From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Thu Oct 17, 2002  1:11 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Barney Kessel
 
BARNEY KESSEL

Born Bernard Kessel, 17 October 1923, Muskogee, Oklahoma

Barney Kessel was one of the finest guitarists in the jazz field, starting
his career in 1943 with a big band fronted by Chico Marx. Apart from his
considerable jazz achievements, he worked for almost 40 years in Hollywood
as an arranger and freelance musician for radio, hundreds of films and TV
shows such as Steve Allen and Hollywood Palace, and created original
music for many commercials including Der Wiener Schnitzel and Rice
Krispies.

In the fifties he became a busy studio musician in Los Angeles and plays
on many rock 'n' roll recordings. For some time he worked as an A&R man
for Verve Records where he produced Ricky Nelsonıs first big hit, "I'm Walkin'"
c/w "A Teenager's Romance". The B-side of Ricky's second Verve single,
"You're My One And Only Love", was an instrumental by Kessel, "Honey
Rock". He has performed and recorded with such diverse talents as Fred
Astaire, Lawrence Welk, the Beach Boys, Barbara Streisand, Liberace,
Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Marlene Dietrich, Maurice Chevalier, Gene
Autry, Sonny and Cher and the Righteous Brothers. Also did he play on
many of Phil Spectorıs pop records. After touring Europe with George Wein's
Newport All-Stars (1968), Kessel lived in London for a time (1969-1970).
In 1973, he began touring and recording with the Great Guitars, a group
also including Herb Ellis and Charlie Byrd. A serious stroke in 1992 put
Barney Kessel permanently out of action. On top of that, he was diagnosed
with terminal brain cancer in November 2001. Barney requires 24 hour home
care and therapy. He is almost blind, but he is able to still talk a little on
the phone and receives visitors and enjoys listening to music.

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P.S.: Barney Kessel died 6 May 2004 in San Diego, California