The rumours

The unsubstantiated (& unreleased) sessions by Band members

  Notes by Peter Viney

Over the years, I’ve collected notes on the rumours of Band involvement with various artists, and tried to track down any albums mentioned. As a hobby, it’s harmless enough. There are a number of references in books and articles to sit-ins that I have been unable to find and substantiate and also several rumoured sessions which I can confirm are definitely mistaken. These are the “wrong uns”. There are also some ‘confirmed but unreleased’ sessions among them.

One consistent theme in the rumours is linking Albert Grossman-managed artists to The Band, and artists who had recorded either at Bearsville in Woodstock, or The Band’s California studio, Shangri-La. There were all sorts of rumoured sessions and Bearsville artists like Hungry Chuck get mentioned as possible connections. I have a Japanese Record Collector on The Band which is intriguing because it’s in Japanese but puts band names in English, so you see (row of characters) Grinders Switch, (row of characters) Hungry Chuck, (row of characters) Corey Hart. But I have no idea what the rows of characters mean. The release of the Japanese Bearsville Box Set revealed full session credits for the first time, which dispelled all the Bearsville links except Bobby Charles.

A few years ago, I hoped to find everything The Band members had ever recorded, but I gave up. I thought that somewhere among all those sessions there’d be a sublime moment like the drums on ‘The Weight.’ Then you’d get that sought after CD with (e.g.) Levon on drums on one track and the sleeve notes don’t tell you which one and you listen hard and you still can’t tell. I’d swear that no one has it all (though I can think of several who are still trying). I’m sure that none of the Band members has all their own work or even anything approaching all of it.

In my own narrow field, I used to be hugely completist about my own stuff but I even failed there. You do an interview, or a short piece, or you give a permission and you may or may not be paid, but you say “Send me a copy when it’s out.” People never fail to promise this faithfully and enthusiastically, but then most forget (or lie / don’t bother!). I’d guess that there were so many odd sit ins that none of them would remember. An archivist like Bill Wyman is a rarity in any band. I think all we can do is note what we can on this site, and hopefully add more information on these “unsubstantiated sessions.” I’d hope that some would become “substantiated” and move over to the main discography, and that other rumoured ones could be finally squashed. But we’ll never know them all.

It may seem strange that albums and work by major artists stays on the shelf. In 2003 Richard Thompson was quoted as saying that major labels have zero interest in artists selling at the 100,000 albums level. Too small. Now that’s a lot of albums. But people start things, personnel changes at record companies, st uff gets shelved. The artist moves onto something else. Five years later it all seems a bit dated … and it festers on the shelves forever.

This much longer revised version could not have been compiled without the invaluable contributions from the Guestbook. Thanks to Bill Munson, Donald Joseph, Bayou Sam, Bones, Daniel Schimelpfenig, Harm van Sleen, David Powell, Jonathan Katz, Kevin Tomasic, Lee Gabites, Bumbles for corrections and additions.

I’m sure the information here is still far from complete. I suggest that people either post on the GB or e-mail me at TheBand@PeterViney.co.uk with additions and corrections. Eventually (but not soon) I can do a third version.

--Peter Viney, January 2003

Eric Andersen: More Hits From Tin Can Alley

According to the Rockbase database, this album features three Band / Hawk drummers past and future - Randy Ciarlante, Sandy Konikoff and Bobby Gregg. However, the date seemed suspicious, given Ciarlante’s age. Randy Ciarlante confirmed in 1997 that he did not play on this album, not having met Eric Andersen until 1976 or 1977, whereupon he played on the Midnight Sun album.

Atkinson, Danko & Ford / Bearfoot

Bearfoot included ex-Hawks Terry Danko, Jim Atkinson and Dwayne Ford. They also made an album called Atkinson, Danko and Ford. One album in 1973 was called Friends.

Bill Munson adds:

Atkinson, Danko and Ford did one LP, the liner notes to which note that Terry is Rick's brother. (Then snakishly hastens to add that this doesn't mean anything and that it's the music that matters.) That LP was remixed (with new drums/drummer on some cuts) and reissued - sans notes - as the first Bearfoot LP. Bearfoot did two more - the first of those, with "Molly", being first rate - though Atkinson and Danko were gone by the time the last one came out. By the way, the first LP has a song called "Mark Twain" that is rather Bandish in its reference to Mississippi river boats.

