KooperKast

Al talks about mandolin, and I read him a ton of rave reviews for Soul of a Man, by Dave Chavers, the Best Live Albums website,  and many others...

Al talks about  favored musical keys: that horns favor E flat and B flat… about Eric Andersons’s Violets of Dawn…. Jimmy Vivino as disciple of Bloomfield, You Can’t Always Get What You Want live on stage, with the chorus.

Al talks about “I Want A Little girl” from Ray Charles, John Simon’s scary great piano, backwards guitar solo by Oniviv Ymmij, (Jimmy Vivino spelled backwards) on My Days are Numbered, and stellar trumpet solos by Lew Soloff and Randy Brecker, plus the greats John Sebastian and Johnny Johnson.

Al talks about Danny Kalb playing great on Two Trains Runnings, the musical complexity of Adrian Belew, John Simon just having a great time, and doing Sleepwalk by Santo and Johnny.

Al talks about three nights at the Bottom Line in 1994 that were recorded to make the album, with members of Blood Sweat and Tears, members of The Blues Project, and Al’s current band at the time, the Rekooperators. Al talks about Jimmy Vivino on Piano, sax master Fred Lipsius,  Jerry Douglas on Dobro, John Simon on Piano, about Andy Kulberg and Flute Thing. 

We talk about the songs on Al’s second solo album, including Magic in My Socks, Lucille, and The Great American Marriage / Nothing.  And we read some reviews including a lovely one in German.

Al talks about P. Johnson, of the Chairmen of the Board, we explore the mystery of Connie Ducharme, the record company’s iffy reception of the album, and about Ricky Washington, the pool guy who sang Finders Keepers on the album.

Al talks about Tower of Power on the horns, there is another comment by Nilly the Dog, about singer Mickey Thomas, more on Valerie Carter and Prince, the clavinet, and pianist Jim Ehinger. 

Al talks about how the album started out as a partnership with Jeff Baxter, about Al singing a lot less, the expectation of another Supersession, about producer Bill Szymczyk, a complaint from Nilly the Dog, and about singer Valerie Carter who sings two songs on the album.

Al answers questions about what amps Skynard used,  Randy Newman and his song Just One Smile, a brief segment where Nilly the dog goes crazy, what comes first writing a song, a chance meeting at the pancake house in 1966, and what happened to horn-rock like Blood Sweat and Tears and Chicago. And of course,  after each of Al’s answers, Nilly the dog adds a brief comment.