| Al Kooper | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 4, 1944 Brooklyn, New York, United States |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, record producer, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, organ, many others |
| Associated acts | Blood, Sweat & Tears, Bob Dylan |
Al Kooper (born Alan Peter Kuperschmidt, February 5, 1944, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American songwriter, record producer and musician, probably best known for organizing the group Blood, Sweat & Tears, though he did not stay with the group long enough to share its popularity. Events 211 - Roman Emperor Septimius Severus dies leaving the Roman Empire in the hands of his two quarrelsome sons Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Brooklyn (named after the Dutch town Breukelen) is one of the five boroughs of New York City. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A musician is a person who plays or writes Music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music An instrumentalist plays a In the Music industry, a record producer or music producer has many roles among them controlling the recording sessions coaching and guiding the musicians organizing A songwriter is someone who writes the Lyrics to songs the Musical composition (chords or Melody to songs or both A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making Music. The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles The organ (from Greek όργανον – organon "organ instrument tool" is a Keyboard instrument of one or more divisions each Blood Sweat & Tears (also known as " BS&T " is an American music group originally formed in 1967 in New York City. Bob Dylan (born Robert Zimmerman, May 24 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota) is an American singer-songwriter author poet and painter who has been a major Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Brooklyn (named after the Dutch town Breukelen) is one of the five boroughs of New York City. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A songwriter is someone who writes the Lyrics to songs the Musical composition (chords or Melody to songs or both In the Music industry, a record producer or music producer has many roles among them controlling the recording sessions coaching and guiding the musicians organizing A musician is a person who plays or writes Music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music An instrumentalist plays a Blood Sweat & Tears (also known as " BS&T " is an American music group originally formed in 1967 in New York City. He also brought together guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills of CSNY fame to record the Super Session album. For the astronaut see Michael J Bloomfield. Michael Bernard Bloomfield ( July 28 1943, Chicago, Illinois Stephen Arthur Stills (born January 3, 1945 is an American Guitarist and Singer/songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby Stills & Nash ( CSN) is a Folk rock / rock supergroup made up of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash The album Super Session grew out of a single nine hour jam in 1968 by guitarist Mike Bloomfield and multi-instrumentalist Al Kooper and Stephen Stills An album or record album is a collection of related audio or Music tracks distributed to the public
Contents |
Career
His first musical success was as a fourteen year old guitarist in The Royal Teens, best known for their novelty twelve-bar blues riff, "Short Shorts". A guitarist is a Musician who plays the Guitar. Guitarists may perform solo pieces or play with ensembles and bands of a wide variety of genres A novelty song is a silly or nonsensical Song, performed principally for its comical effect. In 1960, he joined the songwriting team of Bob Brass and Irwin Levine, who wrote the hit, "This Diamond Ring", for Gary Lewis and the Playboys. In Popular music, a chart-topper is an extremely popular recording, identified by its inclusion in a ranked list&mdasha Chart &mdashof top " This Diamond Ring " is a 1965 pop Song written by Al Kooper, Bob Brass and Irwin Levine Gary Lewis and the Playboys were a 1960s pop group fronted by Gary Lewis, son of Comedian Jerry Lewis. When he was twenty one, Kooper moved to Greenwich Village. Greenwich Village (ˌgrɛnɪtʃ ˈvɪlɪdʒ often simply called the Village, is a largely residential area on the west side of downtown (southern Manhattan
He performed with Bob Dylan in concert in 1965, and in the recording studio in 1965 and 1966, including playing Hammond organ with Dylan at the (in)famous Newport Folk Festival of 1965. Bob Dylan (born Robert Zimmerman, May 24 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota) is an American singer-songwriter author poet and painter who has been a major A concert is a live Performance, usually of Music, before an Audience. A recording studio is a facility for sound recording. Ideally the space is specially designed by an acoustician to achieve the desired acoustic properties (sound The Hammond organ is an electric organ which was invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company The Newport Folk Festival is an American annual folk -oriented Music festival in Newport Rhode Island, which began in 1959 He worked extensively with Mike Bloomfield for a number of years after the two met as session musicians on Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited album. For the astronaut see Michael J Bloomfield. Michael Bernard Bloomfield ( July 28 1943, Chicago, Illinois Session musicians are musicians available for hire as opposed to musicians who are either permanent members of a musical outfit or who have acquired fame in their own right Highway 61 Revisited is Bob Dylan 's sixth studio album released in 1965 by Columbia Records. An album or record album is a collection of related audio or Music tracks distributed to the public Kooper also played organ with Dylan during his 1981 world tour.
In 1965, he co-formed The Blues Project, although he left them shortly before their most famous gig at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967. The Blues Project was a short-lived Rock and roll band from the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City that was formed in 1965 and split up A concert is a live Performance, usually of Music, before an Audience. The Monterey International Pop Music Festival was a three-day concert event held June 16 to June 18 1967 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey He formed Blood, Sweat & Tears in the same year, leaving after the group's first album, Child Is Father to the Man, in 1968. Blood Sweat & Tears (also known as " BS&T " is an American music group originally formed in 1967 in New York City. Child Is Father to the Man is the debut album by Blood Sweat & Tears, released in February of 1968.
