Various Artists - The Hitmakers Sing Lou Reed (2018)

After leaving the Velvet Underground in August 1970, Lou Reed moved to his parents' home on Long Island, and took a job at his father's tax accounting firm as a typist, by his own account earning $40 a week. He began writing poetry, which was published later in 2018 by Anthology Editions, and he then signed a recording contract with RCA Records in 1971, recording his first solo album at Morgan Studios in Willesden, London with session musicians including Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman from the band Yes. The album, 'Lou Reed', contained versions of unreleased Velvet Underground songs, some of which had originally been recorded for 'Loaded' but shelved, but it was overlooked by most pop music critics, and did not sell well. Reed's commercial breakthrough was his next album, 'Transformer', released in November 1972, and co-produced by David Bowie and Mick Ronson. It introduced Reed to a wider audience in the UK, especially the single 'Walk On The Wild Side', which was a salute to the misfits and hustlers who once surrounded Andy Warhol in the late 60's. Each of the song's five verses describes a person who had been a fixture at The Factory during the mid-to-late 1960's, and its transgressive lyrics somehow evaded radio censorship. Ronson's arrangements brought out new aspects of Reed's songs, with 'Perfect Day' featuring delicate strings and soaring dynamics, and while the album contains some of Reed's most commercial compositions, it was some years before other artists felt confident enough to tackle them. This was spearheaded by Eurythmics take on 'Satellite Of Love' in 1983, followed by the choice of 'Perfect Day' as the Children In Need single in 1997, and this seemed to have opened up the floodgates for artists to plunder the album and record their unique takes of the songs. This album is a bit different so most of the others in this series, as the artists tend to take an irreverent view of the songs, witness the versions by A.C. Marias, Enzo Pietropoali and Bikini The Cat, but they are also done with much love for the original material, and so this album has become one of my most played from the series. 

Track listing

01 Vicious (A.C. Marias 1989)  
02 Andy's Chest (Damn Hippie Freaks 2016) 
03 Perfect Day (Kirsty McColl & Evan Dando 1995)  
04 Hangin' Round (Squeeze 2015) 
05 Walk On The Wild Side (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians 1990)  
06 Make Up (B.E.F. featuring Boy George 2013)  
07 Satellite Of Love (Eurythmics 1983)  
08 Wagon Wheel (The Satellites 2015)    
09 New York Telephone Conversation (Enzo Pietropaoli 1997)  
10 I'm So Free (Bikini The Cat 2005) 
11 Goodnight Ladies (Justin Vivian Bond 2018)

Caleb Quaye - ...and on guitar (1974)

Caleb Quaye was born 9 October 1948, and is the older half-brother of singer Finley Quaye. His musical career began when he was a member of local band The SoundCasters (or The Sound Castles) while at school. In the early sixties, he joined the band Bluesology, featuring Reginald Dwight on keyboards, later to morph into Elton John, and they were Long John Baldry's backing band for a while, releasing three singles with him from 1965 to 1967. After the breakup of Bluesology, Quaye released a single in 1967 under the name Caleb, with 'Baby Your Phrasing Is Bad'/'Woman Of Distinction' now being rated as one of the finest psychedelic records of the era. In 1968, Elton John started playing concerts under his new name, enlisting Quaye as his guitarist, and in 1969 this group recorded a private album under the name The Bread And Beer Band, just for their own amusement, with only two tracks ever appearing officially on disc, with the 'Dick Barton Theme'/'Breakdown Blues' single being released in 1969 on Decca Records. 

In 1969 he served as guitarist for the one-off "flower power" pop band Argosy (which also included Dwight, Roger Hodgson, and Nigel Olsson) on their single, 'Mr. Boyd'/'Imagine', and he also issued 'The Way Of The Musician' as a single under the name of Hookfoot. As Elton John knew Quaye from his Bluesology days, he used three quarters of Hookfoot as his backing band when he recorded some sessions for the BBC in July 1969. Around April 1970, Quaye reinvented Hookfoot as a proper band, with Ian Duck on harmonica and vocals, Dave Glover on bass and Roger Pope on drums, and once again they backed Elton John when he was invited back to the BBC in April 1970. They also backed Steve Ellis on two solo singles in 1970 and 1971, before they released their eponymous debut album in 1971. It was well-received, and included songs by Quaye, as well as covers of tracks by Stephen Stills and Neil Young, and with the addition of Bob Kulick as a second guitarist, the band released their second album 'Good Times a-Comin'' in 1972, which was a more straight-ahead rock record. While Hookfoot was active during 1971 and 1972, Quaye was much in demand as a session player, and appeared on a number of recordings by the likes of Al Kooper, Phillip Goodhand-Tait, Ralph McTell, John Baldry, Nilsson, and Cochise. Following a few more line-up changes, and two more albums in 1972 and 1973, Hookfoot eventually split up in 1974, and Quaye went to the USA to work as a session musician. 