Beatles & Dylan jam at the Isle of Wight

‘Breaking New Ground’

Garth Brooks

Marion Brown

Gary Busey

Dixie Time Again
Rolling Down The Road
There Goes The Band
Mason Dixon Line
Run Little Belle

Johnny Cash

Champion Jack Dupree

The Crowmatics / Levon & The Crowmatics

Rick Danko: 2nd solo album from 1979

Your piece omits my own pet unsubstantiated-sessions rumor, that of sessions for a second Rob-Fraboni-produced 70's Danko solo album. Sometime in about 1979, a year or a couple of years after the self-titled Danko solo album, a notice appeared in Rolling Stone's "Random Notes" section saying that Danko was back in the studio working with Fraboni on a second solo LP. As I recall, there was even a photo of the two of them, taken at the sessions. I concede I don't have a copy of this & haven't seen it since it came out -- but my memory is quite clear that this did indeed appear; I'm certain that anyone with access to late-70's "Rolling Stones" & the patience to sift throught their "Random Notes" sections would find this (assuming these aren't on line). I've always thought that if these sessions did indeed occur, there must be some songs from them, but I know of nothing that ever surfaced.

This rumour got firmed up when Other Peoples Music issued the surviving material as Crying Heart Blues.

Terry Danko: Rendezvous

Demos for other artists?

Snow (Jesse Winchester/ Robbie Robertson) Song from the first Jesse Winchester album. I would have thought this would have been written during the sessions, so I think it's highly unlikely that a Band or Robbie demo existed. You could argue that both of these compositions come from such a vital period that it would be fair to license the John Simon & Jesse Winchester versions for yet another box set.

Bob Dylan: Dylan (1973)

Fire Down Below

Fire In The Hole is the Marty Grebb & Daniel Moore song from the soundtrack. Levon has other connections with both of these musicians. It’s been said that Levon plays on the soundtrack to Fire Down Below. It makes sense, for he co-wrote one of the songs in the movie and briefly toured with some of these musicians after the movie was released. However, his name is not on the soundtrack.

Information from the website is:

Lee:

I don't think Levon plays on the soundtrack to Fire Down Below. He does perform a song in the film whilst playing acoustic guitar. I had the opportunity to interview Levon when he was on set for this movie and also interviewed Marty Grebb. Marty mentioned something interesting about the song Fire in the Hole. He had an idea that The Band might have tracked that.

Butch:

Levon was one of two drummers in a great band that Steven Seagal put together to promote the film. There were two weeks of rehearsals and some of those sessions may have made the soundtrack, it’s hard to tell, it was a bit chaotic to say the least.

Friends

David Geffen,s Birthday Party 1974

Nick Gravenites session

Norman Greenbaum: Spirit in the Sky (LP)

It was quoted for years that this session involved Band members. Individual track credits don’t exist, but ‘Robbie Robinson’ is credited: “Songs sung and played by Norman Greenbaum, Lillian, Netta and Joe, Patty and Mitzi, Norman Mayall, Douglas Kilmer, Robbie Robinson, Russell Dashiel, Dan Patiris, John Coppola, Chuck Petersen, Bill Sabatini and William Truckaway” On the CD reissue, there are notes which quote Greenbaum ‘Then one day Robbie Robinson said he’d found out a way to build a fuzz box into a guitar, with the result that it became the sort of novelty that you just couldn’t stop experimenting with.”

I had this e-mail reply after posting this on the website:

I was just looking to see if Norman had got his web page up yet and I saw your article about Norman and "Robbie Robinson/Robertson". I was Norman's road manager when he had the hit with Spirit and have remained in touch since then. So, if no one else has disabused you and the world of this ridiculous notion that the Band member was on the session, please allow me. He was certainly not. The line-up you have for the session looks correct from what I remember hearing from Norman back then. Robbie Robinson was a real musician who worked with Norman, though I never met him. Also, Norman told me that the fuss-tone came with the Fender Telecaster from the factory. Coincidently though, I think Norm also told me that Mr. Robinson some how ended up with that guitar.

Grinder’s Switch

“Guitar Man” by The Band

Corey Hart

‘Jabberwocky’ single by The Band

Then turn to page 347 of Bill Wyman’s book Blues Odyssey. It has a quote about backing John Hammond with Band members in November 1964. Next to the quote is a poster for Hammond playing at “The Jabberwock” in Berkeley on December 2, 3, 4. The caption says ‘this advert is from five months later’ – it’s either 5 weeks later or 13 months later in fact. Coincidence?

