Music Break

Once again, one of these has definitely become overdue.  Here are a few songs that I've either known for a while, or discovered recently.  First up are the original Eagles with a live performance of Early Bird, which features guitarist Bernie Leadon on lead vocals and banjo, with Glenn Frey on slide guitar, Randy Meissner on bass and Don Henley on drums.  The instrumental that starts at around 3:20 is not present in the studio version.

Another song incorporating the banjo is Sweet City Woman by the Canadian group The Stampeders.  The band included Rich Dodson (guitar), Ronnie King (bass) and Kim Berly (drums).  Dodson takes the lead vocal, during which he sings along with his guitar solo, and according to Wiki, also recorded the banjo part.

Moving from country-influenced rock to rock-influenced country, I Fell In Love is the title song of an album released in 1990 by Carlene Carter, the daughter of country singers June Carter (who later married Johnny Cash) and Carl Smith.  She wrote the song with the help of her then-boyfriend Howie Epstein and Benmont Tench, who respectively played bass and keyboards for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.  This song also brings back some personal memories.  Back during the 90's, I visited a musically-inclined friend in Texas and got to see his band rehearse, during which they practiced this song.  Until it turned up on YouTube, that had been the only time I heard it.  If you watch closely, you can spot Epstein and Tench in video.

Another song I've recently run across, this time not having heard it at some point in the past, is Planet Claire by The B-52s, from their eponymous debut album, released in 1979 when their name included an apostrophe before the "s".  The lead vocals are shared between Fred Schneider, who also provides sound effects with a walkie-talkie, and Kate Pierson, who sings along with her own keyboard solo.  Vocalist Cindy Wilson plays the bongos, while her brother Ricky Wilson (who died in 1985) plays guitar and Keith Strickland plays drums.  The song borrows heavily from the Peter Gunn theme by Henry Mancini, so he is given co-writer's credit.  I tried to find a video with some sci-fi imagery.

Can't You Hear Me Knocking, from the 1971 Rolling Stones album Sticky Fingers, displays the contrasting guitar styles of Keith Richards and Mick Taylor, who had replaced original member Brian Jones.  The verses feature Mick Jagger's vocals intertwining with Richards' raw guitar riffs, with Taylor playing rhythm.  Richards harmonizes with Jagger on the chorus.  Starting around 2:40, the song completely changes mood as Bobby Keys solos on the sax, while the two guitarists play rhythm.  About 2 minutes later, Taylor begins a guitar solo which eventually closes out the song.  Besides regulars Bill Wyman on bass and Charlie Watts on drums, they are also joined by Nicky Hopkins on piano, Billy Preston on organ, Rocky Dijon on congas and the album's producer Jimmy Miller on percussion.