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The
above list is with courtesy of Digital
Dream Door Site
They are not compiled by myself. They have a page for your comments ~
which I am sure you have many!
Email
me with your choice if not listed
above and I will give them a well deserved mention here
YOUR
CHOICES
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MORGAN
FISHER
Photo
courtesy of Morgan Fisher
British
keybaord player Morgan Fisher, born in London, started his musical journey
in
1966 playing the organ with the band The Soul Survivors, who soon renamed
to The Love Affair, having a No.1 hit in 1968 with "Everlasting Love".
In the early 70's Morgan, along with Tim Staffell formed the rock band
Morgan. After a short stint with Third Ear Band, in 1976 he joined the
legendary British rock band, "Mott the Hoople". In 1980 Morgan
conceived and produced the unique "Miniatures" album, 51 one-minute
tracks by Robert Fripp, Gavin Bryars, Michael Nyman, The Pretenders, XTC,
Penguin Cafe Orchestra, Robert Wyatt, The Damned and many more. 1982 sees
Morgan with rock band Queen, on their European tour. By 1985 Morgan had
moved to Japan, where he has become one of the leading TV commercial music
writers, including songs written or arranged for Cat Power, Karin Krog,
Jose Feliciano and Zap Mama. Japanese artists include Yoko Ono, Dip in
the Pool, The Boom, Heat Wave, Kina Shoukichi, Haruomi Hosono, Kokoo among
others. He continues his busy and varied career as organist, keyboard
player, producer, composer, film scorer, artist and photographer.
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MARK
KELLY
Keyboardist
Mark Kelly born in Dublin, influenced by bands Yes, Genesis, Pink Floyd
and the likes started his professional career with the progressive/psychedelic
band Chemical Alice, based in Essex, UK. Mark stayed with the band a year,
recording the EP Curioser and Curioser in July 1981, before leaving to
join the progressive rock band, Marillion, replacing keyboardist Brian
Jelliman, in November 1981. Mark has been with Marillion
throughout their touring and recording history
of 20 albums, the latest to date being "TBA - Working Title - M15"
in 2008, 35
singles, 28
racket record recordings, 20 videos, as well as releasing 14 compilations
and several Christmas albums. Mark also appeared on on John Wesley's album
'Under the Red and White Sky' in 1994 and on Jump's album 'Myth of Independence'
in 1995. In 2005 he played keyboards with Travis for their headlining
set at the Isle of Wight Festival and at the Live8 set in Edinburgh. He
continues his work with Marillion.
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DOUG
JOHNSON

Keyboardist
Doug Johnson from Calgary, Canada together with Paul Dean, Mike Reno founded
the rock band Loverboy in 1980. Their self-titled debut album sold over
700,000 in Canada alone, and went on to sell over 2 million in America.
The band have released 13 billboard hit singles and 12 albums, the latest
to date "Just Getting Started" was released in 2007. As well
as his busy band career, Doug is also a published classical music composer.
He wrote the classical quintet "The Crescent Suite" which uses
piano, violin, cello, flute, and viola. His commercial composition work
includes the soundtrack for the syndicated shows "The Shopping Bags"
and "You, Me, and the Kids". He was nominated for a Jessie award
for his work on the Vancouver Aquarium TV commercial. He also co-wrote
music for Broadway-style musicals "Front Page News" and "A
Time To Remember".
Doug continues touring, recording and composing for his band Loverboy
and work on his many side projects.
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GARTH
HUDSON
Canadian
Garth
Hudson, virtuoso organist and keyboardist played with many bands and played
plenty of sessions before he joined Bob Dylan's backing band in 1966,
with went on to become known as The Band. Throughout The Bands long history,
and numerous hits, Garth has been active also as a session musician, performing
on movie soundtracks and albums. He has performed with Los
Lobos, Neil Diamond, Emmylou Harris, Eric Clapton, Leonard Cohen, Crosby,
Stills, Nash, and Young, Rick Danko, Dixie Hummingbirds, Bob Dylan, Keith
Emerson, Marianne Faithfull, Gipsy Kings, John Herald, Tom Petty &
the Heartbreakers, Jackie Lomax, Van Morrison, Scotty Moore & D.J.
Fontana, Robert Palmer, Graham Parker and 100's of others. Garth has been
involved musically in the films The Last Waltz, Raging Bull, The King
of Comedy, The Right Stuff and Man Outside. As a member of The Band, Garth
was inducted into the Juno Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame in 1994.
He continues as a very much-in-demand session player, just a few of the
artists Garth performed with in 2006 alone are Ronnie Hawkins, The Sadies,
Neko Case, Heavy Trash, John Hiatt, North Mississippi All-Stars, Blackie
and The Rodeo Kings, and Chris Zaloom. If you ever wondered who played
that sax on The Band recordings, that was Garth Hudson too.
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GEORGIE
FAME