While a member of Hookfoot, Quaye had played on most of Elton John's records up to 1971's  'Madman Across The Water', when John recruited Nigel Olssen, Dee Murray, Davey Johnstone and Ray Cooper as his permanent backing group, but in April 1975, long time bandmates Murray and Olsson were asked to leave the group. They were replaced by old friend Roger Pope and Kenny Passarelli, and it was at this time that Quaye was also asked to re-join, ready to start tour rehearsals in June 1975. This line-up released the 'Rock Of The Westies' album later that year, and he stayed with them for a couple of years, also appearing on 1976's 'Blue Moves'. After this his guest appearances slowed down, with only a couple in 1977, then nothing after 1980, as in 1982 his life changed completely, when he became a musician/evangelist. He is currently serving as the Chairman of the National Worship Committee, and he was officially appointed as National Foursquare Music Minister in the Spring of 1995. So that's where we'll end this look back at the early career of an extremely talented, but undeservedly neglected guitarist, and if you want to learn more about his life, then you can read his excellent autobiography 'A Voice Louder Than Rock & Roll'.

Track listing

Disc I
01 Ticket To Ride (from 'Hold Up!' by The Moonshiners 1967)
02 Baby Your Phrasing Is Bad (single by Caleb 1967)
03 Breakdown Blues (b-side of 'Dick Barton Theme' single by The Bread And Beer Band 1969)
04 Empty Sky (from 'Empty Sky' by Elton John 1969)
05 Mr. Boyd (single by Argosy 1969)
06 The Way Of The Musician (single by Hookfoot 1969)
07 Jingle Jangle Jasmine (b-side of 'Take Your Love' single by Steve Ellis 1971)
08 Eric Is Calling (from 'Chumley's Laughing Gear' by Claggers 1971)
09 Loudwater Zoo (from 'Loudwater House' by Tony Hazzard 1971)
10 Going Quietly Mad (from 'New York City (You're A Woman)' by Al Kooper 1971)
11 Old Brown Dog (from 'You Well-Meaning Brought Me Here' by Ralph McTell 1971)

Disc II
01 Sunshine Looks Like Rain (from 'Drum Orchestra And Chorus' by Nigel Olsson 1971)
02 Oh Rosanna (from 'I Think I'll Write A Song' by Phillip Goodhand-Tait 1971)
03 Take Off My Shoes (from 'Shalom' by Shalom Chanoch 1971)
04 Another Day (from 'Swallow Tales' by Cochise 1971)
05 Like Summer Tempests (from 'Taupin' by Bernie Taupin 1971)
06 Let's Burn Down The Cornfield (from 'It Ain't Easy' by John Baldry 1971)
07 Coconut (from 'Nilsson Schmilsson' by Nilsson 1971)
08 Same Old Thing (from 'A Story Ended' by Dick Heckstall-Smith 1972)
09 Keep Dreaming (from 'Bill Quateman' by Bill Quateman 1972)
10 Everything Comes And Goes (from 'Somewhere' by Mike Hugg 1972)
11 Kid's Stuff (from 'David Elliott' by David Elliott 1972)
12 Jubilee Cloud (from 'Kongos' by John Kongos 1972)

Disc III

01 The End (from 'Queues' by Vigrass & Osborne 1972)
02 I Can't Stand It (from 'Lou Reed' by Lou Reed 1972)
03 Sweet America (from 'Meanwhile... Back At The World' by Roger Cook 1972)
04 Forever's No Time At All (from 'Who Came First' by Pete Townshend 1972)
05 Parisien Plight II (from 'Faces' by Shawn Phillips 1972)
06 Non-Commercial Blues (from 'A Little Taste' by Ann Odell 1973)
07 Albuquerque Rainbow (from 'Chris Darrow' by Chris Darrow 1973)
08 Get Yourself Together (from 'In London' by Teresa Brewer with Oily Rag 1973)
09 Overnight Train (from 'Love Songs' by Billy Nicholls 1974)
10 I Got You Covered (from 'Mo' by Mo McGuire 1974)

Thanks to progcollector for supplying the Claggers track. 

