Leon Russell - Stop All That Jazz - 1974
Leon Russell has been a major force in music for more than four decades. He began playing the piano when he was just three years old. By the age of 14, he picked up a trumpet, formed his own band, lied about his age and managed to get a gig in a Tulsa nightclub. Over the next few years, he played and toured with various groups and artists that included Jerry Lee Lewis. In 1958, he moved to Los Angeles and shortly thereafter began working with legendary producer Phil Spector as part of the infamous "Wall of Sound." Leon quickly became a much sought after session player, recording with or writing songs for The Byrds, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, Herb Alpert, Barbra Streisand, and Frank Sinatra. By the early sixties, he was playing with Gary Paxton (Hollywood Argyles), Bobby "Boris" Pickett (Monster Mash/Cryptkickers) and David Gates (later of Bread.) Russell's solo career leapt forward when Russell and Denny Cordell assembled the all-star 43-member entourage for Joe Cocker's notorious "Mad Dogs and Englishmen" American tour. Leon and his band, The Shelter People, were featured prominently on Cocker's cover of the Box Top's "The Letter," (a top 10 hit in late spring of 1970). Shortly afterward, Leon and Denny Cordell formed Shelter Records and released the first Leon Russell album. Leon continued to accept high-profile invitations for session work, playing with the Rolling Stones, Dave Mason, and Bob Dylan. On August 1, 1971, he was featured with George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan in the "Concert For Bangladesh", at New York's Madison Square Garden. READ MORE HERE
01. If I Were a Carpenter
02. Smashed
03. Leaving Whipporwhill
04. Spanish Harlem
05. Streaker’s Ball
06. Working Girl
07. Time for Love
08. The Ballad of Hollis Brown
09. Mona Lisa Please
10. Stop All That Jazz
11. Wild Horses (bonus track)
12. With Willie Nelson – Wabash Cannonball (bonus track)
Leon Russell - Synthesizer, Banjo, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Keyboards, Piano (Electric), Vocals
John Cale - Guitar, Guitar (Electric)
Willie Nelson - Guitar, Guitar (Rhythm), Vocals
Don Preston - Dobro, Vocals, Guitar
Odell Stokes - Guitar
Edwin Scruggs, Linda Hargrove - Acoustic Guitar, Guitar
Pete Drake - Guitar (Steel)
Joey Cooper - Guitar, Vocals
Carl Radle, Henry Best, Ric Wilson - Bass
Jim Keltner, Robert Sinclair Wilson - Bass, Drums
Cam Wilson - Organ, Percussion, Vocals (Background)
Charlie Wilson - Keyboards, Vocals
John Gallie - Keyboards
Karl Himmel, Chuck Blackwell, Jamie Oldaker - Drums
William Kenner - Mandolin
Chris Clayton, Ronald Wilson, Tommy Lokey - Horn, Vocals (Background)
Ann Bell, Pam Thompson, Marcy Levy, Lena Stephens - Vocals, Vocals (Background)