Seriously, is there anyone that didn’t work with Leon Russell? (That’s obviously a rhetorical question.)
“Dream Baby” was recorded for Cher in October 1964 with Gene Page as the arranger and Sonny as producer.
It was done in typical Phil Spector “Wall of Sound” fashion at Gold Star Studios where Spector made all those great songs with the Ronettes and Crystals.
Sonny had the best available musicians brought in, that included Larry Knechtel, Tommy Tedesco, Jimm Bond, Steve Douglas and Leon Russell.
The song was released in late 1964 on Imperial Records with Cher using her name Cherilyn, then again in 1966 after Cher’s hit, “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down).”
Here’s a fun video of the Wrecking Crew and Cher talking about Leon. According to Cher, Leon never said “boo” to anybody during recording sessions, except this one time…
This is Leon’s cover of “Sailing,” a song Rod Stewart recorded in Muscle Shoals for his 1975 album Atlantic Crossing.
Leon’s version was produced by Yasu Tokuda and arranged by Kazz Izumi and was recorded at Nashville’s East Iris Studio (formerly the house Of Blues Studio) on March 1, 2005.
“Sailing” was included on Leon’s 2005 import compilation A Song For You as a bonus track, with the other seventeen songs culled from Leon’s Signature Songs and Moonlight & Love Songs CDs.
“This day will never come again and anyone who fails to eat and drink and taste and smell it will never have it offered to him again in all eternity. The sun will never shine as it does today…But you must play your part and sing a song, one of your best.” —Herman Hesse/“Klingsor’s Last Summer”.
Right now it’s about 6:30 a.m. The day is fresh, the sky is pink, and it’s so quiet that I can hear a Downy Woodpecker poking holes in the eucalyptus tree. Other birds are singing and flying back and forth across the garden. A few crows call to each other. It’s peaceful. Serene. Meditative.
Leon Russell understood exactly what Hesse was talking about, especially sing a song, one of your best.
“Life is a song, and love is the music.” – Leon Russell
Leon’s last recording of his iconic A Song For You from the album A Distant Shore, was released posthumously in 2017.
Leon alwaysalways managed to convey a lifetime of authentic heartfelt emotion in every word and note, as he played the piano like no one ever will again. This version is beautiful; reflective, melancholy.
“A Song For You” by Leon Russell
I love you in a place Where there’s no space and time And when my life is over Remember when we were together We were alone, and I was singing this song for you —
Hermann Karl Hesse was a German-Swiss poet and novelist, and winner of the 1946 Nobel Prize in Literature. His interest in Eastern religious, spiritual, and philosophical traditions, combined with his involvement with Jungian analysis, helped shape his literary work.
Nearly fifty years earlier, this was Leon on the Homewood Sessions with “A Song For You”…
In December 1970 Leon Russell recorded the Homewood Sessions at the Vine Street Theatre in Hollywood, broadcast as an ‘unscripted and unrehearsed’ one-hour TV special on KCET TV and later re-broadcast several times on the Public Broadcasting System. They actually shot six hours but only broadcast one. Claimed to be the first national broadcast of a stereo rock and roll performance, this would have required an FM simulcast, since American television was not stereo in 1970s.
“Tomorrow I’ll Be Gone” is an unreleased 1966 track widely attributed to a collaboration between Leon Russell and legendary music producer Snuff Garrett.
This specific 1966 recording has circulated among deep-cut collectors and music historians—often appearing on rare bootlegs or historical archival threads labeled as an “Unknown Artist” fronting a track arranged or written by Russell and Garrett. Because it was never given an official studio release by a major label, it remains a rare piece of rock-and-roll history.
I’m not all about Leon Russell, at least not ALL the time. I have a certain fond connection to PNW-born musician Macklemore, if you can believe it…
It relates to skateboarding and that’s all I’m going to say!
There are many reasons why I admire Macklemore, real name Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, and it’s not just because I reallyreally like his music, which I do.
I swear, I’ve been playing Thrift Shop on repeat for a long time. I AM that thrift shop girl hahahaha.
I admire him because he’s a great dad and I’ve witnessed it in action, so this is not celebrity gossip, and I admire him for the way he walks the talk and speaks his truth:
Macklemore has been loudly advocating for an end to Israel’s genocide in Gaza for years. The Seattle rapper is currently opening for Sheeran on his North American stadium tour, and he’s using it as a platform to advocate for a free Palestine among other causes. In response, a pro-Israel group has launched a petition to get him removed from the tour.
Halfway through his opening set Friday at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, Macklemore delivered a version of the speech he’s been giving through the tour. He’s since posted video footage of the speech on Instagram for all to see.
I’ve been trying to figure out a way to say this all day. One of the reasons why I wanted to come on this tour was because I wanted to stand up here on stages in stadiums across America and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: “Free Palestine.” I said, “Free Palestine!” I want those words to be loud and clear so that people from Gaza, all the way to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten them.
And this next song was inspired by the bravery of Columbia University students who led an encampment movement that mobilized the entire world. Opened up hearts, myself included. So thank you to those students that risked their diplomas, that risked their tuition, that risked their scholarships, that stood up and said, “No.” CUAD students, Students For Justice In Palestine, and Jewish Voices For Peace. Thank you guys.
