1960's Zappa Session Photo - Budimir, Tedesco, BW connection

[guitarfool2002]

I received the new issue of Vintage Guitar magazine this morning (it's a great issue, also includes a cover story on the Fender Jaguar and Merrell Fankhauser), and was excited to see a full article on session guitarist and Wrecking Crew member Dennis Budimir. He has been almost a mystery man among all the photos of the other musicians in that crew, yet he shows up on so many famous recordings and seemed to be a constant presence. Search his name and his credits are staggering.

This photo of a Frank Zappa session was included in the article, and I thought it was worth sharing here. I'm guessing it could be from the Lumpy Gravy sessions, but I'm hoping someone with more knowledge of the Zappa session history can fill in or correct the details. Notice the pretty standard 60's studio setup on display, including the guitarists lined up on chairs, with their Fender combo amps on chairs behind them in a row, and miked up using EV 666 microphones (terrific on guitar amps, IMO...).

Maybe this photo is already known in other fan circles, but it is always neat to see more evidence of these sessions, and especially to see a photo of Dennis Budimir who I can't remember seeing a photo of him at work in a 60's session despite the hundreds of studio photos I've browsed through the past years. Dennis was among the top 5 guitarists playing sessions in LA for decades, yet it was hard to find a good photo of him, for whatever reasons, while his cohort and fellow jazzer Tommy Tedesco can be seen in dozens of photos.

Dennis Budimir was featured on the Orange Crate Art album, and if anyone can place him on any specific Beach Boys or Brian Wilson sessions, please post the info!

[Theydon Bois]

This photo of a Frank Zappa session was included in the article, and I thought it was worth sharing here. I'm guessing it could be from the Lumpy Gravy sessions, but I'm hoping someone with more knowledge of the Zappa session history can fill in or correct the details.

The mighty United Mutations website to the rescue:
http://www.united-mutations.com/b/dennis_budimir.htm

Dennis Budimer was a part of the Abnuceals Emuukha Electric Symphony Orchestra in 1967 when Frank Zappa recorded the orchestral parts for "Lumpy Gravy".
He provided guitar.

According to Carol Kaye, he also played 12-string on "Freak Out". However, the album credits, and the session sheets from the Musicians Union don't support her story.

Good old Carol Kaye.

[I. Spaceman]

I would highly, highly recommend listening to the instrumental backing tracks on the MOFO Project set that feature Wrecking Crew members playing alongside the Mothers. Without the vocals, one would swear they were 65-vintage Brian Wilson or Jan Berry tracks.

[LostArt]

I would highly, highly recommend listening to the instrumental backing tracks on the MOFO Project set that feature Wrecking Crew members playing alongside the Mothers. Without the vocals, one would swear they were 65-vintage Brian Wilson or Jan Berry tracks.

I can't believe I've never heard these.  Can I find these tracks on the 2-CD version or the 4-CD version of the MOFO Project release from 2006?

[c-man]

Budimir's name is on a few BW/Beach Boys AFM contracts, specifically those for the orchestrated "Adult Child" tracks from February/March '77, and the two days at Western in July '79 for cutting "School Day", "Little Girl" (which formed the basis for "Sunshine"), and "Jamaica Farewell" (even though he wasn't credited on the KTSA album's inner sleeve...but then neither were any of the players on those particular sessions except Mike Meros).

[guitarfool2002]

Thanks for all the info! Just a few points:

- For some reason I thought Dennis Budimir may have turned up on one of the 1966 Good Vibrations sessions but I'm probably mistaken. At the time Brian was cutting records with the Wrecking Crew, I think Budimir was still leaning more toward straight jazz than even Tommy Tedesco, but he was so good of a reader and player, he was taking those studio dates just after he got back into the scene but may not have been in the same pantheon as the guys Brian and Spector relied on for their "rock" sounds...of course all that would soon change, and in the interview Budimir himself mentions a few things and specific people which reshaped his attitude toward playing music which wasn't 100% jazz.

- I was wondering which studio the photo was taken, it would appear to have been Capitol according to that Zappa page...is that the case, is that Capitol studios we're seeing in the photo?

- The photo we're seeing is from the time Dennis was into the music end of the studio scene, after he had gotten out of the Army and after he was a presence in the jazz world before he was drafted. The first time I remember seeing his name was on my copy of the first Partridge Family album. I think his most well-known though still relatively anonymous body of work was done around soundtracks and film scores in Hollywood, where he was one of the small group of first-call guitarists for a number of film composers and producers in the 70's and beyond.

