|
|
|
|
|
Moved to Los Angeles at 17 to do the same. |
|
Jerry Lee Lewis for a while. |
|
Record Collector (#282 February 2003), Leon says that the name, Leon came from an I.D. he had borrowed from "a cajun guy called Leonel." |
|
|
|
Wikipedia Link 2 |
|
|
|
Other famous Shindogs were: |
|
|
|
|
|
Leon on keyboards, vocals I've only read about this one. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Frank Sinatra |
|
and critically acclaimed |
|
|
|
Look Inside the Asylum Choir (with Marc Benno) |
|
|
|
selling out many stadium shows. According to his official biography at the Billboard Magazine declared Leon the top concert attraction, world-wide for 1973.
Elton John opened for Leon during his first tour of the United States.
Leon and Mary Russell performed on the 20th episode of
The Homewood Video Concert  Originally aired in 1971 on PBS, actually KCET in LA at the They actually shot 6 hours, but only broadcast 1 hour exactly! Unscripted and Unrehearsed! Now - this is a fact - it was the first national broadcast
of a "stereo" Billed as Session - Leon Russell and some close
friends. Songlist: Will The Circle Be Unbroken
***My thanks to Rick Taylor for this information!*** more Homewood pix on the Video
page 
Leon was prominently featured at George Harrison's The all-star line up included: George Harrison *A little known fact is that there are two Don Prestons. Don Preston, the guitarist, played at the Bangla Desh concert. Don Preston, the keyboardist for Frank Zappa, did not. FYI. |
|
Phoebe Snow (Poetry Man) |
|
|
|
|
|
Country artists, like Mark
Collie , have credited Leon and his |
|
|
|
I believe the show was called Speakeasy, hosted by Woodstock alum, Chip Monk. |
|
The program airred on December 8, 1978. |
|
members of Ripley became a member of country supergroup, TheTractors , and a studio wizard in his own right! |
|
This studio is now the proud home of Steve Ripley & the Tractors. |
 Joined the Willie Nelson tour at the peak of Willie's popularity. In 1979 Leon filled in on keyboards for Willie's sister, Bobby, during this tour. |
|
released on DVD in 2002. |
|
Superstar (with Delaney Bramlett) |
|
associated with in the 1970's were: Willie Nelson |
|
including an interview in Rolling Stone magazine.
|
|
Currently available on cd: Leon Russell (Standard
edition) Out of Print: Best of Leon
|
|
|
|
First as co-host on the Willie Nelson Fourth of July Picnic and on the second appearance hosting video footage of himself and the Gap Band that was taken in his home studio. |
|
|
|
|
|
The live album and video from this tour featured knockout bluegrass versions of the Beatles ' I've Just Seen a Face and The Live at Gilley's CD is from the final days of this collaboration. A studio album from this period,
Re-located Paradise Records to Tennessee as an independent label (previously
Toured with Edgar Winter on a duo bill. A performance at the
Leon made his first appearance on Austin City Limits (PBS). He shared the stage with Recorded on August 17, 1986 and first aired in 1987. In a separate segment of the same program, a very
young
Played dates in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, and Moscow.
Did an audio track of "This Bud's for You" for a Budweiser commercial. Unfortunately the video was recycled from a
Made his first appearance on the David Letterman Show.
Recorded Honky Tonk Women with Willie Nelson for Nelson's Half Nelson duets CD.
Appeared on a Ronnie Milsap TV Special.
Albums : Out of Print: Appeared with Glen Campbell on an episode of In Session , a Canadian television program. The program showcased the two reminiscing and playing some of their best known songs. |
|
|
|
Sam Bush and Edgar Winter appeared on this CD.
Two videos were filmed for the Anything Can Happen CD:
Leon was interviewed on ABC's In Concert tv show. Unfortunately, he did not perform and the unseen and unheard interviewer appeared to be more interested in Leon's social views rather than his music. Segments of one or two of his videos as well as a clip from the Mad Dogs and Englishmen movie were shown but not in their entirety.
The Shelter albums finally made their debut in CD format.
Leon sang the theme for a very short lived NBC tv show, The song was co-written with the show's star, David Keith.
Released Blues and Hymns of Christmas CDs on his privately distributed
Update:
The Internet went public! Leon fans are now able to connect with one another
world-wide. Leon news, information, and merchandise have never been
more readily
available. Mike Ayling's Leon web site ( since shut down)
Legend in My Time: Hank Wilson III as released from Ark21 Records.
Face in the Crowd was originally released on Sagestone Records. Sagestone appears to have gone out of business. Update:
Major articles were published about Leon in Goldmine, Discoveries, and Musician magazines.
