Wednesday 24 January 2024

See Hear Podcast Episode 113 - Interview with Denny Tedesco, director of Immediate Family and The Wrecking Crew

 


Back at episode 110 of See Hear, Tim, Kerry and I had a round table discussion (Broadway Danny Rose style) about Denny Tedesco's 2015 documentary, The Wrecking Crew. That film was about the session musicians of the 1960s LA scene that made the “name” performers sound great. These session musicians were not known by name outside of that community until their achievements were lauded decades later. What happens in the 1970s when the next generation of LA musicians want to have the ability to play with lot of different artists AND have the joy of being part of a BAND rather than just being part of a pool? You get Danny Kortchmar, Leland Sklar, Waddy Wachtel and Russ Kunkel rewriting the rules.

Welcome to episode 113 of See Hear Podcast.

Unlike the members of the Wrecking Crew who were originally trained as jazz musicians, and fell into rock and roll to earn a living, the new generation of musicians had grown with rock and roll, loved The Beatles, and wanted to play with songwriters that they admired – as well as contribute to their arrangements. They had the best of both worlds – freedom to play with different people, but still feel part of a gang.

Director Denny Tedesco has created a wonderful follow-up to his Wrecking Crew film with the new doc, Immediate Family. For the last few years, they've been playing as a band under that name, but for years, they were playing (together and separately) for hundreds of songwriters / performers including James Taylor, John Prine, Carole King, Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, Linda Ronstadt, Gene Clark, Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon, Phil Collins, and many many more. Their “employers” were also their friends who valued these gents' creative input, not just the ability to knock off a song under tight record company and studio requirements.

Once again, Denny has produced an absorbing film about a side of rock history not usually discussed outside of musician circles. As well as chatting about Immediate Family, we of course go back to The Wrecking Crew documentary, and Denny's relationship with his dad, legendary guitarist, Tommy Tedesco.

If you want to find out details of where to stream the film or see a theatrical screening, go to https://immediatefamilyfilm.com/ Sadly, it would appear that it's only streaming in the US at the moment, but check for updates on the website or https://www.facebook.com/immediatefamilyfilm.

Did I mention that this episode marks See Hear's 10 year anniversary? From GG Allin to Immediate Family, we cover it all for your aural pleasure.

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Download Episode 113 from here.



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