OT:Roy Orbison & Friends, A black & white night.

[Robatoy]

Just got blown away by a PBS special. Once in a blue moon something like this sneaks up on you and grabs you by the soul.

It is available on DVD... and I must get me a copy... just awesome..

The backing band was the TCB Band, which accompanied Elvis Presley from 1969 until his death in 1977: Glen D. Hardin on piano; James Burton on lead guitar; Jerry Scheff on bass; and Ronnie Tutt on drums. Male background vocalists, with some also joining in on guitar, were: Bruce Springsteen, Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, Jackson Browne, J.D. Souther, Steven Soles. Singing the female background vocals were k.d. lang, Jennifer Warnes, and Bonnie Raitt.

Recorded just a year before we lost that Travelling Wilbury.....

[Lew Hodgett]

SFWIW, that program runs a lot on a PBS station when the station is in begging mode.

Around here, that is at least twice a year.

Still a great session.

Lew

[Lee Michaels]

"Robatoy" wrote

Yes, that has been around for awhile in the civilized states. I am not surprised that our neighbors in the frozen north have not heard about it before now. ;)

Most of that concert is available, as single songs, on youtube. Just in case you need a RO fix.

It is one of my favorite music videos as well. Roy Orbinson definitely was an original. Not only in terms of the songs he wrote, but that unreal four octave range that he had.

That concert was an event that Roy Orbinson payed for himself. That is one reason why it is so good. He made a bunch of calls. And the artists responded. Many of them gushed about the experience for years after. Can you imagine getting such a call and turning him down? I think not.

[Swingman]

"Robatoy" wrote

And a very down to earth gal ... I subbed on bass a number of times for a band that had a regular gig at a club across directly across the street from the old "Rockefellers" in Houston, and, on two occasions when Bonnie's road band was in town and playing there, she would walk across the street _on ALL her breaks_ to jam with us!

This was just after "Nick of Time" came out ... what memories, and what a hoot! :)

Hard to believe that was almost 20 years ago!

[Upscale]

Sounds like a pro hockey player getting into a game of shinny. They're there just for the fun of it and no pressure to perform.

[Robatoy]

Friends of mine were playing at The BlueNote (early 1980's) in Toronto when Stevie Wonder was guided behind the keyboard and proceeded to blow the place away. Fortunately for Stevie (and all of us there), the boys in the band were up to the job. George Oliver and his guys and the Tower Of Power horn section...and some guy from B,S&T. Stevie had just finished up a concert a the CNE and decided to have some fun. (I won't mention that the bar bill was $1400.00) Syd, the owner, gave us time to pay. Good times, good times.

[Swingman]

"Upscale" wrote

Blues musician's, in particular, are like that ... you live from magic moment to magic moment, just waiting to be elevated by that next "magic moment", no matter how long it takes for it to come around.

You would think that a genre that relies upon the same I - IV - V chord progression for 98% of its structure would not have that effect, but, once experienced/elevated to that special place, you never stop waiting, hoping, for the next time ...

And Bonnie Raitt _is_ a blues musician in the finest sense!

Incidentally, my dear SWMBO, (

- not her website, she refuses to partake of the web, but one put up by a fan), is one of the few females that has ever opened for Bonnie Raitt in this area, so the appreciation is deeper than just "jamming".

:)

[TwoGuns]

Roy is one of my favorites. One of my sisters met him when she went home with her college room mate. The room mate was a relative of Roy and they were invited to Roy's place for a potluck dinner. My sister didn't know who Roy Orbison was. A few months later she was over at my house and going through my record collection when she saw a picture of Roy on an album cover. When I told her he was a famous singer and in my opinion one of the greatest ever her only comment was "He seemed sorta weird to me."

Dennis

[ranck]

I caught about 5 minutes of this on my local PBS station, and I

*thought* I saw Bonnie Raitt singing backup. Didn't have time to keep watching. Anyway, I just did a quick search and Amazon has it on DVD and Blu Ray.

Ranck Blacksburg, Va.