Tag Archives: Famous musicians

My Encounter With a Rock and Roll Superstar…And How It All Leads Back To The Master of Space and Time, Leon Russell

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UPDATE 2026: Here’s yet another missed opportunity to meet the MOSAT. This is an update to a post I wrote in 2020. I was purging old posts, read this one, and have no idea how I missed the connection between Tom Petty’s guitarist and Leon Russell, but I did, and now that I know, I’m going to contact him and hopehopehope he’ll be amenable to sharing stories about Leon and not be too annoyed with my LR obsession.

Ron Blair, the original bassist for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, has a direct connection to Leon Russell through the band’s early career and record label, Shelter Records.

Leon Russell’s Shelter Records was the platform that signed and released the early music of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, featuring Ron on bass. 

In the mid-1970s, Tom Petty signed with Shelter Records, a label co-owned by Leon Russell and Denny Cordell.

Ron Blair joined the Heartbreakers in 1976 after Mudcrutch (Petty’s previous band) disbanded. During this period, the band was under the Shelter Records umbrella, which Russell founded.

Before forming the Heartbreakers, members of the group, including those who worked with Blair, were part of the Los Angeles music scene where Leon Russell was a prominent figure. Ron Blair was the bassist for the band from 1976 to 1981, during which time the band established its sound, often described as a mix of rock, country, and blues. 

Original post…

I just saw an old video of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and it reminded me of something from my past.

When my son was around eight or ten years old (early 1990s), I’d bring him along with me to the gym and he’d go (reluctantly) to the babysitting room for an hour or so. It was mostly other doubledigiters so he didn’t have a real problem with it, and eventually became friendly with a boy about the same age.

Their friendship progressed beyond the gym to birthdays and sleepovers. For a while, these two boys were inseparable.

One day, out of the blue, and I’m a bit fuzzy on the details, the boy’s dad asked if I could give him a ride to LAX. It’s a ninety minute drive and I’m not sure why I said yes ‘cos I seriously HATE to drive, especially if it involves LA traffic, but I loaded the boys and the dad (along with his guitar) in my car.

I can’t pinpoint the exact moment when I learned that his dad was actually superstar guitarist Ron Blair of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, but when I did, I was suitably impressed and starstruck. All I do remember is that he was always quiet but courteous and appreciated the airport ride. However, he looked EVERY bit a rock and roll superstar.

A couple weeks pre-Covid, a friend invited me to a fundraiser for the local food bank. It was an outdoor venue with a lot of musical guests. The headliner’s name was a familiar one. Lo and behold,  it was Ron Blair, who now lives in my little town.

We chatted a bit; I can’t honestly say that he remembered me, but he did remember my son which was cool.

Still quiet, humble, friendly, and amazingly talented.

We’ve all aged and I’m obviously way too old to be a groupie (sigh), but I do remember THOSE good old days, haha.

 

Master of Space and Time: Leon Russell

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“I love you in a place where there’s no space or time…”

As I drove around town last week, I heard A Song for You by Leon Russell on the radio. I haven’t heard that song in years and years and it grabbed my heart just like it did decades ago. Others have covered this song, but no one does it like Leon.

I later found out that he passed away in 2016. I had no recollection of that and I’m so sorry that I didn’t know because I always loved his music, That was the same year that we lost David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Prince, Leonard Cohen, and George Michael! Can you imagine the loss of all that talent? Crazy.

In fact, I sort of recalled seeing him in concert –-once upon a time — and texted my friend that I used to go to concerts with (she’s the one who reminded me of the time I jumped on the stage to see Jim Morrison) and she totally remembered that we HAD seen him perform.

Back then — before smart phones — no one regularly documented each and every moment of their life, so I have to rely on my memory (or hers).

I’ve been listening to him on repeat for days; his voice was mesmerizing (he was gorgeous, too, with those beautiful eyes), and the story of how he lived and died nearly in obscurity because of poor life choices and poor health — is tragic.

In 2011, thanks to his good friend Elton John, he was inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Even before he became famous, Russell had a career as a first call session pianist, performing with everyone from Frank Sinatra, Dylan, Streisand, The Rolling Stones, and The Beach Boys.

“Russell was music’s North Star, pioneering a distinctly American sound that changed the career paths of stars, including Eric Clapton, George Harrison and Elton John. He created a band that became one of music’s most legendary live acts; made Mad Dogs & Englishmen, for Joe Cocker; stole the show from a white hot lineup of artists at the Concert for Bangladesh; became a star in his own right with solo albums that featured songs that became standards, including Song for You and This Masquerade; and inspired the icon Willie Nelson to create his enduring outlaw country persona.” https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/05/he-was-central-to-music-history-the-forgotten-legacy-of-leon-russell

Featured image photo credit to The Daily Beast via Pinterest