Tag Archives: Russ Savakus

Don McLean: Playin’ Favorites

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In October 1973, “United Artists” and “BGO” labels released “Playin’ Favorites”, the fourth Don McLean studio album. It was recorded in 1973, at “The Record Plant” in New York City, and was produced by Ed Freeman.

Personnel:

  • Don McLean – vocals, guitar, banjo
  • Buzzy Feiten – guitar, tambourine
  • Steve Berg – guitar
  • John Hughey – pedal steel
  • Ronnie Zito – banjo, tambourine
  • Frank Wakefield – vocals, mandoline
  • Dave Bromberg – dobro
  • Neil Larsen – keyboards, piano
  • Chuck Leavell – piano
  • Tony Levin – bass
  • Rob Rothstein – vocals, bass
  • Rick Marotta – drums
  • Johnny Sandlin – percussion
  • Danny Manselino – percussion
  • Mike Mainieri – marimba
  • Frank Orsini – fiddle
  • Russ Savakus – bass violin
  • Albertine Robinson – backing vocals
  • Maretha Stewart – backing vocals
  • Tasha Thomas – backing vocals
  • Frank Hubach – engineer, remix
  • Jim Reeves – engineer
  • Mike Salisbury – art direction
  • Fred Conrad – photography

Track listing:

  1. Sitting on Top of the World – Bo Carter, Little Walter
  2. Living With the Blues – Brownie McGhee
  3. Mountains O’ Mourne – Percy French
  4. Fool’s Paradise – Sonny LeGlaire, Horace Linsley, Norman Petty
  5. Love O’ Love – traditional, arranged by Don McLean
  6. Medley: Bill Cheetham/Old Joe Clark – traditional, arranged by Don McLean
  7. Everyday – Charles Hardin, Norman Petty
  8. Ancient History – Irene Stanton, Wayne Walker
  9. Over the Mountains – Irene Stanton, Wayne Walker
  10. Lovesick Blues – Cliff Friend, Irving Mills
  11. New Mule Skinner Blues – Jimmie Rodgers, George Vaughn
  12. Happy Trails – Dale Evans

John Denver: Rhymes & Reasons

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On October 14, 1969, “RCA” label released “Rhymes & Reasons”, the debut John Denver studio album. It was recorded in 1969, at “RCA Studios” in New York City, and was produced by Milton Okun.

Personnel:

  • John Denver – vocals, guitar, arrangements
  • Eric Weissberg – banjo, steel guitar
  • Paul Prestopino – guitar, autoharp, mandolin
  • Stan Free – organ
  • Paul Griffin – keyboards
  • Russ Savakus – bass guitar
  • Teddy Sommer – drums
  • Herbie Lovelle – drums
  • George Marge – baritone saxophone
  • Marvin Stamm – flute, trumpet
  • Albert Richmond – French horn
  • Tommy Goodman – additional instrumentation
  • Milton Okun – arrangements
  • Jim Crotty – recording
  • John Woram – recording
  • Jean Goldhirsch – assistant producer

Track listing:

  1. The Love of the Common People – John Hurley, Ronnie Wilkins
  2. Catch Another Butterfly – Mike Williams
  3. Daydream – John Denver
  4. The Ballad of Spiro Agnew – Tom Paxton
  5. Circus – Michael Johnson, John Denver, Laurie Kuehn
  6. When I’m Sixty-Four – John Lennon, Paul McCartney
  7. The Ballad of Richard Nixon – Tom Paxton
  8. Rhymes & Reasons – John Denver
  9. Yellow Cat – Steven Fromholz
  10. Leaving on a Jet Plane – John Denver
  11. (You Dun Stomped) My Heart – Mason Williams
  12. My Old Man – Jerry Jeff Walker
  13. I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free – Billy Taylor, Dick Dallas
  14. Today Is the First Day of the Rest of My Life (Sugacity) – Pat Garvey, Victoria Garvey

Donny Hathaway: Extension Of A Man

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On June 18, 1973, “Atco” label released “Extension of a Man”, the fourth and final Donny Hathaway studio album. It was recorded October – November 1972, at “A&R”, “Bell Sound”, “Regent Sound” and “Atlantic” in New York City, “Universal” in Chicago, and was produced by Arif Mardin.

Personnel:

  • Donny Hathaway – lead vocals, Fender Rhodes electric piano, all pianos, Hammond organ, keyboards, bass, arrangements
  • Cornell Dupree – acoustic and electric guitar
  • Hugh McCracken – banjo, guitar
  • Willie Weeks, Russ Savakus, Stanley Clarke, Gordon Edwards – bass
  •  Grady Tate, Fred White, Rick Marotta, Ray Lucas – drums
  • Ralph MacDonald – percussion
  • Emanuel Green, Harry Lookofsky, Julien Barber, Noel DaCosta, Sanford Allen, Theodore Israel – violin
  • Charles McCracken, George Ricci, Kermit Moore – cello
  • Gloria Agostini – harp 
  • David Newman – saxophone
  • Marvin Stamm, Joe Newman, Ernie Royal – trumpet
  • Dominick Gravine, Garnett Brown, Paul Faulise, Wayne Andre, Tony Studd, Garnett Brown – trombone
  • Hubert Laws – flute
  • Don Butterfield – tuba
  • Phil Bodner – clarinet, alto saxophone
  • Seldon Powell – clarinet, reeds, tenor saxophone
  • Vincent Abato – clarinet
  • Romeo Penque, William Slapin – reeds
  • Jim Buffington, Julius Watkins, Tony Miranda – French horn
  • Henry Schuman – oboe
  • Myrna Summers & The Interdenominational Singers – choir 
  • Cissy Houston, Myrna Smith, Sylvia Shemwell, Jimmy Douglass, Mario “Big M” Medious, Richard Wells, William “Mac” McCollum – backing vocals

Track listing:

All tracks by Donny Hathaway, except where noted.

