The GRAMMYs telecast will be reimagined to raise funds to support wildfire relief efforts and aid music professionals impacted by the wildfires in Los Angeles. Steve Cropper is still "selling energy" โ putting forth what a younger generation might call blues rock "vibes" with his pals as if it were still Crucially, Cropper was the guitarist in Stax's house band, Booker T. Cropper resumed his solo career in the '80s, releasing several albums, while continuing to collaborate with leading lights like Paul Simon , Ringo Starr , Elton John and Steppenwolf.
Steve Cropper has stayed true to himself for over seven decades, thanks in no small part to advice from Stax founder Jim Stewart. That's pretty cool. Friendlytown 's 13 tracks are familiar, digestible and straight-ahead rockin ' โ the kind of tunes you'd be thrilled to hear in a local dive.
I think that's a wonderful testament to the strength of his talent. There was very little methodical music-making behind Friendlytown , which partially grew out of sessions Cropper put together for his album Fire It Up.
It's just like, Let's have a blast and try to make the party come to the record, rather than the record come to the party ," Tiven notes. Cropper and Tiven had been working on songs for years with the hopes of finding friendly musicians to give them life.
While some found homes, the duo sat on instrumentals for years โ until Tiven ran into Billy Gibbons at Trader Joe's. When Tiven told the sharp-dressed man he was making a record with Steve Cropper, "He just lit up like a firecracker and said he'd like to bring us a song. I said, 'Well, it's only going on the record unless you play on it. Gibbons ended up on 11 tracks; Friendlytown marks the first time he and Cropper worked together in many years.