Made several television appearances on country music
Appeared on CMT's Monday Night Concerts series as Ricky's Skagg's guest along with Shelby Lynne and Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave).
Three major collections of Leon's hits were released in the 1990's: The Best of Leon , a
re-issue of his 1970's collection. Check out my comparison of the Best of's page.
Played dates in the U.S. and Japan.
Appeared again on the Letterman show at Dave's special request on
Leon prominently appears in Vince Gill's video for Also in the video are The Tractors, Reba McIntire, Randall Tex Cobb, Michael Mac Donald, and Little Jimmie Dickens.
Among the artists Leon was associated with in the 1990's are: The Tractors
Appeared on tribute CD collections for: Bob Dylan
Albums In Print: Out of Print:
|
|
|
|
Online ordering of Leon merchandise, including hard to find CDs!
For those wondering why Leon didn't use www.leonrussell.com for his official site, someone had already registered it! Apparently they haven't gotten around to using the URL. Update:
Made his second appearance on Austin City Limits as Willie Nelson's guest on ACL's Twenty-fifth Anniversary show. Recorded on March 18, 1999 and first aired on February 26, 2000.
Leon's version of A This film is available on DVD.
 Members of the Leon Russell Mailing List from the U.S., England, and Australia gathered in Louisville, Kentucky on September 28th, 2000,
Leon toured in the U. S. and Canada in 2000.
Albums Released in 2000 Out of Print: |
|
|
|
Leon guests on the Tractors Fast Girl CD. His piano beautifully frames the song,
The May 6, 2001 episode of FOX TV's
There is a new Best of Leon Russell (2001)
CD out from
Released September 11, 2001
Signature
Songs Also from Leon Russell Records: Connye
Florance - self titled Mike
Gallaher - Blue Paradise
Leon Russell Records released the following Hank
Wilson II
Leon guests on Earl Scrugg's new CD, Earl Scruggs and
Friends .
Leon Russell appeared on The Grand Ole Opry on September 8th, 2001. On stage were Earl Scruggs on banjo, Randy Scruggs on acoustic, Jack Wessel on bass, Teddy Jack Bridges on guitar, Sam Bush on mandolin & fiddle, and Sugaree Bridges on beaded gourd. The appearance was aired on WSM radio and CMT cable television.
In October 2001, Leon was inducted into the
A brief article on Leon Russell Records appeared in the December 2001 issue of Discoveries Magazine.
The Back Beat column in Billboard Magazine (December 15, 2001, page 90) ran an article on Leon's antique and african mask collection.
Leon was briefly interviewed about George Harrison in
the
The December 29 - January 4, 2002, issue of TV Guide
briefly mentioned Leon in it's tribute article on George Harrison.
Leon Russell Mike Ayling has retired his Leon website . It will be missed. |
|
|
 Leon Russell earned a Grammy Award in the
April of 2002: Leon Russell Records releases three new CDs. Moonlight & Love Songs -
Leon Russell
The 2002 Leon Russell Birthday Bash was held in Tulsa, OK at the Brady Theatre on Saturday, April 6th. Matt Harris and Teddy Jack opened. Leon's 60th birthday was on April 2nd.
The May 17, 2002 issue of Goldmine magazine
featured an article on Leon Russell Records which included a brief
interview and reviews of his Hymns of Christmas, Hank
Wilson Vol. 2, Signature Songs , and
DVDs Are Now Available!
Details on the Video page!
Leon's mother, Hester Fullbright, passed away in 2002.
The first of the Wildwood Springs Leon Lifer get-togethers occurred on October 25th & 26th at the Leon was expected to play at an All-Star tribute concert for George Harrison at the Royal Albert Hall in November 2002 but was unable to do so due to scheduling conflicts. Performing at the concert were Eric Clapton, Pa
Mergeop's Leon Russell Mailing List will go inactive sometime in the Summer 2003. I would like to thank everyone who subscribed to that list. Please note that this will have no effect on this web site.
