Klaus Voormann
Encyclopedia
Klaus Voormann is a German Grammy Award-winning artist, noted musician
, and record producer
. He designed artwork for many bands including The Beatles
, The Bee Gees, Wet Wet Wet
and Turbonegro
. His most notable work as a producer was his work with the band Trio
, including their worldwide hit "Da Da Da
". As a musician, Voormann is best known for being the bassist for Manfred Mann
from 1966 to 1969, and for performing as a session musician
on many recordings, including some by former members of the Beatles.
His association with the Beatles dated back to their time in Hamburg
in the early 1960s. He lived in the band's London flat with George Harrison
and Ringo Starr
after John Lennon
and Paul McCartney
moved out to live with their respective partners, and designed the cover of their album Revolver
, for which he won a Grammy. Following the band's split, rumours circulated of the formation of a group named The Ladders, consisting of Lennon, Harrison, Starr and Voormann. This failed to materialise, outside of all four Ladders (plus Billy Preston
) performing on the Ringo Starr track "I'm the Greatest
", although Voormann did play on albums by Starr, Lennon and Harrison, and was for a time a member of the Plastic Ono Band. In the 1990s, he designed the artwork for the Beatles Anthology albums.
In 2009, he released his debut solo album A Sideman's Journey
, which featured many notable musicians, including the two surviving Beatles, performing as "Voormann and Friends".
, Germany, and raised in the suburbs of North Berlin. His father was a physician and he was one of six brothers. In his July 2010 interview on "Talking Germany", Voorman discussed his dyslexia.
The Voormann family were interested in art, classical music
, and books, with a feeling for history and tradition. His parents decided that instead of studying music it would be best for Klaus to study commercial art
in Berlin at the "Meisterschule für Grafik und Buchgewerbe". He later moved to Hamburg
to study at the "Meisterschule für Gestaltung", but before finishing his education in the graphic arts
, Voormann started work as a commercial artist, graphic designer
and illustrator, spending eight months in Düsseldorf
working for magazines.
It was in Hamburg that Voormann first met Astrid Kirchherr
. After an argument with her and Jürgen Vollmer
one day, Voormann wandered down the Reeperbahn
, in the St. Pauli district of Hamburg, and heard music coming from the Kaiserkeller club
. He walked in on a performance by Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. The next group to play was the Beatles. Voormann was left "speechless" by the performances. Voormann had never heard rock 'n' roll before, having previously only listened to traditional jazz, with some Nat King Cole
and The Platters
mixed in. Voormann invited Kirchherr and Vollmer to watch the performances the next day. After joining Voormann at a performance, the trio decided upon spending as much time close to the group and immersing themselves in the music as possible.
The St. Pauli district was a dangerous section of town with typical illicit behaviour commonplace; an area where prostitutes were to be found, and anyone that looked different from the usual clientele hanging about took a risk. As a trio, Voormann, Kirchherr and Vollmer stood out in the Kaiserkeller, dressed in suede coats, wool sweaters, jeans and round-toed shoes, when most of the customers had greased-back Teddy boy
hairstyles and wore black leather jackets and pointed boots. During a break, Voormann tried to talk (in faltering English) to Lennon, and pressed a crumpled record sleeve
he had designed into Lennon's hands. Lennon took little interest, and brushed Voormann off, suggesting that he talk to Stuart Sutcliffe
, who, Lennon said, "is the artist 'round here".
Sutcliffe did not share Lennon's attitude, and was fascinated by the trio, who he thought looked like "real bohemian
s". He later wrote that he could hardly take his eyes off them, and had tried to talk to them during the next break, but they had already left the club. Sutcliffe managed to meet them eventually, and learned that all three had attended the "Meisterschule für Mode", which was the Hamburg equivalent of the Liverpool art college that both Sutcliffe and Lennon had attended. Lennon dubbed the trio the Exies, as a joke about their affection for existentialism
.
Voormann was in a relationship with Kirchherr at the time, and lived just around the corner from her parents' upper-class home in the Altona district of Hamburg. Kirchherr's bedroom, which was all in black, including the walls and furniture, was decorated especially for Voormann. After the visits to the Kaiserkeller their relationship became purely platonic
, as Astrid started dating Sutcliffe, who was fascinated by her, although she always remained close friends with Voormann.
invited him to live in the Green Street flat formerly shared by all four Beatles, Lennon and McCartney having moved out: Lennon to live with his wife Cynthia Lennon
, and McCartney to live in the attic of the home of Jane Asher
's parents. Voormann lived with Harrison and Ringo Starr
for a time before finding work as a commercial artist and renting an apartment of his own. He returned to Hamburg in 1963, where he founded a band with Paddy Chambers (guitar/vocals), Voormann (bass/vocals) and Gibson Kemp (drums) called Paddy, Klaus & Gibson.
In 1966, Voormann returned to London and was asked by Lennon to design the sleeve for the album Revolver
. Klaus had a style of "scrapbook collage" art in mind. When showing his efforts to the band and their manager, Brian Epstein
, the band loved it, although Voormann's payment for the album cover was £40. For this work, Klaus won the Grammy Award for Best Album Cover, Graphic Arts. Voormann later designed the cover art for Harrison's 1988 single, "When We Was Fab
", which included the image of Harrison from the cover of Revolver
along with an updated drawing in the same style.
Around the same time another group was about to release their international debut album. The Bee Gees
had recorded their first album, Bee Gees 1st, and Klaus was hired to design the cover for that album. The album cover featured all five group members standing above a colourful, psychedelic collage painted by Voormann. In 1973, Voormann created the album sleeve and booklet artwork for Ringo Starr's album Ringo
, on which he also played bass.
