Tag Archives: Josh Sklair

Etta James: Let’s Roll

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On May 6, 2003, “Private Music” label released “Let’s Roll”, the twenty-sixth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 2003, and was produced by Etta James, Josh Sklair, Donto Metto James and Sametto James. “Let’s Roll” won a “Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album” in 2003, and in 2004 the “W. C. Handy Award” as the “Soul/Blues Album of the Year” from the “Blues Foundation”.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocal
  • Josh Sklair – banjo, 12 string guitar, acoustic and electric, slide guitar, synthesizer
  • Bobby Murray – electric guitar
  • Jimmy “Z” Zavala – harmonica, tenor and baritone saxophone
  • Sametto James – bass guitar
  • Donto James – vocals, drums, percussion
  • Tom Poole – trumpet
  • Lee Thornburg – trombone

Track listing:

  1. Somebody to Love – Delbert McClinton, Gary Nicholson
  2. The Blues Is My Business – Kevin Bowe, Todd Cerney
  3. Leap of Faith – Glen Clarke, Gary Nicholson
  4. Strongest Weakness – Bekka Bramlett, Gary Nicholson
  5. Wayward Saints of Memphis – Kevin Bowe, Delbert McClinton
  6. Lie No Better – Gary Nicholson
  7. Trust Yourself – Kevin Bowe, Grady Champion
  8. A Change Is Gonna Do Me Good – Al Anderson, Bob DiPiero
  9. Old Weakness – Gary Nicholson
  10. Stacked Deck – Billy Wright
  11. On the 7th Day – Kevin Bowe, Kostas Lazarides
  12. Please, No More – David Egan, Greg Hansen

Etta James: Love’s Been Rough On Me

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On April 29, 1997, “Private Music” label released “Love’s Been Rough on Me”, the twentieth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 1997, and was produced by Barry Beckett.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – lead vocals
  • Don Potter – acoustic guitar
  • Paul Franklin – steel guitar
  • Brent Rowan – electric guitar
  • Josh Sklair – electric guitar
  • Dann Huff – electric guitar
  • Steve Nathan – keyboards
  • Barry Beckett – keyboards
  • Michael Rhodes – bass guitar
  • Eddie Bayers – drums
  • Terry McMillan – percussion
  • Jim Horn – saxophone
  • Sam Levine – saxophone
  • Joe McGlohon – saxophone
  • Mike Haynes – trumpet
  • Chris McDonald – trombone
  • Vicki Hampton – backing vocals
  • Yvonne Hodges – backing vocals
  • Donna McElroy – backing vocals
  • Louis Dean Nunley – backing vocals
  • John Wesley Ryles – backing vocals
  • Dennis Wilson – backing vocals
  • Curtis Young – backing vocals

Track listing:

  1. The Rock – Russell Smith, Jim Varsos
  2. Cry Like a Rainy Day – Greg Barnhill, Kenny Greenberg
  3. Love’s Been Rough on Me – Gretchen Peters
  4. Love It or Leave It Alone – Kara Cody, Will Jennings, John Keller
  5. Don’t Touch Me – Hank Cochran
  6. Hold Me – Graham Lyle, Troy Seals
  7. If I Had Any Pride Left at All – John Greenbaum, Seals, Eddie Setser
  8. I Can Give You Everything – Al Anderson, Terry Anderson
  9. I’ve Been Loving You Too Long – Jerry Butler, Otis Redding
  10. Done in the Dark – Josh Sklair, Etta James

Etta James: Matriarch Of The Blues

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On December 12, 2000, “Private Music” label released “Matriarch of the Blues”, the twenty-fourth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 2000, and was produced by Donto Metto James and Sametto James.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – lead and backing vocals, liner notes
  • Josh Sklair – acoustic and electric guitar, slide guitar, keyboards, rhythm arrangements
  • Bobby Murray – guitar
  • Leo Nocentelli – guitar
  • Mike Finnigan – Hammond organ
  • Jimmy Zavala – harmonica, tenor and baritone saxophone
  • Sametto James – bass, engineer, mixing
  • Donto Metto James – drums, engineer, mixing, percussion
  • Tom Poole – trumpet
  • Terrance Galloway – engineer assistant
  • Doug Sax – mastering
  • Julie Bruzzone – creative director
  • Sonny Mediana – design, photography
  • Rudy Calvo – make-up
  • Lupe DeLeon – executive producer

Track listing:

  1. Gotta Serve Somebody – Bob Dylan
  2. Don’t Let My Baby Ride – Deadric Malone, O. V. Wright
  3. Rhymes – Al Green, Teenie Hodges
  4. Try a Little Tenderness – Jimmy Campbell, Reg Connelly, Harry M. Woods
  5. Miss You – Mick Jagger, Keith Richards
  6. Hawg for Ya – Otis Redding
  7. You’re Gonna Make Me Cry – Deadric Malone
  8. Walking the Back Streets – Sandy Jones, Jr.
  9. Let’s Straighten It Out – Benny Latimore
  10. Born on the Bayou – John Fogerty
  11. Come Back Baby – Ray Charles, Lightnin’ Hopkins
  12. Hound Dog – Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller

Etta James: The Dreamer

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On November 8, 2011, “Verve Forecast” label released “The Dreamer”, the twenty-ninth and final Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 2011, at “Fort Athens Studios”, and was produced by Etta James, Josh Sklair, Danto and Sametto.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocals
  • Big Terry De Rouen, Bobby Murray, Leo Nocentelli – guitar
  • Josh Sklair – guitar
  • Divid Kirk Mathews – keyboards
  • Sametto James – bass
  • Donto James – drums, engineer
  • Jimmy Z – saxophone
  • Lee Thornburg – trumpet, arrangements
  • Kraig Kilby – trombone
  • Terry Howard – engineer
  • Ed Cherney – mixing
  • Bernie Grundman – mastering
  • Rudy Calvo – make-up
  • Artis Mills, Lupe De Leon – executive producer

Track listing:

  1. Groove Me – King Floyd
  2. Champagne & Wine – Otis Redding
  3. Dreamer – Bobby Bland
  4. Welcome to the Jungle – Guns N’ Roses
  5. Misty Blue – Bob Montgomery
  6. Boondocks – Little Big Town
  7. Cigarettes & Coffee – Otis Redding
  8. In the Evening – Ray Charles
  9. Too Tired – Johnny “Guitar” Watson
  10. That’s the Chance You Take – Johnny “Guitar” Watson
  11. Let Me Down Easy – Little Milton

Etta James: Blue Gardenia

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On August 21, 2001, “Private Music” label released “Blue Gardenia”, the twenty-fifth Etta James studio album. It was recorded November 2000 – February 2001, and was produced by John Snyder.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocals
  • Dorothy Hawkins – vocals
  • Josh Sklair – guitar, arrangements
  • Cedar Walton – piano, arrangements
  • Tony Dumas – bass
  • Ralph Penland – drums
  • Ron Powell – percussion
  • Red Holloway – saxophone
  • George Bohanon – trombone
  • Rick Baptist – flugelhorn
  • Ronnie Buttacavoli – flugelhorn, trumpet
  • John Nelson – engineer
  • Jay Newland – engineer
  • Charlie Watts – engineer
  • Sonny Mediana – art direction, photography
  • Lupe DeLeon – executive producer

Track listing:

  1. This Bitter Earth – Clyde Otis
  2. He’s Funny That Way – Neil Moret, Richard A. Whiting
  3. In My Solitude – Eddie DeLange, Duke Ellington, Irving Mills
  4. There Is No Greater Love – Isham Jones, Marty Symes
  5. Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying – Joe Greene
  6. Love Letters – Edward Heyman, Victor Young
  7. These Foolish Things – Harry Link, Holt Marvell, Jack Strachey
  8. Come Rain or Come Shine – Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer
  9. Don’t Worry ’bout Me – Rube Bloom, Ted Koehler
  10. Cry Me a River – Arthur Hamilton
  11. Don’t Blame Me – Dorothy Fields, Jimmy McHugh
  12. My Man – Channing Pollack, Yvain-Albert, Maurice Yvain
  13. Blue Gardenia – Lester Lee, Bob Russell

Etta James: Life, Love & Blues

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On June 30, 1998, “Private Music” label released “Life, Love & the Blues”, the twenty-first Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 1998, at “Forth Athens Studios” in Riverside, California, “Conway Studios” in Hollywood, and was produced by Etta James.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocals
  • Leo Nocentelli – guitar
  • Bobby Murray – guitar
  • Josh Sklair – guitar, dobro
  • David K. Mathews – keyboards
  • Mike Finnigan – Hammond B-3 organ
  • Sametto James – bass
  • Donto Mento James – drums, percussion
  • Jimmy Z – saxophone, harmonica
  • Lee Thornburg – trumpet, valve trombone
  • Tom Poole – trumpet

Track listing:

  1. Born Under a Bad Sign – William Bell, Booker T. Jones
  2. I Want To Ta Ta You Baby – Johnny Guitar Watson
  3. Here I Am (Come and Take Me) – Al Green, Mabon “Teenie” Hodges
  4. Running Out of Lies – Paul Jordan
  5. Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) – Marvin Gaye, James Nyx, Jr., James Nyx
  6. Spoonful – Willie Dixon
  7. Life, Love & the Blues – Etta James, Josh Sklair
  8. Hoochie Coochie Gal – Willie Dixon
  9. Cheating in the Next Room – George Jackson
  10. If You Want Me to Stay – Sylvester Stewart
  11. The Love You Save Maby Your Own – Joe Tex
  12. I’ll take Care of You – Brook Benton

