two takes
“You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'” (P. Spector, B. Mann, C. Weil)
Glen Campbell (1936-2017, voice, guitar) and Leon Russell (1942-2016, voice, keyboards), live (TV show [In Session]), 1983
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The Righteous Brothers, 1964
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lagniappe
random sights
other day, Oak Park, Ill.
passings
Leon Russell, singer, songwriter, piano player, April 2, 1942-November 13, 2016
“His Eye Is on the Sparrow” (C. Martin, C. Gabriel), 2013*
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*Recorded in tribute to Sherman Halsey (video director and producer, artist manager).
passings
Joe Cocker, singer, May 20, 1944-December 22, 2014
“The Letter,” live (with Leon Russell, piano, et al.), 1970
Leon Russell loved these guys so much—both, alas, have since passed—that, in 1974, he recorded them for his Shelter label.
The O’Neal Twins
“Jesus Dropped The Charges,” live
Take 1 (Say Amen, Somebody [1982])
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Take 2
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“It’s A Highway To Heaven,” live (Say Amen, Somebody [1982])
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“Power In The Blood,” live (TV broadcast), mid-1960s
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“He Chose Me,” live
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“He’ll Give You Peace In The Midst Of The Storm,” live, Texas (Dallas), 1981
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lagniappe
In a 2005 interview with the Post-Dispatch, Mr. [Edgar] O’Neal spoke about the early challenges. “We always had bookings and recordings, but when we started, black gospel was not readily accepted with the wide range it is today,” he said. “And the money wasn’t there.”
The O’Neals—with Edgar on piano and both brothers singing—challenged gospel tradition. “The main gospel thrust at the time (was) male quartets, and we were a piano group,” Mr. O’Neal said. “We were considered in a different category from the male singing groups. But then the quartets got into piano. It took some years as we stayed out there before our style took hold.”
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The O’Neal Twins
Fontella Bass
Chuck Berry
Scott Joplin
Little Milton
Clark Terry
Ike & Tina Turner
When it comes to musical history, few cities are as rich as St. Louis.
Time travel’s easy on the net. With this guy we started, the other day, with music he made just last month. Then we headed back to the ’70s. Today we go back even farther—to the ’60s.
Leon Russell, Shindig! (TV)
“Hi-Heel Sneakers,” 10/28/1964
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“Roll Over Beethoven,” 11/18/1964
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“Jambalaya,” 2/3/1965
(Yeah, the guy in front with the banjo—that’s Glen Campbell.)
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lagniappe
reading table
Gregory Corso, “Marriage”
Want to read this yourself? Here.
Here’s more of Leon Russell and J.J. Cale—together.
Leon Russell, J.J. Cale, live, Los Angeles, 1979
“Going Down”
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“I Got The Same Old Blues”
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“Boiling Pot”
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“Corrine, Corrina”
At the recording session for the new Elton John/Leon Russell album, how did producer T Bone Burnett break the ice in the studio?
He played this clip (“Didn’t It Rain,” 2:20).
Mahalia Jackson, “Everybody Talkin’ ‘Bout Heaven,” “Didn’t It Rain,” “The Lord’s Prayer,” live, Newport Jazz Festival (Newport, Rhode Island), 1958
Want more? Here.
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lagniappe
I think that this is what everybody needs a whole lot of—not only in their playing, but in their way of living.
As far as rating this—maybe you should use a different kind of star for rating this from the stars you use rating jazz records. A moving star. Make it five moving stars.
—Charles Mingus, listening to a record by Mahalia Jackson during a Downbeat “Blindfold Test” (1960)
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art beat
Lee Friedlander, “Mahalia Jackson” (1956)
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[I]t almost looks like if you could see the next second after this picture was taken that she would start to ascend.
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live on the ’net: tonight, 8 p.m. (EDT)
Todd Rundgren, “the Class of 1963 Wells Scholars Professor at Indiana University Bloomington for this fall,” will talk about—and perform—his music in an “autobiographical concert” that’ll be video-streamed live.
The story behind their new album is a sweet one.
Elton John & Leon Russell
Making The Union (2010)
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Live (TV broadcast [Good Morning America], with Marc Ribot, guitar), New York (Beacon Theatre), 10/20/10
Part 1 (music begins at 4:10), “If It Wasn’t For Bad”
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Part 2, “Hearts Have Turned To Stone,” “Tiny Dancer”
music clip of the day 