1996 The Monkees Missing Links, Vol. 3

1996 Missing Links, Vol. 3
The Monkees
Louie Shelton - Guitar

Rhino treats the Monkees' catalog with a seriousness akin to the Beatles' Anthology series, but it's nonsense to pretend that the group's outtakes and rarities are deserving of such fanatical scrutiny. There are a lot more than anyone suspected, though, and Missing Links, Vol. 3 presents 24 more, again proving that the bottom of the Monkees' barrel has the same mixture of fun and boredom as hiding in a barrel as a stowaway.

1996 Neil Diamond In My Lifetime

1996 In My Lifetime
Neil Diamond
Louie Shelton - Musician

In My Lifetime is a triple-disc, 71-track box set spanning Neil Diamond's entire career, from his early Bang hits, through his heyday at MCA, to his latter-day adult contemporary hits for Columbia. Demos, alternate takes, and live cuts are interspersed throughout the box. Not all of Diamond's greatest songs are here, obscurities like "Two-Bit Manchild" would have been welcome, but all of the classics are present.

1996 Louie Shelton Guitar

1996 Guitar
Louie Shelton
Louie Shelton - Guitar, Keyboards, Producer, Engineer

This is a well-crafted album from longtime studio ace Louie Shelton. As the title suggests, the emphasis is on Shelton's guitar work, and this man can play. Though obviously tailored for the contemporary/smooth jazz market, Guitar has much more oomph than is typical in this genre. The arrangements are tight and consistently hold the listener's attention with a variety of textures and rhythms, and the guitarist displays dazzling technique across a broad stylistic range. He plays octaves à la Wes Montgomery and single-note runs that put most hot-shot rock guitarists to shame.

1995 The Monkees Greatest Hits [Rhino]

1995 Greatest Hits [Rhino]
The Monkees
Louie Shelton - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar

Twenty-song collection including all of their big chart hits, as well as key album tracks like "(Theme From) The Monkees" and "Mary, Mary," and the ace B-side "Goin' Down." The slightly more extensive Arista anthology still has the edge, due to the inclusion of two good cuts ("Take a Giant Step" and "She") that are somehow omitted from this Rhino compilation. On the other hand, if you're still in the market for just one Monkees album, this will do just fine.

1995 The Monkees Greatest Hits [Rhino Deluxe Edition]

1995 Greatest Hits [Rhino Deluxe Edition]
The Monkees
Louie Shelton - Guitar

This 20-song collection includes all of their big chart hits, as well as key album tracks like "(Theme From) The Monkees" and "Mary, Mary," and the ace B-side "Goin' Down." The slightly more extensive Arista anthology still has the edge, due to the inclusion of two good cuts ("Take a Giant Step" and "She") that are somehow omitted from this Rhino compilation.

1993 Art Garfunkel Up 'Til Now

1993 Up 'Til Now
Art Garfunkel
Louie Shelton - Producer

Art Garfunkel gives his "deepest thanks to Mitchell Cohen at Columbia for the concept of this album." But what is the concept? It contains everything from the original Simon & Garfunkel recording of "The Sound of Silence" (from their Wednesday Morning, 3 AM album) to tracks from previous Garfunkel solo albums, stray songs apparently intended for albums never made, movie and TV themes, a live performance, and even a comedy routine with Paul Simon called "The Breakup", you name it.

1993 Boz Scaggs Starbox

1993 Starbox
Boz Scaggs
Louie Shelton - Guitar

1993 Best of Joe Cocker [Capitol]

1993 Best of Joe Cocker [Capitol]
Joe Cocker
Louie Shelton - Guitar

Although Cocker's Capitol material wasn't as consistent as his A&M work, this compilation successfully distills the highlights, including the splendid "When the Night Comes," onto a single CD.

1992 Hitsville USA, Vol. 1: The Motown Singles Collection

1992 Hitsville USA, Vol. 1: The Motown Singles Collection
Various Artists
Louie Shelton - Guitar

Instead of following Stax/Volt's pattern and delivering an exhaustive box set containing all of their singles, Motown decided to limit their singles box, Hitsville USA: The Motown Singles Collection 1959-1971, to four discs that concentrated on the hits. There are a handful of wonderful lesser-known songs here, such as the Contours' "First I Look at the Purse," but the main strength of the 103-track box is that it features all of the biggest songs from Motown's golden era in one place.

