During a three-week hiatus from touring with Rick Nelson’s Stone Canyon Band, Randy Meisner embarked on a brief stint as a session musician. This work remains some of the most overlooked in his discography.
L-R: Allen Kemp, Randy, Rick, Pat Shanahan, Tom Brumley
Between December 8th and December 19th, 1969, he played on two albums that were turning points in the careers of the artist. The first was James Taylor’s Sweet Baby James. Although Randy plays bass on only two songs (“Country Road” & “Blossom”), he would later say that playing on this album was one of the highlights of his career.1 The second was the thirteenth album by one of country music’s original outlaws, Waylon Jennings.2
By all accounts, Jennings’ Singer Of Sad Songs, was recorded in true outlaw fashion. Jennings refused to record the album in Nashville (only the title track was recorded in Nashville), like all other RCA country artists at the time. Instead, he recorded the album at the RCA studios on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, using local L.A. musicians, one of which was Randy Meisner. It’s worth noting here that Jennings, who was first and foremost a guitarist, did play bass a couple of times early in his career, most notably for Buddy Holly & The Crickets (the famous story goes that Jennings gave up his airplane seat to the Big Bopper, J.P. Richardson, who died in the crash that also killed Holly and Ritchie Valens.) So, Jennings knew a little something about bass players. Also on the session were Randy’s fellow bandmates from The Stone Canyon Band and The Poor: guitarist Allen Kemp and drummer Pat Shanahan.3 The other musicians were former Cricket, Sonny Curtis, on guitar and fiddle, Carl Walden on harmonica, and Don Randi on piano and harpsichord.
Below: RCA session info for Singer Of Sad Songs. Not sure what “hac” stands for next to Randy’s name. The instruments for Allen Kemp and Pat Shanahan are mixed up. Kemp played guitar, Shanahan played drums.
Producing the album was Lee Hazlewood, who had just written and produced “These Boots Are Made For Walkin'” for Nancy Sinatra (1967), which he had originally offered to Waylon to record. He also produced the first and only album for the International Submarine Band, a group formed by then-unknown, Gram Parsons. Hazlewood had a reputation for being belligerent in the studio. One artist said of him: “He’s a son-of-a-bitch. He picks on musicians and yells at everybody.” According to former Cricket, Sonny Curtis, Waylon wasn’t happy with Hazlewood or his own performance. “We rushed it too much. We worked eighteen hours one session without stopping because we were behind.” Waylon was also suffering from a bad case of laryngitis.4
Randy plays bass on ten of the albums eleven tracks (except for the title track, which was not recorded in L.A.) Although uncredited with any background vocals on the album, his high voice is unmistakable on Waylon’s cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Honky Tonk Woman,” especially on the line, “Honky Tonk girl.”5 Listen for yourself:
The album, although critically acclaimed, was not a big seller. Only the title track became a minor hit. Nevertheless, Randy was really given a chance to show off his bass playing chops on the album. Here are four tracks that stand out, in my opinion (grab your headphones or earbuds to really hear the bass):
1.) “Sick & Tired” (This is the second track on the album and the first with Randy. His bass line on this song is nothing short of hot):
2.) “No Regrets” (Randy’s bass playing is noticeable, but understated. It really complements this Tom Rush folk standard. In 1974, Randy would appear as an uncredited guest on Rush’s Ladies Love Outlaws album, which includes a more electric version of “No Regrets” as opposed to the more acoustic original from 1968. Randy’s contribution to the album is the beautiful background harmony on “Claim On Me.” 6)
3.) “Ragged But Right”:
4.) “Donna On My Mind” (The song opens with just Waylon, Randy’s bass, and Shanahan’s drums):
Listen to the entire album here.
