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VINYL ICONS

PRODUCTION NOTES
The sleeve notes to Paradise And
Lunch declare that it was mostly
‘Recorded, mixed and originally
mastered at Warner Bros Studios,
N. Hollywood’. For many years,
Warner didn’t actually have its own
recording facility until in 1971 it
bought Amigo Studios, which had
been founded by producer Snuff
Garrett about four years earlier.
Later, Amigo was routinely listed
on album covers as ‘Warner Bros.
Studios, N. Hollywood’. So it’s fair to
assume that the album was recorded
at Amigo by acclaimed producer
Lenny Waronker and his close
associate Russ Titelman.
Waronker had fi rst encountered
Ry Cooder during The Everly Brothers’
sessions for their 1968 album Roots,
and was immediately impressed. He’d
never heard anyone play bottleneck
guitar before, but rated Cooder, ‘an Cooder’s albums weren’t big sellers, was the album where I used some é Original
amazing character – you knew that so extra cash was always welcome. (male) singers for the first time, and poster

when he walked in the room. You For Blind Willie McTell’s ‘Married I really began to realise that that from 1974
could tell this guy was so special’. Man’s A Fool’, Cooder simply was one of the main handles to put advertising

Waronker was ideally suited to fleshes out the acoustic blues on all this stuff. It was to get that the release of
working with Cooder because, as the accompaniment of the original, background singing to work. the Paradise
child of a music biz family, he had giving it more of a rock song bed, ‘I’d used girl singers before, but And Lunch
grown up with Randy Newman, and and emphasising the comedy of the unsuccessfully – I can’t stand girl album and
the pair not only played ball games lyric,. He then returns to upfront singers, though not personally, but (above) ticket
together, they also played artist and gospel vocalising for ‘Jesus On The black male voices on that kind of for a 1976
producer. ‘We’d take an old standard, Mainline’, enhanced by some tasty material are still strongest and most concert in
and I’d say, “Why don’t you do it like Salvation Army band horn parts appropriate for me, and they also Austin, Texas
The Drifters would?’’. It was great fun arranged by Motown’s do a lot for a tune
for me. We used to know every song go-to brass player ‘“He makes a rhythmically.’ The
on the charts – who published it, George Bohanon. Asked how he had ë guitarist
who wrote it, how cool it was.’ Much of the set’s virtue of his set about choosing poses for
gospel feel derives which songs to a portrait
from the involvement wobbly vocal record for Paradise shot at the
of The Golden Gate And Lunch, Cooder beginning
Quartet, a group on the track”’ made it sound of the ’70s,
Cooder had known for simple. ‘Those songs a decade
a while. ‘At a certain point,’ he told were just the ones which came in which
Zigzag magazine, ‘I had worked up up. “Jesus On The Mainline” is an he released
enough of a relationship with those ancient fundamentalist hymn. It a series of
singers to where we could go in a goes back. It’s in everybody’s baptist albums for
studio and attempt to capture some tradition. “Ditty Wah Ditty” is ’20s. Warner Bros,
of that sound in a very minor way.’ “Tattler” is ’20s. “Married Man’s A initially on
Fool” is ’20s.’ But then he continued, the Reprise
Thus, even though he found his MEN ONLY saying, ‘I get so sick and tired of label
temperamental nature awkward, ‘We’re not doing gospel music, and people saying, “He does old tunes”.’
he understood Cooder’s approach we’re not really approaching any of Side 1 of the album closes with Cooder
of discovering old, lost songs the achievements of those quartets Cooder’s reinterpretation of ‘It’s ë takes
and rearranging them for a new and quintets, but it’s still a useful All Over Now’, a Bobby and Shirley time out
audience. Indeed, in his first A&R role thing and it sounds good. That kind Womack song which provided a to relax

at Warner Bros, in 1967 Waronker of singing has a lot of applications minor hit for The Valentinos in 1964 backstage
had produced The Mojo Men’s and it’s fun besides.’ before The Rolling Stones revved after opening
‘Sit Down, I Think I Love You’ and Cooder expanded on those it up and took it to No 1 in the UK. for Captain
Harpers Bizarre’s ‘The 59th Street thoughts during a later interview Cooder injected a loping Caribbean Beefheart in
Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)’, both with British rock journalist John feel into the track, later saying, ‘I’d 1971
remakes of other acts’ songs. Hugen Tobler in which he said, ‘That known “It’s All Over Now” for a long

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