1991 The Monkees Listen to the Band

1991 Listen to the Band
The Monkees
Louie Shelton - Guitar

The very idea of a Monkees box set would have seemed inconceivable at any time before the 1990s, and probably still would to any label other than Rhino Records. Yet, this four-CD, 83-song compilation manages to justify itself very nicely, despite the existence of heavily expanded editions of most of the group's albums on CD, and the Missing Links volumes. Those individual CDs gathered together are for the true musical completists, whereas this is the documentary overview for the fan who wants five hours of fun and adventure.

1990 Atlantic Jazz: Singers

1990 Atlantic Jazz: Singers
Various Artists
Louie Shelton - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric)

Spotlighting both jazz singers and R&B-minded vocalists on the jazz tip, Atlantic Jazz: Singers delivers a mostly generous and stunning mix spanning the late '40s to the mid-'80s. From the traditional jazz camp, top songbirds Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McCrae, Helen Merrill, Chris Connor, Peggy Lee, and Betty Carter all hit their spots in fine fashion. Showing they had also heard a few Ella Fitzgerald sides in their formative years, such R&B chanteuses as Ruth Brown, Esther Phillips, LaVern Baker, and Aretha Franklin roll out a smooth line or two as well.

1986 Lionel Richie Dancing on the Ceiling

1986 Dancing on the Ceiling
Lionel Richie
Louie Shelton - Guitar

Lionel Richie wasn't necessarily emboldened by the success of Can't Slow Down, after all, he had experienced huge success since the Commodores, but there is nevertheless a sense of swagger on its 1986 successor, Dancing on the Ceiling. This isn't entirely a good thing, since it means he indulges in silliness (the title track) and sappiness ("Ballerina Girl") in equal measure, seemingly without quite realizing how ridiculous either extreme is. Maybe that's because he still has a strong sense of popcraft, something that makes "Dancing in the Ceiling" stick in the head even if its lyrics are awful, something that makes "Ballerina Girl" work for a slow dance even if it is awfully sugary.

1985 Whitney Houston

1985 Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Louie Shelton - Performer

The legend of Whitney Houston began with this self-titled album. It marked her shift away from the experimental songs she did with the group Material and a move into heavily produced, very slick urban contemporary and adult pop. Although Houston had learned her craft working in New York nightclubs and singing in a Baptist church in Newark, she was steered into radio-friendly ballads that emphasized style over substance.

1983 Michael Franks Previously Unavailable

1983 Previously Unavailable
Michael Franks
Louie Shelton - Musician

1983 Lionel Richie Can't Slow Down

1983 Can't Slow Down

Lionel Richie

Louie Shelton - Guitar

On Can't Slow Down, his second solo album, Lionel Richie ran with the sound and success of his eponymous debut, creating an album that was designed to be bigger and better. It's entirely possible that he took a cue from Michael Jackson's Thriller, which set out to win over listeners of every corner of the mainstream pop audience, because Richie does a similar thing with Can't Slow Down -- he plays to the MOR adult contemporary audience, to be sure, but he ups the ante on his dance numbers, creating grooves that are funkier, and he even adds a bit of rock with the sleek nocturnal menace of "Running With the Night," one of the best songs here. He doesn't swing for the fences like Michael did in 1982; he makes safe bets, which is more in his character. But safe bets do pay off, and with Can't Slow Down Richie reaped enormous dividends, earning not just his biggest hit, but his best album.

1983 Lionel Richie Can't Slow Down [Deluxe Edition]

1983 Can't Slow Down [Deluxe Edition]

Lionel Richie

Louie Shelton - Guitar

On Can't Slow Down, his second solo album, Lionel Richie ran with the sound and success of his eponymous debut, creating an album that was designed to be bigger and better. It's entirely possible that he took a cue from Michael Jackson's Thriller, which set out to win over listeners of every corner of the mainstream pop audience, because Richie does a similar thing with Can't Slow Down -- he plays to the MOR adult contemporary audience, to be sure, but he ups the ante on his dance numbers, creating grooves that are funkier, and he even adds a bit of rock with the sleek nocturnal menace of "Running With the Night," one of the best songs here. He doesn't swing for the fences like Michael did in 1982; he makes safe bets, which is more in his character. But safe bets do pay off, and with Can't Slow Down Richie reaped enormous dividends, earning not just his biggest hit, but his best album.