Etta James: Heart of a Woman

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In June 1999, “RCA” label released “Heart of a Woman”, the twenty-third Etta James studio album. It was recorded in March 1999, and was produced by John Snyder and Etta James.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocals, arrangements, art direction, photography, liner notes
  • Bobby Murray – guitar
  • Josh Sklair – acoustic and electric guitar, arrangements, musical director, production assistant
  • Dave Matthews – electric piano, piano, arrangements
  • Mike Finnigan – organ
  • Sametto James – bass, drum programming, production assistant
  • Donto Metto James – drums, drum programming, production assistant
  • Pete Escovedo – conga, horn, percussion
  • Red Holloway – tenor saxophone
  • Jimmy Zavala – tenor saxophone
  • Lee Thornburg – alto horn, flugelhorn, horn arrangements, trumpet, valve trombone
  • Tom Poole – flugelhorn, trumpet
  • Jay Newland – engineer, mastering
  • Rob Brill – engineer assistant
  • Sonny Mediana – art direction, photography
  • Jeff Dunas – photography
  • Lupe DeLeon – executive producer

Track listing:

  1. You Don’t Know What Love Is – Gene de Paul, Don Raye
  2. Good Morning Heartache – Ervin Drake, Dan Fisher, Irene Higgenbotham
  3. My Old Flame – Sam Coslow, Arthur Johnston
  4. Say It Isn’t So – Irving Berlin
  5. At Last – Mack Gordon, Harry Warren
  6. Tenderly – Walter Gross, Jack Lawrence
  7. I Only Have Eyes for You – Al Dubin, Warren
  8. I Got It Bad (and That Ain’t Good) – Duke Ellington, Paul Francis Webster
  9. You Go to My Head – John Frederick Coots, Haven Gillespie
  10. A Sunday Kind of Love – Barbara Belle, Anita Leonard, Louis Prima, Stan Rhodes
  11. If It’s the Last Thing I Do – Sammy Cahn, Saul Chaplin
  12. Only Women Bleed – Alice Cooper, Dick Wagner

Etta James: Blues to the Bone

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On June 8, 2004, “RCA Victor” label released “Blues to the Bone”, the twenty-seventh Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 2004, and was produced by Etta James, Donto James, Josh Sklar and Sametto James. In 2005, “Blues to the Bone” won “Grammy Award” for “Best Traditional Blues Album”.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocals
  • Josh Sklair – guitar, dobro, arrangements
  • Bobby Murray – guitars
  • Brian Ray – guitar, slide guitar
  • Mike Finnigan – piano
  • John “Juke” Logan – harmonica
  • Sametto James – bass
  • Donto Metto James – drums

Track listing:

  1. I Got My Mojo Working – Preston Foster
  2. Don’t Start Me to Talking – Sonny Boy Williamson II
  3. Hush Hush – Jimmy Reed
  4. Lil’ Red Rooster – Willie Dixon
  5. That’s Alright – Jimmy Rogers
  6. Crawlin’ King Snake – John Lee Hooker
  7. Dust My Broom – Robert Johnson
  8. The Sky Is Crying – Elmore James
  9. Smokestack Lightnin’ – Howlin’ Wolf
  10. You Shook Me – Willie Dixon, J. B. Lenoir
  11. Driving Wheel – Roosevelt Sykes
  12. Honey, Don’t Tear My Clothes – Lightnin’ Hopkins

Etta James: Time After Time

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On May 9, 1996, “Private Music” label released “Time After Time”, the 20th Etta James album. It was recorded in 1995, at ”Conway Studios”, and was produced by John Snyder.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocal
  • Josh Sklair – guitar
  • Cedar Walton – piano
  • John Clayton – bass
  • Paul Humphrey – drums
  • Donto Metto Jame – percussion
  • Eddie Harris – tenor saxophone
  • Herman Riley – tenor saxophone
  • Kraig Kilby – trombone
  • Ronnie Buttacavoli – flugelhorn
  • Cedar Walton – arrangements
  • Patrick Karamian – engineer
  • Jay Newland – engineer, mastering
  • Joe Lopes – mastering
  • Lupe De Leon – executive producer

Track listing:

  1. Don’t Go to Strangers
  2. Teach Me Tonight
  3. Love Is Here to Stay
  4. The Nearness of You
  5. Time After Time
  6. My Funny Valentine
  7. Imagination
  8. Fool That I Am
  9. Willow Weep for Me
  10. Everybody’s Somebodys’ Fool
  11. Night and Day
  12. Someone to Watch Over Me