Leland Sklar
Sklar has recorded and toured with artists including James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Carole King, Linda Ronstadt, Phil Collins, Toto, The Doors and Lyle Lovett.As a group member, session player, or touring musician, Sklar has appeared on over 2,000 albums, and contributed to many motion picture and television show soundtracks.[5] Sklar is a Ukrainian surname meaning glazier, a person whose profession is fitting glass into windows and doors.When Leland was four, his family and he moved to Van Nuys, California, a central San Fernando Valley neighborhood in the northwest section of metropolitan Los Angeles.By the time he was seven he had won awards from the Hollywood Bowl Association as the most accomplished young pianist in Los Angeles for his age group.Across the street from the American Federation of Musicians Local 47 building in Hollywood is now a music store called Stein on Vine.[6] Sklar spent five years at San Fernando Valley State, but never graduated, because his own music career would intervene.[6][12] In the 1960s, Sklar was in numerous bands, including Mike and the Mad Men, The Percolators, The Comfortable Charos, The Brimstones, and The El Dorados.[4][14] The Brimstones (1966) are of note because Sklar played together with guitarist Dan Dugmore, his oldest friend in the music business.A single of "Magic in the Air" as the A-side and "Bad News" as the B-side was released and broke into the Billboard Hot 100, affording Group Therapy the opportunity to open for The Byrds and Canned Heat at the Anaheim Convention Center and for The Seeds at Cal State Northridge.It was through this connection that Sklar would later work with Post on every one of his TV shows: The Rockford Files, Magnum, P.I., Hill Street Blues, The A-Team, to name a few.[4][14][19] In 1969, Sklar was the bass player for a hard rock band managed by Bill Graham called Wolfgang, consisting of Bryn Haworth, Ricky Lancelotti, Kevin Kelley, Randy Zacuto and Warren 'Bugs' Pemberton.[23] Sklar performed again with James Taylor, Carole King, Danny Kortchmar and Russ Kunkel in a series of six shows at the Troubadour on November 28–30, 2007 for the 50th Anniversary of the club.Sklar has also toured with Lyle Lovett, Peter Asher, Véronique Sanson, Tracy Chapman, Van Dyke Parks, and Judith Owen, among others.[25][26] In 2020, while idled by the COVID pandemic, Sklar started a YouTube channel, initially to demonstrate the bass parts to a few of the songs he'd played on tour with Phil Collins, but which grew exponentially into a journey of music appreciation and an exploration of his expansive career.Sklar also created a coffee table book, Everybody Loves Me, of approximately 6000 photos from a collection of over 12,000 images of celebrities and common folk giving him "the finger," which has become his signature gesture.[23] Sklar has also been a part of the annual bands assembled in support of the "We Write The Songs"[30] event sponsored by ASCAP at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., and the pre-show for the Grammy Awards.[31] On January 2, 2022, Sklar was seen performing in concert with James Taylor and Carole King in the CNN documentary "Just Call Out My Name."He played the bass on James Taylor's One Man Dog, on the early Section albums, and on Billy Cobham's Spectrum.[32] Sklar's favorite instrument came next, an electric bass constructed by John Carruthers, the repairman at Westwood Music, in 1973.[32] Sklar also used various Yamaha basses, such as the BB series, most noticeably around the time of James Taylor's JT album.[7] On the recording sessions for the album Framed by Dave Lambert (of the Strawbs) in 1979, Sklar shared bass duties on the project with John Entwistle of The Who.[35] Sklar uses Cordial cables,[16] a Tube Works DI (direct input) box, and a Boss OC-2 Octave divider.
MilwaukeeWisconsinSouthern Californiacountryfolk rockjazz fusionChristian contemporaryThe SectionJackson BrowneWarren ZevonJames TaylorPhil Collinsbassistsession musicianAsylum Recordshouse bandCarole KingLinda RonstadtThe DoorsLyle Lovetttelevision showsoundtracksDuluthVan NuysSan Fernando ValleyLiberaceGeorgeHollywood Bowl AssociationBirmingham High SchoolRedlands UniversityThe BeatlesAmerican Federation of MusiciansHollywoodCalifornia State University, NorthridgeDaryl DragonCaptain & TennilleDennis DragonTom ScottCheech MarinDan DugmoreUnited StudiosElliot IngberThe Mothers Of InventionFraternity of ManWrecking CrewCarol KayeHal BlaineJim GordonMike (Michel) RubiniMike MelvoinLarry KnechtelMike DeasyDennis BudimirAl CaseyTommy TedescoBillboard Hot 100The ByrdsCanned HeatThe SeedsMike PostThe Rockford FilesMagnum, P.I.Hill Street BluesThe A-TeamBill GrahamBryn HaworthRicky LancelottiKevin KelleyWarren 'Bugs' PembertonLed ZeppelinSunlandTroubadourPeter AsherSweet Baby JamesDanny KortchmarRuss KunkelCraig DoergeNo Jacket RequiredThe No Jacket Required World Tour...But SeriouslySeriously, Live! World TourThe First Final Farewell TourNot Dead Yet TourWinter LightCapitol Records StudiosJon ButcherThe Marshall Tucker Band38 SpecialThe Fabulous ThunderbirdsOutlawsBob DylanAll Along the WatchtowerJimi HendrixTroubadour Reunion TourMike PorcaroVéronique SansonTracy ChapmanVan Dyke ParksJudith OwenWaddy Wachtelthe fingerSpotifyJoe CockerBack in the High Life AgainSteve WinwoodMillworkerThe Lark AscendingRalph Vaughan WilliamsThe Rubberband ManThe SpinnersNo OtherGene ClarkKnock On WoodEddie FloydBehind The Lines - 2015 RemasteredUm, Um, Um, Um, Um, UmMajor LanceHarlem ShuffleBob & EarlRinat IbragimovLondon Symphony OrchestraLibrary of CongressGrammy AwardsFender Jazz BassOne Man DogSection albums