1981 Sarah Vaughan Songs of the Beatles

1981 Songs of the Beatles

Sarah Vaughan

Louie Shelton - Guitar

1980 Seals & Crofts The Longest Road

1980 The Longest Road

Seals & Crofts

Louie Shelton - Guitar (Acoustic), Bass, Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Producer, Soloist

Several unreleased songs were recorded during the sessions for THE LONGEST ROAD: "Another Night In the City," "Girls On the Beach," "Baby It's You," "Never Live Without Your Love" and "Can't Say No." "Never Live Without Your Love" was played in concert, however.
Recording Engineer - Jospeh Bogan; Mixed By - Louie Shelton; Assistant Engineers - Deborah Thompson, Brian Behrns, Bob Bullock, Michael Bell; Production Assistant - Johnnie Holmes; Technical Assistant - Bob Moore; Recorded at Dawnbreaker Studio; Mixed at Dawnbreaker Studio and Rhumbo; Mastered at A&M Records By Bernie Grundman; Dear Brian, thank you for your contributions, friendship and your spirit; Special thanks to Robin Rothman, Lenny Waronker, Ed Rosenblatt amd Mo Ostin for their continuing faith and support; Management - Marcia Day, Day 5 Productions; Photography - Luis Lizarraga; Art Direction - Peter Whorf; Design - Eddie Herch. Produced by Louie Shelton

1980 Jose Feliciano [1980]

1980 Jose Feliciano [1980]

José Feliciano

Louie Shelton - Guitar

1980 Boz Scaggs Hits!

1980 Hits!
Boz Scaggs
Louie Shelton - Guitar

Released in 1980, Hits! capitalized on the end of the decade as well as Boz Scaggs' commercial success from 1976-1980. That's not to say everything is here. The 1972 classic "Loan Me a Dime" is missing, as this concentrates on Scaggs' more radio-friendly efforts. From the pre-Silk Degrees era, "Dinah Flo" and "You Make It So Hard to Say No" are here. Not surprisingly, this set takes a few tracks from Scaggs' best-selling album Silk Degrees. While the sleek and funky "Lowdown" is no doubt here, the underrated "What Can I Say" strangely didn't make this overview.

1980 Jane Olivor Best Side of Goodbye

1980 Best Side of Goodbye

Jane Olivor

Louie Shelton - Arranger, Producer

Jane Olivor was a stranger in a strange land crafting albums in the '70s which never reached the potential of Love Decides, her Varese Sarabande compact disc released in 2000. The Best Side of Goodbye (1980) comes close with its sensitive settings for Olivor's thoughtful vocals. Producer Jason Darrow creates a subdued Barry Manilow-type production with the title track, while Michael Masser produces what is arguably the definitive version of his collaboration with Linda Creed, the George Benson hit from 1977 "The Greatest Love of All." Whitney Houston would take it to number one in 1986, but in Jane Olivor's care the song enjoys a different nuance, perhaps one that its co-creator had in mind to begin with.

1979 Paul Parrish Song for a Young Girl

1979 Song for a Young Girl
Paul Parrish
Louie Shelton - Bass, Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Producer

1979 Art Garfunkel Fate for Breakfast

1979 Fate for Breakfast

Art Garfunkel

Louie Shelton - Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Producer

For his fourth solo album, Art Garfunkel opted to make a light contemporary pop record on the order of Breakaway, but for the most part the material was mediocre and the backup slick and unfeeling. "Since I Don't Have You" was an obvious choice for a singer who had scored with a similar '50s oldie, "I Only Have Eyes for You," but it was the album's only chart single, and Fate for Breakfast was as disappointing at the cash register as it was on the turntable.

