The Smiley Smile Message Board

Just saw this in my mail. I'm a magazine editor.
 
PRODUCER DENNY TEDESCO’S DOCUMENTARY PROJECT
‘WRECKING CREW’ CHRONICLES LEGENDARY 60’S SESSION
PLAYERS INCLUDING TOMMY TEDESCO AND HOWARD ROBERTS,
GUIDING LIGHTS OF HOLLYWOOD’S MUSICIANS INSTITUTE

The Eagerly Anticipated Film Has Been Selected For Screening
At The Upcoming South By Southwest (SXSW), Buffalo
And Nashville Film Festivals
 
            Howard Roberts and Tommy Tedesco, world-renowned guitarists who contributed to the founding of Hollywood’s Musicians Institute, are among the many L.A.-based session musicians profiled in The Wrecking Crew, a documentary film currently under development by producer (and Tommy’s son) Denny Tedesco.
 
            In recalling the golden years of the L.A. recording studio scene, Denny Tedesco tells the story of the A-listers who performed on thousands of records, film and television soundtracks that comprised a virtual soundtrack of ‘60s popular culture. Tommy Tedesco (who died in 1997) and Roberts (who died in 1992) were among the legendary players in the Crew who supplied the music for the Beach Boys, Phil Spector, the Monkees, Sonny & Cher, the Mamas and the Papas, Frank and Nancy Sinatra, and dozens of other pop icons.
 
In the era before home studios and sampling, the booming recording industry demanded musicians who could read and play any style of music on cue, and the Wrecking Crew filled the bill. Racing across LA from one studio to the next, the Crew could shift gears in a single day from rock albums to orchestral film scores to jazz arrangements to cartoon soundtracks, routinely turning out multiple finished tracks in a single three-hour session.
 
“The story of the Wrecking Crew is a picture of a unique moment in American musical history,” says Tedesco. “Like the musicians of Motown, Memphis and Nashville, these were the unsung heroes of popular music. They were as integral to the success of those records as the singers – most people never knew their names, but they knew their music note-for-note.”
 
The singers agree; Nancy Sinatra states, “I think they were the best musicians in the country, then and now. Brilliant technique, execution and feel…and they could READ!” In later years, Roberts turned his vast musical experience and educational philosophy into the foundation for MI’s world-renowned professional music curriculum, while Tedesco and other members of the Crew appeared regularly to share their unique career perspectives in seminars and classes.
 
            The Wrecking Crew has been selected for screenings at the upcoming South By Southwest (SXSW) (March 7-15), Buffalo (March 24-29) and Nashville (April 17-24) film festivals.           
 
The documentary has received rave reviews at previous festival screenings, but wider distribution hinges on finalizing clearances for the dozens of hit songs included in the film. “We’re in the final process of nailing down funds, “said Tedesco. “If there are investors, we’re still taking calls.” To learn more about The Wrecking Crew, visit www.wreckingcrew.tv .
 

This looks superb. The trailer's whet my appetite!

I agree that the trailer looks great as does the whole presentation, but this thing is going to be a licensing nightmare to secure all the rights for a reasonable fee when you're talking that many hit songs! It will play the festival circuits just fine, but it may be awhile before a DVD release happens. Considering the Dick Clark interview, it looks like this has been in production for quite a few years.

I wonder how Carol Kaye feels about the title?

Certainly no MoTown stuff in the soundtrack.  ::)

How did the Wrecking Crew name come to be?  My remark about Carol was the fact that she really hates having that group was called by that name.  She says they never were called that in the '60s, and the first time it was mentioned was in Hal Blaine's biography in the late '80s.  So, was it Hal who invented the term?

Nope they were called that then I have seen it in print.

She says a lot of things, most not true, hence Andrew's comment.