Who is Leon Russell, you may ask? Leon was born April 2, 1942 and left this world on November 13, 2016. Far too soon.
I know a thing or two about Leon Russell. I idolized him as a teenager and decades later got to tour with him for almost two years as his background vocalist and percussionist.
I listened to his recordings for hundreds of hours, and then heard him sing thousands of songs while standing three feet away from him.
You can learn a lot from Leon’s vocal performances; I sure did.
If you don’t know who he is, please do yourself a favor and look him up; I promise that you’ll find a treasure trove of amazing music and lyrics. You can learn a lot from Leon’s vocal performances; I sure did.
He believed with all his heart in the old adage: “The show must go on!”
He was in his 60’s when I toured with him; there were times he didn’t feel so great and times he didn’t sound so great. Yet, he knew the importance of giving all he had.
In his own words, from years ago:
Now if you all don’t feel like you’ve had a religious experience tonight when you leave, you just go get your money back. I don’t need it!
And, I can attest to having plenty of religious experiences while performing on stage with him, but that’s a whole ‘nother article!
He paid attention and adhered to the key elements of great vocal performances
While I didn’t hear him doing vocal warm-ups (but he always made me laugh when he heard me doing mine), he didn’t drink or smoke, and always got more rest than any of us.
Sometimes, we would get to a new city and go crazy finding old friends, sightseeing, etc. but Leon would stay put, relax and conserve his energy for the show.
This, as I recall, served him very well one time in Telluride, Colorado. While I was in the clinic with wicked altitude sickness and the contents of an IV fluid bag dripping into my arm (because I had to hang out the night before), Leon was feeling just fine.
He knew exactly who he was vocally and accepted who he was
See, Leon was not a technically trained singer. However, he did not let that stop him from singing and writing soaring, unique melodies that challenged him.
Listen to “A Song For You”, “Masquerade” and “Superstar”, recorded by people like Ray Charles, Donny Hathaway, Karen Carpenter and George Benson. However, Leon’s own performance of “A Song For You” will blow your mind.
It will blow your mind because it’s honest and soul searching – and that, my fellow vocalists, is what we are trying to do here on this planet.
Jaime was a Musical Director, coaching voice and performance for Disney and wrote “Working With Your Voice: The Career Guide to Becoming a Professional Singer” (Alfred Publishing). As a session singer, she ‘jingled’ for Coke, Pillsbury, Folgers, Chevrolet, and hundreds more. She’s sung on thousands of live gigs (covers and original music) and toured for years with Leon Russell and Sam Moore. Jaime sang BGVs live and digitally with George Strait, Barbra Streisand, Willie Nelson, Jimmy Webb, Miley & Billy Ray Cyrus, Johnny Mathis, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, Willie Nelson and others. She performed off-Broadway in “Search: Paul Clayton”, toured nationally with “Old Jews Telling Jokes” and presently coaches students in voice, performance, beginner guitar/piano, studio singing, songwriting and auditioning in NY, CT, LA, Nashville and virtually. For bookings: www.workingwithyourvoice.com