1978 Seals & Crofts Takin' It Easy

1978 Takin' It Easy

Seals & Crofts

Louie Shelton - Guitar, Arranger, Guitar (Electric), Vocals, Producer, Horn Arrangements, Soloist

1978 Alessi Brothers Driftin'

1978 Driftin'

Alessi Brothers

Louie Shelton - Guitar, Producer

The Alessi Brothers are an American pop singer-songwriter duo, best known for their 1984 hit "Savin' the Day" And Also their 1977 hit "Oh Lori". The duo are identical twin brothers, Bill (Billy) Alessi and Bob (Bobby) Alessi (born 12 July 1953, Long Island, New York).
In 1977, they climbed to number seven in the UK Singles Chart with "Oh Lori", and in 1982 they reached number 71 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 with "Put Away Your Love". This made them one-hit wonders on both sides of the Atlantic, albeit with different hits

1977 Seals & Crofts One on One

1977 One on One
Seals & Crofts
Louie Shelton - Producer


Produced by Louie Shelton and Charles Fox; music composed, arranged and conducted by Charles Fox; lyrics by Paul Williams; liner photo by Louie Lizarraga.
01. My Fair Share (Love Theme From One On One) 02. This Day Belongs To Me 03. Janet's Theme 04. John Wayne 05. Picnic 06. Flyin' 07. Reflections 08. Love Conquers All 09. It'll Be Alright 10. Hustle 11. Time Out 12. The Party 13. The Basketball Game 14. This Day Belongs To Me (Reprise)

1976 Dirk Hamilton You Can Sing on the Left or Bark on the Right

1976 You Can Sing on the Left or Bark on the Right

Dirk Hamilton

Louie Shelton - Guitar (Electric)

After moving to Los Angeles from Stockton, CA, Dirk Hamilton attracted the attention of Steely Dan producer Gary Katz, who in turn helped him sign a deal with ABC Records. The result, the Katz-produced You Can Sing on the Left or Bark on the Right, is a quirky if occasionally misguided work, with moments of brilliance. Katz brought in a host of session pros, including Chuck Rainey, Elliott Randall, and Jeff Porcaro, all of whom had previously worked with him on various Steely Dan projects, to flesh out Hamilton's idiosyncratic, acoustic-based tunes. And while these great players are perfect for Steely Dan's sophisticated pop/rock, they don't really do much for the material here.

1976 Dirk Hamilton You Can Sing on the Left or Bark on the Right [Bonus Track]

1976 You Can Sing on the Left or Bark on the Right [Bonus Track]

Dirk Hamilton

Louie Shelton - Guitar (Electric)

This is a welcome reissue for this sumptuous 1976 set, an album that defines the softer side of the '70s. In fact, in one way or another, You Can Sing on the Left or Bark on the Right showcases the whole spectrum of the rock arena that never quite rocked out. Here's Bruce Springsteen sneaking out of Asbury Park to skewer the "Little Big-Time Man," there's Bob Dylan reminiscing about a long gone love on "Wasn't That One Night Good," and isn't that the Rolling Stones dancing through "You Can't Always Get What You Want" in "Palova's Shoes"? And it's not just those artists' styles that Dirk Hamilton captures so adroitly, but their vocal inflections and lyrical tweaks to boot.

1976 Seals & Crofts Sudan Village

1976 Sudan Village

Seals & Crofts

Louie Shelton - Guitar, Vocals, Producer

1976 Boz Scaggs Silk Degrees [Bonus Tracks]

1976 Silk Degrees [Bonus Tracks]
Boz Scaggs
Louie Shelton - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar, Slide Guitar

More than 30 years after the fact, Boz Scaggs' classic Silk Degrees still lives in musical-cultural language as his "disco album." For some who had been following the singer/songwriter's career since the late '60s when he left the Steve Miller Band and became an R&B shouter in the grand tradition of his home state of Texas, this was a sellout. Many others had either never heard of Scaggs or knew his work marginally at best because he'd released four previous albums under his own name, and Silk Degrees became his pop signifier. The real truth of Silk Degrees, and why in 2007 it sounds perhaps more revelatory than it did in its heyday, is that its songs, arrangements, and production feel timeless.

1976 Boz Scaggs Silk Degrees (Columbia)

1976 Silk Degrees (Columbia)

Boz Scaggs

Louie Shelton - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar, Slide Guitar

Both artistically and commercially, Boz Scaggs had his greatest success with Silk Degrees. The laid-back singer hit the R&B charts in a big way with the addictive, sly "Lowdown" (which has been sampled by more than a few rappers and remains a favorite among baby-boomer soul fans) and expressed his love of smooth soul music almost as well on the appealing "What Can I Say." But Scaggs was essentially a pop/rocker, and in that area he has a considerable amount of fun on "Lido Shuffle" (another major hit single), "What Do You Want the Girl to Do," and "Jump Street." Meanwhile, "We're All Alone" and "Harbor Lights" became staples on adult contemporary radio.