Steve Hunter - ...and on guitar (2001)

Stephen John Hunter was born on 14 June 1948, and his first introduction to music was as a young child listening to country and western music on a Zenith console radio. When he was eight years old, he began taking guitar lessons on a Lap steel guitar after seeing Jerry Byrd play lap steel and hearing what could be done on the instrument, but inspired by the music of Chet Atkins, The Ventures and Duane Eddy, he eventually switched to standard guitar. He continued playing guitar throughout high school as a member of a group called The Weejuns, which took their name from G.H. Bass & Co.'s perennially-popular penny loafers, and he later joined The Light Brigade, a rock and soul group that played in the Decatur area. In 1967 Hunter was drafted into the U.S. Army to fight in the Vietnam War, and there he trained as an x-ray technician, ultimately serving at an air evacuation hospital in Okinawa, Japan where Vietnam combat casualties were being treated. He considered becoming a doctor but he enjoyed music so much he knew he would follow a career in music, which he did when he returned to Decatur after leaving the Army, building up a reputation as an outstanding guitar player. In 1971 his friend John Sauter called to tell him that he was playing with Mitch Ryder in Detroit and that Ryder was auditioning for guitar players, so he suggested that Hunter come to Detroit and try out. He packed up his guitar and made the eight-hour drive to Detroit, and after passing the audition he became part of Mitch Ryder's new band Detroit, where he met and formed a long-time professional association with producer Bob Ezrin. Detroit released one self-titled album on Paramount Records, but did have a hit single with Hunter's arrangement of Lou Reed's 'Rock & Roll', and Reed was so impressed that he recruited Hunter to join his band, playing on 1973's 'Berlin'. In the 1970's he appeared on five Alice Cooper albums, all of which were produced by Ezrin, starting with the band's most successful album 'Billion Dollar Babies'. When Alice Cooper became a solo artist, Hunter followed and appeared on 1975's 'Welcome To My Nightmare', and can be seen in the film 'Welcome To My Nightmare', enacting the celebrated guitar face-off between him and Dick Wagner that formed part of Cooper's 1975 live show. In 1974 he played the uncredited opening-half solo on Aerosmith's 'Train Kept A Rollin' from 'Get Your Wings', after producer Jack Douglas popped his head out of Studio C and asked if Hunter felt like playing on the recording. Later that year Hunter played guitar on former Cream bassist Jack Bruce's solo album 'Out Of The Storm', and in 1977 he worked with Peter Gabriel on his first solo album, playing the intro to the classic single 'Solsbury Hill'. Other artists Hunter has worked with include David Lee Roth, Julian Lennon, Dr. John, Tracy Chapman and more recently Glen Campbell and 2Cellos. It was while recording Roth's 'A Little Ain't Enough' that Hunter met Jason Becker, and they've remained close friends ever since. He auditioned for and got the job of playing guitar on the soundtrack of the 1979 Bette Midler film 'The Rose', composing the instrumental 'Camelia', which is featured in the film. Hunter's first solo album, 1977's critically acclaimed 'Swept Away', reunited him with producer Bob Ezrin, and he's released a number of further solo albums since, but this collection showcases his guitar-work on other artist's albums, from the famous - Reed, Gabriel, Aerosmith - to the not so well-known but equally as interesting, like The H Factor, Jesse Camp, Angelo, and The Bastard Sons Of Johnny Cash.  

Track listing

Disc One
01 Rock 'n' Roll (from 'Detroit' by Detroit With Mitch Ryder 1972)
02 Sad Song (from 'Berlin' by Lou Reed 1973)
03 If We Only Had The Time (from 'Flo & Eddie' by Flo & Eddie 1973)
04 Timeslip (from 'Out Of The Storm' by Jack Bruce 1974)
05 Train Kept A Rollin' (from 'Get Your Wings' by Aerosmith 1974)
06 Some Folks (from 'Welcome To My Nightmare' by Alice Cooper 1975)
07 Back By The River (from 'Hollywood Be Thy Name' by Dr. John 1975)
08 Solsbury Hill (from 'Peter Gabriel' by Peter Gabriel 1977)      
09 Spaceman (from 'Randy Richards' by Randy Richards 1978)

Disc Two
01 Have You Ever Seen The Rain (from 'Midnight Prowl' by Angelo 1978) 
02 Small Town Boy (from 'Richard Wagner' by Richard Wagner 1978)
03 Danger Up Ahead (from 'Don't Look Back' by Natalie Cole 1980)
04 Whatever Will Be (from 'Wake 'Em Up In Tokyo' by Karla DeVito 1986)
05 Urban Strut (from 'Guitar Speak' by Various Artists 1988)
06 The Hurt Stays Home (from 'The H Factor' by The H Factor 1989) 
07 Saltwater (from 'Help Yourself' by Julian Lennon' 1991)
08 A Little Luck (from 'Your Filthy Little Mouth' by David Lee Roth 1994)
09 Meet Me In The Morning (from 'Perspective' by Jason Becker 1995)
10 Break It (from 'Jesse & The 8th Street Kidz' by Jesse Camp 1999)
11 Blade (from 'Walk Alone' by Bastard Sons Of Johnny Cash 2001)

Thanks to Duane for the suggestion. 

