The Beach Boys
Michael Campion has attended the NAMM Show since the late 1970s, first as a wide-eyed musician, then as a retailer and finally as an exhibitor. Tracing his evolving roles at the show mirrors his fascinating career in the music industry. Playing in garage bands led to his involvement with...
Dave Pearlman grew up listening to his father play horn and his mother playing acoustic guitar. His father actually had a recording studio in Plainview, TX! Dave started his musical journey playing the violin, but switched to the guitar after hearing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. In...
Fred Vail was making announcements on a local radio station in Sacramento, California when he was just 12 years old. While in high school, he led the committee that brought bands to the school dances. One such band, The Beach Boys, had just recorded a few songs that were climbing up the charts but...
Jim Horn, part of the “Wrecking Crew”, started playing the saxophone as a child and eventually expanded his musical reach to include the flute, oboe, and French horn, even playing the oboe on a Carpenters album. Jim firmly believes that the key to being a successful session player is having the...
David Gold created a special formula that became the key factor in the echo chamber of his Hollywood recording studio called Gold Star. The studio was filled with furniture and electronic machines that David built himself. All of the control boards and all modifications of the gear within the...
Lyle Ritz worked for a Los Angeles music store in the 1950s when his career as a studio musician began to take off. Lyle’s studio years were filled with numerous ground-breaking hits, many featuring his influential electric bass. His incredible list of recordings includes “I Got You Babe” by Sonny...
Hal Blaine was perhaps the most recorded drummer from the California recording studios of the 1950s-'70s. His influential style can be heard on more than 170 number one hit songs and 450 tunes that made the top 40 on the charts during those decades. His beat can be heard on hundreds of albums by...
Paul Tanner joined Glenn Miller's newly formed band in 1938 and recorded all of the band's hits including "In the Mood" and "String of Pearls." He often said "Everything the Glenn Miller Orchestra did from 1938-1942, I did." When Glenn signed on to lead the military band during the war, the...
This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Barney Kessel was a well-respected and sought-after studio musician who became part of the famed “Wrecking Crew.” He was also an innovative jazz technician who inspired...
This audio only interview was conducted by David Schwartz and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Carl Wilson co-formed The Beach Boys with his brother, Brian, and school friend, Al Jardine. The songs they wrote and recorded helped invigorate popular music in the 1960s. Carl played lead...