Tag Archives: Billy Joel

Song of the Week – Waiting on a Friend, Rolling Stones; Shipbuilding, Elvis Costello; Aja, Steely Dan; Just the Way You Are, Billy Joel

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Ignored             Obscured              Restored

On October 3, 2015, I published a post to pay tribute to jazz greats Wilton Felder and Phil Woods, both of whom had passed away the previous month.  I noted a curious coincidence: both had contributed to Steely Dan’s album Katy Lied.  Felder played bass on “Chain Lightning,” while Woods delivered a memorable sax solo on “Doctor Wu.”

Over the years, many rock musicians have turned to jazz legends to infuse their recordings with sophistication, soul, and swing.  Today, let’s spotlight a few of those memorable collaborations.  But first, a simple ground rule: the featured jazz artists must have been born before 1940.

This eliminates many exceptional, yet more “contemporary,” jazz-fusion and smooth jazz icons such as Randy Brecker (Bruce Springsteen), Michael Brecker (Paul Simon), David Sanborn (David Bowie), Jaco Pastorius (Joni Mitchell), Branford Marsalis (Sting and the Grateful Dead), Tom Scott (Paul McCartney), and Larry Carlton (Steely Dan).

Interestingly, some of them had early career breaks in rock bands.  The Brecker Brothers, for instance, played in the original Al Kooper-led version of Blood, Sweat & Tears (Child Is Father to the Man, 1968), while Sanborn spent five years (1967–1971) with The Butterfield Blues Band.

So, who’s left under our ground rule? Quite a few, as it turns out.

Perhaps the most iconic jazz cameo in rock history is the sax solo Sonny Rollins played on the Rolling Stones’ “Waiting on a Friend.”  In fact, Rollins contributed to three tracks on Tattoo You (1981), though he was uncredited in the liner notes.  At the time, many saw this omission as a slight, but Rollins later explained that he had requested anonymity — fearing association with a rock record might damage his credibility in the jazz world.  Rollins, often hailed as one of the greatest tenor saxophonists in jazz history, rose to prominence in the 1950s alongside legends like Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, and Max Roach.  His landmark albums — Saxophone Colossus, Tenor Madness, and Way Out West — cemented his status as a titan of modern jazz.

Another poignant fusion came on Elvis Costello’s “Shipbuilding.”  Written by Clive Langer with lyrics by Costello, the song reflects on the bitter irony of war bringing economic revival to Britain’s shipyards during the 1982 Falklands War.  Originally recorded by Robert Wyatt, Costello later included his own version on Punch the Clock (1983), enlisting the great Chet Baker to deliver a haunting, elegiac trumpet solo.  Baker, a central figure in the West Coast “cool jazz” scene of the 1950s, became famous for his lyrical, introspective style.  Known equally for his trumpet playing and intimate vocals, Baker first gained national attention with Gerry Mulligan’s pianoless quartet, and went on to lead a storied — and often tumultuous — career that spanned decades.

Then there’s Wayne Shorter — legendary saxophonist with Miles Davis and Weather Report — who graced the title track of Steely Dan’s Aja (1977) with a transcendent solo.  Recording at the Village Recorder studio in Los Angeles, Steely Dan’s jazz-obsessed duo, Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, were determined to bring Shorter on board.  Through a connection with studio owner Dick LaPalm, a friend of Shorter’s, they got their wish. Reportedly, Shorter laid down six takes over roughly 35 minutes, and was gone!  What he left behind remains timeless.

And we circle back to Phil Woods — who earns a second mention for his gorgeous solo on Billy Joel’s “Just the Way You Are.”  Often referred to as the “New Bird” for his stylistic ties to Charlie Parker, Woods had played with jazz titans like Sonny Stitt, Cannonball Adderley, and Dizzy Gillespie.  His lyrical, yearning alto sax solo helped elevate Joel’s ballad to Grammy-winning heights in 1979, claiming both Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

These examples showcase how traditional jazz artists have not only crossed over into rock — they’ve enriched it. Their contributions remain some of the most expressive moments in rock music history.

