Before I return to my regular programming, I offer a set of songs, some of which have roots that predate the genre called rock and roll. To start, this is the instrumental Joy by the studio group Apollo 100, based on Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring by Johann Sebastian Bach. The video includes footage from one of the Apollo flights to the moon.
The self-titled debut album by the Eagles includes Tryin', sung by bassist Randy Meisner.
For their 1982 album Diver Down, Van Halen covered Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now), written by Milton Ager and Jack Yellen in 1924. As the story of Van Halen's version goes, singer David Lee Roth recorded the song with a "Walkman-type" device while visiting his father. If the device's antenna was pointed in a certain direction, it could pick up a "weird" radio station in Louisville, which was coincidentally (or maybe not) the home town of the titular "Bill" (or "Sweet William"). Speaking of fathers, the clarinet is played by Jan Van Halen, father of guitarist Eddie and drummer Alex. As usual, Mike Anthony plays bass.
The 1982 film 48 Hrs., starring Eddie Murphy, includes The Boys Are Back In Town by the Busboys, which should not be confused with a song by Thin Lizzy having the same title. Busboys guitarist Vic Johnson is now a member of The Circle with singer/guitarist Sammy Hagar, drummer Jason Bonham, and the above-mentioned Mike Anthony. I don't know how much of the video footage was from the movie or if Johnson was a member of the band at this time.
To finish, this is The Bum by Orleans, from their 1976 album Waking And Dreaming. The picture shows the undressed band, from left to right, Larry Hoppen (guitars & keyboards), Jerry Marotta (drums & percussion), eventual congresscritter (D-NY) John Hall (guitars), Wells Kelly (drums & keyboards) and Lance Hoppen (bass). All contribute vocals to some extent. Kelly sings this one and plays lead guitar, which as far as I can tell, is a rare appearance on both.
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