Glenn's Use of the Sax

[sodascouts]

In another thread, PM brought up something interesting:

This is my first time seeing most of [Glenn's] videos. One thing particularly struck me about the songs themselves. [...] I noticed in at least ten of the songs there is a saxophone, and in several of the videos there is a showcase of the sax player. I love the fact that most of Glenn's songs have a sax in them. (No More Cloudy Days also comes to mind, although there's no video for it.) Obviously Glenn loves the sax too. Has he ever talked about that - the fact that he uses the sax in a lot of his songs?

[sodascouts]

So, it's a lazy day. I did a search for the word "sax" on GFO and here are the songs listed as having a sax player - All but three of these have sax solos. In the others, the sax is still very prominent.

The One You Love (Saxophone: Ernie Watts, Jim Horn)

I Found Somebody (Tenor Sax: Al Garth)

I've Been Born Again (Saxophones: Bill Bergman, Jim Colie Baritone: Gregg Smith)
Trivia: Ex-wife Janie urged him to record this song while they were still dating LOL

Sea Cruise (Saxophones: Harvey Thompson, Ronnie Eades)

Somebody Else (Sax: Al Garth)

Let's Go Home (Sax: Al Garth)

Living in Darkness (Sax: Bill Bergman)

The Heat Is On (oddly, no sax player credited)

You Belong to the City (Sax: Bill Bergman)

Livin' Right (Saxophone Solo: Bill Bergman)

Some Kind of Blue (Saxophone: Al Garth)

True Love (Saxophone: Chris Mostert)

It's Your Life (Saxophone: Chris Mostert)

Love In The 21st Century (Baritone Sax: Greg Smith, Tenor Sax: Bill Bergman)

River of Dreams (Sax solo: Al Garth)

I've Got Mine (Sax Solo: Chris Mostert)

This Way to Happiness (Saxophone Solo: Chris Mostert)

Who's Been Sleepin' in My Bed (Saxophone Solo: Chris Mostert)


------------------------------------------------------

Dang, that's a lot!

Maybe he was trying to set himself apart from the Eagles. Country rock doesn't exactly feature saxophone. Yeah, the Eagles moved away from that, but their rock songs didn't feature horns either. The only Eagles song pre-1980 which credits a sax player is "The Sad Café" (David Sanborn: Alto Sax) for that sax solo at the end.

I'm not saying the Eagles never used horns, I'm just saying I can't remember any other songs with sax solos or that have prominent horns - someone correct me I'm wrong.

Later, after the Eagles reunited, the only song with a prominent sax was a song that Glenn had written without a co-writer: No More Cloudy Days (Al Garth: alto sax, Chris Mostert: Tenor and Alto Sax, Greg Smith: Baritone Sax). Again, someone correct me if I'm forgetting something.

I think I remember him talking about using horns somewhere because he's from Detroit and so he appreciated "soul" music which often incorporates horns, but I've forgotten where!

[Freypower]

When he does I Got Love during the Del Mar show in 1985 he shouts out 'I LOVE THE SAXOPHONE'! That version of the song has a sax solo.

It's not so much Detroit soul that he loves which tended to be string laden. It's the Memphis R&B of the Stax studio which featured horn sections so heavily. You only have to listen to one of his favourite records, Wilson Pickett's In The Midnight Hour, or some of Otis Redding or Al Green's work.

You could possibly say that he eventually overdid it as the list of songs with sax may indicate, but he obviously loves the instrument so much that I'm reluctant to say that.

[Prettymaid]

Thanks FP. I'm relunctant to say that too because I absolutely love the use of the sax in all of the songs I've heard so far!

Thanks, Soda, for making a topic about this and for the info in your post.

It's clear that he loves the instrument because as I've said, he not only uses it in his songs but features the sax player in several of his videos.

[Freypower]

One thing I find interesting in the LROOE credits. It's Don, not Glenn, who is given the credit for doing the horn arrangements - after all, for a change the horns feature on a song Don sings (Fast Company). No new arrangement needed to be done for NMCD.

[sodascouts]

You're absolutely right about R&B being the main influence in terms of horns, FP. I guess I got confused by all his "white soul" comments during the promotion of Soul Searchin'!

I do think he went a bit overboard with the use of sax in the sense that he made them a prominent part of so many songs - variety is the spice of life. However, in each of the songs listed above, the sax sounded great and added a lot... so what can I say?

Re: LROOE... I should note that while I listed all the sax players when I talked about NMCD above, I don't know if all of them played on that particular song since LROOE does not give us individual credits.

[Freypower]

Well, I assume it's either Al Garth (who plays the solo when Glenn plays it in his own shows) or Chris Mostert (who plays it with the Eagles).

[TimothyBFan]

I just wanted to say here... I remember seeing some of these videos back in the 80's when they were first being put out and thinking how much I LOVED the sax in them. It was pretty obvious that Glenn had a lot of respect for the instrument and the soulful sound that went along with it. And I have always been a huge old time soul fan so I guess that's why it was always so noticeable to me, even back then. In my opinion, the sax has never been overdone in any of his songs. That's my 2 cents!

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Willie, you pretty much summed up my feelings. I think Glenn's appreciation for the sax really comes through in the way that he incorporates it so beautifully in his music. I mean that man really does love his sax, doesn't he!!!

[Molly]

Willie, you pretty much summed up my feelings. I think Glenn's appreciation for the sax really comes through in the way that he incorporates it so beautifully in his music. I mean that man really does love his sax, doesn't he!!!

I'm pround of you ladies for making it to the bottom of the page before this this "fork" in the road was taken. (How did I know it was Kay who would go there)