To all of my Jewish brothers and sisters: Criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid, being against genocide in no way is a criticism of you. My message is for peace. Love. For all human beings to be treated with dignity, respect, and equality. So I say free Palestine. I say free Lebanon. I say free Cuba. I say free Congo, free Sudan, free all people in America living in fear over this terrorist organization ICE. None of us will be free until we are all free. (Curated from Stereogum)
Instead of petitioning against him and vilifying this talented musician, husband, and wonderful dad, how about we REALLY listen to his words?
Macklemore is a brave truth teller and ought to be commended. As granddaughter of a rabbi, I’m on #TeamMacklemore
Here’s a couple of my fave songs, and I chose the ADULT version:
I’d Rathe Be Blind is a blues song written, composed, and produced by LeonRussell, recorded by legendary blues guitarist and singer FreddieKing with Leon on piano.
(This is not the same as “I’d Rather Go Blind” by Etta Jamea.)
Image from Church Studio
Freddie’s voice is as distinctive as Leon’s.
When I saw Leon in concert, he was with Freddie King. It was memorable, that’s for sure.
Was there anyone Leon did NOT work with? I think not. This time it was Aretha Franklin.
Check out this treasure from 1964 when Leon Russell was the featured house pianist for the TV show, Shindig.
This time, he’s right there with Aretha Franklin, and once again, this is Leon with short hair, no beard, and no sunglasses, but he’s still and always the Master of Space and TIme.
The two shared a mutual professional history: Leon Russell played piano on early sessions for Franklin at Columbia Records (including a string arrangement of “Am I Blue?”), and Franklin later recorded a renowned cover of Russell’s classic ballad, “A Song for You”.
Before the collaboration with Aretha on Shindig, word got around about the skinny kid from Oklahoma who played the piano like nobody else, and producers and arrangers booked him for their sessions as soon as he turned twenty-one and was able to join the union. Among them was Robert Mersey who had Russell on several, including this pair of songs for Aretha Franklin in 1963. Thanks to Leon Russell Superstar in a Masquerade
That’s how casually George Harrison introduced the force of energy and talent that was Leon Russell to the crowd at the Concert for Bangladesh, the first historic benefit shows organized by George Harrison and Ravi Shankar at Madison Square Garden in New York City on August 1, 1971.
As always, Leon’s arrangements and performances were magical and inspiring. I mean, how in the world did he think of choosing an old song by the Coasters and pair it with Jumpin’ Jack Flash? More genius by the Master of Space and Time… It absolutely didn’t hurt that he was absolutely gorgeous, right?
You can find the whole concert video on Dailymotion. Other performers include Bob Dylan. Leon Russell on guitar and backup singer with Dylan is a bonus.
Jumpin’ Jack Flash and Young Blood:
Cool rehearsal footage of Come On In My Kitchen, and yup, that’s Ringo Starr on drums!
Last night as I was closing the windows, I looked out and up, and witnessed the rising of the moon.
I hadn’t used my real camera in a while, but I knew my phone would never be able to capture the details, so I snapped a few pics with my Canon and this was the best of the bunch…She’s a beauty!
Photo by Enchanted Seashells
Yes, it was really that reddish-orange-gold color, probably from whatever wildfires are raging in the area, and those are the power lines near the lagoon.
Thank you, Mother Moon! Happily, I found a Leon Russell song to accompany a full moon…When My Blue Moon Turns To Gold:
I couldn’t locate a live performance, but it’s still Leon being Leon, Master of Space and TIme.
I hope nobody watched or streamed that demented orange POSs speech yesterday. There are other, more pressing matters to occupy ourselves with, like why can't we eat salads or fresh salsa with cilantro? Why is our food contaminated with cyclospora? Why did that POS remove the FDA “Food Traceability Rule” and place us at risk?
ANYWAY, back to my form of reality (and therapy)…
Does anybody even know what “shindig” means?
The word originated in the United States in the mid-19th century. It’s believed to be a playful alteration of the older slang word shindy, which originally referred to a rowdy commotion or a street game similar to field hockey.
In modern, everyday use, it’s synonymous with words like “bash,” “blowout,” or “hoedown”. For example, you might say, “Are you going to the big neighborhood shindig this weekend?”
In the mid-60s, there was a TV show broadcast from Los Angeles called Shindig! It was a musical variety series hosted by DJ Jimmy O’Neill. I never watched it, maybe it wasn’t shown in my area, I dunno.
Most exciting for all of us who love him is that Leon Russell, the house band’s pianist, was often featured in solo performances.
I never get tired of wondering exactly how Leon went from THIS to the uber cool long-haired sunglass-wearing exuberant Master of Space and Time that filled stadiums. The butterfly definitely broke out of the chrysalis!
Photo credit from Pinterest
Check out Leon on the first song with Donna Loren (you can hear him before you see him, it’s unmistakably LEON) and something I’ve never seen before, Leon on organ with Bobby Sherman at 10:02.