Enjoy… until next week.

Song of the Week – Deco Dance, Elliott Murphy

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Ignored             Obscured              Restored

Billy Joel has been all over the news in recent months.  In February he dropped his first new song in over 20 years, called “Turn the Lights Back On,” and performed it to an ecstatic audience at the 2024 Grammys that same month.  In April he gave the 100th performance of his concert residency at New York’s Madison Square Garden.  The show was broadcast on CBS on April 14th.  On the personal side, it was recently disclosed that he purchased a 5-acre property in East Hampton, complete with a horse farm, pool, and lily pond, making him a neighbor to Alec Baldwin.

But this being the SotW, you know there’s a curveball coming.  Instead of making the obvious choice of some Billy Joel obscurity, today’s SotW is “Deco Dance,” by Elliott Murphy.

You’re probably thinking “How did Tom get from Billy Joel to Elliott Murphy?”  Let’s talk!

In 1975, Murphy released a particularly good album called Night Lights.  At the time, Murphy was vying for some of the same turf Bruce Springsteen was claiming.  That may seem quaint with the benefit of hindsight, but it’s true.

Anyway, one of the best songs on Night Lights was “Deco Dance.”  Billy Joel played piano on the campy cut.  It’s blatantly evident on the opening piano intro.  Joel’s style is unmistakable.

The track also takes advantage of the stellar horn section of Michael Brecker (too many credits to list!), Howard Johnson (The Band, John Lennon), Lou Marini (Frank Zappa, J Geils, Blues Brothers), Lew Soloff (B,S&T) and Tom Malone (B,S&T, Blues Brothers).

Night Lights is of its time, but still satisfies today.  Besides “Deco Dance,” Murphy’s rant about the fleeting satisfaction of celebrity culture and fame, it has another song called “Lady Stilletto (sic),” written as an homage to Patti Smith.

Enjoy… until next week.

Song of the Week – Songs that use the baion (Hal Blaine) beat

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Ignored             Obscured              Restored

One of the most important songs in the history of Rock and Roll is “Be My Baby” by the Ronettes.  The most distinctive feature of the Phil Spector produced track, other than Ronnie Spector’s outstanding vocal, is the opening beat played by Wrecking Crew drummer Hal Blaine, which has become known as the Hal Blaine Beat.  You may not know it by name, but you will instantly recognize the ‘Bum-ba-bum-BOOM’ beat in the song’s intro.

Blaine was modest about his “invention” of the beat, saying:

“That famous drum intro was an accident. I was supposed to play the snare on the second beat as well as the fourth, but I dropped a stick. Being the faker I was in those days, I left the mistake in and it became: ‘Bum-ba-bum-BOOM!’ And soon everyone wanted that beat.”

Now I don’t mean to start a controversy here, or to take credit away from the huge contribution Blaine made to popular music, but that rhythm had been “a thing” before Blaine’s happy accident.  In fact, the Brazilian baion beat (as it is formally known), was used on the Leiber and Stoller produced recordings by The Drifters – “There Goes My Baby”, ”Save the Last Dance for Me”, and “Under the Boardwalk”, though not as prominently as it was on “Be My Baby”.

Phil Spector acknowledged that “There Goes My Baby” was a major influence on his Wall of Sound technique.

But let me be clear.  The way Blaine played the beat has been an inspiration for hundreds of other songs from The Beach Boys outstanding “Don’t Worry Baby”

… to Badfinger’s “Baby Blue”

…to Billy Joel’s “Say Goodbye to Hollywood”

… to “Just Like Honey” by the Jesus and Mary Chain, the SotW on March 25, 2017.

Tonypop has compiled a list of 373 songs in a Spotify playlist called “Be my baby! – The songs that use Hal Blaine’s drum intro of “Be My Baby” by The Ronettes.”  You can listen to it using this link:

Enjoy… until next week.