  1. I Love the Lord; He Heard My Cry (Parts I & II)
  2. Someday We’ll All Be Free – Donny Hathaway, Edward Howard
  3. Flying Easy
  4. Valdez in the Country
  5. I Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know – Al Kooper
  6. Come Little Children
  7. Love, Love, Love – J.R. Bailey, Ken Williams
  8. The Slums
  9. Magdalena – Danny O’Keefe
  10. I Know It’s You – Leon Ware
  11. Lord Help Me – Joe Greene, Billy Preston

Don McLean: Same (third album)

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In November 1972, “United Artists” label released the self-titled, third Don McLean album. It was recorded in 1972, at “Record Plant Studios” in New York City and was produced by Ed Freeman.

Personnel:

  • Don McLean – guitar, vocals
  • Warren Bernhardt – piano
  • Dick Hyman – piano
  • Neil Larsen – piano
  • Ed Trickett – hammered dulcimer
  • Don Brooks – harmonica
  • Howard “Buzz” Feiten – guitar
  • Tony Levin – bass
  • Bob Rothstein – bass, vocals
  • Russ Savakus – bass, violin, vocals
  • Chris Parker – drums
  • Ralph MacDonald – percussion, conga
  • George Ricci – cello
  • Ed Freeman – string arrangements
  • West Forty Fourth Street Rhythm and Noise Choir – chorus
  • Tom Flye, Dennis Ferrante, Ed Sprigg, Rod O’Brien – engineer
  • John Olson – cover photography

Track listing:

All tracks by Don McLean, except where noted.

  1. Dreidel
  2. Bronco Bill’s Lament
  3. Oh, My What a Shame
  4. If We Try
  5. The More You Pay (The More It’s Worth)
  6. Narcisissima
  7. Falling Through Time
  8. On the Amazon – Vivian Ellis, Clifford Grey, Greatrex Newman
  9. Birthday Song
  10. The Pride Parade

Joan Baez: Farewell, Angelina

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In October 1965, “Vanguard” label released “Farewell, Angelina”, the sixth Joan Baez album. It was recorded in 1965, and was produced by Maynard Solomon.

Personnel:

  • Joan Baez – vocals, guitar
  • Bruce Langhorne– electric guitar
  • Ralph Rinzler– mandolin
  • Richard Romoff – string bass
  • Russ Savakus– bass

Track listing:

  1. Farewell, Angelina – Bob Dylan
  2. Daddy, You Been on My Mind – Bob Dylan
  3. It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue – Bob Dylan
  4. The Wild Mountain Thyme – traditional, arranged Francis McPeake Family
  5. Ranger’s Command – Woody Guthrie
  6. Colours – Donovan Leitch
  7. A Satisfied Mind – Joe “Red” Hayes, Jack Rhodes
  8. The River in the Pines – traditional
  9. Pauvre Rutebeuf (Poor Rutebeuf) – Léo Ferré, Rutebeuf
  10. Sagt Mir wo die Blumen sind (Where Have All the Flowers Gone?) – Pete Seeger
  11. A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall – Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan: Highway 61 Revisited

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Bob_Dylan_-_Highway_61_Revisited

On August 30, 1965, “Columbia” label released “Highway 61 Revisited”, the sixth Bob Dylan studio album . It was recorded June -August 1965, at “Columbia Studio A” in New York,  and was produced by Bob Johnston. The album features some of the best known Dylan songs, including “Like a Rolling Stone”, “Ballad of a thin man” and “Highway 61 revisited”. “Rolling Stone” magazine ranked “Highway 61 Revisited” at number four on its list of “500 Greatest Albums of All Time”. The song “Like a Rolling Stone” is listed number one on “Rolling Stone‍ ’s list of the “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list, “Desolation Row” and “Highway 61 Revisited”, were listed at number 187 and number 373 on the same list.

Personnel

  • Bob Dylan— vocals, guitar, harmonica, piano, police car
  • Mike Bloomfield— electric guitar
  • Charlie McCoy— guitar
  • Paul Griffin, Al Kooper— piano, organ
  • Frank Owens — piano
  • Harvey Brooks, Russ Savakus— bass guitar
  • Bobby Gregg, Sam Lay— drums

Track listing

All tracks by Bob Dylan

  1. Like a Rolling Stone
  2. Tombstone Blues
  3. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, it Takes a Train to Cry
  4. From a Buick 6
  5. Ballad of a Thin Man
  6. Queen Jane Approximately
  7. Highway 61 Revisited
  8. Just like Tom Thumb’s Blues
  9. Desolation Row