, Voormann became a member of the 1960s band Manfred Mann
, having turned down offers by The Hollies
and The Moody Blues
. Voormann did substitute for Eric Haydock
on a couple of TV shows, see List of The Hollies band members. He mentions his negotiations with the group in his biography: Warum spielst Du Imagine nicht auf dem weißen Klavier, John? Voormann played bass and flute
s for Manfred Mann from 1966 to 1969, appearing on all their UK hits from "Just Like a Woman
" (July 1966) to their final single "Ragamuffin Man" (April 1969) and including the 1968 international hit "The Mighty Quinn
" (#1 UK, #10 US).
After that, he became a session musician
, playing on solo projects by Lou Reed
, Carly Simon
, James Taylor
, and Harry Nilsson
amongst others. Voormann was a member of Yoko Ono
and Lennon's Plastic Ono Band, with Ono, Alan White
(future Yes
drummer) and Eric Clapton
, which played at the Live Peace in Toronto 1969
album, recorded prior to the break-up of the Beatles in Toronto
on 13 September 1969.
In 1971 he moved to Los Angeles. In an interview with EMI
about his album Walls and Bridges
, Lennon was asked who was playing bass on the album. Lennon answered with a hard German accent: "Klaus Voormann. We all know Klaus, ja (German: "yes")". He also played in Harrison's assembled band in the 1971 The Concert for Bangladesh
; Harrison fittingly introduced him to the audience by saying, "There's somebody on bass who many people have heard about, but they've never actually seen him, Klaus Voormann." After Harrison died, Voorman played bass as part of the supporting band on the song "All Things Must Pass
", in the Concert for George
on 29 November 2002.
After the Beatles disbanded, there were rumours of them reforming as The Ladders, with Voormann on bass as a replacement for Paul McCartney
. An announcement to this effect filtered out of the Apple
offices in 1971, but was ultimately withdrawn before it got very far. This line-up (Voormann, Lennon, Harrison and Starr) did perform in various combinations on Lennon's albums, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
(1970) (Voormann, Lennon, and Starr) and Imagine
(1971) (Voormann, Lennon & Harrison) as well as on Ringo Starr's eponymous album Ringo
, in 1973, and Yoko Ono's Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band
(1970) (Voormann, Lennon, Starr, and Ono). Starr's album features the Lennon-penned hit single "I'm The Greatest
" which is the only song in which all four musicians appear together, joined by Billy Preston
. He also played on Lennon's "Instant Karma!
" single.
In 1979 Voormann moved back to Germany. He produced three studio albums and a live album by the German band Trio
. He also produced their worldwide hit "Da Da Da". After Trio broke up in 1986, he produced the first solo album by their singer Stephan Remmler
and played bass on some songs of the album. The following year he produced a single by former Trio drummer Peter Behrens
.
, near Munich with his second wife Christine and their two children, born in 1989 and 1991. From time to time he appears on TV shows, mainly when the shows are about the 1960s in general or the Beatles in particular, or when he is asked to talk about his famous album sleeve for Revolver. In 1995 Klaus was asked by Apple Records
to design the covers for The Beatles Anthology albums. He painted the covers along with his friend, fellow artist Alfons Kiefer. In the 1994 movie Backbeat
, about the Hamburg days of the Beatles, Voormann was portrayed by the German actor Kai Wiesinger
.
In April 2003, Voormann designed the cover of Scandinavian Leather
for the Norwegian band Turbonegro
. In October 2003, Voormann published his autobiography, Warum spielst du Imagine nicht auf dem weißen Klavier, John? Erinnerungen an die Beatles und viele andere Freunde (Why Don't You Play "Imagine" on the White Piano, John?: Memories of the Beatles and Many Other Friends). The book gives special focus to the 1960s and 1970s, and covers Voormann's close friendship with the Beatles and other musicians and artists, as well as his private life. A 2005 BBC
documentary, Stuart Sutcliffe: The Lost Beatle features interviews with Voormann and shows drawings he made of the Beatles in Hamburg. In 2007, Voormann designed the sleeve for the album Timeless
by Wet Wet Wet
. In 2008 he recorded the song "For What It's Worth" with Eric Burdon
and Max Buskohl
.
On July 17, 2009 Klaus released his first solo album called A Sideman's Journey
. It was credited to "Voormann & Friends" and featured Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens
), Don Preston
, Dr. John
, The Manfreds
, Jim Keltner
, Van Dyke Parks
, Joe Walsh
and many others. The album has been available in a limited number of audio CDs
, vinyl LPs
, and deluxe box sets with original (and signed) graphics by Voorman. It included new versions of old songs such as "My Sweet Lord
", "All Things Must Pass", "Blue Suede Shoes
", "You're Sixteen
" and Bob Dylan
's "Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)". A bonus DVD of Making of a Sideman’s Journey was released with the album.
On June 30, 2010 a production company called ARTE released a 90 minute documentary called "All You Need is Klaus" which features footage from the "Voormann & Friends" sessions as well as interview footage with Voormann and some of the artists he had collaborated with in his storied career.
With Manfred Mann
:
UK Albums:
US Albums:
With The Plastic Ono Band:
With John Lennon
:
With George Harrison
:
With Ringo Starr
:
Other artists:
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, and record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
. He designed artwork for many bands including The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, The Bee Gees, Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet are a Scottish pop rock band that formed in the 1980s. They scored a number of hits in the British charts and around the world. The band is composed of Marti Pellow , Tommy Cunningham , Graeme Clark and Neil Mitchell...
and Turbonegro
Turbonegro
Turbonegro is a Norwegian punk rock band that was initially active from 1989 to 1998, and later reformed in 2002. Their style combines glam rock, punk rock and hard rock into a style the band describes as "deathpunk"....