Georgie
Fame was born Clive Powell in Leigh, Lancashire, UK, he was inspired and
influenced by American musicians especially Fats Domino, Mose Allison,
Jerry
Lee Lewis, Booker T
& the MG's, and Louis Jordan. As a teenager he played with several
groups around Manchester, before the family moved to London in 1959, were
he was discovered by Lionel Bart. Talent manager Larry Parnes signed him
up and changed his name. Georgie started his proffessional career by backing
the likes of Vince Eager, Billy Fury and Marty Wilde, before becoming
a full-time member of Billy Fury's backing band, The Blue Flames. Later
Georgie took over the band, here, he could make his own music with a recognizable
blend of R&B, jazz, pop, and ska. Over the years he has played with
many artists including Alan Price, Van Morrison, and more recently bassist
Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings. He
is one of the few jazz artists left to take an interest in the vanishing
art of setting words to established jazz instrumentals, which has earned
him much respect & admiration from jazz critics on both sides of the
Atlantic.
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BRIAN
AUGER

Bandleader, session man, jazz pianist, Hammond B3
player, Brian Auger born in London, went on the road with Long John Baldry,
Julie Driscoll and Rod Stewart in 1965 as the group Steampacket. Then
after a few years with with "This Wheel's on Fire" Driscoll
& the band Trinity, he went on to form Brian Auger's Oblivion Express
producing 8 chart hitting albums over the next decade. In 1989, Brian
was Musical Director for the thirteen-part film retrospective series "Villa
Fantastica", made for German TV. In 1990 the live recording of the
series, "Super Jam", featured Brian Auger on piano. Throughout
his career he has sessioned with too many legends to mention, toured with
Tony Williams, Jimi Hendrix, Sonny Boy Williamson, Led Zeppelin, Eric
Burdon and many more. Brian reformed Oblivion Express in the late 90's
which today features his son Karma Auger on drums, his daughter Savannah
Auger on vocals, and Derek Frank on bass.
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JERRY
CORBETTA

Jerry Corbetta,
founder, keyboardist, and former lead
singer of the melodically and lyrically-oriented SUGARLOAF. Besides the
often heard and much-praised "Green-Eyed Lady", the group found
gold with "Don't Call Us, We'll Call You " in February 1975.
Life after Sugarloaf was just as artistically lucrative for Jerry when
he released a solo album for Warner Bros. In 1979, Jerry joined Fankie
Vali & The Four Seasons and he still found time to write hit songs
for Grace Jones, Belinda Carlisle and Roberto Flack / Peabo Bryson duo
who recorded the love-song classic " You're Lookin' Like Love to
Me" which went gold and climbed right to the top of the charts. Jerry
has thrived as a performed/writer and record producer in the '80s,and
since 1992 has performed world-wide with "The Rare Earth, Iron Butterfly,
Sugarloaf All stars.
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DAVID
PAICH

David Paich is
a session musician from the 1980s, keyboard player, vocalist and main
composer of the Los Angeles based rock/pop band Toto. David
is one of the most prolific songwriters of the 1980's. He wrote "Rosanna,"
"99," "Hold the Line," and most of Toto's hits over
the years, including several 70's hits by pop artists such as Cheryl Lynn's
hit, "Got to be Real". David played on the Bryan Adams song
"Please Forgive Me", just one of his many session works David
co-wrote the 1982 hit, "Africa," along with Toto's drummer Jeff
Porcaro. David also sung lead vocals on the song. He has co-writing credits
with Boz Scaggs on the song "Lowdown," and occasionally still
sits in on keyboards with Boz Scagg's band. He is still writing and performing
with Toto, although he has opted to remain closer to the L.A. area and
not tour extensively with the band. Session Keyboardist Greg Phillinganes
joined Toto in 2005 as an additional keyboardist for both studio projects
and tour dates.
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JOHN "JoJo" HERMANN

