By Thomas Semioli

A session legend, producer, composer and first-call bassist / sideman- it would be easier to list artists whom Emory Lee Gordy Jr. hasn’t’ anchored on stage and on record! 

Emory’s musical skills were evident as a child in his native Atlanta, Georgia. By the time he was in high school he was a multi-instrumentalist working in ensembles spanning Dixieland Jazz to Top 40 to garage rock. A music student at Georgia State, Gordy’s career in the studio began in 1964, collaborating with Tommy Roe, Lou Christie, Rufus Thomas, and Joe South, among others. He moved to Los Angeles in 1970, working sessions as a bassist, producer, and engineer for such artists as Debbie Reynolds, Liberace, and Neil Diamond.

In ’72 Gordy anchored Elvis’ TCB Band. In the mid-70s he co-founded Emmylou Harris Hot Band while continuing his studio work with Billy Joel, Tom Petty, and Rosanne Cash, John Denver, and Rodney Crowell to cite a very select few.

In ’83 Gordy gave up the road full time and turned to production, helming such sides as Steve Earle’s Exit 0 and Guitar Town, along with releases by Vince Gill, and his wife Patty Loveless. Nowadays Gordy lives in semi-retirement and occasionally works a session or one-off performances in Nashville or his home in Atlanta.  Gordy and Loveless are members of the Georgia Music Hall of Fame.

Emory Gordy Jr. Sound & Vision…

Elvis Presley: “Burning Love” https://youtu.be/zf2VYAtqRe0

Elvis Presley: “Separate Ways”  https://youtu.be/zeUSTbdaiZk

Gram Parsons: “Return of the Grievous Angel” https://youtu.be/h_Iz0iVvhEc

Emmy Lou Harris Hot Band Old Grey Whistle Test 1977: https://youtu.be/lpNMrugveLE

Rodney Crowell “Ain’t No Money” https://youtu.be/tfwGTMJW5XY

Rosanne Cash “Ain’t No Money” https://youtu.be/AgqxbnogP3E

Neil Diamond  “Longfellow Serenade” https://youtu.be/4XRGMaI46zw

Linda Ronstadt “Dark End of the Street” https://youtu.be/PKBvG8XJrSU

Tom Petty “Strangered in the Night” https://youtu.be/gC9FDx3HISw

Patty Loveless “A Little Bit In Love” https://youtu.be/T-5MN8JuEhc

Every rock bassist, regardless of the respective sub-genre(s) in which they toil, owes infinite homage to the late William Patton “Bill” Black.

A showman, bandleader, upright slap master, and one of the first electric players to wax a side (“Jailhouse Rock’) – Black and his longtime colleague guitarist Scotty Moore, and D.J. Fontana were Elvis Presley’s “Blue Moon Boys.”

Bill’s motifs for “That’s All Right,” “Hound Dog,” and “Heartbreak Hotel” set the standard for rock bass.  

Born in Memphis, Bill started out on guitar and took up the bass as a teen, modeling his technique after Fred Maddox, known for his slap style. Black met future Elvis guitarist Scotty Moore while working the club circuit with such notable local cats as Paul Burlison, Johnny Burnette, and Dorsey Burnette.

In July 1954, Moore and Black were tabbed to back a fresh-faced kid named Elvis, and the rest as they say is history.  Bill had a profound influence on Elvis’ stage antics, prodding the shy singer to exaggerate his moves.

Following his tenure with Presley, Black formed Bill Black’s Combo which waxed several albums and chart hits from 1959 to 1962. Black passed from a bout with cancer in 1965. His upright bass is owned by Paul McCartney.

Bill Black Sound & Vision…

“Good Rockin’ Tonight” https://youtu.be/6FeWJHUB8aU

“Heartbreak Hotel” https://youtu.be/W4euyTDhFnk

“That’s All Right” https://youtu.be/DCP_g7X31nI

“Hound Dog” https://youtu.be/lzQ8GDBA8Is

“Jailhouse Rock” https://youtu.be/PpsUOOfb-vE

Dig The Bill Black Combo “Smokie” with Black workin’ the thumb! https://youtu.be/Lm_xBHCtubM

Dig Sir Paul with Bill’s bass: https://bit.ly/2G6i5Wh

By Thomas Semioli

He anchored two cats named Elvis, and what could arguably be considered among the greatest rock and roll ensembles of all time; Elvis Aaron Presley’s “Taking Care of Business Band.” From its fiery inception in 1969 until The King’s crash and burn in ‘77 – the core collective of guitarists James Burton and John Wilkinson, drummer Ron Tutt, keyboardist Larry Muhoberac, and bassist Jerry Scheff never failed to tear it up on stage (and in the studio) regardless of the condition of their bandleader. The TCB band could swing, rock, and groove through any musical genre Elvis threw at them.

Scheff broke into the studio biz after a stint in the Navy and helmed several hits and album tracks before, during, and following his work with Presley, including such artists as The Doors, Elvis Costello, Bob Dylan, Buckingham Nicks, Todd Rundgren, The Association, Neil Diamond, The Monkees, Sammy Davis Jr., Nancy Sinatra, Everly Brothers, Willy DeVille, Richard Thompson, John Denver, and Johnny Mathis, to cite a select few.

His tome Way Down: Playing Bass with Elvis, Dylan, the Doors, and More: The Autobiography of Jerry Scheff is essential reading for bassists and rock history buffs.

Jerry’s weapon of choice during his most active period was the Fender Precision with its signature warm tone and occasional growl or “bark.” Given that he backed many of pop music’s greatest singers and songwriters, Sheff’s melodic lines were often build around rudimentary triads and subtle rhythmic variations which served the compositions and recordings.

To my ears, Scheff’s best work can be heard throughout The Doors final slab with Jim Morrison L.A. Woman waxed in late 1970 and early ‘71. Jerry’s movement defines the title track, and his jazzy phrasing and note choices for “Love Her Madly” are the stuff of bass virtuosity.

This writer cited Jerry Scheff in Huffington Post: 11 Bass Players Who Belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (December 2017) https://bit.ly/2YRri08

Dig Jerry with The Association “Along Comes Mary” https://youtu.be/URUd5RUAz1I

Dig Jerry on upright with Elvis Costello “Eisenhower Blues” https://youtu.be/lBfobZSd-SE

Dig Jerry with Bob Dylan “Changing of the Guards” https://youtu.be/qZhMvLuoMaM

Dig Jerry in rehearsal with Elvis and TCB in 1970 https://youtu.be/cmv5AcDXyqc

Dig Jerry and Elvis Live in Hawaii in ‘73 https://youtu.be/id_JFzDQPek

Dig Jerry with Richard Thompson “Read about Love” https://youtu.be/XYiZY3qC8IQ

Dig Jerry with The Doors:

“L.A. Woman” https://youtu.be/vHXjcdNIN-Q

“Love Her Madly” https://youtu.be/5iqfXaGliq8