1976 Melanie Photograph

1976 Photograph

Melanie

Louie Shelton - Guitar

Quietly and with little fanfare, in 1976 Melanie made her strongest record in years. Photograph was written over a number of years; Melanie had been shoring up her strongest compositions and withholding them from her previous Neighborhood collections. Her new home at Atlantic brought in fresh players (many of the session musicians soon to be Toto), and the Edwin Hawkins Singers, who had made "Candles in the Rain" such a treat, were back on hand. But Photograph was very much Melanie's own victory, her material was a revelation, and more sophisticated than anything she'd ever accomplished before.

1976 England Dan & John Ford Coley I Hear Music

1976 I Hear Music

England Dan & John Ford Coley

Louie Shelton - Bass, Guitar, Sitar

England Dan & John Ford Coley was an American pop rock duo composed of Dan Seals (born February 5, 1948, McCamey, Texas - died March 25, 2009, Nashville, Tennessee) and John Ford Coley (born John Colley, October 13, 1948, Dallas, Texas). The duo released eleven albums and nine singles in their career, and are best known for their 1976 debut single, "I'd Really Love to See You Tonight". This song was a #2 pop hit and #1 Adult Contemporary hit that year. After disbanding, Seals began a solo country music career which lasted throughout the 1980s.

1976 Seals & Crofts Get Closer

1976 Get Closer

Seals & Crofts

Louie Shelton - Guitar, Vocals

Produced by Louie Shelton; Recorded at Dawnbreaker Studio; Engineering By Joseph Bogan; Sound Consultant – Michael Fraser; Cover Photography – Norman Seeff; Photography of Musicians on Sleeve – Louie Lizarraga; Art Direction & Design – Lockart; Guitar – James Seals, Larry Carlton, Louie Shelton, Ray Parker and Lee Ritenour; Mandolin – Dash Crofts; Keyboards – David Paich; Bass – David Hungate and Wilton Felder; Drums – Jeff Porcaro and Ed Greene; Tablas – Milt Holland; Electric Piano – Jope Sample; Alto Sax – Jim Horn; Background Vocals – Carolyn Willis, Merna Matthews, Shirley Matthews, Carl Carmichel and Donnie Shelton; Arrangement of “Get Closer” by Gene Page; Strings Arrangements on “Red Long Ago” and “Don’t Fail” by David Paich.

1976 Dolenz, Jones, Boyce & Hart

1976 Dolenz, Jones, Boyce & Hart
Dolenz, Jones, Boyce & Hart
Louie Shelton - Guitar

Most music fans showed no interest in this album when in it was released in 1976, it was most certainly their loss. Though lightweight and fluffy, this album ended up being the most consistent Monkees-related release since Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones, the fourth Monkees album from 1967. With top-notch songs from the pens of Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart and even a few outstanding tracks from Mickey Dolenz, this album was destined to be a cult classic. Kicking off with the mid-tempo balladry of "Right Now," sung by Davy Jones and featuring a few Lennon-esque chord changes, it was obvious that this was not the latest Deep Purple album.

1976 Deardorff & Joseph

1976 Deardorff & Joseph

Deardorff & Joseph

Louie Shelton - Bass, Guitar, Arranger, Guitar (Bass), Producer

Deardorff & Joseph were not widely heard or remembered, but that doesn't mean they were forgotten or even felt. Their 1976 debut became a cult item for collectors of soft Californian '70s pop, and it also marked the first time Jeffrey Comanor's "We'll Never Have to Say Goodbye Again" was heard (a few years later, England Dan & John Ford Coley brought it into the Top Ten). At the time, the album was largely ignored, even if it was a first-class professional production firmly within the Californian commercial sound of the mid-'70s and featured musical support by such luminaries as Dan Seals, Jeff Porcaro and his brothers Mike and Joe, Dean Parks, Jim Horn, and David Paich.