Levon Helm: Blues, Grooves

Levon & The Band

LEVON & THE BAND Midnight on Hariba / Phoenicia Street Shuffle (LIBAN 45107)
LEVON & THE BAND Screaming Strings / Jammin’ The Blues (LIBAN 56110)

The advertiser didn’t reply to my enquiry, which would have been late as I got the copy in the UK.

Gordon Lightfoot

Rockbase has (unusually) detailed sessionographies for most of his albums, none of which include Band members. I’ve looked at Record Fairs and turned up nothing (except a Ry Cooder sit-in which is irrelevant!) I’m reliably informed that:

Lightfoot basically has used the same back up band his whole career with the exception of some session players. To the best of my knowledge he has never played with any members of The Band.

Los Lobos

John Martyn: Road to Ruin

Willie Mitchell: Sparkle

Keith Moon/ Peter Cook

Keith Moon set out to make a second solo album, which has never been released, though five tracks appeared as bonus tracks on the CD release of the first solo LP, Two Sides of The Moon,

Anyway, Moon decided to import comedian Peter Cook to sing a Warner back catalogue song, "Rubber Ring." According to the magazine:

"After several takes, the track, featuring members of The Band and Rick Nelson's Stone Canyon Band in instrumental support, was beyond redemption, with (Rick) Nelson having to coach Cook's nicotine- and wine-sodden voice into carrying some semblance of a tune. It was never released."

More Moondog Matinee outtakes?

When the remasters appeared, five far more obscure songs appeared as outtakes. Rob Bowman’s sleevenotes mention there were also thirty four takes of Rick Danko on Bring It On Home To Me and takes on Faye Adams’ 1949 hit Shake A Hand. He quotes Robbie on the process of doing one or two run throughs of suggested songs before deciding to turn on the tape recorder. Robbie also says We weren’t going to do Bony Moronie or Short Fat Fannie … they were too comical. He also explains why they didn’t record Slippin’ and Slidin’ and Lovin You Is Sweeter than Ever – we probably thought we’d done that.

So, two confirmed unreleased tracks.

Van Morrison

In an interview, Van mentioned that he’d wanted to do a Ray Charles album with Richard Manuel. But even at the time of the interview his wife, Janet Planet, implies that Richard was only responding politely “That was just you,” she said.

There are live tracks of Van singing with The Band at Nostell Priory 1984, but these are part of the large nebulous live tapes circuit (as are so many things).

Geoff Muldaur

As I was writing this in January 2003, there was finally news of the connection. Mojo reports:

A slew of rum soaked Eric Von Schmidt tunes laid down at Woodstock’s Bearsville Studios in 1972, with friends Rick Danko and Garth Hudson of The Band, Paul Butterfield and Maria and Geoff Muldaur. These tracks are from Living on The Trail, a long lost Von Schmidt album recently released – call it 30 years late and right on time. The album’s heartbroken ballad (is) Thunder Heads Keep Rolling.

Maria Muldaur

See also Geoff Muldaur above.

The New Maroons

Nilsson: Pussy cats

Rather like Ringo Starr’s Rotogravure below. Band members involvement in this album has been long rumoured, but the album has meticulously detailed credits which do not mention them (though John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Klaus Voorman, Sneeky Pete, Keith Moon do appear). The sessions were a notorious piss-up for all concerned, being part of Lennon’s long “Lost weekend”in California, where the Band were living at the time. My guess is that Band members may well have attended the piss-ups and been present without contributing. But there is a reference to the Masked Albert Orchestra in the credits. Maybe Albert refers to Albert Grossman, who might have insisted the particular orchestra was masked?

The Pencils

An album was recorded at One Step Up studio in Van Nuys, California, which consisted of Terry Danko / Marty Grebb songs. They also produced. On the album, Danko and Grebb were joined by Chris Pinnick (guitar), Ricky Fattar (drums), Jimmy Pankow (trombone) and Joe Lala (percussion). Backing vocals were added by Richard Manuel, Mike Finnigan and Steven Stills.

Nine songs were cut, but then Terry Danko had a serious car accident and was out of music for a year. The album suffered from changing fashions in the interim, and never got released. Sadly, no one can turn up the master tapes either.

So the lost Pencils album is a genuine lost Richard Manuel session.

Penderecki “Works”

Barney Hoskyns says it was 'a kind of symphony about the experience of the American Indians.' Another quote from Hoskyns suggests that about 15 minutes may have been completed. This may be in writing rather than recorded form. Whichever, it's well under wraps.