- The credits for Lumpy Gravy are like a who's who of the 1967 LA session scene, many familiar names and a lot of those who we see credited on Beach Boys, Monkees, etc. records. Even copyist Bob Ross (not the painter!) got a credit. Very cool info to be found.

[I. Spaceman]

I would highly, highly recommend listening to the instrumental backing tracks on the MOFO Project set that feature Wrecking Crew members playing alongside the Mothers. Without the vocals, one would swear they were 65-vintage Brian Wilson or Jan Berry tracks.

I can't believe I've never heard these.  Can I find these tracks on the 2-CD version or the 4-CD version of the MOFO Project release from 2006?

4 disc set. One of the greatest sets I have ever heard.

[LostArt]

I would highly, highly recommend listening to the instrumental backing tracks on the MOFO Project set that feature Wrecking Crew members playing alongside the Mothers. Without the vocals, one would swear they were 65-vintage Brian Wilson or Jan Berry tracks.

I can't believe I've never heard these.  Can I find these tracks on the 2-CD version or the 4-CD version of the MOFO Project release from 2006?

4 disc set. One of the greatest sets I have ever heard.

This is going to be a hard one to find.  There are some 4 disc imports at Amazon, but they're WAY too expensive for me.  My brother's got a huge collection of Zappa, but I don't think I've ever seen this one there.  I'll have to ask him.

[GeorgeFellInHisHorn]

I would highly, highly recommend listening to the instrumental backing tracks on the MOFO Project set that feature Wrecking Crew members playing alongside the Mothers. Without the vocals, one would swear they were 65-vintage Brian Wilson or Jan Berry tracks.

I can't believe I've never heard these.  Can I find these tracks on the 2-CD version or the 4-CD version of the MOFO Project release from 2006?

4 disc set. One of the greatest sets I have ever heard.

Is there anything on the 2-CD set that isn't on the 4-CD set?

[Mike's Beard]

I would highly, highly recommend listening to the instrumental backing tracks on the MOFO Project set that feature Wrecking Crew members playing alongside the Mothers. Without the vocals, one would swear they were 65-vintage Brian Wilson or Jan Berry tracks.

I can't believe I've never heard these.  Can I find these tracks on the 2-CD version or the 4-CD version of the MOFO Project release from 2006?

4 disc set. One of the greatest sets I have ever heard.

This is going to be a hard one to find.  There are some 4 disc imports at Amazon, but they're WAY too expensive for me.  My brother's got a huge collection of Zappa, but I don't think I've ever seen this one there.  I'll have to ask him.

Be patient and watch eBay like a hawk, I have seen the set going for around £22 before. It took me months to get 200 Motels on CD without paying a stupid price and then lo and behold two cheapish sets appeared on the site.

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

Very nice.  Always love a 666 on the guitar amp.

It does look a bit like Capitol to me.

[Theydon Bois]

I would highly, highly recommend listening to the instrumental backing tracks on the MOFO Project set that feature Wrecking Crew members playing alongside the Mothers. Without the vocals, one would swear they were 65-vintage Brian Wilson or Jan Berry tracks.

I can't believe I've never heard these.  Can I find these tracks on the 2-CD version or the 4-CD version of the MOFO Project release from 2006?

4 disc set. One of the greatest sets I have ever heard.

Is there anything on the 2-CD set that isn't on the 4-CD set?

Yes, sadly.  It's mostly duplication, but there are bits and pieces of unique material.

Both versions are still on sale, new, from Zappa.com's Barfko-Swill shop:
http://barfkoswill.shop.musictoday.com/Product.aspx?cp=971_8837&pc=ZPCD76
http://barfkoswill.shop.musictoday.com/Product.aspx?cp=971_8837&pc=ZPCD78

... and also from G&S Music in the UK:
http://www.gandsmusic.com/ZappaRecords.htm

[guitarfool2002]

The bassist in the photo - Is that Jimmy Bond?

[Jason Penick]

The bassist in the photo - Is that Jimmy Bond?

Just venturing a guess here Craig, but I'd say that's Jimmy Bond on bass and Emil Richards sitting over by the pitched percussion instruments.

