Part of what makes Yagami Toll!!
YOU CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT LISTENING TO THIS!!
Translation: Lola

Leon Russell
-[Leon Russell] 1970 (his first solo album).
-[Carney] 1972.
-[A song for you] 2005 (Live documentary DVD).

How did you start listening to them?
This is a keepsake from my older brother. Leon Russell. He's still alive. I think he's about 70. I got to see him when he came to Japan. That was quite awhile ago though......it was in 1993 so I got to see him 19 years ago in the Sun Plaza at Nakano.
This guy is truly amazing. His most famous song was, "Song for You". I was in grade school the first time I heard him. My impression when I first heard him was that, while his voice was harsh, the melodies were beautiful. He originally started off as a studio musician as a pianist. Then he formed the Leon Russell band afterwards. He's always done things solo. When I saw him, he came out with a cane like some old man but then, when the show started he had such incredible energy *smiles*. He comes out looking rather wild and then played piano with such passion. 1993 at the Nakano Sun Plaza was the first and last time I got to see him. Since he didn't really come to Japan that often afterwards. But he seemed to always be touring in America. And you know he was a studio musician right. He worked with the Rolling Stones on their album, [Let it Bleed] as a pianist.
He was born on April 2nd, 1942. So now...he'll turn 70 on the 2nd of April 2012.
"Song for You" is his representative song because it was a hit on the charts. And since it was on the top ten hits of the West, I got to hear it.

Why do you recommend him?
He's a crazy genius singer and songwriter. That's why people who listen to him end up recommending him right. Other than "Song for You", I'd recommend his work with the Carpenters for "Superstar" and George Benson for "This Masquerade". Because they have a lot of impact. His most impressive recording period was between 1969 and 1970. That was the time the Beatles broke up right and so at that time, he had each of the members participate on his album. For that alone I'd support him you know. I wonder, that might have been the time he decided to form his own label. So he ended up with his own label called, Shelter Records and worked from a home studio and then it was the sort of situation where, he'd just come up to the record company and...present his work. I think that might have been a pretty common thing to do back in the 70s though. Although usually there were deadlines to follow and you'd have a producer telling you when to get things done but he never bothered with any of that. He'd just take his work to the record company when it was done and be like, here, sell this? *smiles* He was a true artist you know. I don't think he's done putting out albums.