Yeah, I was trying to blend the music, whether it was bluegrass, country, rock or pop. I liked to pair up Ella Fitzgerald with, say, Willie Nelson. That was such a great pairing. Can you imagine that?
It wasn't until I watched the bonus interview that I learned that you were never part of the Nashville scene. You were always in L.A.
That's where I was doing the studio work. I would rather live in L.A. than Nashville. I'm not being prejudiced when I say that. Nashville's a great town, but I prefer the West Coast. I grew up in Nashville-type weather in Arkansas, so I wanted to get out of anyplace that was cold.
Did being in L.A. give you a different perspective when it came to choosing songs? I mean, you recorded everything from Bob Dylan to "The Impossible Dream" from Man Of La Mancha. It doesn’t seem like you could have had that much diversity if you had been in Nashville.
No, I don't think so, either. It wasn't as noticeable then as it is now, but there was some diversity. Think of Johnny Cash's "Ring Of Fire," that's blending country and trumpets. He was fabulous.
In your session days, you were primarily a 12-string guitar. This was the time of the Byrds, and the folk-rock sound, so did playing a 12-string help you get work?
Oh, yeah. I had a six-string, and then I got my 12-string, and it sounded differently from everybody else out there. Open ringing chords on a 12-string with a capo sounds great.
In some of the reading I've done of the LA scene, I heard – I think it might have been from Hal Blaine – that you were responsible for keeping those sessions light with a lot of joking around. Do you remember anything in particular from those days?
Musicians are funny. Tommy Tedesco and Sid Sharp – he was the head of the string section – they were funny, funny guys, and real talented. There never was, at any session that I can remember, I don't believe I felt any tension from anybody. Everybody was there to make music, and they all knew we could play. Those were the most fun days of my life, except for getting married. My wife's here, I gotta say that.
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