. His most notable work as a producer was his work with the band Trio
Trio (band)
Trio was a German band. It formed in the small German town of Großenkneten in 1980. The band is most noted for the song "Da da da, ich lieb dich nicht du liebst mich nicht aha aha aha" which was a hit in 30 countries worldwide. Trio was a product of the Neue Deutsche Welle...
, including their worldwide hit "Da Da Da
Da Da Da
"Da Da Da I Don't Love You You Don't Love Me Aha Aha Aha" was an international hit record for German band Trio formed in 1980 by Stephan Remmler, Gert 'Kralle' Krawinkel and Peter Behrens. "Da Da Da" released in 1982 was a hit in Germany and about 30 countries worldwide and sold 3 million copies...
". As a musician, Voormann is best known for being the bassist for Manfred Mann
Manfred Mann
Manfred Mann was a British beat, rhythm and blues and pop band of the 1960s, named after their South African keyboardist, Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band...
from 1966 to 1969, and for performing as a session musician
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
on many recordings, including some by former members of the Beatles.
His association with the Beatles dated back to their time in Hamburg
The Beatles in Hamburg
The Beatles members John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe and Pete Best regularly performed at different clubs in Hamburg, Germany, during the period from August 1960 to December 1962; a chapter in the group's history which honed their performance skills, widened their...
in the early 1960s. He lived in the band's London flat with George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
and Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
after John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
and Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
moved out to live with their respective partners, and designed the cover of their album Revolver
Revolver (album)
Revolver is the seventh studio album by the English rock group The Beatles, released on 5 August 1966 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin. Many of the tracks on Revolver are marked by an electric guitar-rock sound, in contrast with their previous LP, the folk rock inspired Rubber...
, for which he won a Grammy. Following the band's split, rumours circulated of the formation of a group named The Ladders, consisting of Lennon, Harrison, Starr and Voormann. This failed to materialise, outside of all four Ladders (plus Billy Preston
Billy Preston
William Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
) performing on the Ringo Starr track "I'm the Greatest
I'm the Greatest
"I'm the Greatest" is a song written by John Lennon for Ringo Starr; both former members of the music group The Beatles. It was released by Starr on the 1973 Ringo album and 4 compilation and live albums....
", although Voormann did play on albums by Starr, Lennon and Harrison, and was for a time a member of the Plastic Ono Band. In the 1990s, he designed the artwork for the Beatles Anthology albums.
In 2009, he released his debut solo album A Sideman's Journey
A Sideman's Journey
A Sideman's Journey is the first solo release by Klaus Voormann. Voormann is best known as the creator of the cover art for The Beatles' album Revolver...
, which featured many notable musicians, including the two surviving Beatles, performing as "Voormann and Friends".
Early years
Klaus Voormann was born in BerlinBerlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany, and raised in the suburbs of North Berlin. His father was a physician and he was one of six brothers. In his July 2010 interview on "Talking Germany", Voorman discussed his dyslexia.
The Voormann family were interested in art, classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
, and books, with a feeling for history and tradition. His parents decided that instead of studying music it would be best for Klaus to study commercial art
Commercial art
Commercial art is historically a subsector of creative services, referring to art created for commercial purposes, primarily advertising. The term has become increasingly anachronistic in favor of more contemporary terms such as graphic design and advertising art.Commercial art traditionally...
in Berlin at the "Meisterschule für Grafik und Buchgewerbe". He later moved to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
to study at the "Meisterschule für Gestaltung", but before finishing his education in the graphic arts
Graphic arts
A type of fine art, graphic art covers a broad range of art forms. Graphic art is typically two-dimensional and includes calligraphy, photography, drawing, painting, printmaking, lithography, typography, serigraphy , and bindery. Graphic art also consists of drawn plans and layouts for interior...
, Voormann started work as a commercial artist, graphic designer
Graphic designer
A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, printed or electronic media, such as brochures and...
and illustrator, spending eight months in Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
working for magazines.
Astrid Kirchherr
Astrid Kirchherr is a German photographer and artist and is well known for her association with The Beatles and her photographs of The Beatles during their Hamburg days....
. After an argument with her and Jürgen Vollmer
Jürgen Vollmer
Jürgen Vollmer, with Astrid Kirchherr and Klaus Voorman , befriended The Beatles during the band's time in Hamburg in the early 1960s. Vollmer was the son of a professional army officer who died during World War II. Young Vollmer was attending Hamburg's Institute of Fashion at the time he met The...
one day, Voormann wandered down the Reeperbahn
Reeperbahn
The Reeperbahn is a street in Hamburg's St. Pauli district, one of the two centres of Hamburg's nightlife and also the city's red-light district...
, in the St. Pauli district of Hamburg, and heard music coming from the Kaiserkeller club
Kaiserkeller
Kaiserkeller is a night club in the St. Pauli quarter of Hamburg, Germany, near the Reeperbahn. It was opened by Bruno Koschmider on October 14, 1959. The Beatles had a contract with Kaiserkeller to play there in 1960.-Biography:...
. He walked in on a performance by Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. The next group to play was the Beatles. Voormann was left "speechless" by the performances. Voormann had never heard rock 'n' roll before, having previously only listened to traditional jazz, with some Nat King Cole
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
and The Platters
The Platters
The Platters were a vocal group of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound was a bridge between the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the burgeoning new genre...
mixed in. Voormann invited Kirchherr and Vollmer to watch the performances the next day. After joining Voormann at a performance, the trio decided upon spending as much time close to the group and immersing themselves in the music as possible.