Steve Howe - ...and on guitar (1991)

In April 1970, Steve Howe replaced Peter Banks in Yes, and his career really started to take off. His playing style soon became instantly recognisable, and he has since become an integral part of the band, playing on every album from 1971's 'The Yes Album' until the band split up in 1981. While he was still finding his feet in Yes, Howe and Rick Wakeman contributed to the recording of Lou Reed's self-titled debut album as session musicians, working together for the first time, and the same year he had played lead guitar on folk duo Curtiss Maldoon's first eponymous album. A couple of years later he played on two instrumental albums, one by his band-mate Rick Wakeman on his first solo records, and also on an album by Johnny Harris, who recorded easy listening versions of popular hits of the the 60's and 70's. It was rather an odd gig, but his contribution to Jethro Tull's 'Love Song' was professional if nothing else. In 1975 the members of Yes took a break to record solo albums, and as well as releasing his own superb 'Beginnings', Howe also found time to help out Yes drummer Alan White with his own solo album, playing on a song to which Jon Anderson also contributed vocals. After that there was a busy seven year period with Yes which meant that he couldn't moonlight on other artist's records, but in 1982 he was asked to play on a song from the The Dregs 'Industry Standard' album, after which guest appearances tended to be spaced out at one every few years, appearing on albums by Propaganda, Billie Currie, Andy Leek and Animal Magic in the mid to late 80's. One particularly fine effort is to be found on the first 'Guitar Speak' compilation album from 1988, where guitarists were invited to contribute one piece of music each, and his 'Sharp On Attack' is one of the best pieces on there. In 1991 Queen invited Howe to listen to rough mixes of their new album, and asked if he'd like to add something to the title track 'Innuendo', to which he readily agreed. He has since said that he was proud to have played his classical guitar solo on the song, and as it was his last guest appearance for seven years, it's the perfect conclusion to the album. One appearance that I've had to omit was his acoustic guitar solo on Frankie Goes To Hollywood's 'Welcome To The Pleasuredome' album, as it was unfortunately just too long to fit on here, but it's another example of the fact that unlike a lot of guitarists in this series who tended to stick to the genre that they were most know for, Howe seemed to have no qualms about playing on records by folk, pop, easy listening, rock, or 80's indie artists, adding something special to each record that he played on.   

Track listing

01 Long Long Time (from 'Curtiss Maldoon' by Curtiss Maldoon 1971)  
02 Berlin (from 'Lou Reed' by Lou Reed 1972)
03 Love Song (from 'All To Bring You Morning' by Johnny Harris 1973) 
04 Catherine Of Aragon (from 'The Six Wives Of Henry VIII' by Rick Wakeman 1973)
05 Song Of Innocence (from 'Ramshackled' by Alan White 1975)
06 Up In The Air (from 'Industry Standard' by The Dregs 1982)
07 The Murder Of Love (from 'A Secret Wish' by Propaganda 1985)
08 Airlift (from 'Transportation' by Billie Currie 1988)
09 Sharp On Attack (from the compilation album 'Guitar Speak' 1988) 
10 Say Something (from 'Say Something' by Andy Leek 1988)
11 There's A Spy (In The House Of Love) (from 'Animal Logic' by Animal Logic 1989)  
12 Innuendo (from 'Innuendo' by Queen 1991)

Mick Ronson - ...and on guitar (1979)

