Leon Russell In Concert May 1, 2010

A legend in music will be palying on May 1, 2010 at the Omaha Center in Cherokee Village. This is a great opportunity to hear a music legend live right here in our area. Tickets can be purchased online at CLICK HERE or in person at these local area business.
Hortons Music located at 3648 A Hwy.62/412 Highland, Arkansas 72542

Known first mostly as a session musician, Russell has played with artists as varied as Jerry Lee Lewis, George Harrison, Delaney Bramlett, Ringo Starr, Elton John, Eric Clapton, The Byrds, The Beach Boys, Willie Nelson, Badfinger, Tijuana Brass, Frank Sinatra, The Band, Glen Campbell, and The Rolling Stones. With a solo career involving the genres of rock and roll, blues, and gospel music, Russell began his musical career at the age of 14 years in the nightclubs of Tulsa, OK. He and his group “The Starlighters”, which included J.J. Cale, Chuck Blackwell and Johnny Williams,[2] were instrumental in creating the style of music known as the Tulsa Sound. After settling in Los Angeles, he studied guitar with James Burton, and worked sessions with Dorsey Burnette and Glen Campbell.

Becoming a part of Phil Spector’s studio group, Russell played backup for many of the most popular successes of the 1960s, including songs by The Byrds, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, Bobby “Boris” Pickett, and Herb Alpert. He also served as Snuff Garrett’s assistant for numerous productions. Russell had his own recording studio built during 1967 and, in a collaboration with Marc Benno, recorded his first LP (Look Inside the Asylum Choir).

His first songwriting success was Joe Cocker’s 1969 version of “Delta Lady”. Russell then went on to organise Cocker’s Mad Dogs and Englishmen Tour.[3] “Superstar”, co-written by Russell and Bonnie Bramlett, and sung by Rita Coolidge on that tour, would also be a success for The Carpenters, Luther Vandross, Sonic Youth, and several other performers. Russell released an eponymous solo album soon after the Mad Dogs and Englishmen Tour, Leon Russell, which included the original version of the popular “A Song for You”, which has become one of the most widely covered songs of all time, with versions released by artists as varied as Whitney Houston, Donny Hathaway, and Christina Aguilera. Also during 1970, Russell played piano for Dave Mason’s album, Alone Together (notably, on the song “Sad and Deep as You”).

During the 1960s and 1970s, Russell owned the Church Recording Studio on 3rd Street in Tulsa, which is now owned by Glen Mitchell and one-time Russell studio engineer Steve Ripley of the country band The Tractors. Russell still records there frequently, while his former home on Grand Lake, in northeast Oklahoma, still contains the famous dining room table and chairs made from church pews from his Church Studio. On the property stands a private recording studio that has witnessed many famous musicians, including members of The Beatles.

During the summer of 1971, Russell was asked by George Harrison to play piano on Badfinger’s third album, Straight Up. The piano which complements Pete Ham and George Harrison’s dual slide guitars on Badfinger’s radio success “Day After Day” is played by Leon from those Apple sessions. The sessions were interrupted because many of the musicians on Straight Up left for New York City to participate in the Concert For Bangladesh, organized by George Harrison and Ravi Shankar, at which Russell performed a medley of the songs, “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and “Young Blood,” and sang a verse on George Harrison’s “Beware of Darkness.”

Also during 1971 Russell played on recording sessions with B.B. King, Eric Clapton, and Bob Dylan, and he released two studio albums by his own name that year (Leon Russell And The Shelter People and the long-delayed Asylum Choir II). Further, Russell helped Freddie King to revive his career by collaborating with him on three of his albums for Shelter during the early 1970s.

During 1972, his album Carney scored #2 on the US charts, due largely to the song “Tight Rope”. In addition, the LP contained “This Masquerade”, which has been covered by other artists such as The Carpenters and George Benson, who won a 1977 Grammy for his 1976 rendition of the tune. Russell performed at the Thanksgiving Jam at Armadillo World Headquarters, Austin, Texas during 1972 with Doug Sahm, Jerry Garcia, Mary Egan, Hank Alrich, Phil Lesh, Benny Thurman, Jerry Barnet, and others.

During the 1970s, Russell continued to perform occasionally in the Paradise Club along with other noted music spots around Tulsa. He surprised his fans one night by performing with Flash Eddy and the Eclectics at the Paradise.

His 1975 album Will O’ the Wisp was successful commercially, along with its single “Lady Blue”. Gailard Sartain, fondly remembered by Tulsans as Mazeppa Pompazoidi (a Saturday night movie host, joined many times by Gary Busey), did the cover artwork for the LP.

During November 2009, he wrote many songs with Elton John and Bernie Taupin for an upcoming album with Elton to be recorded in January 2010 and produced by T-Bone Burnett.[4] He also performed on piano accompaying the Zac Brown Band at the 2010 Grammy awards.