Kooper played on hundreds of records, including The Rolling Stones, B. B. King, The Who and Cream. A gramophone B B King (born Riley B King, September 16 1925 is an American Blues Guitarist and Singer-songwriter. The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964. The primary lineup consisted of guitarist Pete Townshend Cream were a 1960s British rock band On occasion, he has even overdubbed on his own efforts, as on The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper, as Roosevelt Gook. Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper is a Double album documenting performances from two of Blues-rock 's most notable American musicians of He discovered the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and produced their first three albums, including the single, "Sweet Home Alabama" and the iconic "Free Bird". Lynyrd Skynyrd (ˌlɛnɚdˈskɪnɝd is an American Southern rock band In the Music industry, a record producer or music producer has many roles among them controlling the recording sessions coaching and guiding the musicians organizing " Sweet Home Alabama " is a song by Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd that first appeared in 1974 on their second album Second Helping is a song by the American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. It was first featured on the band's debut album (pronounced 'lĕh-'nérd 'skin-'nérd in 1973 and Kooper also wrote the score for the TV series, Crime Story, the film "The Landlord" and has also written music for several made-for-television movies. Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic Crime Story was an NBC TV drama created by Gustave Reininger and Chuck Adamson. The Landlord is a 1970 film directed by Hal Ashby, which was based on the novel by Kristin Hunter. Kooper also produced a now rare album by a group called Appaloosa. He was also the musical force behind many of the children's series "Banana Splits" pop tunes, including "You're the Lovin' End. "
Kooper has published a memoir, Backstage Passes: Rock 'n' Roll Life In The Sixties (1977), now available in revised form as Backstage Passes & Backstabbing Bastards: Memoirs of a Rock 'N' Roll Survivor (1998). The latter includes indictments against manipulators within the music industry, including his one-time business manager, Stan Polley. The music industry is the business of Music. Although it encompasses the activity of many music-related businesses and organizations it is currently dominated by the "big Management (covering theory practice and scope of management and Manager' (covering the people who manage might help clarify and systematise Stanley H Polley (born Bronx NY 1922 is a retired entertainment manager from the 1960s and 1970s
Kooper currently teaches songwriting and production at Berklee College of Music in Boston, and plays weekend concerts with his bands The ReKooperators and The Funky Faculty. Berklee College of Music, founded in 1945 is an independent music College in Boston Massachusetts.
"Like a Rolling Stone" Session
Kooper's most notable playing with Dylan is the striking organ parts on "Like a Rolling Stone". The organ (from Greek όργανον – organon "organ instrument tool" is a Keyboard instrument of one or more divisions each " Like a Rolling Stone " is a song by American songwriter Bob Dylan. Kooper had been invited to the session as an observer, and hoped to be allowed to sit in on guitar, his primary instrument. The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making Music. After hearing Mike Bloomfield warming up, and recognizing that Bloomfield was a much better player, Kooper put his guitar aside and went to the control room. For the astronaut see Michael J Bloomfield. Michael Bernard Bloomfield ( July 28 1943, Chicago, Illinois
During the recording of "Like a Rolling Stone", Paul Griffin moved from organ to piano. Paul Griffin may refer to Paul Griffin (basketball Paul Griffin (Gaelic football Paul Griffin (boxer The piano is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces sound by striking steel strings with Felt covered hammers Kooper told producer Tom Wilson that he had a good organ part for the song (which he later noted was just a ruse to get into the session), and Wilson responded "You're not an organ player, you're a guitar player", but Kooper insisted that he play. Thomas Blanchard Wilson Jr ( March 25, 1931 – September 6, 1978) was an American Record producer best known for his work in the Before Wilson could explicitly reject Kooper, he got a phone call. Kooper went and sat down at the organ (a Hammond B3), though he had rarely played organ before the session. The Hammond organ is an electric organ which was invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company Wilson soon returned, surprised to find Kooper in the studio. Throughout the song the organ can be heard coming in just behind the other members of the band, as Kooper followed to make sure he was playing the right chords. During recording, Dylan famously said, "Turn the organ up," and a classic rock organ part was born. While the combination of piano and organ was common in church settings, it was relatively new to rock music and attracted considerable attention. Rock music is a genre of Popular music often though not necessarily employing Electric guitar, Bass guitar, and Drums.
Discography
Solo
- What's Shakin' (1966 compilation) song: "Can't Keep From Crying Sometimes"
- I Stand Alone (1968)
- You Never Know Who Your Friends Are (1969)
- Easy Does It (1970)
- New York City (You're A Woman) (July 1971)
- A Possible Projection of the Future / Childhood's End (July 1972)
- Naked Songs (1973)
- Act Like Nothing's Wrong (January 1977)
- Rekooperation (June 1994)
- Soul of a Man (February 1995)
- Rare and Well Done (September 2001)
 Rare and Well Done cover |
Al Kooper - "I Can't Quit Her" from the 2-Disc album Rare and Well-Done
Al Kooper - "Flute Thing" from the 2-Disc album Rare + Well-Done
- Fillmore East: The Lost Concert Tapes 12/13/68 (With Mike Bloomfield) (April 2003)
- Black Coffee (August 2005)
- White Chocolate (2008)
Collaborative
- Super Session (With Stephen Stills and Mike Bloomfield) (1968)
"Albert's Shuffle" from Super Session
- The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper (1968)
- Kooper Session (With Shuggie Otis) (1969)
- Championship Wrestling (Featuring Jeff "Skunk" Baxter) (1982)
Compilation
- Al's Big Deal/Unclaimed Freight/An Al Kooper Anthology (1975)
External links
- Official Al Kooper website
- Al Kooper's Myspace page with Bio
- Extensive audio interview with Terry Gross on NPR's 'Fresh Air' program, January 3, 2004
- The Jimi Hendrix Experience by Al Kooper