Another message from Ed B:
Hi there Skid Marks,
I'm going to break my own rule and send this response, more as a thank you for the gratifying and kind comments about my previous post than anything, they were much appreciated ( and genuinely surprised me.)
There seems to be uncertainty about who played bass on the BIA trax.
After checking with Neil Dorfsman, and from my own direct observations and putting the credits together ….
John played on SFA, MFN, WOL (yes),YLT, TMTS
Tony Levin played on RATR, WW, BIA.
Neil Jason played on OW.
I’m sure you can figure out why the credits were done the way they were …..and now you know what drum bits Terry did and were kept and what Omar Hakim REdid in Montserrat.
That just leaves Jack RIP who put guitar synth on TMTS ( for which, incidentally, M wrote a completely different set of lyrics just to entertain the crew at soundchecks ie filthy, disgusting, REALLY disgusting and hilarious. )
Pottel is entirely correct re Chet’s personality.
The FIRST time I met him in Nashville airport, he introduced himself “ hi, ah’m Chet At At At uuurgh Atkins, sheeeeet I got me the biggest dick in N N N….Nashville. “
Since M and I had only just arrived I don't know how he knew that but you get the picture ( no I don’t mean of his dick).
The absolute BEST guy.
Out there Elvis stories , a true gent RIP and a privilege to have fondled his teeth.
WOL.
I had been travelling and when I got back to NY I popped into the Power Station where Neil and Mark were recording his vocals ( no, not together! )
They had just put up WOL which I'd not heard before.
“ What’s this?” I said.
“ Ah, nothing, it's just a B side “ responded M. I don't recall Neil saying anything and I’ve no idea where this idea that he ‘hated” it came from ( maybe he does, he’s 99% deaf anyway…that’s good in his line of work ).
“ But that’s a hit song” …I squeaked which led to a 5 minute debate about whether it should be included on the album or not.
“ So it's good enough to be a B side but it's NOT good enough to go on the record?” I asked.
Sheer brilliance on my part, I mean COME ON …...M rarely if ever took a commercial view of his music so just as well I was around. Ha! ( The band weren’t there so not involved ).
So it went on the album and the single A side version sold more Worldwide than MFN.
It was “inspired” by the organ sound of The Animals…...a fave of both M’s and mine when we wuz yung, a Farfisa I think.
That’s a v kind comment Jabent.
George Martin was one of my closest, closest friends up to his passing …a bit of a hero as a person (not because of the FABS ).
Same goes for Peter Grant ( def not because of Zeppelin but because I have a natural affinity with thugs and gangsters ).
Incidentally Pavel, how do you know Guy has lava lamps, that’ s supposed to be a secret ?
Now, today’s star prize, YOU, Pavel, get 11 out of 10 for your comment re humour , the never stated ingredient that makes it all work or in the absence of, not work.
Absolutely crucial and we all had …well maybe not ALL, but most of us did until around 1990 when certain members of our family lost theirs big time.
Again Chris W is 100% right.
He only saw “serious” because that was all there WAS to see and Dusty Springfield’s comment is extremely perceptive.
Extremely, as is Chris’ about BIA and he wasn’t even on that !
That was a career highlight for sure.
LOTS of laughs , great lineup, great music, amazing audiences and once in a while, a girl with no teeth and a wooden leg would lurch into view and tap dance ( no offence intended to the one legged).
Camerado is right, absolutely, the BAND and CREW made OES work and became experts in disguising the sheer misery and toxicity of it and ultimately that’s why I eventually quit ( it had a quite “disturbing” effect on us all I think, mentally and physically ).
And Chris very subtly refers to another “issue” which you can now speculate about.
I hinted about that in the Tribute band bit of the previous post and I’m NOT trying to be coy, but all this really needs to go in a movie, a TV series, hardback book, paperback book, audio book, DVD, CD, an AI version of someone who isn’t me reading it to someone who isn’t you, all for £9.99 including VAT , AND a book tour.
That’s it. I’m out of here, apologies for being a bit more serious in this one. .
The Colonel.
No, not that one.
