A couple of questions about Exile, who was Bill Plummer?, he played some mean bass on the great record. Also while the album was recorded in the South of France there are backing vocals by Dr John, did he fly in from New Orleans or were they overdubbed later?

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From timeisonourside.com:


American born Bill Plummer is a jazz bassist who in the early 1960s was contributing to records by bop, hard bop and soul-jazz musicians like Buddy DeFranco, Paul Young and Roy Ayers. In the middle of the decade, working mostly in California, Plummer, who had started playing the sitar, also started contributing to sessions by folk rock artists like Gentle Soul and also to soundtracks (such as TV's Mission Impossible).

When the Stones wanted upright (acoustic) bass for some tracks for their 1972 LP Exile on Main Street, they enlisted Plummer, who plays on Rip This Joint, Turd on the Run,I Just Want to See His Face and All Down the Line. A versatile musician, Plummer has continued making recordings for jazz artists, as well as for bluegrass country artists like Byron Berline.

Also from timeisonourside.com:

Born in New Orleans, pianist and vocalist Dr. John, born Mac Rebennack, has made a career out of continuing and expanding the R&B New Orleans sound born of the 1950s. Dr. John himself was involved as a teenager in the 1950s in its creation, composing and performing with the greats of the era, such as Professor Longhair. Rebennack renamed himself Dr. John and went on to release solo albums under this name, his 1971 effort including contributions from Mick Jagger.

This led to John's presence at some Stones mixing sessions for Exile on Main Street in Los Angeles in 1971-72. Along with others, he added backing vocals to Let It Loose, plus possibly other tracks (I Just Want to See His Face, Tumbling Dice). Dr. John has continued his career since, but with limited success. He participated on Bill Wyman's first solo album in 1974.

Thirty years after the release of Exile on Main Street, Dr. John opened for the Stones at their concert at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom on September 16, 2002, and then joined them onstage for I Just Want to Make Love to You.

Hey thanks dude, I didnt look at that website for about 4 years, its great.

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Didn't Bill Wyman write in one of his books that he in fact played bass on some of the Exile tracks credited Plummer?

Yeah. Charlie said, which I just said in another thread. That's - I was looking to see about this because of the Keith No Taylor O/Ds thread and found this one so a bump for more misinformed Exile...info! Ha ha.

I've always wondered who recommended Bill Plummer to the Stones...

just a coincidence that at the same time the white house plumbers were being organized in another covert, coverup maneuver? i think not....

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StonesTod
just a coincidence that at the same time the white house plumbers were being organized in another covert, coverup maneuver? i think not....

I don't think you'll get far with Watergate references among this group!

Bill Plummer lives out west in the US somewhere around the Teton mountain range in WYO/ID. He does still play and produce, doing alot of recording at my brother's recording studio. One of his bands/projects is called "Jax 6" (perhaps referring to Jackson Hole, WYO., the big ski town nearby), a really nice sounding New Orleans' style jazz combo. My brother says he's seen Bill's gold record from playing with the Stones, and let me hear all of the rough mixes from the Jax 6 project. If they give me the okay, perhaps I'll be able to post a track next week in honor of the Exile re-release. His standup bass skills (and ears) most definitely still 'have it', 38 years after Exile.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2010-05-07 08:33 by winter.

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mtaylor
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Nice find, mtaylor!!

Bill Plummer along with Charles Lloyd specialised in a kind of West Coast influenced semi-psychedelic jazz. He had a group called The Cosmic Brotherhood. He made a fairly decent album named after his group in 67.

He may well have been brought in to lay down a few grooves after Bill left to do some sessions with Stephen Stills' Manassas - the resulting double album also coming out out in May 72.

And that ladies and gentlemen was my 3000th post.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2010-05-06 23:28 by Silver Dagger.

Yay! a good one for such a mile Stone.

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duke richardson
Yay! a good one for such a mile Stone.

Hey duke, ya just coined a great name for Stones sessionmen - Milestones!

I have the bio from Dr. John: Under a Hoodoo Moon.

You get the impression that he is not exactly a Stones fan. But he knew Mick and was asked to bring in LA musicians to help shape up the Nellcote tapes.
He tells some little stories.

Don't remember Plummers story at the moment but most guys were recruited by Dr. John . .

Bill Plummer was the bass player for Tom Waits Closing Time album (though weirdly not on the title tune) which was recorded at Sunset Sound at the same time as the Exile recordings. I wonder if it was a case of "Is there a bassist in the house?" type of thing? Was this where Keith and Tom began their relationship? Very interesting, but can't find anything to corroborate.

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shawnriffhard1
Bill Plummer was the bass player for Tom Waits Closing Time album (though weirdly not on the title tune) which was recorded at Sunset Sound at the same time as the Exile recordings. I wonder if it was a case of "Is there a bassist in the house?" type of thing? Was this where Keith and Tom began their relationship? Very interesting, but can't find anything to corroborate.

Keith and Tom Waits didn't meet up until 1985.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2025-09-01 00:19 by shawnriffhard1.