The St. Pauli district was a dangerous section of town with typical illicit behaviour commonplace; an area where prostitutes were to be found, and anyone that looked different from the usual clientele hanging about took a risk. As a trio, Voormann, Kirchherr and Vollmer stood out in the Kaiserkeller, dressed in suede coats, wool sweaters, jeans and round-toed shoes, when most of the customers had greased-back Teddy boy
Teddy Boy
The British Teddy Boy subculture is typified by young men wearing clothes that were partly inspired by the styles worn by dandies in the Edwardian period, styles which Savile Row tailors had attempted to re-introduce in Britain after World War II...
hairstyles and wore black leather jackets and pointed boots. During a break, Voormann tried to talk (in faltering English) to Lennon, and pressed a crumpled record sleeve
Record sleeve
A record sleeve is the outer covering of a vinyl recording. The sleeve is technically the paper covering that is closest in contact to the surface of the recording, as in "dust sleeve", "liner" and "album liner". The term has come to be synonymous with "record jacket" and "album jacket", which is...
he had designed into Lennon's hands. Lennon took little interest, and brushed Voormann off, suggesting that he talk to Stuart Sutcliffe
Stuart Sutcliffe
Stuart Fergusson Victor Sutcliffe was a Scottish artist and musician, best known as the original bass player of The Beatles. Sutcliffe left the band to pursue a career as an artist, having previously attended the Liverpool College of Art...
, who, Lennon said, "is the artist 'round here".
Sutcliffe did not share Lennon's attitude, and was fascinated by the trio, who he thought looked like "real bohemian
Bohemian
A Bohemian is a resident of the former Kingdom of Bohemia, either in a narrow sense as the region of Bohemia proper or in a wider meaning as the whole country, now known as the Czech Republic. The word "Bohemian" was used to denote the Czech people as well as the Czech language before the word...
s". He later wrote that he could hardly take his eyes off them, and had tried to talk to them during the next break, but they had already left the club. Sutcliffe managed to meet them eventually, and learned that all three had attended the "Meisterschule für Mode", which was the Hamburg equivalent of the Liverpool art college that both Sutcliffe and Lennon had attended. Lennon dubbed the trio the Exies, as a joke about their affection for existentialism
Existentialism
Existentialism is a term applied to a school of 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who, despite profound doctrinal differences, shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject—not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual...
.
Voormann was in a relationship with Kirchherr at the time, and lived just around the corner from her parents' upper-class home in the Altona district of Hamburg. Kirchherr's bedroom, which was all in black, including the walls and furniture, was decorated especially for Voormann. After the visits to the Kaiserkeller their relationship became purely platonic
Platonic love
Platonic love is a chaste and strong type of love that is non-sexual.-Amor Platonicus:The term amor platonicus was coined as early as the 15th century by the Florentine scholar Marsilio Ficino. Platonic love in this original sense of the term is examined in Plato's dialogue the Symposium, which has...
, as Astrid started dating Sutcliffe, who was fascinated by her, although she always remained close friends with Voormann.
London
In the early 1960s, Voormann decided to leave Germany and move to London. George HarrisonGeorge Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
invited him to live in the Green Street flat formerly shared by all four Beatles, Lennon and McCartney having moved out: Lennon to live with his wife Cynthia Lennon
Cynthia Lennon
Cynthia Lillian Lennon is the former wife of musician John Lennon, and mother of Julian Lennon. She grew up in the middle-class section of Hoylake, on the Wirral Peninsula in North West England. At the age of twelve, she was accepted into the Junior Art School, and was later enrolled in the...
, and McCartney to live in the attic of the home of Jane Asher
Jane Asher
Jane Asher is an English actress. She has also developed a second career as a cake decorator and cake shop proprietor.-Early life:...
's parents. Voormann lived with Harrison and Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
for a time before finding work as a commercial artist and renting an apartment of his own. He returned to Hamburg in 1963, where he founded a band with Paddy Chambers (guitar/vocals), Voormann (bass/vocals) and Gibson Kemp (drums) called Paddy, Klaus & Gibson.
In 1966, Voormann returned to London and was asked by Lennon to design the sleeve for the album Revolver
Revolver (album)
Revolver is the seventh studio album by the English rock group The Beatles, released on 5 August 1966 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin. Many of the tracks on Revolver are marked by an electric guitar-rock sound, in contrast with their previous LP, the folk rock inspired Rubber...
. Klaus had a style of "scrapbook collage" art in mind. When showing his efforts to the band and their manager, Brian Epstein
Brian Epstein
Brian Samuel Epstein , was an English music entrepreneur, and is best known for being the manager of The Beatles up until his death. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Remo Four & The Cyrkle...
, the band loved it, although Voormann's payment for the album cover was £40. For this work, Klaus won the Grammy Award for Best Album Cover, Graphic Arts. Voormann later designed the cover art for Harrison's 1988 single, "When We Was Fab
When We Was Fab
"When We Was Fab" is a song written by George Harrison and Jeff Lynne about the days of Beatlemania, when The Beatles were first referred to as the "Fab Four". The song appears as the sixth track on Harrison's 1987 album Cloud Nine and was later released as the second single from that album in...
", which included the image of Harrison from the cover of Revolver
Revolver (album)
Revolver is the seventh studio album by the English rock group The Beatles, released on 5 August 1966 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin. Many of the tracks on Revolver are marked by an electric guitar-rock sound, in contrast with their previous LP, the folk rock inspired Rubber...
along with an updated drawing in the same style.
