ABBA

Guitarist who didn’t start playing until he was twelve years old, but went on to hone his skills at Boston’s Berklee School of Music, studying big-band arranging, composition, harmony, and jazz guitar. Unsurprisingly, two of his big influences were George Benson and Wes Montgomery, although he was mentored by a pair of organists, Jimmy Smith and Jack McDuff.

Upon graduation, John went on tour and recorded with Eumir Deodato, appearing on his version of “Also Sprach Zarathustra” and “Super Strut”.

In 1975, he released his debut solo effort, Tropea, and followed it up with Short Trip to Space and To Touch You Again, in 1977 and 1979, respectively. One of his compositions, “Tambourine”, was employed as the closing music for Eyewitness News on WABC-TV between 1977 and 1980.

By this time, he had already established himself as a valuable player in the New York studio scene. Some of the artists and groups he worked with include Eric Clapton, Harry Chapin, Peter Criss, Dr. John, Roberta Flack, John Lucien, Van Morrison, Laura Nyro, Lou Reed, Paul Simon, and Ringo Starr. He also appeared on the Spyro Gyra albums, Carnaval, Catching the Sun, Incognito, and Morning Dance.

When he wasn’t in the studio, he gigged with his own band at a place called Mikell’s in The Big Apple, and these performances were dynamic enough to warrant the 1982 album, Live at Mikell’s. Live dates and session work kept him busy enough throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s that he didn’t re-emerge with a new solo album until 1997’s A Simple Way to Say I Love You. It was followed by Something Old, New, Borrowed and Blues in 1999.

He has continued to release CDs at a steady pace in the new millennium, including Standard Influence, Standard Influence II: Rock Candy, Take Me Back to the Ol’ School, and The Time is Right.

Van McCoy recordings

The Shuffle (Van McCoy)

That’s the Joint (Richard Harris/Van McCoy)

Spyro Gyra recordings

Morning Dance (Jay Beckenstein)

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