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Posts Tagged Session

Archive

July 9, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

R.I.P. Joe Porcaro

Joe Porcaro has died. He was aged 90. The patriarch or a musical family Joe was a trained jazz drummer and educator. He worked in sessions across kit and percussion and stretched over so many genres – but he could also be found in a jazz club playing his first love, leading or sitting in […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Drum Teacher, Drummer, Drums, Eulogy, Jeff Porcaro, Joe Porcaro, Mike Porcaro, Percussion, Percussionist, R.I.P., R.I.P. Joe Porcaro, Session, Sessions, Steve Porcaro, Toto ·

Archive

March 12, 2019 by Simon Sweetman

R.I.P. Hal Blaine

Hal Blaine has died. The session drumming legend was 90. What a life. What a legacy. If he wasn’t the most prolific sessioneer skinsman he was certainly the most successful of the busy-schedule players. A part of one of the greatest groups of all time – The Wrecking Crew (not a band as such, a collective […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 90, A Little Less Conversation, Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In, Be My Baby, California Dreaming, Can't Help Falling In Love, Dean Martin, Drummer, Drumming, Drums, Elvis Presley, Emmylou Harris, Eulogy, Eve of Destruction, Everybody Loves Somebody, Frank Sinatra, God Only Knows, Good Vibrations, Hal Blaine, https://www.moderndrummer.com/article/april-1981-hal-blaine/?fbclid=IwAR3VCmmiHIlE9kWKHH4Ctttvya4WclpJc_JDyedfEQLFyBKm8XP2PTNicrk, I Am A Rock, I Get Around, John Denver, Johnny Angel, Legend, Modern Drummer, Nancy Sinatra, Neil Diamond, Prolific, R.I.P., R.I.P. Hal Blaine, Session, Sessions, Simon & Garfunkel, Studio, Surf City, The 5th Dimension, The Beach Boys, The Carpenters, The Mamas and The Papas, the Rocky Horror Show's original cast recording, The Wrecking Crew, Then He Kissed Me, These Boots Are Made For Walking, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

Archive

October 17, 2018 by Simon Sweetman

RNZ Music Feature: Steve Gadd

I’m usually on RNZ once a month to have a chat about some new albums. But the other day I got the call up to present a Music Feature for the Afternoons show. Well, actually, I was on-air talking about some albums in my regular review slot and I was promoting the back that legendary drummer Steve […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Afternoons, Afternoons with Jesse Mulligan, Chat, Chick Corea, Chuck Mangione, Conversation, Drummer, Drumming, Drums, Gadd, Interview, James Carter, Jazz, Jesse Mulligan, Master, Music, Paul Simon, Radio, Radio New Zealand, RadioNZ, Rickie Lee Jones, RNZ, RNZ Music Feature, RNZ Music Feature: Steve Gadd, Rodger Fox, Session, Simon Sweetman, Steely Dan, Steve, Steve Gadd, The Rodger Fox Big Band, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

Archive

October 15, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

R.I.P. Grady Tate

The American jazz drummer and vocalist Grady Tate has died. He was 85. The cause: complications from Alzheimer’s disease. He was one of my favourite drummers. There’s a good chance he was one of your favourite drummers too – even if you think you didn’t know his playing there’s every chance you did. He played […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged "Singer", Drummer, Drums, Eulogy, Grady Tate, Jazz, Pop, R.I.P., R.I.P. Grady Tate, Session, Vocalist ·

Archive

May 7, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

My Tony Levin Interview: Q&A

Tony Levin is perhaps best known for his work with Peter Gabriel and King Crimson but he has appeared on over 500 albums. He has worked with Lou Reed and our own Tim Finn; with James Taylor and Carly Simon. He even appears in Paul Simon’s cult film, One Trick Pony.   Over a series of emails I asked Levin some questions ahead of his 2010 visit to New […]
Posted in Blog, Interviews · Tagged Bass, Chapman Stick, Interview, King Crimson, My Tony Levin Interview, My Tony Levin Interview: Q&A, One Trick Pony, Peter Gabriel, Q&A, Session, Tony Levin, Touring ·

Archive

October 10, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

The Very Extremely Dangerous Eddie Hinton: Revisiting A Lost Classic

Of course I knew the name Eddie Hinton – and isn’t that the thing we always say, “I know the name”. But with Hinton it’s hard not to know about him. He worked with so many of the greats. But you take a listen to the material he released as a solo artist and you […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged "Singer", Blog, Blog Archives, Blog On The Tracks, Eddie Hinton, Guitarist, Hard Luck Guy, Letters from Mississippi, Revisiting A Lost Classic, Session, Sideman, Soul, The Very Extremely Dangerous Eddie Hinton: Revisiting A Lost Classic, Very Extremely Dangerous ·

Archive

May 4, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 703

Eric Gale, Ginseng Woman (1977) Some 20 years ago I moved to Wellington and started raiding the second-hand vinyl stores, there were a few of them then – and you’d also find people giving away whole- or part-collections, garage sales, all sorts. I guess that’s still the case, but the stores are shrinking. Limited market. […]
Posted in Blog, The Vinyl Countdown · Tagged 1977, 2nd-Hand, Bargain, Bob James, Eric Gale, Ginseng Woman, LP, One Trick Pony, Paul Simon, Record, Record Collecting, Session, The Vinyl Countdown # 703, Vinyl, Wellington ·

Archive

March 16, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

Auckland Writers Festival: 10-15 May, 2016

It’s the return of the Auckland Writers Festival and what a line-up, see the full list of events here. Over 100 events across a handful of days and featuring “the mother of feminism” Gloria Steinem, author Jeanette Winterson, comedian, writer and bird-watcher, Bill Oddie, and ex-politician, former Midnight Oil frontperson and environmentalist, Peter Garrett. Well, […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 2016), Ak, Aucklad, Auckland Writers Festival, Auckland Writers Festival: 10-15 May, Bill Oddie, Books, David Hare, Discussion, Gloria Steinem, Interview, Jeanette Winterson, Live, Marlon James, May, May 10-15, Panel, Peter Garrett, Q&A, Readers, Session, Steve Braunias, Writers ·

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