Post by petrolino on Jan 31, 2019 21:30:47 GMT
Guitarist Harold Bradley has died at the age of 93. Harold and his older brother Owen Bradley worked a lot together. Owen was mentored by music producer Paul Cohen and went on to produce many studio sessions himself; for example, all three of Patsy Cline's studio albums were produced by Owen Bradley. Owen became one of the pillars of a modernising Nashville community that included record producer Chet Atkins, record producer Bob Ferguson who worked extensively with Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton, and audio engineer Bob Porter. A talented banjo player, Harold played several instruments for session outfit The Nashville A-Team, but became known primarily for his guitar playing and innovative electric bass.
"Harold Bradley's recording career began at age 20 in 1946 in Chicago, after he returned home from service in the Navy during World War II. His 60-year career included work for Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Hank Williams, Loretta Lynn, Charley Pride, Conway Twitty, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash and more."
- Billy Dukes, Taste Of Country
- Billy Dukes, Taste Of Country
'Some of Nashville's most classic songs — Roy Orbison's "Only the Lonely," Loretta Lynn's "Coal Miner's Daughter," Tammy Wynette's "Stand by Your Man" and Elvis Presley's "Devil in Disguise," to name a few — have one thing, or person, in common: guitarist Harold Bradley. In his decadeslong career, Bradley, now 86, has played on literally thousands of songs. Some say he's the most widely recorded guitarist in history.
Bradley is the brother of one of Nashville's legendary record producers, Owen Bradley. In the early '50s, the brothers opened one of the first recording studios in the city. They formed the A-Team: a dozen session musicians who, while you may never have heard their names, helped build Nashville. These musicians thrived in the background, ready to play behind any star who came in with a new album to create. In a discussion with Morning Edition's David Greene, Bradley described the session-recording process.
"We had a setup," he says. "We would work from 10 to 1, 2 to 5, 6 to 9 and 10 to 1 at night. To me, it was like going to a party. A Brenda Lee party in the morning, then a Ray Stevens party in the afternoon. A Bill Monroe party and then end up with Henry Mancini and Patsy Cline and Elvis and just other people. I realized, after a while, that it wasn't my talent: It was the talent of the stars. Then, I was just glad to be on board."'
Bradley is the brother of one of Nashville's legendary record producers, Owen Bradley. In the early '50s, the brothers opened one of the first recording studios in the city. They formed the A-Team: a dozen session musicians who, while you may never have heard their names, helped build Nashville. These musicians thrived in the background, ready to play behind any star who came in with a new album to create. In a discussion with Morning Edition's David Greene, Bradley described the session-recording process.
"We had a setup," he says. "We would work from 10 to 1, 2 to 5, 6 to 9 and 10 to 1 at night. To me, it was like going to a party. A Brenda Lee party in the morning, then a Ray Stevens party in the afternoon. A Bill Monroe party and then end up with Henry Mancini and Patsy Cline and Elvis and just other people. I realized, after a while, that it wasn't my talent: It was the talent of the stars. Then, I was just glad to be on board."'
- Excerpt from 'Harold Bradley : The Guitarist Of Nashville Past' (published in 2013)
The Nashville A-Team
Harold Bradley led the Nashville A-Team through a series of albums recorded by Brenda Lee, with Owen Bradley in the producer's chair. Brenda Lee is currently the only woman to be inducted into both the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and The Country Music Hall Of Fame and she's also in the Rockabilly Hall Of Fame.
"Brenda Lee rarely gets mentioned in the same breath as artists like Elvis, Johnny Cash or Muddy Waters, but in her prime, she was as popular as any of them. In the Sixties, she earned more Hot 100 singles in the United States – 46 – than any recording artist besides the Beatles, Elvis or Ray Charles, and she has sold more than 100 million records worldwide throughout her career.
Listening to Lee’s voice – which blended the rural country-blues and gospel of her small-town Georgia upbringing with the sophisticated crooning styles of Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett – is like hearing the various histories of mid-20th-century American pop collide in real time. As the Fifties turned into the Sixties, Lee’s manager, skeptical of rock and dismissive of the country-music market, pushed her toward old-world, night-club showbiz. After transforming from young rocker to pop balladeer, she scored more than 20 Top Forty hits between 1960 and 1963 alone.
In England, meanwhile, she remained famous for her unhinged rockabilly act. Her early-Sixties tours in the U.K. featured the teenage singer running through ramped up versions of songs like “Sweet Nothin’s” and “Let’s Jump the Broomstick” with her Nashville backing band the Casuals. It was primal rock & roll, unfiltered and filled with the type of abandon that Presley and Little Richard would become known for.