Peter, Paul & Mary: Album 1700

It was largely members of Butterfield’s band that backed … Highway 61 Revisited … then later at Newport 65. The Band took over after that. They played background for Peter, Paul and Mary’s attempted breakout albums like ‘Album 1700’.

The Band had worked with Peter Yarrow in the sense that they backed Tiny Tim on the You Are What You Eat OST in 1968. They are also credited on Yarrow’s 1973 solo That’s Enough For Me on the song Groundhog. This track was written and produced by Paul Simon with a credit of ‘special help from Robbie Robertson. Levon Helm, and Garth Hudson.’ Rob Bowman’s sleeve notes to Moondog Matinee (which must have been Robbie Robertson approved as the earlier Hoskyns notes had been rejected by him) says that Levon and Garth played on this.

Richard Manuel, overdubbed versions of solo live shows

The 1990s Band has used other Richard Manuel solo recordings, also recorded by Andy Robinson. The studio Country Boy appeared on Jericho, and a different version of She Knows was on High on The Hog.

Work had been done by The Band on overdubbing other solo live material (including versions of Hard Times, Crazy Mama and Miss Otis Regrets), produced and arranged by Garth Hudson, but this never came to fruition. The Garth Hudson-produced version of She Knows was done for Bearsville Records (owned by Sally Grossman) and came from a Lone Star Café benefit show. Butch Dener reported that Levon had been trying to persuade Sally Grossman to release these tapes for years, to no avail.

Robert Plant

Michael J. Pollard

Professor Longhair

I read in ICE Magazine years ago that The Band had worked with Professor Longhair and that an album of this material was due for release,then subsequently pulled without explanation. Have you ever heard of this? I sort of thought that maybe this was why he was thanked on the Rock Of Ages sleeve.

The plaintiff's complaint recounts the unusual circumstances under which the tapes went from Grossman's possession to that of his estate: "Upon information and belief, tragically dying en route [from a European music conference], Albert Grossman lay in state [sic] at Heathrow Airport in London. Upon claiming the corpse, Sally Grossman, widow of Albert Grossman, discovered the Baton Rouge recording session tapes clutched to the deceased body."

Bumbles posted:

The following quotes from Quint Davis, producer/director of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and a key figure in Longhair’s career after his re-emergence at the 1971 festival, appear in Jeff Hannusch’s I Hear You Knockin: The Sound of New Orleans Rhythm and Blues. Hannusch isn’t specific, but the trip to Woodstock would have been in early 1972.

Grossman invited us up to Woodstock. We did some sessions that were supposed to come out on Bearsville, but in the end it didn’t work out. I don’t exactly know why—we did some killer sessions—but nothing ever came out. Grossman’s got all the tapes. You see Grossman’s big; he’s just physically big, and that’s the way he functioned. He moved with a lot of force. He created this whole community up there. He had Todd Rundgren, the Band, Paul Butterfield, the Full Tilt Boogie Band and Foghat. He built the first really advanced studio there; he was managing and he had the label.

He seemed real interested, and he initially made the investment [$25,000]; and that money was crucial. It paid for the Baton Rouge session; I bought Fess some clothes, a car and a piano.

We got there [Woodstock] a day early or something, and they put us up in this house that wasn’t finished; it didn’t have electricity or a phone, and they told us to hang on for a day or so until they got it together. Well, if you’re a 23-year-old Caucasian rock fan and were told to hang on in Woodstock that’s one thing, but I was there with Snooks Eaglin and Professor Longhair, and they didn’t think things were happening at all. I’ll never forget Snooks standing by the window and saying the sound of the snow falling on the roof bothered him.

When we were there we did one strange session with some guy, and then we did a whole afternoon with the Full Tilt Boogie Band, but it just wasn’t happening...so I took them to New York.

Since Davis was obviously aware of the Band, but doesn’t mention any of them being at either Woodstock session, and since the entire Bearsville episode seems to have taken only a couple of days, it seems unlikely that a trove of Longhair-Band tapes exists.

Raging Bull OST

Scorsese says:

Raging Bull should have become an album; the (performing) rights became crazy. I really went to a lot of trouble with the music. I love Robbie Robertson’s music at the beginning and the end, over the credits what you hear is just him moaning over the drum machine. It was just a cassette he sent me and now it’s on 70mm. (Q Interview, March 1987).

