It to happen so I thought I’d start it off now….
I really like Jenny Lewis and this, one of her older tunes, is helped along by Mr Costello’s voice.
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=SsDeXs00eio&feature=share
Cameos that add to a song and, arguably, don’t cause irritation!
Clapton’s solo on While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Stevie Wonder’s harmonica on There Must Be An Angel
Mick Fleetwood and John McVie on Werewolves Of London
Bob Holness on Baker Street
Rodney Bewes on Purple Haze
I know there are one or two fans of Martyn Bennett & Michael Marra in the house, so I’ll propose
Michael Marra’s cameo on Liberation
We have a winner.
Bowie’s bvs on Satellite Of Love.
Merry Clayton’s vocal on Gimme Shelter.
Maggie Bell on Every Picture Tells A Story
Chris Bailey joining Nick and the Bad Seeds on Bring It On.
Alan Ginsberg on Ghetto Defendant.
Is that Ginsberg? I never knew. It is great. I can hear it now in my head (almost)
Slamdance cosmopolis, enlighten the populace!
Despite constant desparaging comments about ‘no-hits’ and ‘worthy’, I really love the Clash – particularly the 3rd, 4th and 5th albums. They cane along for me at just the right time in my teenage years with a diverse mix of music genres and influences, dense with cultural and political references, some of which I am only getting now (the Ginsberg vocals and recently a mention of Jan Shaka in ‘Let’s Go Crazy’).
Enough with the sneering. They were a fantastic band.
It’s only one guy with a massive chip on his shoulder who does that here
Hmmmm
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=SsDeXs00eio&feature=share
Sounds like Elvis used to sound before he parted company with The Attractions, slowed stuff down and went all emotive and expressive.
(I know what I mean if no-one else does)
Mark E Smith on I Want You by Inspiral Carpets
Toni Halliday on Original by Leftfield
Nothing wrong with a bit of feat…
Even better. John Lydon on Open Up
Kate Bush on Ferry Aid…. 3:22 in for those of a nervous disposition.
Thankfully I’ve never heard it and don’t intend to start now!
Tremendous double thumbs up from Macca after Kate’s bit.
Kate, uncredited IIRC, on Roy Harper’s Once
She’s on R Harper’s Short and Sweet on the Unknown Soldier.
Harper appears on Floyd’s Have a Cigar
Harper’s contribution is easily missed. He sounds just like the other Pink Floyd vocalists, even though they ‘couldn’t’ perform the song themselves.
Sounds completely different to me
And RH does the background voice describing the nuclear explosion (and some BG vocal) towards the end of Breathing on Kate’s Never For Ever album.
see also KB on BVs on Gabriel 3.
What a good egg she is.
Of course, quite a few people cameo on her albums. Now who was that Australian fellah?
He’s been replaced on new copies.
His digeridoo is still present and correct on The Dreaming
That was what the prosecution said.
Ah I meant on Aerial. A mate asked me if I still wanted my copy as he was struggling to find an original mix (not that he is Rolf fan but apparently there are other changes too). As I hasn’t played it for years I was happy to pass it on.
Crispian Mills on Prodigy’s Narayana. I come back to this song quite regularly cos it’s a banger innit.
Phoebe Snow on Paul Simon’s Gone at Last
David Bromberg on Phoebe Snow’s Either or Both
Joe Jackson on William Shatner’s version of ‘Common People’:
Also Aimee Mann & Ben Folds on another track from the same Shatner album, ‘That’s Me Trying’:
E bow the letter feat Patti Smith
Two featuring Jason Isbells slide guitar:
You Was Born To Die by Adia Victoria
Dead Confederate by Jerry Joseph
I hadn’t listened to this in ages, but Paul Simon’s cameo in the middle of Dion’s “Written on the Subway Wall” is great.
A special award for Dr. Feelgood. On “Down at the Doctor’s” they left 8 bars for a piano solo but guest player John Potter proved unable to drop the required 8 bars in. So they left 8 bars of magnificently empty rhythm section following Gypie Mayo’s Canvey Claptonesque solo.
Michael Stipe on Your Ghost by Kristin Hersh and on Kid Fears by Indigo Girls.
