Ray Donovan

Under the production aegis of Andrew Oldham, Donovan amassed a small army of stellar backup musicians for Essence to Essence, which followed its predecessor, Cosmic Wheels, by only ten months, indicating that he was intent on reestablishing his status in the pop music world. Although the album was recorded at Morgan Studios in England, its session players were a mix of British and American names including not only locals Peter Frampton, Nicky Hopkins, Danny Thompson, and Ray Cooper, but also a batch of people apparently flown in from Los Angeles, including Jim Gordon, Carl Radle, Bobby Whitlock, and Russell Kunkel,. Thus, various former members of Wings and Derek and the Dominos rubbed shoulders with the standard backup staff for James Taylor and other singer/songwriters, as well as some stars in their own right…

Before Woodstock and Monterey Pop, there was Festival. From 1963 through 1966, Murray Lerner visited the annual Newport Folk Festival to document a thriving, idealistic musical movement as it reached its peak as a popular phenomenon. Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Howlin’ Wolf, Johnny Cash, the Staple Singers, Pete Seeger, Son House, and Peter, Paul and Mary were just a few of the legends who shared the stage at Newport, treating audiences to a range of folk music that encompassed the genre’s roots in blues, country, and gospel as well as its newer flirtations with rock and roll…