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

The bassist in the photo - Is that Jimmy Bond?

I was wondering the same thing.  Certainly could be.  Not sure who Zappa used?

Richards seems like a very good guess to me too, over there, although he seems pudgier than I remember Emil being...

[guitarfool2002]

I think Jason called it right, but I agree if it is Emil Richards he must have gained weight! The other photos of him from this time show him skinner if I recall.

Bond was one of a handful of bassists credited on those sessions, I would think it was him in the photo but the only point to disagree is that Bond in almost every studio photo I've seen is shown playing upright rather than electric.

Another thing to notice in the photo which I wish were more clear is what looks like a control room with a lot of people packed in. I always wonder who those anonymous faces are in shots like this.

[guitarfool2002]

I found more and more info...sometimes being an incurable insomniac pays off...

Here's one which seems to be showing Lyle Ritz on upright, unless it's another one of the bassists on the credits that looks like Lyle...Is this Lyle? And who is it on keys?

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

I don't think it is Lyle, although I've never seen him in profile like this...  Who is that indeed, on piano?  No clue.

Nice work, Craig.

[guitarfool2002]

A few fascinating finds to add, and another temporary disappointment...a very big disappointment, actually, and hopefully temporary.

First, this is a Wrecking Crew film outtake of Emil Richards describing his work with Zappa on the sessions shown in the photos:
http://youtu.be/cB7dGnC46gE

Next, the saga of those Zappa studio photos...


One source of those is 6 full contact sheets of Lumpy Gravy photos, showing both Zappa portraits and cover shoot photos, and the rest of them...just a few dozen in-studio photos showing Zappa and the Wrecking Crew recording the tunes. The photos I posted originally seem to have come from those sheets.

Oh my! 

The owner bought them from the photographer at a yard sale for 5 dollars, later resold them on Ebay but not before taking hi-res scans of the panels. I think.

At one time it would appear this person had higher quality shots of these posted on a blog, but the full-size images have been removed. All that is left are blurry, small shots of the full sheets.

So I ask anyone in the Zappa universe reading this board, Jason Penick or anyone who is a Zappa collector/historian, does any of this story sound familiar? Better yet, does anyone have anything close to a high-res or even a larger view of these frames from when they first appeared?

This is something very special, for studio history fans it is quite a find, and these are in fact pretty amazing documents that just don't appear. If someone has them and could contact me on a PM or whatever instead of posting, please do. Or maybe a group of us can somehow try to get the studio shots through contacts or whatever. 60's studio session musician candid shots are rare...three sheets full of them is a bonanza.  

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

Nice.  Yeah--these would be a real gift.

[guitarfool2002]

My guess on the unknown piano player: Lincoln Mayorga.

[Mike's Beard]

I would highly, highly recommend listening to the instrumental backing tracks on the MOFO Project set that feature Wrecking Crew members playing alongside the Mothers. Without the vocals, one would swear they were 65-vintage Brian Wilson or Jan Berry tracks.

Doesn't Carol Kaye claim that apart from Frank none of The Mothers actually played on Freak Out!? No doubt more BS from the master of BS.

[Jason Penick]

So I ask anyone in the Zappa universe reading this board, Jason Penick or anyone who is a Zappa collector/historian, does any of this story sound familiar? Better yet, does anyone have anything close to a high-res or even a larger view of these frames from when they first appeared?

Nope. Sad to say I am not in possession of any of them. Would love to see more though!

[guitarfool2002]

So I ask anyone in the Zappa universe reading this board, Jason Penick or anyone who is a Zappa collector/historian, does any of this story sound familiar? Better yet, does anyone have anything close to a high-res or even a larger view of these frames from when they first appeared?

Nope. Sad to say I am not in possession of any of them. Would love to see more though!

Thanks for responding, though! Damn, I wish I had known about this a few years ago, because it is one of those classic "Antiques Roadshow" type of stories where a truly great find is made at a yard sale. And from what little I could see, there are at least several dozen in-studio shots of Zappa interacting with the musicians and walking around the studio...and from what I could see you were right, it looks most like Emil Richards (just a heavier version of himself...) around the mallet section.

Not giving up.

[Jason Penick]

Hey Craig and Josh, looks like we can confirm that Emil Richards was at the least present during the Lumpy Gravy sessions.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94JImkUkpMw&feature=related

Pretty interesting story he relates here!