Talent Hidden Behind the Bands

Some celebrated rock bands have secret weapons

Photo by seabass creatives on Unsplash

Without taking anything away from the original members of celebrated bands, there are times when even the best of them need a musical hand. Maybe it’s a songwriter, producer, session musician or even an unacknowledged band member whose talent stays partially or completely hidden behind the band. In some cases, recordings or performances might never have been quite as memorable without the help of added talent.

Here are some examples of these “secret weapons” employed by a few of the best-known rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s.

The Beach Boys

One of the most successful American rock bands, The Beach Boys pioneered the California sound. For the first several years, the band played their instruments on simple surf and car songs. When The Beach Boys eventually transitioned to far more complex compositions, they had to shift gears. Beginning with their 1965 album The Beach Boys Today!, primary composer/producer extraordinaire Brian Wilson relied on a group of highly skilled L.A. studio musicians known as The Wrecking Crew to play the instrumental portions of songs while the band members recorded vocal harmonies. For Pet Sounds, considered a breakthrough album for The Beach Boys, Brian Wilson turned to a lyricist outside the band, Tony Asher, for collaboration on songwriting. Virtually all of the instrumental work on that album was done by The Wrecking Crew under Brian Wilson’s direction.

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The Beatles

Most everyone already knows that producer George Martin was an integral part of the brilliant execution of the Fab Four’s increasingly sophisticated musical recordings. But he wasn’t the only one who had a hand in their music. Another was Mal Evans. Primarily a road manager and assistant to the band, Evans also participated in some of the recording sessions; for example, he played harmonica on “ Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite” and clanged the anvil on “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer.” Eric Clapton played lead guitar at the request of George Harrison on “When My Guitar Gently Weeps.” Billy Preston was the most notable extra musician to be temporarily added to The Beatles. Preston played keyboard on “Get Back,” receiving a rare label credit as “The Beatles with Billy Preston.” He also played on other recordings, including “Let It Be” and “Something,” and during the last rooftop concert by The Beatles on January 30, 1969.

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Cream

The supergroup Cream (Eric Clapton on guitar, Jack Bruce on bass and harmonica and Ginger Baker on drums) may have been great instrumentalists, but when it came to song lyrics, their secret weapon was Englishman Pete Brown. Known as a beat poet in the 1960s, Brown met Ginger Baker, who brought him into the group as a lyricist. Brown soon formed a collaborative relationship with Jack Bruce. Together, they composed the majority of Cream’s songs, including their two biggest hits, “Sunshine of Your Love” and “White Room.” Brown was not the only Cream collaborator behind the scenes. George Harrison co-wrote “Badge” with Eric Clapton, Australian pop artist Martin Sharp co-wrote “Tales of Brave Ulysses” with Clapton, producer Felix Pappalardi and his wife Gail Collins, along with Clapton, wrote “Strange Brew,” and Janet Godfrey, then married to Jack Bruce, co-wrote “Sweet Wine” with Ginger Baker.

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Eagles

One of the iconic country rock bands of the 1970s is Eagles (without “The,” according to the band). While the Eagles are best known for their line up of Glenn Frey (guitar/vocals), Don Henley (drums/keyboards/vocals), Joe Walsh (guitar/vocals) and Timothy B. Schmidt (bass/vocals), they may never have achieved their superlative success without the talent of songwriters J.D. Souther and Jack Tempchin, each of whom wrote or co-wrote several of their earlier hits. In addition, guitarist Steuart Smith was a true behind-the-scenes “fifth Eagle.” He was a non-named stage presence on tour for over two decades, playing a double-neck guitar on “Hotel California” and lead guitar on other songs. Smith also co-wrote songs for their album Long Road Out of Eden and co-produced it. Also deserving of credit were two important producers, Glyn Johns and Bill Szymczyk.

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The Monkees

One of the most notorious cases of talent hidden behind a band was The Monkees. In 1965, Mickey Dolenz, Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork were cast for a television series about a band called The Monkees. Only Nesmith and Tork were serious musicians; Dolenz and Jones were first and foremost actors. When the time came to play music, producer Don Kirshner decided he needed top talent to churn out hit records. He had Boyce and Hart and Neil Diamond write songs. Then he called on The Wrecking Crew, mentioned earlier, for all of the instrumentals, while the four lads sang on the first two albums released by The Monkees. Word got out that The Monkees were “fake” and a scandal ensued. Embarrassed and disgusted, the members of the group revolted, forced Kirshner out and played instruments themselves on their third album, Headquarters (1967). It was redemption of a sort, but The Monkees still used session musicians selectively on subsequent albums.

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The Rolling Stones

With all the massive hits by The Rolling Stones, frontmen Mick Jagger and Keith Richards are most visible and also receive most of the credit. But behind the scenes were three session musicians who were just as vital in helping create the band’s rocking R&B sound. English keyboardist Nicky Hopkins, whose towering credentials as a session musician included playing with numerous British and American musical artists, was prominent on many recordings by The Rolling Stones from 1967 through the 1970s. The Rolling Stones also relied on keyboardist Ian Stewart, who was essentially a co-founder of the band and played on virtually every Stones album until his death in 1985. American saxophone player Bobby Keys was an essential part of Stones music in the 1970s.

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The Who

Known for their showy, deafening and sometimes chaotic stage performances, The Who were originally comprised of Roger Daltry (vocals), Pete Townshend (guitar/vocals), John Entwistle (bass) and Keith Moon (drums). In the studio, however, they needed behind-the-scenes assistance to produce their hit singles and albums. Not surprisingly, Nicky Hopkins played a key keyboard role particularly in the early years; he was even invited to join as a band member but he declined. Jimmy Page, who was with the Yardbirds before forming Led Zeppelin, was also a sought-after session musician. He played rhythm guitar on The Who’s debut single, “I Can’t Explain,” while the singing group The Ivy League sang backup. On the album Quadrophenia, session musician Chris Stainton played acoustic piano. Three producers also helped The Who define their evolving style: American Shel Talmy on the album My Generation (1965), Kit Lambert on Tommy (1969) and Glyn Johns on Who’s Next (1971).

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This list just scratches the surface — but it’s proof positive that the hidden talent behind big-name bands is no less important than the big names themselves.

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