Alvin Lee - ...and on guitar (1992)

Graham Anthony Barnes (aka Alvin Lee) was born on 19 December 1944, and began playing guitar at the age of 13. In 1960 he and Leo Lyons formed the core of the band he was most associated with, Ten Years After, after firstly being influenced by his parents' collection of jazz and blues records, but mostly being inspired by the advent of rock and roll. The band's big break came in 1969, when their performance at the Woodstock Festival was captured on film, and his lightning-fast playing helped catapult him to stardom, and soon the band was playing arenas and stadiums around the globe after the film brought Lee's music to a worldwide audience. Ten Years After released ten albums together, but by 1973 Lee was feeling limited by the band's style, with Columbia Records steering them into a pop direction following a radio hit with 'I'd Love To Change The World, while Lee preferred blues-rock, and so he left the band after their second Columbia LP. Along with American Christian rock pioneer Mylon LeFevre, and guests George Harrison, Steve Winwood, Ronnie Wood and Mick Fleetwood, he recorded and released 'On The Road To Freedom', which was acclaimed as being at the forefront of country rock. Also in 1973, he sat in on the Jerry Lee Lewis double album 'The Session...Recorded in London', and a year later, in response to a dare, he formed Alvin Lee & Company to play a show at the Rainbow Theatre in London, and released it as the double live album 'In Flight'. After guesting on records by George Harrison and Splinter in 1974, he played guitar on a couple of tracks on Bo Diddley's 'The 20th Anniversary of Rock 'n' Roll', and he finished the 70's with an outfit called Ten Years Later, with Tom Compton on drums and Mick Hawksworth on bass, releasing two albums and touring extensively throughout Europe and the United States. The 1980's brought another change in Lee's direction, with two albums that were collaborations with Rare Bird's Steve Gould, and a tour for which the former John Mayall and Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor joined his band, and guest appearances ceased for most of that decade, only appearing on Roger Chapman's 'Techno-Prisoners' in 1987. Lee died on 6 March 2013 in Spain, as a result of unforeseen complications following a routine surgical procedure to correct an atrial arrhythmia. He was 68.

Track listing

01 Movin' On Down The Line (from 'The Session' by Jerry Lee Lewis 1973)
02 Gravy Train (from 'The Place I Love' by Splinter 1974)
03 Ding Dong Ding Dong (from 'Dark Horse' by George Harrison 1974)
04 Royal Majesty (from 'Anniversary Special: Volume One' by The Earl Scruggs Revue 1975)
05 Cat Dance (from 'Peter And The Wolf' Various Artists album 1975)
06 Kill My Body (from 'The 20th Anniversary Of Rock & Roll' by Bo Diddley 1976)
07 Wild Again (from 'Techno-Prisoners' by Roger Chapman 1987)
08 No Limit (from 'Guitar Speak' Various Artists album 1988)
09 I Love New York (from 'The Taiga Symphony' by Valeria 1991)
10 Jane (From 'Rockeye' by The Outfield 1992)

George Harrison - ...and on guitar (1975)

By 1969 George Harrison's songwriting had come on in leaps and bounds, culminating in him providing two of the most popular songs on The Beatles' 'Abbey Road' album. That same year he co-wrote 'Badge' with Eric Clapton, which was included on Cream's 'Goodbye' album, and on which Harrison played rhythm guitar, using the pseudonym L'Angelo Misterioso for contractual reasons. In May 1970 he played guitar on several songs during a recording session for Bob Dylan's album 'New Morning', and although none of them made the final cut for the album, some of them have appeared on one of Dylan's 'Bootleg Series' albums, including an alternate take of 'New Morning's 'Time Passes Slowly'. In 1971 he produced and played slide guitar on Badfinger's top ten hit 'Day After Day', and contributed dobro to Billy Preston's 'I Wrote a Simple Song', while in 1972 he added guitar to Harry Nilsson's 'You're Breakin' My Heart'. The following year he appeared on Cheech & Chong's 'Basketball Jones' from their 'Big Bambu' album, and 1973 also saw him add guitar to 'Waiting For The Band' from Nicky Hopkins' 'The Tin Man Was A Dreamer' under the name of George O'Hara, and 'If You've Got Love' from 'It's Like You Never Left' by Dave Mason under another of his pseudonyms, Son Of Harry. Lastly from 1973, Hari Georgeson helped out Alvin Lee & Mylon LeFevre on 'So Sad (No Love Of His Own)' from their 'On The Road To Freedom' album. 1974 was a bit quieter, with Harrison co-writing 'Far East Man' with Ronnie Wood, and both artists recording their own versions of the song, with Wood's coming out first on his 'I've Got My Own Album To Do' release. Also in 1974, two-man band Splinter released their debut, Harrison-produced album 'The Place I Love' on his Dark Horse label. It was actually the first record to be released on the label, and Harrison played guitar and keyboards on it as well, with the record spawning the hit single 'Costafinetown'. In 1975 Harrison expanded his horizons and added guitar to Tom Scott's jazz album 'New York Connection', rounding off nicely his extra-curricular activities from the first half on the 70's. Harrison then took a break while he released solo albums of his own, with his next guest appearances being in 1981 on an album from Mick Fleetwood and a single by Ringo Starr.   

Track listing

01 Badge (single by Cream 1969)

02 Time Passes Slowly (from the 'New Morning' sessions with Bob Dylan 1970)

03 I Wrote A Simple Song (from 'I Wrote A Simple Song' by Billy Preston 1971)

04 Day After Day (single by Badfinger 1971)

05 You're Breaking My Heart (from 'Nilsson Schmilsson' by Harry Nilsson 1972)

06 If You've Got Love (from 'It's Like You Never Left' by Dave Mason  1973) 

07 Waiting For The Band (from 'The Tin Man Was A Dreamer' by Nicky Hopkins 1973)  

08 Basketball Jones (from 'Big Bambu' by Cheech & Chong 1973)

09 So Sad (No Love Of His Own) (from 'On The Road To Freedom' by Alvin Lee 1973)  

10 Far East Man (from 'I've Got My Own Album To Do' by Ronnie Wood 1974)

11 Somebody's City (from 'The Place I Love' by Splinter 1974)

12 Appolonia (from 'New York Connection' by Tom Scott 1975)