He also pops up on 10,000 Maniacs’ A Campfire Song
And on Vic Chesnutt’s “Guilty by Association”. Good stuff!
And duets with Natalie on a live version of To Sir, With Love.
And on Billy Bragg’s You Woke Up My Neighbourhood along with Peter Buck
And on the Blue Aeroplanes’ What It Is. Unmistakeably Stipe, even when only singing “Oh”.
(uncredited) Bruce Springsteen on Lou’s Street Hassle. Captain Beefheart on Zappa’s Willie the Pimp
Bee fart is why I have a deep rift in my LP copy of Hot Rats, from trying to skip his vile caterwaul.
Good one @Dai. Broos may have been uncredited but unmistakable.
Kim Deal on Special One by Ultra Vivid Scene
David Sylvian on Transit by Fennesz
@pessoa
Kim Deal, yes!
Duane Allman on Boz Scaggs’ Loan Me a Dime
https://m.youtube.com/results?sp=mAEA&search_query=boz+scaggs+loan+me+a+dime+duane+allman+
Duane Allman on Boz Scaggs’ Loan Me a Dime
Hooky is usually good value on this front:
Gorillaz – Aries (feat. Hooky & Georgia)
The Liminanas – The Gift (feat. Hooky)
The Liminanas – Garden of Love (feat. Hooky)
Others that leap to mind (that have not already been mentioned above) are:
Nas – If I Ruled The World (feat. Lauryn Hill)
Soulsavers – Some Understanding (feat. Mark Lanegan)
Mystery Jets – Young Love (feat. Laura Marling)
DJ Shadow – Nobody Speak (feat. Run The Jewels)
Sandy Denny on Led Zeppelin’s Battle of Evermore.
Ry Cooder on Sister Morphine.
oh is that right? I didn’t know.
Slide guitar. Fab.
Poet Paul Durkan on Van’s In The Days Before Rock And Roll – perhaps initially irritating but great once you’ve got used to it.
Justin!
From there ’twas but a hop, skip and a jump to the irritating cameos thread and a certain Mr. Brian Kennedy…
Aww…I think Brian is grand – he does a good Tupelo Honey on the San Francisco live album.
(honey)
See what you did there (did there) – chapeau
On a similar tip, consider the beautifully mellifluous recital of the verses on The Waterboys’ interpretation of Yeats’ The Stolen Child, by a largely unknown Irishman, Tomás Mac Eoin. The story of his recruitment is fascinating:
https://mikescottwaterboys.com/waterboys-adventures-book.php
Jools Holland on The The’s Uncertain Smile album version. And Jools Holland on FYCs Good Thing.
I think you mean JH’s playing/solos on those records, L.
JH himself causes immense and intense irritation wherever he goes
Yes. His playing is, I think, so brilliant, it almost makes up for his personality.
A surprising one – David Gilmour guesting beautifully with Ben Watt.
I love his playing on McCartney’s Run Devil Run
My favourite Beatles is Macca at the Cavern with DG, Mick Green and Ian Paice. Two great guitarists and a great drummer Macca really rocks.
Don’t forget his mighty guitar solo on No More Lonely Nights! It’s majestic, in a very 80s sort of way, and nothing wrong with that if you’re in the mood for it.
Tackhead featuring Brian Moore. An unlikely classic…
I know nothing about football, but the English Disease was a fantastic listen
“Leroy’s boots are made of gold”
Mr Barratt Homes, Patrick Allen, on Two Tribes.
Browsing through Sandy Denny’s discography as a result of Colin’s thread, I came across this single by Charlie Drake on which she sung,
The whole story is quite extraordinary. It was co-written by Peter Gabriel and featured a stellar line up. Robert Fripp and Keith Tippett!