Around the same time another group was about to release their international debut album. The Bee Gees
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a...
had recorded their first album, Bee Gees 1st, and Klaus was hired to design the cover for that album. The album cover featured all five group members standing above a colourful, psychedelic collage painted by Voormann. In 1973, Voormann created the album sleeve and booklet artwork for Ringo Starr's album Ringo
Ringo (album)
Ringo is the third album by Ringo Starr, released in 1973 on Apple Records. It peaked at #7 on the UK Albums Chart and #2 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified platinum by the RIAA. In Canada, it reached #1 on the RPM national albums chart...
, on which he also played bass.
Bassist
In 1966, at the same time he was designing the cover of RevolverRevolver (album)
Revolver is the seventh studio album by the English rock group The Beatles, released on 5 August 1966 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin. Many of the tracks on Revolver are marked by an electric guitar-rock sound, in contrast with their previous LP, the folk rock inspired Rubber...
, Voormann became a member of the 1960s band Manfred Mann
Manfred Mann
Manfred Mann was a British beat, rhythm and blues and pop band of the 1960s, named after their South African keyboardist, Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band...
, having turned down offers by The Hollies
The Hollies
The Hollies are an English pop and rock group, formed in Manchester in the early 1960s, though most of the band members are from throughout East Lancashire. Known for their distinctive vocal harmony style, they became one of the leading British groups of the 1960s and 1970s...
and The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues are an English rock band. Among their innovations was a fusion with classical music, most notably in their 1967 album Days of Future Passed....
. Voormann did substitute for Eric Haydock
Eric Haydock
Eric Haydock was the original bass guitarist with The Hollies from December 1962 until 1966. Although considered a great bassist, he was replaced in 1966 by Bernie Calvert, after disputes related to the conduct of the band's managers.-External links:*...
on a couple of TV shows, see List of The Hollies band members. He mentions his negotiations with the group in his biography: Warum spielst Du Imagine nicht auf dem weißen Klavier, John? Voormann played bass and flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s for Manfred Mann from 1966 to 1969, appearing on all their UK hits from "Just Like a Woman
Just Like a Woman (song)
"Just Like a Woman" is a song written by Bob Dylan and first released on his 1966 album, Blonde on Blonde . It was also released as a single in the U.S. during August 1966 and peaked at #33 on the Billboard Hot 100...
" (July 1966) to their final single "Ragamuffin Man" (April 1969) and including the 1968 international hit "The Mighty Quinn
Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)
"Quinn the Eskimo " is a folk-rock song written by Bob Dylan and first recorded during The Basement Tapes sessions in 1967. The song was first released in January 1968 as "Mighty Quinn" by the British band Manfred Mann and became a great success...
" (#1 UK, #10 US).
After that, he became a session musician
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
, playing on solo projects by Lou Reed
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
, Carly Simon
Carly Simon
Carly Elisabeth Simon is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records, and has since been the recipient of two Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for her work...
, James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
, and Harry Nilsson
Harry Nilsson
Harry Edward Nilsson III was an American singer-songwriter who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings he is credited as Nilsson...
amongst others. Voormann was a member of Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
and Lennon's Plastic Ono Band, with Ono, Alan White
Alan White (Yes drummer)
Alan White is an English rock drummer known for his work with the progressive rock band Yes. White was also a member of the Plastic Ono Band, playing live in 1969 at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival, which was recorded and released three months later as Live Peace in Toronto 1969...
(future Yes
Yes (band)
Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...
drummer) and Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
, which played at the Live Peace in Toronto 1969
Live Peace in Toronto 1969
-Side two:-Personnel:* John Lennon — lead vocals, rhythm guitar* Yoko Ono — vocals* Eric Clapton — lead guitar, backing vocals* Klaus Voormann — bass* Alan White — drums* Kim Fowley — spoken introduction-External links:*...
album, recorded prior to the break-up of the Beatles in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
on 13 September 1969.
In 1971 he moved to Los Angeles. In an interview with EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
about his album Walls and Bridges
Walls and Bridges
Walls and Bridges is the fifth album by John Lennon; it was issued on 26 September 1974 in the United States and on 4 October in the United Kingdom. Written, recorded and released during his 18-month separation from Yoko Ono , the album captures Lennon in the midst of The Lost Weekend...
, Lennon was asked who was playing bass on the album. Lennon answered with a hard German accent: "Klaus Voormann. We all know Klaus, ja (German: "yes")". He also played in Harrison's assembled band in the 1971 The Concert for Bangladesh
The Concert for Bangladesh
The Concert for Bangladesh was the name for two benefit concerts organised by George Harrison and Ravi Shankar, held at noon and at 7 PM on August 1, 1971, playing to a total of 40,000 people at Madison Square Garden in New York City...
; Harrison fittingly introduced him to the audience by saying, "There's somebody on bass who many people have heard about, but they've never actually seen him, Klaus Voormann." After Harrison died, Voorman played bass as part of the supporting band on the song "All Things Must Pass
All Things Must Pass (song)
"All Things Must Pass" is a song written by George Harrison. It is the title track to his triple album of the same name.During The Beatles' Get Back sessions in January 1969, this was one of many songs the group rehearsed to be part of their new album...
", in the Concert for George
Concert for George
The Concert for George was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 29 November 2002 as a memorial to George Harrison on the first anniversary of his death. The event was organized by Harrison's widow, Olivia, and son, Dhani, and arranged under the musical direction of Eric Clapton and Jeff Lynne...
on 29 November 2002.
After the Beatles disbanded, there were rumours of them reforming as The Ladders, with Voormann on bass as a replacement for Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
. An announcement to this effect filtered out of the Apple
Apple Records
Apple Records is a record label founded by The Beatles in 1968, as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mary Hopkin, James Taylor, Badfinger, and Billy Preston...
offices in 1971, but was ultimately withdrawn before it got very far. This line-up (Voormann, Lennon, Harrison and Starr) did perform in various combinations on Lennon's albums, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band was received with high critical praise upon release. Critic Greil Marcus remarked, "John's singing in the last verse of 'God' may be the finest in all of rock." In early 1971, the album reached number eight on the UK and went to number six in the US, spending eighteen...
