In 2009, Finders Keepers Records released some of his 1970 sessions at Sigma Sound as John Hill’s 6 Moons of Jupiter. These were done at Philadelphia’s Sigma Sound Studios, but since that studio opened in 1968, I have to assume the Riders of the Mark single was recorded elsewhere. Studio musicians included Kirk Hamilton on bass and Jim Valerio on drums. Hill produced and played guitar on Margo Guryan’s 1968 LP Take a Picture, and produced the sessions that would be released as Susan Christie’s Paint a Lady. John Hill and Don Cochrane composed “Love, Love, Love, Love, Love” for the Nite People, also done by Wool, and John Hill released it under his own name on a Columbia 45 backed with “I’m a Bear”. Tony Luis and John Hill produced both sides, and Hill arranged “… Herr Doktor Krieg”. The following transit lines have routes that pass near Sigma Sound Studios. Blackwood Music published both songs, and the Blackwood connection features in the lead for news items on the recording in Cash Box and Record World. Directions to Sigma Sound Studios (Philadelphia) with public transportation. John Hill wrote “Gotta Find Somebody” John Hill and Don Cochrane wrote “The Electronic Insides and Metal Complexion That Make Up Herr Doktor Krieg”. The Riders of the Mark may have been a real group, but the credits on their 20th Century Fox single don’t support that idea, and instead point to John Hill, Don Cochrane and their associates. Teen Beat Mayhem lists locations of Moorestown, New Jersey which is east of Philadelphia, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania, over an hour’s drive to the west. One side is the very accessible “Gotta Find Somebody” the flip is the wild two minutes of “The Electronic Insides and Metal Complexion That Make Up Herr Doktor Krieg”. The Jackets had an evening gig in Philly that night at a theater about 8 or 9 blocks from Sigma Sound Studios where we were planning to tape the episode. After about 20 minutes of rehearsal, we recorded it in two takes.In November 1967 a single by the Riders of the Mark came out on 20th Century Fox Records 45-6694. The exchange was fun, serious and very cool. It was so interesting to watch Andrei and Russell working together…Andrei, the “unknown” newcomer somewhat timidly teaching his song to the esteemed Yellowjackets, and Russell taking it all in and so gracefully sharing some of his arrangement ideas. It wasnt long before Sigma became the home of burgeoning producers Kenny Gamble. They opened with a song written by Andrei called Castle In The Air, one that everyone else obviously had to learn from scratch. In 1968, Tarsia moved out on his own and established Sigma Sound Studios. We recorded 4 tracks with this group of musicians. Andrei came to me upon the recommendation of alto-great Richie Cole, as he performs with Richie’s Alto-Madness Orchestra from time to time. This video features Joe Tarsia, Gamble and Huff ( co-owners of Philadelphia International Records) and the famous studio musicians responsible for the succes.
and as leader of the house band on the Emeril, Live! television series. A native Philadelphian, he is perhaps best known for his work with the late Grover Washington, Jr. Doc is one of the most sought after percussionists in the music industry today. The collection was donated to Drexel University for storage, preservation. So we had six musicians in the studio that afternoon… Russell Ferrante on keyboards, the great Jimmy Haslip on bass, Marcus Baylor on drums, Bob Mintzer on saxophones – all members of The Yellowjackets at that time – as well as Doc Gibbs on percussion and Russian jazz guitarist Andrei Ryabov. The Drexel Audio Archives is home to the Sigma Sound Studios Collection, a historic collection of approximately 7000 audiotapes documenting the legacy of Sigma Sound Studios and its pop, soul, disco, and R&B recordings that became known as The Sound of Philadelphia. Again, just as I would expect, he was totally cool with it. I said “that would be great,” just so long as I could augment the band with a couple of additional musicians. Russell asked if the whole band could come in and do it. So the plan was for them to simply swing by the studio for a few hours before heading over to the theater for a late afternoon soundcheck. The Jackets had an evening gig in Philly that night at a theater about 8 or 9 blocks from Sigma Sound Studios where we were planning to tape the episode. Russell was all that I expected he would be…open-minded, enthusiastic, passionate and very cooperative. I remember talking to Russell Ferrante on the phone and telling him all about the concept for the show. Location: Sigma Sound Studios, Philadelphiaįor our 3rd episode of Studio Jams, I reached out to one of my all-time favorite bands, The Yellowjackets.