Session musician

Session musicians are musicians available for hire, as opposed to musicians who are either permanent members of a musical outfit or who have acquired fame in their own right. Although the term generally refers to musicians skilled in contemporary musical styles such as rock, jazz, country, pop, etc., it can also be used to describe musicians from classical and other traditional styles.

Terms and usage

"Studio musicians" are session musicians who do not work outside of the recording studio environment. These players work exclusively inside a studio environment, sometimes for a single studio whereas a session musician may perform at concerts or in any other performance scenario. In the everyday world of the music business, the terms "studio musician" and "session musician" are often used interchangeably.

Session musicians are used in any situation where musical skills are needed on a short-term basis, ranging from a few hours to many months. Typical uses of session musicians are:

• In a recording studio to provide backing for advertising, film and television music
• To provide instrumental or vocal backing for established solo artists or groups, both in the studio and in concerts and appearances
• To act as temporary replacements for permanent members of a band or ensemble
• To provide additional instruments or vocals when needed by a band or ensemble
• In ensembles for theatrical productions

The term generally does not refer to:

• Recording artists
• Solo musicians or ensembles (without recording contracts) who give public or private performances for hire by themselves, such as wedding singers or bar bands
• Amateur musicians
• Full-time members of professional ensembles, such as symphony orchestras
• Sidemen

Instead, session musicians perform with (and are hired by, or on behalf of) some other musical act or artistic production. Apart from being highly competent at their instruments, skilled session musicians are also expected to learn parts rapidly, and to play music by sight (reading directly from the musical score).

This is typically, but not exclusively, true of certain instruments or sounds that are required, such as backing vocals, rhythm sections, horn sections, percussion, etc.

The above definitions do not always apply to earlier times. For example, during the 1920s and 1930s most record companies had their own prolific "studio bands" turning out records of the latest pop hits. These were often made up by jazz and dance band musicians who were at the same time members of regular working bands and who divided their time between studio work (recordings as well as broadcasting) during the day and live performances in the evenings. Notable such "studio musicians" include Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Jack Teagarden, Red Nichols, Miff Mole, and Mike Mosiello.

Notable session musicians

Many session musicians have long and successful careers. Some achieve considerable fame within the musical industry, although session musicians do not usually achieve popular celebrity. Notable exceptions include the members of the band Toto, formed by a group of regular studio musicians in Los Angeles; John Paul Jones and Jimmy Page, who were well known as session musicians before their later success with Led Zeppelin; keyboardist Rick Wakeman, who started his career as a session musician before becoming a member of popular progressive rock band Yes; R&B singer-songwriters Valerie Simpson (half of the Motown writing and singing duo, Ashford & Simpson), Lisa Fischer, and Luther Vandross who each spent many years as top session vocalists based in New York City. Carol Kaye is the most recorded bassist of all time with 10,000 sessions spanning four decades, according to the Berklee College of Music. The 1954 recording session for the epochial "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley and his Comets featured several session musicians, most notably guitarist Danny Cedrone, who performed the song's trademark guitar solo.

Other notable session musicians include:

• Drums:

Kenny Aronoff, Gregg Bissonette, Hal Blaine, Jan Axel Blomberg, Clem Cattini, Brendan Buckley, Matt Chamberlain, Dennis Chambers, Gary Chester, Vinnie Colaiuta, Josh Freese, Steve Gadd, Winston Grennan, Willie Hall, Roger Hawkins, Al Jackson, Jr., Steve Jordan, Jim Keltner, Abraham Laboriel Jr., Paul Leim, Nate Morton, Simon Phillips, Jeff Porcaro, Bernard Purdie, Joey Waronker, Ryan Hoyle, Phil Collins, and Dave Weckl.

• Electric bass:

James Alexander, Bob Babbitt, Wilbur Bascomb, Donald "Duck" Dunn, Nathan East, Herbie Flowers, David Hood, David Hungate, Anthony Jackson, Randy Jackson, James Jamerson, Guy Pratt, Jerry Jemmott, Carol Kaye, Abraham Laboriel, Will Lee, Tony Levin, Joe Long, Marcus Miller, Joe Osborn, Pino Palladino, John Pierce, Wojciech Pilichowski, Chuck Rainey, Tommy Sims, Leland Sklar and Shem von Schroeck

• Guitar:

Tristan Abgrall, Duane Allman, Pete Anderson, James Burton, Larry Carlton, Bernie Chiaravalle Ry Cooder, Steve Cropper, Andrew Gold, Jay Graydon, Mabon "Teenie" Hodges, Dann Huff, Lawrence Katz, Michael Landau, Sonny Landreth, David Lindley, Steve "Luke" Lukather, Jim McGorman, Scotty Moore, Rafael Moreira, Matt "Guitar" Murphy, Jimmy Page, Lee Ritenour, Slash, Earl "Chinna" Smith, Hubert Sumlin, Tommy Tedesco, Daryl Stuermer, Reggie Young and (emrah koçak).

• Keyboards:

Ray Chew, David Foster, Steve George Don Grolnick, Nicky Hopkins, Johnnie Johnson, Booker T. Jones, Bradley Joseph, Larry Knechtel, Charlie Peacock, Chuck Leavell, Jim McGorman, Michael McDonald, Paul Mirkovich, Spooner Oldham, Steve Porcaro, Billy Preston, Ike Turner Brad Cole, and Carson Whitsett.

• Percussion:

Paulinho Da Costa

• Vocalists:

Tawatha Agee, Patti Austin, Tony Burrows, Bill Champlin, Kacey Cisyk, Jeanette Clinger, Tommy Funderburk, Siedah Garrett, Steve George (musician) Carl Hall, Cissy Houston, Michael McDonald, Richard Page, Chris Rodriguez, Frank Simms, Warren Wiebe and Miriam Stockley.

• Groups:

Booker T and the MGs; The Funk Brothers; The Wrecking Crew; The Memphis Horns; The Horny Horns; The Kick Horns; Atlanta Rhythm Section; Sly and Robbie; The Hodges Brothers; The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section; and Toto.

External links

• Indaba Music - website for session musicians to work for clients remotely