1975 Seals & Crofts I'll Play for You

1975 I'll Play for You
Seals & Crofts
Louie Shelton - Guitar, Vocals, Producer

Produced by Louie Shelton; Horn and String Arrangements – David Paich; Vocals – Jim Seals and Dash Crofts; Guitars and Banjos – Jim Seals and Louie Shelton; Keyboards – David Paich and Jack Lenz; Drums – Ed Green, Jeff Porcaro on “Golden Rainbow,” Jim Varley on “I’ll Play For You”; Percussion – Antoine Dearborn; Trumpet – Larry Ford, Ron King, Paul Hubinon and Bobby Shew; Reeds – Bob Crosby, Jim Horn, Steve Leeds, Gebe Cipriano and Henry Sigismondi; Trombone – Dick “Slyde” Hyde, John Leys, Lew McCreary; Bass – Wilton Felder, Mike Porcaro on “I’ll Play For You” and “Castles In the Sand”; Slide Guitar – Ovid Stevens; Flute – Jack Lenz on “I’ll Play For You”; Arp Synthesizer – Jack Lenz on “Fire and Vengeance”; Engineers – Tom Knox and Joe Bogan; Second Engineer – Marcus Joseph; Studio – Dawnbreaker Studios, California; Special thanks to Jerry Spry; Art Direction and Design – Robert Lockart; Photography – Ivan Nagy.

1975 Seals & Crofts Greatest Hits

1975 Greatest Hits

Seals & Crofts

Louie Shelton - Producer

According to Billboard ratings, GREATEST HITS was ranked #38 among all albums charted during 1976.
Produced by Louie Shelton. Design and photography by Tom Wilkes Prod., Inc.
01. When I Meet Them 02. Diamond Girl 03. Hummingbird 04. Castles In the Sand 05. East of Ginger Trees06. I'll Play For You 07. Ruby Jean and Billie Lee 08. King of Nothing 09. Summer Breeze 10. We May Never Pass This Way (Again)

1975 Art Garfunkel Breakaway

1975 Breakaway

Art Garfunkel

Louie Shelton - Guitar

The second time around, Art Garfunkel turned to pop producer Richard Perry, who liked to record in studios rather than cathedrals and who replaced the angelic style of the first album with a lush pop approach. The result was Garfunkel's best-selling album. The title track and a cover of "I Only Have Eyes for You" reached the Top 40 (the latter topped the U.K. charts), though the most prominent song was the Simon & Garfunkel reunion single "My Little Town."

1974 T-Bone Walker Very Rare

1974 Very Rare

T-Bone Walker

Louie Shelton - Guitar

T-Bone Walker (May 28, 1910 — March 16, 1975 was an American blues guitarist, singer, pianist and songwriter who was one of the most important pioneers of the electric guitar. His electric guitar solos were among the first heard on modern blues recordings. He was ranked #47 in Rolling Stone magazine's Sept. 2003 list of The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.

1974 Seals & Crofts Unborn Child

1974 Unborn Child
Seals & Crofts
Louie Shelton - Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Vocals, Producer

After a string of hits, Unborn Child was a mistake coming from the Seals & Crofts camp when it did. Blatantly anti-abortion, it did little to help their careers and nothing in the way of chart success. But one must consider that it does hold good music in its grooves, and with today's attitudes changing, perhaps this isn't as harsh as it first appeared to be.

1974 The 5th Dimension Soul & Inspiration [Bonus Tracks]

1974 Soul & Inspiration [Bonus Tracks]

The 5th Dimension

Louie Shelton - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar, Guitar (Electric)

Not only was Soul & Inspiration (1974) the 5th Dimension's last outing on Bell Records, it served as the penultimate long-player to feature the original quintet of Lamonte McLemore, Ron Townson, Billy Davis Jr., Marilyn McCoo, and Florence Larue. Behind the scenes, band politics as well as the power structure at the record label ultimately led to a parting of ways between the 5D and their longtime producer Bones Howe. Even though the project is replete with good to above-average performances, it undeniably lacks the sonic cohesion that had become their collaborative calling card.

1973 Michael Franks

1973 Michael Franks

Michael Franks

Louie Shelton - Guitar

An enormously popular performer in the late '70s and early '80s, Franks performed folk/rock songs while in high school, then became a literature student at UCLA and a part-time performer. He taught undergraduate music courses in the early '70s at both UCLA and Berkeley, then provided scores for the films Count Your Bullets and Zandy's Bride.