Waylon and Randy remained friends following the recording of Singer Of Sad Songs. Stephen Love, who had a shortlived band with Randy in 1970 called Gold Rush and who eventually replaced him in the Stone Canyon Band, tells the following story of Randy introducing him to Waylon at the Troubadour upon his arrival in Los Angeles. Love mistakenly says this introduction took place in 1969. It would have actually occurred in December 1970, after Randy returned to L.A. from Nebraska, with Stephen in tow. This would have been Waylon’s first-ever appearance at the Troubadour.7
On my first evening in Hollywood (circa 1969) Randy Meisner took me to the Troubadour to meet him and his band.. We went upstairs after the show so I could meet my first “STAR”..I still remember him shaking my hand and looking at my penny loafers… He asked me my intentions in Hollywood and I said I wanted to be a star also of course.. He laughed… said, and I quote.”Well…you better go out tomorrow and get some cowboy boots if you want that to happen” Then he gave me something that I had never seen before..Some white powdery substance that made me feel like Hercules… He said ” Welcome to Los Angeles” I would always see him at Willies BBQ’s year after year which I loved and he always looked to see if I had boots on which were Tony Lamas by then !! I have eight pair now thanks to him and Skip Battin who always had the best exotic boots hand crafted for him….Not bad for the first night in wonderland..
Stephen A. Love, public Facebook comment, April 10, 2019
In 1983, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson released their third and final duet album entitled none other than Take It To The Limit, which included a cover of Randy’s classic hit with the Eagles. According to Nelson, he and Jennings wanted to record the song because it “bowled us over.” 8
Notes:
1 “This Eagle Is Flying With Poco,” USA Today, February 2, 1990. Also see my blog post about the album here.
2 Another session Randy played on during this period was the second album by the folk duo, Compton & Batteau, called In California. Randy plays bass on “Homesick Kid.” See more sessions and guest appearances by Randy in our Discography.
3 When Rick Nelson died in 1985, both Randy and Waylon (and several others) were interviewed by Nelson’s manager Greg McDonald for a special televised tribute. Their interview clips appear next to each other in this clip, with Randy’s appearing first. Watch here.
4 Waylon: A Biography by R. Serge Denisoff, 1983
5 Randy also played bass and sang background on Rick Nelson & The Stone Canyon Band’s cover of “Honky Tonk Woman” from the 1971 album, Rudy The Fifth.
6 The background vocals on “Claim On Me” are credited as “Tim Schmit and friends.” The “friends” are Randy Meisner and Don Henley, who is also uncredited. This is reportedly due to “Elektra-Asylum head David Geffen’s reluctance to allow Columbia (Tom Rush’s label) to capitalize on the names of his acts.” (San Bernardino Sun, Dec. 22, 1974). Asylum artist, Jackson Browne, is also an unlisted guest on the album.
7 Los Angeles Times, December 1, 1970
8Willie: An Autobiography by Willie Nelson, 2000
Another home run!
I grew up listening to Waylon Jennings. I don’t think I’ve ever heard this album, that I can remember. I thought Randy was the Singer of Sad Songs, though. 🙂
Thanks, Janis!
In many ways, this album is sort of a “lost” Waylon album. It was not promoted by RCA because Waylon refused to record it in Nashville, like all of their other country artists. He felt like they pigeon-holed country singers and didn’t give them the same attention that their big-name pop acts were given. So, he basically gave them the finger and went to LA to record his album. I think it’s cool that Randy was able to be a part of it. It’s a shame he has never talked about it, and Waylon skipped right over the album in his autobiography.
Sorry if the title was false advertising! 😉
RCA did more than simply not promoting the album, to presumably punish the artist for trying to break out of the studio system’s time constraints in Nashville. During Waylon’s stint with RCA, the usual time gap between an album’s completion and release was five months, whereas Singer Of Sad Sings took eleven months to hit the racks, which was a massive delay at the time and a sure sign the label was prepared to sink the LP on release.
I’ve interviewed a couple of people involved with the session, ‘Boomer’ Castleman, who was one of the guitarists on the December 18 session, but not credited presumably as his real name, Owen Castleman, was confused with ‘Donnie’ Donald Owens, who was on the other dates. Carl Walden, one of the others I interviewed, confirmed that Boomer playing on a session, but not the particular date.
It’s worth noting that Lee Hazelwood owned LHI, the label that released the only album by Gram Parsons’ International Submarine Band, but he did not produce the sessions, that was Suzi Jane Hokum.
Hi Jason,
Thanks for the info about Boomer Castleman and for pointing out my error regarding the International Submarine Band album. You are correct that it was produced by Hokom.