is featured as the first track on Jeff Foxworthy 's Blue Collar Comedy Tour: The Movie soundtrack. This CD & DVD should be available sometime in 2003. Record Collector (#282, February 2003) ran a very interesting four page article on Leon. Worth a read if you can find one. Record Collector is published in the United Kingdom. On Saturday March 15th, 2003 Johnny Lee Giles announced that he was leaving the Leon Russell band. When he joined the band, John immediately became a hit with the fans. He also became indispensible to the band. Besides being an equally adept country & rock guitarist, he took on the duties of coach driver, booking agent, road manager, and fan liason. John, we fans miss you and wish you the very best in all you do! Wed 04/09/03 "Willie Nelson & Friends: Live & Kickin'" On April 9th, Leon performed at the Beacon Theatre in New York City at Willie Nelson's birthday bash. Below is a partial list of the guests who also appeared. The show was taped and broadcast on the USA Cable TV network over Memorial Weekend (US) 2003. Leon performed A Song for You with Willie & Ray Charles; Jumpin' Jack Flash with Willie & his band; and played some piano on the show's finale, from the special and from the CD's track list. Eric Clapton John Mellencamp Kenny Chesney Kris Kristofferson Leon Russell Lyle Lovett Merle Haggard Norah Jones Ray Charles Ray Price Shania Twain Shelby Lynne Sheryl Crow Toby Keith Willie Nelson ZZ Top Two new CDs are being sold at concerts: A Mighty Flood and In Your Dreams. The former is a gospel collection and the latter is a new collection of rock songs. Also released later in the year, were Bad Country and Almost Piano. Another CD was released in October, Hymns My Mother Taught Me; a collection of instrumental hymns. This CD was later withdrawn due to a possible dispute regarding the ownership of the graphic used on the disc. October 24th and 25, 2003, saw the second Leon lifer get-together at the In October 2003 CD distributor, Navarre, announced that they were no longer distributing the Leon Russell Records Catalog. Retailers will have until the end of March 2004 to return their LRR stock for credit. What this means for fans is that the following Leon CDs will only be available at shows or his website. CDs by from LRR by Teddy Jack, Connye Florance, & Mike Gallaher, & Matt Harris are out of print, as well. 
Who's a Pepper? Not necessarily Leon  Leon appeared on The
David Letterman Show
From Laura Webb: Leon's song has been hand picked by Mel Gibson for the CD: In March 2004 Jon Woodhead replaced Brian Mansell on guitar. John had toured previously with Leon & Mary Russell and can be heard on the Americana album. I hope to add more information on JW shortly. Later this year look for the Caravan of Dreams Tour with http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/082604/thi_halketchum.shtml snippet from article: In November, the band will begin "Caravan of Dreams," a tour with Leon Russell and Double Trouble. Each show will be set up like a revue, with each band playing a set, then merging for a collective finale. I have no details when or exactly how long this tour will last. WWIII The third gathering of the Leon Lifers at Wild Woodsprings Lodge in Missouri is on for October 29 & 30, 2004. Follow the link for details. Two classic Leon songs are featured in the soundtrack to the They are AD 2005 Newlywed Jon Woodhead took his
leave from the band. Newcomer, Jason Speegle, joins in May.
The Best
of the Leon Russell Festivals: Out of the Deep Freeze was
re-mastered & re-released on DVD
Two classic rock films make
their DVD debut in October:
Concert For Bangladesh In November Leon performed in
Japan. There are rumors of a return visit and a possible European tour.
Leon's version of Stranger in a Strange
Land was prominently featured on two
first run prime-time TV shows: House MD: episode TB or Not TB Cold Case Files: episode Honor. AD 2006 Jaime Babbitt has joined the band and doing an outstanding job on backing vocals and percussion. Grant Whitman has returned to the drum chair, while continuing to dirve the bus. AD 2007 Jason "Curly" Speegle played his last show as Leon's guitarist on April 20th in Falls Church, VA. We all hate to see him go. Debuting at Gruene Hall in New Braunfels, TX is new Leon guitarist, Scot Boyer. It's reported that he walked on stage without any rehearsal with the band. His only preparation was listening to a live concert tape for three weeks before this show. Leon Russell and Marc Benno's Look Inside The Asylum Choir is finally released on CD in the UK. Available from Amazon.com & cduniverse.com. Highly recommended. In October, Leon's Paradise Records that were released via Warner Bros. have been reissued on CD for the first time by Wounded Bird Records. These CDs are: The Wedding Album - Leon & Mary Russell Make Love To The Music - Leon & Mary Russell Americana - Leon Russell Live And Love - Leon Russell The Live Album - Leon Russell with New Grass Revival Note that Solid State still has not been been released on CD. It was released on Paradise Records after the split from Warner Bros. The Wounded Bird re-releases are only of the WB/Paradise albums. The other major post WB Paradise release, Hank Wilson Vol. II has been re-released on CD through Leon Russell Records. October brought another band lineup change: Scott "Smokey" Boyer, a dynamic finger picking guitarist, returned home to Alabama. His successor, Chris Simmons, is an equally talented musician with more of a rock and roll leaning. Brian Lee is an outstanding keyboardist who has joined the band. It is good to hear a second keyboardist in the band again. In November The Wrecking Crew, a group of studio musicians who played on many of the hits from the early Sixties of which Leon Russell was a prominent member, were inducted into the Musicians Hall Of Fame. Other well known Wrecking Crew members are: Glenn Campbell, Hal Blaine, and Carol Kaye.
|