John
Herman or JoJo, as he is known by the 1000's of Widespread Panic
throughout the world started his career in a Doors cover band at the age
of 15, then moved on to Professor Longhair. Multi musician John joined
Widespread Panic as keyboardist in 1992. The band plays as many as 250
shows a year, true road warriors, and have ranked among the top 50 grossing
touring acts for eight years running, even without the multi-media attention
of other bands. In 2003 John formed the Mojo Mardi Gras Band after his
band, Widespread Panic, decided to take a year and a half off from their
rigorous touring schedule, his band focuses on the sound of New Orleans
. John released 3 solo albums in the 18 months break and recorded 16 of
the 18 Widespread Panic CDs. Their latest being
Widespread
~
Earth
to America, 2006.
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BRETT TUGGLE

Brett's career took off when invited to join Mitch
Ryder and the Detroit Wheels, after which he moved to LA and joined up
with Rick Springfield for 5 years. Next he joined David Lee Roth, Roth's
band at the time was amazing, it included Steve Vai on guitar, Billy Sheehan
on bass and Gregg Bissonette on drums. Bret wrote their top 10 hit with
"Just Like Paradise" in 1988. The 80's till the present day
has seen him with Belinda Carlisle, Fleetwood Mac, David Coverdale &
Robert Plant, Whitesnake, Stevie Nicks, Chris Isaac. These are just a
few this top keyboardist has worked with.
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TOMMY
EYRE

Very
versatile and prolific keyboardist, he played with many top bands. His
name should be included in any hall of fame for keyboardists, and although
his musical contributions are very extensive, he'll always be remembered
by two of his most famous works: The playing in Joe Cocker's original
version of 'With a little help from my friends'. Tommy's organ arrangements
gave the song such classy style. The playing in the famous 'Baker Street'
by singer Gerry Rafferty. Another eternal song.
FULL
STORY
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CHRIS
McVIE
Photo courtesy
of Chris Walters
Chris was influenced at an early age by her grandfather
who played the organ a Westminster Abbey. While at college she began playing
in blues bands with other students, one being a young Spencer Davies.
She was working as a window dresser when she met up and joined Andy Sylvester
and Stan Webb as keyboards and sing backing vocals in their new band,
Chicken Shack. 5 nightly gigs and 3 years later she joined Fleetwood Mac.
She stayed with Fleetwood Mac writing much of their music till 1998 when
she retired and returned her family in the UK.
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PAUL KALLESTAD

Paul Kallestad has toured exstensively in many countries
around the world and recorded with many bands. Well repected in "the
biz", he is best known for playing with Bubba and the Big Bad Blues
Band, Chris and his 100% Blues Band, Ronnie "The Iceman" Shumake
and with Walter Trout's different line ups.
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ROGER COTTON
Multi
musician/songwriter/producer Roger Cotton has been playing Blues and Soul
all his life, having played with the likes of Johnny Johnson, James Carr,
Larry Garner, Eric Bibb, Dave Walker, Alan Glen and for the last 8 years
has world toured and recorded with Peter Green & his Splinter Group,
writing quite a number of Green's tracks. He also finds time to run the
prestigious Roundel studios in, Kent with Kevin Pynes. Together, they
have written and produced some award winning music and sound tracks for
film, TV and theatre.
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GARY
BROOKER
M.B.E.

photo
with courtesy of Hans Arne Nakrem
Pianist/keyboards/singer/songwriter, Gary Booker,
career started with the Paramounts 1961, forming Procol Harum in April
67. playing until their breakup in May 1977. Brooker went on to play
piano in Eric Clapton's band
for a few years. David Gilmour, George Harrison, Rory Gallagher, Elton
John, John Bonham, Katie Kissoon, Laurence Cottle, Allan Clarke, Eric
Clapton, Phil Collins, Ringo Starr are just a few on the vast list of
who Gary Brooker has played with in his ongoing career. For many years
Brooker has combined his solo recordings, guesting with rock band and
reformed Procol
Harum life
with extensive pioneering work mixing rock music with classical music,
producing some outstanding works.
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MATTHEW
FISHER

Matthew
Fisher, keyboardist
of the soulful progressive rock band Procol Harum, which originally formed
in Essex, uk, 1967. Matthew co-wrote the music for their amazing debute
hit "Whiter Shade Of Pale". He has contributed greatly over
the last 4 decades in the world of music. He left, reformed Procol Harum
in June 2004. His other work includes Matt and the Deputies (1963), The
Society Five, David Bowie, David Lanz, National Anthem, David ('Screaming
Lord') Sutch, more on Sutch, Downliners Sect, Joe Cocker, James McCarty,
Tir na Nog, Hurricane, Pretty Things'n'Mates and producing Robin Trower,
Prarie Madness, Roderick Falconer, James Dewar, Route 66, Carlo Little:
recording history compiled by Joan May.
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