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The Wrecking Crew, also known as the Clique and the First Call Gang, was a loose collective of American session musicians based in Los Angeles who played on many studio recordings in the 1960s and 1970s, including hundreds of top 40 hits. The musicians were not publicly recognized at the time, but were viewed with reverence by industry insiders.
- Who Were The Wrecking Crew?
- How Did They Get Their Name?
- What Did They do?
- Some Members Had A Strong Jazz Background
- What Musicians Did They Play with?
- What TV Music Did They Make?
- Who Was Carol Kaye?
- Did Any Wrecking Crew Members Make It as Solo Stars?
- What Wrecking Crew Songs Would I Know?
- What Wrecking Crew Songs Should I Know?
The exact number of musicians in the loose collective of Los Angeles session musicians known as The Wrecking Crew is not known, partly because of the informal nature of the hiring and also because much of their work went uncredited. Three of their key members were the magnificent session drummer Hal Blaine, bassist and guitarist Carol Kaye(one of t...
After being known unofficially as “The Clique” and “The First Call Gang,” Hal Blaine later coined the name The Wrecking Crew. In his 1990 memoir, the drummer said the name was in ironic reference to the complaints of older musicians that these young studio performers were embracing rock and pop, and thereby going to “wreck” the music industry. Blai...
During the 60s and 70s, Los Angeles producers needed reliable standby musicians who could be counted on to contribute to records in a variety of styles and deliver hits on short order. The Wrecking Crew were musically versatile performers who were usually brilliant at sight-reading. Their contributions feature in pop songs, television music, theme ...
The Wrecking Crew were needed for a variety of styles, from pop music to Frank Sinatra’s sophisticated swing. There was a jazz influence among these session musicians. Trumpeter Chuck Findlay, who played with Stanley Turrentine, Freddie Hubbard, and Lalo Schifrin, was a regular on sessions, as was drummer Frank De Vito – who had worked with Charlie...
The Wrecking Crew were the session musicians of choice for Phil Spector when he constructed his Wall Of Sound, and they were at the top of most producers’ call lists. The musicians appear on songs by nearly every prominent American pop performer of the era, including The Byrds, The Mamas And The Papas, Elvis Presley, Harry Nilsson, The Beach Boys, ...
Tommy Tedesco was one of the core members of The Wrecking Crew and his guitar introductions were essential to many of the famous television theme tunes of the era, including The Twilight Zone,Green Acres,Bonanza,M*A*S*H*,Batman,Mission: Impossible and Hawaii Five-O – along with film scores such as Born Free. In 2008, his son Danny Tedesco made a do...
Carol Kaye was asked to fill in at a recording session for Capitol Records in 1963 and word quickly spread in Los Angeles music circles that her brilliant electric bass playing was a valuable commodity. “Carol Kaye was the greatest bass player I’ve ever met,” said Brian Wilson. Kaye is reported to have played on 10,000 recording sessions, including...
Barney Kessel was something of an anomaly among The Wrecking Crew, because he was making successful solo albums for Verve Recordswhile he was also doing session work. However, a handful of The Wrecking Crew’s members also went on to make big names for themselves. Glen Campbell played on The Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” Sin...
There are simply too many fantastic songs to list, but among the best-known Wrecking Crew songs that have not already been mentioned are Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots Are Made for Walking,” Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling In Love” and “Viva Las Vegas,” Jan And Dean’s “Surf City,” Simon And Garfunkel’s “Mrs. Robinson,” Sonny And Cher’s “I Got You Babe,...
The late Larry Knechtel, who later became a member of Bread, was still working as a session music in the 21st Century, including for The Dixie Chicks. Knechtel played keyboards, bass guitar, and harmonica as a member of The Wrecking Crew and said they were young musicians “in the right place at the right time… it was a lot of fun. We were all young...
Oct 18, 2021 · The Wrecking Crew: The unsung legacy of rock music’s greatest studio band. ‘The Clique’ or ‘The First Call Gang’ are a group of Los Angeles-based session musicians that defined the sound of the 1970s and, for many years, have been known by multiple different names.
Feb 19, 2024 · The beginnings of The Wrecking Crew. The first makings of The Wrecking Crew came in the late 1950s, where many of The Crew’s musicians were part of what was called the ‘A-List’ session musician circle.
The answer is: more than anyone surely suspected at the time. But “the Wrecking Crew was not supposed to attract attention. Groups like the Beach Boys, the Byrds, the Monkees and many others didn’t care to point out why they sounded so much better on records than on the road.”
Mar 26, 2021 · Although the peak of their output was during the 1960s and 1970s, it was only when Wrecking Crew drummer Hal Blaine published his memoir in 1990 that people got to know them by their nickname. As noted by Udiscover Music, the group was informally known as "The Clique" and "The First Call Gang" before they adopted the "Wrecking Crew" moniker ...
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Jun 3, 2023 · Known to the music world as the Wrecking Crew, this group comprised a rotating cast of immensely talented studio musicians who laid down the tracks for countless hits pouring out of Los Angeles between 1962 and 1972.