1973 Lulu

1973 Lulu

Lulu

This pretty much forgotten effort by Lulu is a beauty. Though there is no single gem like "Oh Me Oh My (I'm a Fool for You Baby" from her New Routes album or "I Could Never Miss You More Than I Do" from her self-titled Lulu album on Alpha Records (this album on Chelsea/RCA is also self-titled), these tracks show the former Mrs. Maurice Gibb at the top of her game. "A Boy Like You," a cover of the Rascals tune with gender change, is over the top. The production by Wes Farrell is just magnificent. Hal Blaine's drums are bigger than usual, and everyone sounds like they are having a great time reinventing this Felix Cavaliere classic. "Groovin'" also gets the treatment, but it is, of course, more subtle. Lulu's voice is an engima in pop music.

1973 The 5th Dimension Living Together, Growing Together

1973 Living Together, Growing Together
The 5th Dimension
Louie Shelton - Guitar

For their eighth album of new studio material, the 5th Dimension were sticking to essentials while attempting to stay modern and relevant. As styles and trends in pop and R&B were becoming more flamboyant and expressive, Lamonte McLemore, Ron Townson, Billy Davis, Jr., Marilyn McCoo, and Florence LaRue Gordon remained as solid and somewhat predictable as ever. Living Together, Growing Together (1973) marked the "beginning of the end" for the vocalists reign of non-stop hits, although three of the album's 11 cuts would make it onto the charts.

1973 Marvin Gaye Let's Get It On

1973 Let's Get It On

Marvin Gaye

Louie Shelton - Guitar

After brilliantly surveying the social, political, and spiritual landscape with What's Going On, Marvin Gaye turned to more intimate matters with Let's Get It On, a record unparalleled in its sheer sensuality and carnal energy. Always a sexually charged performer, Gaye's passions reach their boiling point on tracks like the magnificent title hit (a number one smash) and "You Sure Love to Ball"; silky and shimmering, the music is seductive in the most literal sense, its fluid grooves so perfectly designed for romance as to border on parody.

1973 Kenny Young Last Stage for Silverworld

1973 Last Stage for Silverworld
Kenny Young
Louie Shelton - Guitar

On the heels of David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, songwriter Kenny Young reprises the 1964 Drifters hit he co-wrote with Artie Resnick on this 1973 science fiction-styled album released by Warner Bros. It's an ambitious and effective project that comes with elaborate packaging and some help from Albert Hammond, Andy Kim, and the Drifters' Gerald Garrett. The remake of "Under the Boardwalk" opens up with what sounds like a transistor radio playing the familiar song.

1973 Judee Sill Heart Food

1973 Heart Food

Judee Sill

Louie Shelton - Musician

The second album Judee Sill made proved to be her last. A notoriously slow songwriter, this brief though enjoyable outing took its toll on Sill during its making, turning her back to her recently kicked heroin addiction and away from the desire to create more music. Instead of using an outside arranger for the strings (as she did on her previous album), Sill did all of the work herself. Her lack of formal training and the immense amount of orchestral overdubs certainly would have made such an outing a hardship for anyone.

1973 Judee Sill Heart Food [Expanded]

1973 Heart Food [Expanded]
Judee Sill
Louie Shelton - Musician

Sometimes myths become reality, or apocryphal tales bear enough weight to be documented as fact. Heart Food, Judee Sill's legendary, and up until now very rare, second and final album, was recorded and released in 1973 by Asylum Records when she was 29; she passed away six years later. Heart Food has been equated with Laura Nyro's classic New York Tendaberry, Essra Mohawk's Primordial Lovers, and Carole King's Tapestry as being a definitive moment in the work of female singer/songwriters. Part of this myth comes out of the reality that Heart Food has not been in print in more than 20 years.

1973 David Gates First

1973 First

David Gates

Louie Shelton - Guitar, Musician

First, David Gates "first" album away from Bread, begins with that distinctive voice and sound his band made famous when he was at the controls. On the initial track of this 1973 release, "Sailing Around the World," he sings "wish that I could start again." The problem here is that Bread had a groove, and a quick comparison is in order: Despite David Bowie's fame after splitting from the Spiders From Mars, rock & roll fans never felt the same way about that artist. So, too, with this soft rock maestro, and regardless of the on-key and in-control aspect of First, it's hard to get a handle on many of these nine original songs.