for recording alleged pornographic mateiral there, he could no longer afford to pay the rent on the studio and was evicted, with the building being torm down in 1966. That was also the year that Zappa formed The Mothers, and recorded the classic 'Freak Out' album, which was to put him on the path to being one of the most influential musicians in the world. In July of that year he was asked to produce some tracks for The Animals, one of which was his own composition 'All Night Long'. The following year he played guitar on both sides of a 7" single by Tommy Flanders, and on the A-side of Barry Goldberg's 'Carry On' single. 
During the late 1960's, Zappa continued to develop the business sides of his career, and he and Herb Cohen formed the Bizarre Records and Straight Records labels, distributed by Warner Bros. Records, releasing albums by Alice Cooper, The Persuasions, and Wild Man Fischer, on whose record he also played guitar. In 1970 Zappa helped out former band-mate Jeff Simmons by producing and playing on his first proper solo album (following a collaborative film soundtrack with Randy Sterling), and the same year he composed the music for Jean-Luc Ponty's 'King Kong' album, as well as playing on the record, and afterwards asked the violinist to join The Mothers Of Invention as a permanent member. In 1971 he and the Mothers were part of John Lennon's live performance at the Fillmore East in New York City on 6 June 1971, which was taped and released the following year on John Lennon & Yoko Ono's 'Some Time In New York City' album. In 1968 The Mothers Of Invention had released a pastiche of 50's doo-wop music under the title of 'Cruising With Reuben & The Jet's', and four years later a Los Angeles band named themselves after the album, producing two records of their own, the first of which was produced by Zappa, as well on him contributing one song to it, and playing guitar on another. In 1974 he helped out former Mothers' keyboardist George Duke on his own album 'Feel', and in 1976 he managed to reform Grand Funk Railroad, who had just broken up, by telling then that he wanted to produce them, which he did on their 'Good Singin', Good Playin'' album, on which he played guitar on one track. In 1976 Zappa was in Montreal for a concert, and was asked by Robert Charlebois to participate in the recording of a track on his new album. Zappa accepted and showed up the next day in a Montreal Studio to record the solo on 'Petroleum', not only playing the end solo, but also participating in the arrangements, but then  Charlebois sat on the tapes for over a year before the album eventually appeared in 1977. After Grand Funk Railroad  broke up in 1976, band members Don Brewer, Mel Schacher, and Craig Frost formed the group Flint and released their self titled album in 1978, and because of his connection with the members from their 'Good Singin', Good Playin'' album, Zappa offered to play guitar on a couple of tracks. Obviously this is a very concise biography of Frank Vincent Zappa, just concentrating on his collaborations with other artists, but he has lived the most fascinating life, and the 'radium up the nose' story is fairly typical of the sort of thing that happened to him, so do check out his Wikipedia page while you are listening to this diverse collection of music that he's been involved with throughout the 60's and 70's.   

Track listing

01 All Night Long (from 'Animalism' by The Animals 1966)
02 Friday Night City (single by Tommy Flanders 1967)
03 Carry On (single by Barry Goldberg 1967)
04 The Circle (from 'An Evening With Wild Man Fischer' by Wild Man Fischer 1968)
05 How Would You Like To Have A Head Like That? (from 'King Kong' by Jean-Luc Ponty 1970)
06 Raye (from 'Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up' by Jeff Simmons 1970)
07 Well (Baby Please Don’t Go) (from 'Some Time In New York City' by Lennon/Ono 1972)
08 Dedicated To The One I Love (from 'For Real!' by Ruben And The Jets 1973)
09 Old Slippers (from 'Feel' by George Duke 1974)
10 Out To Get You (from 'Good Singin' Good Playin'' by Grand Funk Railroad 1976)
11 Petroleum (from 'Swing Charlebois Swing' by Robert Charlebois 1977)
12 You'll Never Be The Same (from 'Flint' by Flint 1978)

Eric Clapton - ...and on guitar (1970)

Throughout the 60's Eric Clapton's reputation as one of the greatest British guitarists grew and grew, as he moved through some of the UK's best bands, from The Yardbirds, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Cream, and finally Blind Faith. With a workload like that, and the constant touring that it involved, it's not surprising that he didn't have a lot of spare time to go into the studio and offer his services as a guest guitarist, so it wasn't really until 1968 that he started to appear on records by other artists. His most famous guest appearance was in 1968 on The Beatles' 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps', at the request of George Harrison, who asked him to play on it following the two guitarists collaboration on Harrison's Wonderwall Music' album, and that seems to have given him a taste for popping into the studio to help out friends, acquaintances, and artists that he admired. Also in 1968, while Cream were touring the US, Atlantic supremo Ahmet Ertegun asked him if he would play guitar on a record by a fellow Atlantic artist, and so the other guitarists were pulled out of the studio and a nervous Clapton laid down the lead guitar on Aretha Franklin's 'Good To Me As I Am To You'. The Beatles' recording followed later that year, and the Apple Records connection led to him playing on the b-side of Jackie Lomax's 'Sour Milk Sea' single, and also on Billy Preston's 'Do What You Want To' single from the same year (Preston had played on the 'Get Back' sessions, and on John Lennon's 'Cold Turkey' single). He was also one of the many, many guest artists on Martha Velez's 'Fiends & Angels' album, and by 1970 he was in the studio with other artists more than ever, helping out King Curtis, Jonathan Kelly, Shawn Phillips, and Leon Russell. One of my favourite guest appearances of his was on the 'Labio-Dental Fricative' single by Vivian Stanshall, and especially it's b-side 'Paper Round', where his guitar-work really shines. After adding his guitar to songs by Doris Troy and Stephen Stills, we end this album in 1970, after a flurry of guest appearances spanning just a three-year period. Once his solo career started to take off he cut back on the moonlighting, but rest assured that before that happened there are more than enough for a second volume.        

Track listing

01 While My Guitar Gently Weeps (from 'The Beatles' by The Beatles 1968)
02 Good To Me As I Am To You (from 'Lady Soul' by Aretha Franklin' 1968)
03 The Eagle Laughs At You (b-side of 'Sour Milk Sea' single by Jackie Lomax 1968)
04 Do What You Want To (b-side of 'That's The Way God Planned It' by Billy Preston 1969)
05 Cold Turkey (single by John Lennon & The Plastic Ono Band 1969)
06 I’m Gonna Leave You (from 'Fiends & Angels' by Martha Velez 1969)
07 Teasin' (single by King Curtis 1970)
08 Don't You Believe It (single by Jonathan Kelly 1970)
09 Man Hole Covered Wagon (from 'Contribution' by Shawn Phillips 1970)
10 Prince Of Peace (from 'Leon Russell' by Leon Russell 1970)
11 Paper Round (b-side of 'Labio-Dental Fricative' single by Vivian Stanshall 1970)
12 Ain't That Cute (single by Doris Troy 1970)
13 Go Back Home (from 'Stephen Stills' by Stephen Stills 1970)