The Wrecking Crew

Thanks! Unfortunately, this link doesn't work in the United States (the film has been locked in this country on copyright grounds), but the film was out in theaters in the US for a while and is available on DVD. There's been an uptick in interest with the death of Glen Campbell.
 
I streamed it on Netflix a year or two ago. Currently, Netflix offers it only on DVD (in my area, at least).

I believe it's currently available for streaming on Amazon, and as a DVD for purchase.

I agree, it's a great documentary.
 
Thats a shame you can't watch it . Lyle Ritz gets a mention on one of the stills , and theres a still of Tommy Tedesco with a ukulele.
 
Download the Opera browser. It has a virtual VPN. Choose Germany and you can get it.
 
This reminds me of way back when Kenny Baker cut his hand with a butcher knife, right as Bill Monroe was ready to get a new album produced. Buddy Spicher played on it instead of Kenny, and I had to pry to find out who it was. His name was in little tiny print on the album notes.

I imagine stuff like this happens all the time. Just think of all the wonderful Symphony Orchestra musicians who never get a mention through all the years of playing great music.
 
When I was in my early 20s in the early seventies, I was a production assistant for the Johnny Mann Singers TV show and road manager. Our studio musicians every week were most of the Wrecking Crew, including Tommy Tedesco, Herb Ellis, Joe Pass, Ray Brown, Paul Smith, Chic Corea, Frankie Capp. When Tommy's son put together that documentary, he invited a number of us to attend a screening and write our impressions of Tommy and the others. I played guitar and wrote how it was so fascinating to watch Tommy play with a cigarette hanging off his lip and his chubby fingers wailing all over the fretboard.
 
Thats amazing kohanmike , the other person that comes over as a nice and unpretentious person is Carol Kaye , she shows how she worked out the opening riff to Wichita Lineman for Glen Campbell , so many insights into the music business i could go on ,
 
I found it interesting that Glenn Campbell was part of the Wrecking Crew but could not read music. I was always under the impression that sessions musicians were known for their ability to play whatever was thrown in front of them. They are after all, hired to play other artist's music, not make it up on their own.

I saw a documentary on Muscle Shoals and the Swampers, who were a bunch of white musicians from the little podunk town of Muscle Shoals, Alabama who were sessions musicians for Wilson Pickett and Aretha Franklin. Aretha Franklin said in the notes for the documentary that she and her backup singers could come in, throw down the music for a half dozen songs, and the Swampers were on it a half hour later. But they also did sessions for the Stones, Cat Stephens, Paul Simon, Bob Seeger, and just a slew of artists. If anyone gets the chance, Wiki Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and you can read all about them.
 
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Sadly, session musicians often don't get credits listed. When you see a movie you see that the person who gets the coffee or walks the dog gets listed, but individual musicians rarely get a mention.
 
I was always under the impression that sessions musicians were known for their ability to play whatever was thrown in front of them. They are after all, hired to play other artist's music, not make it up on their own.

Studio musicians are much more likely to have a sheet that lists the chord progressions (I, IV, V, etc).

This allows (among other things) for the singer to say "That's a little to low for me, can we try it in a higher key?" and then all the musicians just adjust to the (I, IV, V, etc) in the next key. Nobody needs to re-write the music.

Classical music sessions or movie score recording sessions are more likely to have arranged sheet music.
 
Amazing documentary Rllink loved watching it, especially liked the Bob Seager and Allman Brothers insight , and it's spurred me on to learn the solo to Down on Main street what a beautiful solo sent shivers down my spine listing to it . I does prove the adage "Being in the right place at the right time".
 
Amazing documentary Rllink loved watching it, especially liked the Bob Seager and Allman Brothers insight , and it's spurred me on to learn the solo to Down on Main street what a beautiful solo sent shivers down my spine listing to it . I does prove the adage "Being in the right place at the right time".

I find it particularly interesting, because my goal from the beginning with the ukulele was to be able to play anything that anyone wanted to sing. Sessions players are the professionals in that. They are my heros.
 
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