Mick Ronson initially wanted to be a cellist, but moved to guitar upon discovering the music of Duane Eddy, whose sound on the bass notes of his guitar sounded to Ronson similar to that of the cello. He played with a number of small bands in the 60's including The Mariners, The Crestas, The Voice,  The Wanted, and then Hull's top local band, The Rats. In 1967 The Rats recorded the one-off psychedelic track, 'The Rise and Fall of Bernie Gripplestone' at Fairview Studios in Willerby, Yorkshire, which can be heard on the 2008 release 'Front Room Masters – Fairview Studios 1966–1973'. When John Cambridge left The Rats to join his former Hullaballoos bandmate Mick Wayne in Junior's Eyes, he was replaced by Mick 'Woody' Woodmansey, and in early 1970, Cambridge came back to Hull in search of Ronson, intent upon recruiting him for David Bowie's new backing band The Hype, along with drummer Woodmansey. He found Ronson marking out a rugby pitch, one of his duties as a Parks Department gardener for Hull City Council, and although initially reluctant, he eventually agreed to accompany Cambridge to a meeting with Bowie. Two days later, on 5 February, Ronson made his debut with Bowie on John Peel's national BBC Radio 1 show, and from that point on his future was assured. 
Within a few years his reputation had grown so much that he was often asked to contribute to other artist's albums, and later even to produce them. His first post-Bowie guest spot was actually on the recommendation of his employer, who was producing Lou Reed's 'Transformer' album, and he invited Ronson to play guitar on it. The same year he was asked to contribute to The Pure Prairie League's second album 'Bustin' Out', and I've included his superlative work on 'Angel No. 9' as an example of his contribution to the record, and Ronson was so taken with this song that he included a cover of it on his second solo album 'Play Don't Worry'. In 1974 Mott The Hoople were recording their last single before Ian Hunter left and the rest of the group reformed as simply Mott. During the recording of 'The Saturday Gigs' guitarist Ariel Bender was replaced by Ronson, marking his only official appearance on a Mott the Hoople release, and Ronson's image was used in the middle of the band's line-up on the single's cover. After Ian Hunter left Mott The Hoople he embarked on a long and successful solo career, starting which what I still consider his best album 'Ian Hunter', and 'Once Bitten, Twice Shy' shows Ronson at his very best. 
In 1976 Ronson contributed guitar to the title track of David Cassidy's 'Getting It In The Street' album, giving the former bubblegum pop star a bit of street cred. The same year he was a surprise addition to Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Review tour, and concert recordings were eventually released as the 'Hard Rain' album, from which I've included the rocking 'Maggie's Farm'. Roger Daltrey employed Ronson's guitar on his 1977 solo release 'One Of The Boys', for which Paul McCartney wrote a new song 'Giddy', and Ronson was joined by Hank Marvin, Eric Clapton and Alvin Lee on a great fun recording. Also that year Ronson and Ian Hunter produced and played on Ellen Foley's debut album 'Nightout', with Ronson suggesting that she record two songs by Phil Rambow, one of which is included here. The most surprising track on this album, though, is a 1970 recording for Elton John's 'Tumbleweed Connection' album, where Ronson played guitar on the track 'Madman Across the Water'. This version of the song was not included in the original release of the album of the same name two years later, although it was eventually included on deluxe re-issues, and you wonder how this outstanding near-nine minute take could ever have been dropped from the record. Ronson collaborated with many more artists throughout the rest of his career, but I think this collection of his work from the 70's shows him at his best, and also the variety of artists who held him in high enough esteem to want him added to their records.   

Track listing

01 Vicious (from 'Transformer' by Lou Reed 1972)
02 Madman Across The Water (original version with Elton John 1970)
03 Angel No. 9 (from 'Bustin' Out' by The Pure Prairie League 1972)
04 The Saturday Gigs (single by Mott The Hoople 1974)
05 Once Bitten, Twice Shy (from 'Ian Hunter' by Ian Hunter 1975)
06 Gettin' It In The Streets (from 'Gettin' It In The Streets' by David Cassidy 1976)
07 Maggie's Farm (from 'Hard Rain' by Bob Dylan 1976)
08 Giddy (from 'One Of The Boys' by Roger Daltrey 1977)
09 Night Out (from 'Nightout' by Ellen Foley 1979)

Lou Reed - Metal Machine Trio Live (2010)

I haven't posted any live bootlegs on the site yet, as that's not really what it's about, but I've been thinking of posting this one for a while now, if only for the reason that since I got it shortly after the concert at the Royal Festival Hall in 2010, I've never seen it appear on any other sites in the past eight years. This means that there could be Lou Reed fans out there who don't even know that it exists, and it should as it's a part of his long and varied career that shouldn't be overlooked. I know it will have a niche audience, as it's based on the controversial 'Metal Machine Music' album which divided fans throughout the world, but for the live concerts they had to make the music a bit more structured and so I find that I can listen to this live concert much easier than the parent album. The trio of Reed, Ulrich Krieger and Sarth Calhoun performed one 63-minute piece of improvised music, but it's really not as bad as that sounds, as they'd performed other gigs before this one so they were well practiced in what they were doing. For fans of Lou who've never heard it, or for anyone who has a fondness for experimental music, then do give this a listen. 

Track listing

01 Improvisation