On December 3, 2025, Steven Lee Cropper died aged 84. He was musician, songwriter, record producer and actor, known as “The Colonel”. He was the guitarist of the “Stax Records” house band, Booker T. & the M.G.’s, which backed artists such as Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas, Rufus Thomas, and Johnnie Taylor. He was also member of the Blues Brothers Band, and recorded and performed with many other artists including Alabama, Jimmy Barnes, William Bell, Barbi Benton, Big Star, Stephen Bishop, Frank Black, Bobby and the Midnites, Booker T. & MG.’s, Ronnie Baker Brooks, Jimmy Buffett, Billy Burnette, Brian Cadd, Cate Brothers, Chicago, David Clayton Thomas, A. J. Croce, Patti Dahlstrom, Delaney & Bonnie, Ned Doheny, Yvonne Elliman, Jose Feliziano, Eddie Floyd, Peter Frampton, Richie Furay, Art Garfunkel, Cyndi Grecco, Levon Helm, Chris Hillman, Rebecca Lynn Howard, Etta James, Wynonna Judd, Albert King, B.B. King, Al Kooper, John Lennon, Ann Margret, Marilyn McCoo, Billy Davis Jr., Craig Morgan, Aaron Neville, Wayne Newton, Harry Nilsson, John Oates, Nigel Olsson, Roy Orbison, Dolly Parton, Wilson Pickett, Michel Polnareff, John Prine, Otis Redding, Bruce Roberts, Leon Russell, Sanford & Townsend, Leo Sayer, Poncho Sanchez, Guy Sebastian, Neil Sedaka, Paul Shaffer, Paul Simon, Percy Sledge, Broderick Smith, The Soul Children, The Staple Singers, Mavis Staple, Ringo Starr, Rod Stewart, Livingston Taylor, Carla Thomas, Mickey Thomas, Wendy Waldman, Tower of Power, The Manhattan Transfer, Dale Watson and Jerry Lynn Williams. Magazine “Rolling Stone” ranked him 36th on its list of the “100 Greatest Guitarists”. Cropper won two “Grammy Awards”, and as leader or co-leader Cropper released 13 albums.
Tag Archives: Bruce Roberts
Aretha Franklin: What You See Is What You Sweat
On June 25, 1991, “Arista” label released “What You See Is What You Sweat”, the thirty-third Aretha Franklin studio album. It was recorded in 1990, and was produced by Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, David “Pic” Conley, Aretha Franklin, Michel Legrand, Oliver Leiber, Gene Lennon, Bruce Roberts, Joshua Thompson, David Townsend, Luther Vandross, Narada Michael Walden and Elliot Wolff.
Personnel:
- Aretha Franklin – lead and backing vocals, piano
- Rick Iantosca – acoustic guitar
- Paul Jackson Jr. – guitar
- Dean Parks – guitar
- Vernon Black – guitar
- David Townsend – guitar
- Jean-Marc Benais – guitar
- Teddy F. White – guitar
- Al Turner – bass guitar
- Marcus Miller – bass guitar
- Dominique Bertram – bass guitar
- Rudolph Stansfield – piano
- Thierry Eliez – piano
- Skip Anderson – keyboards
- Burt Bacharach – keyboards
- Oliver Leiber – keyboards, drum programming, guitar
- Jason Miles – keyboards
- Louis Biancaniello – keyboards, programming
- David Foster – keyboards, programming
- Nat Adderley Jr. – keyboards
- Bobby Wooten – keyboards, electric piano, drum programming, synthesizer
- Michael Boddicker – keyboards, programming
- Hubert Eaves III – keyboards, drum programming
- Elliot Wolff – keyboards, drum programming
- Joshua Thompson – keyboards, guitar, synthesizer
- Peter Schwartz – additional keyboards
- Charles Scales – synthesizer
- Michel Legrand – synthesizer
- Guy Vaughn – drum programming
- Narada Michael Walden – drums, programming
- Buster Marbury – drums
- André Ceccarelli – drums
- Paulinho da Costa – percussion
- Larry Fratangelo – percussion
- Larry Williams – programming
- Franck Thore – Pan pipes
- Onita Sanders – harp
- Candy Dulfer – saxophone
- David Boruff – saxophone
- Gene Lennon – programming
- Cindy Mizelle – backing vocals
- Jesse Richardson – backing vocals
- Sandra Feva – backing vocals
- Brenda Corbett – backing vocals
- Fonzi Thornton – backing vocals
- Diane Green – backing vocals
- Sherry Fox – backing vocals
- Portia Griffin – backing vocals
- Margaret Branch – backing vocals
- Jarvis Barker – backing vocals
- Nikita Germaine – backing vocals
- Skyler Jett – backing vocals
- Jeanie Tracy – backing vocals
- Tony Lindsay – backing vocals
- Gwen Guthrie – backing vocals
- Tawatha Agee – backing vocals
- Donna Davis – backing vocals
- Marj Harber – backing vocals
- Esther Ridgeway – backing vocals
- Gloria Ridgeway – backing vocals
- Gracie Ridgeway – backing vocals
- Clive Davis – executive producer
Track listing:
- Everyday people – Sly Stone
- Ever Changing Times – Burt Bacharach, Bill Conti, Carole Bayer Sager
- What You See Is What You Sweat – David Conley, Derrick Culler, Gene Lennon, Joshua Thompson
- Mary Goes Round – Elliot Wolff, Oliver Leiber
- I Dreamed a Dream – Alain Boubill, Herbert Kretzmer, Jean Marc Natel, Claude Michel Schonberg
- Someone’s Else’s Eyes – Bruce Roberts, Burt Bacharach, Bayer Sager
- Doctor’s Orders – Luther Vandross, Hubert Eaves III
- You Can’t Take Me for Granted – Aretha Franklin
- What You Give – Aretha Franklin
- Everyday People (Shep Pettibone Remix) – Sly Stone
Alice Cooper: From the Inside
On November 17, 1978, “Warner Bros” label released “From the Inside”, the fourth Alice Cooper album. It was recorded in 1978, and was produced by David Foster.
Personnel:
- Alice Cooper – vocals
- Dick Wagner– lead guitar
- Steve Lukather– guitar
- Rick Nielsen– guitar
- Davey Johnstone– lead guitar, backing vocals
- Jay Graydon– guitar, synthesizer programming
- Fred Mandel– keyboards
- David Foster– keyboards
- Robbie King – keyboards
- Steve Porcaro– synthesizer programming
- John Pierce – bass
- David Hungate– bass
- Dee Murray– bass
- Lee Sklar– bass
- Dennis Conway – drums
- Michael Ricciardella – drums
- Rick Shlosser– drums
- Michael Ricciardella – drums
- Jim Keltner– percussion
- Marcy Levy– vocals
- Bill Champlin, Kiki Dee, Flo & Eddie, Tom Kelly, Bobby Kimball, Sheryl Cooper, The Totally Committed Choir – backing vocals
Track listing:
.All lyrics by Alice Cooper and Bernie Taupin, all music by Cooper and Dick Wagner, except where noted.
- From the Inside – Alice Cooper, Bernie Taupin, Dick Wagner, David Foster
- Wish I Were Born in Beverly Hills
- The Quiet Room
- Nurse Rozetta – Alice Cooper, Steve Lukather, David Foster
- Millie and Billie – Alice Cooper, Bruce Roberts
- Serious – Alice Cooper, Bernie Taupin, David Foster, Steve Lukather
- How You Gonna See Me Now
- For Veronica’s Sake
- Jackknife Johnny
- Inmates (We’re All Crazy)
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