(1970) (Voormann, Lennon, and Starr) and Imagine
Imagine (album)
Imagine is the second album by John Lennon. Recorded and released in 1971, the album tended toward songs that were gentler, more commercial and less avant-garde than those on his critically acclaimed previous album, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. The album is considered the most popular of his works...
(1971) (Voormann, Lennon & Harrison) as well as on Ringo Starr's eponymous album Ringo
Ringo (album)
Ringo is the third album by Ringo Starr, released in 1973 on Apple Records. It peaked at #7 on the UK Albums Chart and #2 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified platinum by the RIAA. In Canada, it reached #1 on the RPM national albums chart...
, in 1973, and Yoko Ono's Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band
Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band
Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band is the avant-garde debut album by Yoko Ono, which came after recording three experimental releases with John Lennon and a live album as a member of The Plastic Ono Band...
(1970) (Voormann, Lennon, Starr, and Ono). Starr's album features the Lennon-penned hit single "I'm The Greatest
I'm the Greatest
"I'm the Greatest" is a song written by John Lennon for Ringo Starr; both former members of the music group The Beatles. It was released by Starr on the 1973 Ringo album and 4 compilation and live albums....
" which is the only song in which all four musicians appear together, joined by Billy Preston
Billy Preston
William Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
. He also played on Lennon's "Instant Karma!
Instant Karma!
"Instant Karma!" is a song written by John Lennon, released as a single in 1970 on Apple Records, catalogue Apple 1003 in the United Kingdom, Apple 1818 in the United States. It is the third solo single issued by Lennon, and it peaked at #3 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100 singles...
" single.
In 1979 Voormann moved back to Germany. He produced three studio albums and a live album by the German band Trio
Trio (band)
Trio was a German band. It formed in the small German town of Großenkneten in 1980. The band is most noted for the song "Da da da, ich lieb dich nicht du liebst mich nicht aha aha aha" which was a hit in 30 countries worldwide. Trio was a product of the Neue Deutsche Welle...
. He also produced their worldwide hit "Da Da Da". After Trio broke up in 1986, he produced the first solo album by their singer Stephan Remmler
Stephan Remmler
Stephan Remmler is one of three members of the German band Trio. He performed most of the vocals for the band's songs...
and played bass on some songs of the album. The following year he produced a single by former Trio drummer Peter Behrens
Peter Behrens (musician)
Peter Behrens is a German drummer, actor, musician and clown.-Life:Peter Behrens is the illegitimate son of an American GI, and was put up for adoption by his biological mother. He was adopted by the Behrens family, where he grew up in northern Germany...
.
"Retirement"
Voormann retired from the music business in 1989, spending time with his family. He lives at Lake StarnbergLake Starnberg
Lake Starnberg , 25 kilometers southwest of Munich in southern Bavaria, is Germany's fifth largest freshwater lake and, due to its large average depth, the second richest in water...
, near Munich with his second wife Christine and their two children, born in 1989 and 1991. From time to time he appears on TV shows, mainly when the shows are about the 1960s in general or the Beatles in particular, or when he is asked to talk about his famous album sleeve for Revolver. In 1995 Klaus was asked by Apple Records
Apple Records
Apple Records is a record label founded by The Beatles in 1968, as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mary Hopkin, James Taylor, Badfinger, and Billy Preston...
to design the covers for The Beatles Anthology albums. He painted the covers along with his friend, fellow artist Alfons Kiefer. In the 1994 movie Backbeat
Backbeat (film)
Backbeat is a 1994 British-German drama film directed by Iain Softley. It chronicles the early days of The Beatles in Hamburg, Germany. The film focuses primarily on the relationship between Stuart Sutcliffe and John Lennon , and also with Sutcliffe's German girlfriend Astrid Kirchherr...
, about the Hamburg days of the Beatles, Voormann was portrayed by the German actor Kai Wiesinger
Kai Wiesinger
Kai Wiesinger is a German actor.-Life and work:Kai Wiesinger began taking private acting lessons as a teenager. After his Zivildienst , he became an acting student in Munich...
.
In April 2003, Voormann designed the cover of Scandinavian Leather
Scandinavian Leather
Scandinavian Leather is an album by the Norwegian band Turbonegro that followed the band's reunion in 2002 and was released in April 2003 on Burning Heart Records in Sweden, on Bitzcore Records in Germany, on JVC/Victor Records in Japan and on May 6, 2003 on Epitaph Records in the USA.-The...
for the Norwegian band Turbonegro
Turbonegro
Turbonegro is a Norwegian punk rock band that was initially active from 1989 to 1998, and later reformed in 2002. Their style combines glam rock, punk rock and hard rock into a style the band describes as "deathpunk"....
. In October 2003, Voormann published his autobiography, Warum spielst du Imagine nicht auf dem weißen Klavier, John? Erinnerungen an die Beatles und viele andere Freunde (Why Don't You Play "Imagine" on the White Piano, John?: Memories of the Beatles and Many Other Friends). The book gives special focus to the 1960s and 1970s, and covers Voormann's close friendship with the Beatles and other musicians and artists, as well as his private life. A 2005 BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
documentary, Stuart Sutcliffe: The Lost Beatle features interviews with Voormann and shows drawings he made of the Beatles in Hamburg. In 2007, Voormann designed the sleeve for the album Timeless
Timeless (Wet Wet Wet album)
Timeless is the eighth studio album from Wet Wet Wet, and their first in ten years. The album was released on 12 November 2007.The sleeve artwork is designed by Klaus Voorman, who also designed the artwork for The Beatles album Revolver....
by Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet are a Scottish pop rock band that formed in the 1980s. They scored a number of hits in the British charts and around the world. The band is composed of Marti Pellow , Tommy Cunningham , Graeme Clark and Neil Mitchell...