“When I saw her perform, I was just stunned. I don’t think I had ever heard anything like it,” says Elton John, who was a teenager when he first saw Lee play in England. “Brenda Lee is in the top three female rock & roll singers of all time: her, Janis Joplin and Tina Turner.” John Lennon seemed to agree; he’s said to have called Lee “the greatest rock & roll voice of them all.” Lee’s hits became favorites of Elvis and helped lay the foundation for an entire generation of cosmopolitan Nashville country."
Listening to Lee’s voice – which blended the rural country-blues and gospel of her small-town Georgia upbringing with the sophisticated crooning styles of Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett – is like hearing the various histories of mid-20th-century American pop collide in real time. As the Fifties turned into the Sixties, Lee’s manager, skeptical of rock and dismissive of the country-music market, pushed her toward old-world, night-club showbiz. After transforming from young rocker to pop balladeer, she scored more than 20 Top Forty hits between 1960 and 1963 alone.
In England, meanwhile, she remained famous for her unhinged rockabilly act. Her early-Sixties tours in the U.K. featured the teenage singer running through ramped up versions of songs like “Sweet Nothin’s” and “Let’s Jump the Broomstick” with her Nashville backing band the Casuals. It was primal rock & roll, unfiltered and filled with the type of abandon that Presley and Little Richard would become known for.
“When I saw her perform, I was just stunned. I don’t think I had ever heard anything like it,” says Elton John, who was a teenager when he first saw Lee play in England. “Brenda Lee is in the top three female rock & roll singers of all time: her, Janis Joplin and Tina Turner.” John Lennon seemed to agree; he’s said to have called Lee “the greatest rock & roll voice of them all.” Lee’s hits became favorites of Elvis and helped lay the foundation for an entire generation of cosmopolitan Nashville country."
- Jonathan Bernstein, Rolling Stone
'Break It To Me Gently' - Brenda Lee
The Nashville A-Team inspired many session musicians including Mac Gayden and Wayne Moss, budding record producers who'd establish the recording units Area Code 615 and Barefoot Jerry. Prolific Tennessee songwriter Dolly Parton idolised Brenda Lee as a teenager. When Parton was making regular duet albums with Porter Wagoner, she was also amassing a growing setlist of songs she'd written, so she developed a simultaneous solo career. When Wayne Moss arrived in Nashville, he played as part of The Casuals, backing Brenda Lee on the road, but he wasn't needed back at the studio at that time. Parton's second album 'Just Because I'm A Woman' (1968) was recorded with Wayne Moss and some of his players. Moss and drummer Kenny Buttrey had recently been recording sessions with Bob Dylan for 'Blonde On Blonde' (1966) - Area Code 615 & Barefoot Jerry member Buttrey performed on several of Dylan's subsequent albums.
"I've played with a whole lot of folks. I've never played on one of Brenda's (Brenda Lee) sessions. I worked on the road with her for 2 years and Owen Bradley taught us all vocal parts, stuff to sing (singing "I'm sorry, so sorry".) We said we can't sing, he said, "Yeah you can, grab a spot right here and you get this other", so it turned out we sang good enough to sing backup with Brenda. She cut one of my songs but I never worked one of her sessions. The song of mine that she cut is the B side of "Coming On Strong", that's the only million seller I've ever had, "You Keep Running Back To Me", but nobody ever heard it because it's on the B side (laughing)."
- Wayne Moss, Musician's Spotlight
"The Recording Academy announced its list of 25 singles/albums that have been added to the Grammy Hall of Fame. The 2019 inductees include a number of country-centric recordings, including Dolly Parton’s “Coat of Many Colors,” Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” Jeannie C. Riley’s “Harper Valley P.T.A.” and Jackson Browne’s 1972 self-titled album.
The Grammy Hall of Fame was established by the Recording Academy’s National Trustees in 1973 to honor recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance that are at least 25 years old. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee from all branches of the recording arts. Now in its 46th year, the Grammy Hall of Fame boasts 1,088 recordings on display at the Grammy Museum in L.A."
The Grammy Hall of Fame was established by the Recording Academy’s National Trustees in 1973 to honor recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance that are at least 25 years old. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee from all branches of the recording arts. Now in its 46th year, the Grammy Hall of Fame boasts 1,088 recordings on display at the Grammy Museum in L.A."
- Jim Casey, Nash Icon
Dolly Parton - 'Just Because I'm A Woman'
Hard-working and widely respected, Harold Bradley has been called the man that played on more recordings in the pop music era than any other, due to his status as a prolific session player. His pal, pianist Floyd Cramer, was called "slip note" due to his style. Bradley was called the "tic-tac" bassman due to his playing style. Harold Bradley recorded and released three albums of guitar music in the 1960s.
Harold Bradley is remembered at USA Today : Harold Bradley (1926 - 2019)
'Exodus' - Harold Bradley
R.I.P.