At Last ­(Gordon / Warren, 1942)
A New Kind of Love (Fain / Kahal / Norman, 1930)
Webster Hall (composed by Garth Hudson)

The musicians listed for these tracks are:

Garth Hudson - piano, sax/ Richard Manuel - drums / Larry Klein - bass / Dale Turner - trumpet (Oingo Boingo Band) Produced and Arranged by Robbie Robertson.

Garth Hudson also lists Raging Bull (Cues) among his ASCAP writing credits.

The Red Bird sessions

Red Bird specialized in acts like the Shangri-Las and The Dixie Cups. New Orleans singer Alvin Robinson also recorded for Red Bird. The label was associated with Brill Building writers like Barry-Greenwich and Leiber-Stoller, and the legendary Shadow Morton produced the most memorable items. It’s exactly the sort of label that hires in the session guys, pays the money and keeps no records. Musicians don’t get listed on the definitive Red Bird Story 4CD set. But it took years before anyone realized that a young Cher was singing backing on a lot of Spector hits.

The explanation has been that three of The Hawks backed John Hammond on sessions in 1965 which were released on a Red Bird single.

End of story? Probably. But two odd little coincidences follow.

The Shangri-Las recorded a cover of You Cheated (You Lied) in 1965, and on Shangri-Las albums the credits read “L. Helm”. Levon is credited with writing this song on the Ronnie Hawkins Roulette version, but this is certainly a false credit. The song had earlier been a US # 12 hit for The Shields in the Fall of 1958. The Shields were covering an earlier release by a Texas group, The Slades, on Domino which got to #42. It was also covered by The Del-Vikings on Mercury. Composer credits are to ‘Burch’ on these releases. There was also an answer disc, I Cheated, credited to Burch, and sung by Joyce Harris (and backed by The Slades).

The Rolling Stone review of the 1969 re-issue of the Hawkins album says that it was ‘later (sic) a number 1 (sic) hit for The Shields’. The reviewer was Greil Marcus, who was pretty far off the mark with his comment:

Think about this. Levon Helm reached more people with more impact with You Cheated than the Band has with Music From Big Pink.

So, when the Shangri-Las came to record this song, they chose to follow the least well-known of four versions and to credit it to Levon Helm. Reading through the Red Bird Story reveals that Levy became heavily involved in the label (after the previous owner reneged on gambling debts), and there was a constant mob connection. That would explain why The Shangri-Las would be exploring the Patricia Music catalogue.

As Robertson recalled in an interview in March 1998 edition of Mix magazine (posted on the Guestbook by David Powell):

"'Wow! I've got songs on an album!' I'm really cherishing the moment. I open the record slowly and I'm savoring the scent of the vinyl and I look on the label and I see the song titles and I see my songs there, and under the songs it says, 'Robbie Robertson and Morris Levy.' And so I say to Ronnie, 'Who the hell is Morris Levy and what is his name doing on these songs I wrote?' And Ronnie says in his southern accent, 'Well, son, there are certain things in this business we just don't question and it's better for all concerned to just accept.' A couple of days later, I was in a record store and out of curiosity I looked at some other recordings on Roulette Records, and I see Morris Levy's name on a lot of songs. And I think, 'Man this guy's a songwriting fool!' [Laughs]"

"...Ronnie took me up to Roulette Records to meet my 'songwriting partner,' Morris Levy. We go into his office and Ronnie introduces me as his young guitar player and songwriter who he thinks has great 'potential,' as he calls it. And Morris Levy looks at me and says, 'Yeah, he's a cute kid. I bet you don't know whether to hire him or f---- him.' And I'm thinking, 'Whaaaat? What is with this guy?' And I look around his office and he's got these guys in there with these tight dark suits on; they're packing heat or something. Two things became apparent to me immediately. One was that the Cosa Nostra was not a myth. And number two, that I would forego my comments about the songwriting credit dispute.

I do wonder when I listen to those Shadow Morton productions … and I know English session musicians who’ve confided some of their particularlyeneged on gambling debts), and there was a constant mob connection. That would explain why The Shangri-Las would be explo unhip session work in private, but denied them in public. Except that The Shangri-Las are not particularly unhip.