. In 2008 he recorded the song "For What It's Worth" with Eric Burdon
Eric Burdon
Eric Victor Burdon is an English singer-songwriter best known as a founding member and vocalist of rock band The Animals, and the funk rock band War and for his aggressive stage performance...
and Max Buskohl
Max Buskohl
Max Buskohl was a contestant who finished 4th in season 4 of Deutschland sucht den Superstar. Max stated in an interview with Der Spiegel that he left DSDS voluntarily while RTL claims they threw out Max. Dieter Bohlen claims that Max tried to "extort record company and the station"...
.
On July 17, 2009 Klaus released his first solo album called A Sideman's Journey
A Sideman's Journey
A Sideman's Journey is the first solo release by Klaus Voormann. Voormann is best known as the creator of the cover art for The Beatles' album Revolver...
. It was credited to "Voormann & Friends" and featured Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens
Cat Stevens
Yusuf Islam , commonly known by his former stage name Cat Stevens, is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, philanthropist, and prominent convert to Islam....
), Don Preston
Don Preston
Donald Ward Preston also known as Dom DeWilde or Biff Debrie born September 21, 1932 in Flint, Michigan. Preston is an American jazz and rock and roll musician.-Biography:Preston was born into a family of musicians and began studying music at an early age...
, Dr. John
Dr. John
Malcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. , better known by the stage name Dr. John , is an American singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist, whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.Active as a session musician since the late 1950s, he came to wider...
, The Manfreds
The Manfreds
The Manfreds are a British pop group, formed in 1991 as a reunion of former members of the 1960s pop group Manfred Mann, however without their eponymous founder Manfred Mann himself.-Personnel:*Paul Jones - vocals, harmonica...
, Jim Keltner
Jim Keltner
James Lee "Jim" Keltner is an American drummer known primarily for his session work. He has contributed to the work of many well-known artists...
, Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks is an American composer, arranger, producer, musician, singer, author and actor. Parks is perhaps best known for his contributions as a lyricist on the Beach Boys album Smile....
, Joe Walsh
Joe Walsh
Joseph Fidler "Joe" Walsh is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has been a member of three commercially successful bands, the James Gang, Barnstorm, and the Eagles, and has experienced notable success as a solo artist and prolific session musician, especially with B.B...
and many others. The album has been available in a limited number of audio CDs
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
, vinyl LPs
LP album
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
, and deluxe box sets with original (and signed) graphics by Voorman. It included new versions of old songs such as "My Sweet Lord
My Sweet Lord
"My Sweet Lord" is a song by former Beatles lead guitarist George Harrison from his UK number one hit triple album All Things Must Pass. The song was written in praise of the Hindu god Krishna...
", "All Things Must Pass", "Blue Suede Shoes
Blue Suede Shoes
"Blue Suede Shoes" is a rock and roll standard written and first recorded by Carl Perkins in 1955 and is considered one of the first rockabilly records and incorporated elements of blues, country and pop music of the time...
", "You're Sixteen
You're Sixteen
"You're Sixteen" is a song written by the Sherman Brothers . It was first performed by American rockabilly singer Johnny Burnette, whose version peaked at number eight on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in December 1960....
" and Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
's "Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)". A bonus DVD of Making of a Sideman’s Journey was released with the album.
On June 30, 2010 a production company called ARTE released a 90 minute documentary called "All You Need is Klaus" which features footage from the "Voormann & Friends" sessions as well as interview footage with Voormann and some of the artists he had collaborated with in his storied career.
Discography
As Voormann & Friends:- A Sideman's Journey
With Manfred Mann
Manfred Mann
Manfred Mann was a British beat, rhythm and blues and pop band of the 1960s, named after their South African keyboardist, Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band...
:
UK Albums:
- As IsAs Is (album)As Is is a 1966 pop music album by Manfred Mann. It was their fourth overall but their first for Fontana Records and their first to feature new members Mike d'Abo and Klaus Voorman. It was produced by Shel Talmy and released in the U.K...
- Up The Junction (Original Soundtrack Recording)
- What a Mann
- Mighty Garvey!Mighty Garvey!Mighty Garvey! is an album released in 1968 by Manfred Mann. It was the second and last recorded by the band after the change of direction and personnel of the previous As Is. It continued a transition away from jazz and blues and towards self-composed art-pop...
US Albums:
- Up the Junction (Original Soundtrack Recording)
- Mighty Garvey!
With The Plastic Ono Band:
- Live Peace in Toronto 1969Live Peace in Toronto 1969-Side two:-Personnel:* John Lennon — lead vocals, rhythm guitar* Yoko Ono — vocals* Eric Clapton — lead guitar, backing vocals* Klaus Voormann — bass* Alan White — drums* Kim Fowley — spoken introduction-External links:*...
- John Lennon/Plastic Ono BandJohn Lennon/Plastic Ono BandJohn Lennon/Plastic Ono Band was received with high critical praise upon release. Critic Greil Marcus remarked, "John's singing in the last verse of 'God' may be the finest in all of rock." In early 1971, the album reached number eight on the UK and went to number six in the US, spending eighteen...
- Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono BandYoko Ono/Plastic Ono BandYoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band is the avant-garde debut album by Yoko Ono, which came after recording three experimental releases with John Lennon and a live album as a member of The Plastic Ono Band...
With John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
:
- Wedding AlbumWedding Album-CD bonus tracks:#"Who Has Seen the Wind?" - 2:05 #*A gentle and melodic folk song featuring lyrics based on the 19th century poem of the same title, written by English poet Christina Rossetti...
- ImagineImagine (album)Imagine is the second album by John Lennon. Recorded and released in 1971, the album tended toward songs that were gentler, more commercial and less avant-garde than those on his critically acclaimed previous album, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. The album is considered the most popular of his works...
- Some Time in New York CitySome Time in New York CitySome Time in New York City was released in 1972 and is John Lennon's third post-Beatles album, fifth with Yoko Ono, and third with producer Phil Spector...
- Walls and BridgesWalls and BridgesWalls and Bridges is the fifth album by John Lennon; it was issued on 26 September 1974 in the United States and on 4 October in the United Kingdom. Written, recorded and released during his 18-month separation from Yoko Ono , the album captures Lennon in the midst of The Lost Weekend...
- Rock 'n' RollRock 'n' Roll (John Lennon album)Rock 'n' Roll is a 1975 album of late 1950s and early 1960s songs covered by John Lennon. Recording the album was problematic and spanned a year. Though critically derided, it reached #6 in both the United Kingdom and the United States.-History:...
With George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
:
- All Things Must PassAll Things Must PassAll Things Must Pass is a triple album by George Harrison, recorded and released in 1970. The original vinyl release featured two LPs of rock songs as well as Apple Jam, a third LP of informal jams...
- The Concert for Bangla Desh
- Living in the Material WorldLiving in the Material WorldLiving in the Material World is a studio album by George Harrison, released in 1973.-Background:As a follow-up to 1970's greatly received All Things Must Pass and his mammoth charity project, The Concert for Bangladesh, Living in the Material World was among the most highly anticipated releases of...
- Extra Texture (Read All About It)Extra Texture (Read All About It)Extra Texture is an album by George Harrison which was released in 1975. Following the Dark Horse debacle, Extra Texture was Harrison's last album under his contract with Apple Records and EMI, all set to embark on his own Dark Horse Records imprint, initially distributed by A&M Records.Once...
- Concert for GeorgeConcert for George (album)Concert for George is a live tribute soundtrack album in honour of George Harrison, issued in 2003 in conjunction with the simultaneous DVD release of the same name...
With Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
:
- Sentimental Journey - Arrangement on "I'm a Fool to Care"
- RingoRingo (album)Ringo is the third album by Ringo Starr, released in 1973 on Apple Records. It peaked at #7 on the UK Albums Chart and #2 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified platinum by the RIAA. In Canada, it reached #1 on the RPM national albums chart...
- Goodnight ViennaGoodnight ViennaGoodnight Vienna is the fourth album by Ringo Starr. It was recorded in the summer of 1974 in Los Angeles, and released later that year. Goodnight Vienna followed the commercially successful predecessor Ringo, and Starr used many of the same players, including Billy Preston, Klaus Voormann, Robbie...
- Ringo's RotogravureRingo's RotogravureRingo's Rotogravure is the fifth album by Ringo Starr, released in 1976. Following the end of his contract with EMI, Starr signed on with Polydor Records worldwide and was eager to see his solo success continue on in a new era.Two years on from 1974's Goodnight...
Other artists:
- Nilsson SchmilssonNilsson Schmilsson-Personnel:* Harry Nilsson – piano on 1 5 8 10, vocals, Mellotrons on 2 4, organ on 3, harmonica on 8, electric piano on 9* Jim Gordon – drums on 1 2 5 8 9, percussion on 7 9* Klaus Voormann – bass on 1 5 6 8, rhythm guitar on 2 9, acoustic guitar on 4...
by Harry NilssonHarry NilssonHarry Edward Nilsson III was an American singer-songwriter who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings he is credited as Nilsson... - TransformerTransformer (album)Transformer is the second studio album by American rock musician Lou Reed, released in November 1972.-Background:Unlike its predecessor, Lou Reed, eight songs of which were written during his Velvet Underground days, Transformer contains mainly new material...
by Lou ReedLou ReedLewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades... - No SecretsNo Secrets (Carly Simon album)Reviews for No Secrets were mixed. Robert Christgau, writing in Creem, rated the album a B-, which signifies "a competent or mildly interesting record that will usually feature at least three worthwhile cuts." He stated that "if a horse could sing in a monotone, the horse would sound like Carly...
by Carly SimonCarly SimonCarly Elisabeth Simon is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records, and has since been the recipient of two Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for her work... - Shankar Family & Friends by Ravi ShankarRavi ShankarRavi Shankar , often referred to by the title Pandit, is an Indian musician and composer who plays the plucked string instrument sitar. He has been described as the best known contemporary Indian musician by Hans Neuhoff in Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart.Shankar was born in Varanasi and spent...
- Los CochinosLos CochinosLos Cochinos is a 1973 comedy album recorded by Cheech & Chong. The Spanish term cochino is a derogatory way of referring to a pig, as it also means "dirty", in contrast to cerdo, a more neutral word for a pig as an animal...
by Cheech & Chong
External links
- Personal website
- Klaus Voormann Interview
- i ♥ klaus tribute site
- Klaus Voormann Art
- Hamburg Days book with unseen imagery by Astrid KirchherrAstrid KirchherrAstrid Kirchherr is a German photographer and artist and is well known for her association with The Beatles and her photographs of The Beatles during their Hamburg days....
& Klaus Voormann & Foreword by George HarrisonGeorge HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...