“UK comedian Charlie Drake (1925 – 2006) released this odd single in 1975, featuring an unexpected array of musicians including Phil Collins, Robert Fripp, Keith Tippett, Sandy Denny and Peter Gabriel, who produced and co-wrote the song! A contemporary promo sheet also lists Brian Eno as a player. An unusual aspect of the career of all involved. Phil Collins explained the recording on his website:
“”It did indeed feature Robert Fripp, Percy Jones, Keith Tippett, me and Peter G. A friend of Pete’s, Martin Hall wrote the song, or possibly co-wrote it with Peter, called You Never Know. Apparently Charlie Drake, who was a huge comedy star of the 50s and 60s, wanted to make a record. How he ended up with this line-up I have no idea! It seems the most obscure set of people to make a comedy record. On the day Charlie, who was quite small, turned up with a brand new denim outfit for his rock debut… it was quite touching to see him at it. Percy Jones and I were already in Brand X by then. The whole session was one of life’s interesting snapshots!””
The single sank without a trace, and has never been reissued, except for an Australian Fairport Convention fan club cassette in the late 1980s.”
I did wonder about putting this on but I’ve always shied away from listening to it. Maybe one day.
Another Fairport cameo is Peter Ross playing harmonica on Throwaway Street Puzzle, though I do have a bias towards this.
And not forgetting Brian “Goldbelt” Maxine, whose c&w LP featured Fairport. Indeed, he also appeared with them, at Fairfield Hall in Croydon, the only time I saw them with Sandy, in her 2nd spell with the band.
And at Cropredy one year.
I actually wonder, has Fripp ever contributed to something and NOT improved it? He’s a collaborator’s dream.
Toyah?
Stevie Wonder puts in a good shift here on Herbie Hancock’s version of St. Louis Blues. In fact, everybody concerned plays really well on this…
Surely there’s a difference between ‘cameo’ and ‘feat’?
Sometimes just being in Cameo can be a feat in itself
If you do a cameo you must wear a red cod-piece. That’s my understanding.
I was thinking that after I posted it, CS. More a starring role than a cameo, but I thought ‘ fuck it, no one will notice’. Then you had to come along…
Speaking of Herbie Hancock, his solo on Simple Minds’ Hunter and the Hunted is always a delight to listen to. Understated class shining through.
I have loved that album for 40-odd years and regularly play it. I had no idea HH was on it. That synth part in Hunter and the Hunted is a definite high point. It doesn’t need a virtuoso player, as it’s just a sequence of chords – but it fits beautifully.
Was (Not Was) had quite a few distinguished guests on their recordings.
Wayne Kramer (MC5) guitar on many tracks, through the years.
Marshall Crenshaw backing vocals, organ and guitar on various tracks and a couple of co-writes.
Doug Fieger (The Knack) BVs on several.
Mel Torme vocalist on Zaz Turned Blue.
Mitch Ryder vocalist on Bow Wow Wow
Ozzy Osbourne & Kim Basinger vocals on Shake Your Head
Elvis Costello co-write and BVs on Shadow And Jimmy.
The Roches BVs on Maria Novarro.
Leonard Cohen lead vocal, Iggy Pop BVs on Elvis’ Rolls Royce.
Syd Straw vocal on You! You! You!
Kirsty MacColl on everything, especially Hallelujah, Ask, Interesting Drug.
Kate Pierson’s backing vocals never hurt a song.
Would you call the esteemed Mr Stanshall’s contribution to Tubular Bells a cameo?
A bit too large a contribution to be called a cameo really, being half of the album.
Shame he didn’t get half the royalties
Didn’t even get paid.
I would, ’cause I was just about to post the same.
Sonny Rollins on Waiting on a Friend.
Too much to be a cameo but you may be interested to hear that Phil Collins played drums, sung backing vocals and produced Something’s going on, the 1982 solo album by Frida from Abba.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Something%27s_Going_On
Here she is on Spanish telly. The song is by Rod Argent.
That Phil got around: Laura Pausini, Eno, Fripp…It’s a long list. He did a boxset called Plays well with others
,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plays_Well_with_Others_(Phil_Collins_album)
My favourite is John Martyn’s masterwork Grace and Danger
Bonio on Clannad’s In a Lifetime was rather good, making me take both bands seriously for a while.
DONOVAN is brilliant on Alice Cooper’s Billion Dollar Babies. Best thing on their best album.
Oh and Jack Bruce on Zappa’s Apostrophe.