“The Road from Turkey Scratch”

David Sanborn: As We Speak

Produced by Robert Margouleff Jazz album featuring saxist David Sanborn with Marcus Miller, Omar Hakim, Paulinho da Costa, Don Freeman, Michael Sembello, George Duke. There is a long list of about fifty ‘Special thanks’ which includes Garth Hudson (and Gary Busey). However, Garth is not listed among the detailed musician credits. Garth Hudson's involvement on the album, according to Garth's friend Richard Wall, was probably that David Sanborn borrowed one of Garth Hudson's soprano saxophones for these sessions. David Sanborn is supposed to be a big admirer of Garth Hudson, and obviously they knew each other.

Jules Shear

Tombstone Tombstone
River of Honey
All Creation
Baby Don’t You Cry No More
The High Price of Love (later on High on the Hog )
Long Ways to Tennessee
Too Soon Gone (later on Jericho )
Money Whipped
Never Again or Forever

The Shutouts

Carly Simon sessions

On the single of Mockingbird by Carly Simon and James Taylor (Elektra 45880) (1974) Robbie Robertson guests on this track which is from Hotcakes. The song is a remake of the Charlie and Inez Foxx 1963 hit, and it reached US # 3, UK # 34.

On the 1977 Libby Titus album Paul Simon & Phil Ramone produced two tracks (Fool That I Am, and a superb Kansas City), Phil Ramone managed two more on his own, and another three in conjunction with Carly Simon. Libby co-wrote Can This Be My Love Affair with Carly Simon, and the song is about Levon Helm. Carly Simon produced one on her own (Darkness Till Dawn, where Carly and James Taylor share backing vocals) and Robbie Robertson produced the remaining two.

The “unsubstantiated one” is:

Carly Simon was adopted as a protege by Albert Grossman who planned a debut album which would launch her as a ‘female Dylan’. Four tracks were produced by Bob Johnson in New York, including Baby let me follow you down with new lyrics by Carly Simon and Bob Dylan. Artists on the sessions were Robbie Robertson (later featured on her Mockingbird), Rick Danko, Richard Manuel, Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper. She argued with Grossman and the album was scrapped. A 1981 Carly Simon interview in Rolling Stone mentioned discussing the tracks with Dylan ‘a week before the crash’ (which was on 29 July 1966). Sources such as The Rolling Stone Encylopedia of Rock ‘n’ Roll and the 1973 NME Book of Rock give the session date as September 1966. The Guinness Book of Rock Stars gave the date as September 1967 in its first edition. The emergence of a September 1967 demo by The Band (Orange Juice Blues) on Across The Great Divide make the later date seem possible.

The Sony Album – The Band

So there are at least five unreleased early 90s Band tracks which are worthy of release.

Ringo Starr: Rotogravure

According to the Rockbase database and to the Internet site, Levon Helm plays mandolin on this album. As the album has painstaking documentation and acknowledgements, including photos of most participants, and does not include Levon, it seems most likely that the databases are wrong - unless Levon was anonymous for contractual reasons which seems unlikely given his other appearances as a sideman in the same year. (But the album does include John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Sneaky Pete Kleinow, Van Dyke Parks, Harry Nilsson, Dr John, Pete Frampton, Jesse Ed Davis, Melissa Manchester …) See Pussy Cats above - similar line-up, similar rumours.

Gabor Szabo

Libby Titus: Libby Titus

Libby Titus: Makes The World Go Round

May or may not be the same album as the one above. I’m told there is no Band involvement listed (I’ve never seen it).

Gary Trooper & Joe Flood

Jennifer Warnes: Shot Through The Heart

This has been listed as an album with Band members sitting in, but it isn’t. It has clear and full sleeve credits. The confusion arises because this album was produced by Rob Fraboni, recorded at Shangri La Studios, and features Blondie Chaplin on guitar. It even has a Jesse Winchester cover (You Remember Me) and a Dylan cover (Sign On The Window). BUT none of the Band feature on it. Well, Chaplin was an ex-officio member seven years later in 1986. I was thrilled when I found a copy at a Record fair. Disappointed when I read the sleeve notes. Thrilled again when I discovered it was well-worth having anyway.

Sonny Boy Williamson

Whether such a venture would have been truly satisfying is dubious – even the very best of these collaborations (The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album and The London Howling Wolf Sessions ) are ‘good’ rather than ground-breaking, and Sonny Boy Williamson Meets the Yardbirds was poor, but then again as Sonny Boy said, no doubt with the Yardbirds session in mind, ‘they want to play the blues so bad, and they do’. I think I’d stick with Down and Out Blues – great sleeve too.

Various artists: Bearsville Theater

Neil Young