Aspiring musicians often start out as sidemen, playing rhythm guitar,
comping on keyboards, playing drums in the
rhythm section, or singing backing vocals for a well-known bandleader or singer. Once sidemen have become experienced with live performance and recording with established artists, some move on to develop their own sound, a recognized name, and fans of their own, or go on to form their own groups, at which point they become bandleaders and recruit their own sidemen and sidewomen. Some examples of this are: •
James Burton and
Glen Hardin, playing guitar and keyboards respectively, who performed in
Elvis Presley's
TCB Band, also backed
Gram Parsons before joining newcomer
Rodney Crowell and veteran
Albert Lee in
Emmylou Harris' "Hot Band". •
Don Henley and
Glenn Frey were in the initial backup band for
Linda Ronstadt, which toured in support of her
eponymous debut album. Afterwards, with the addition of
Bernie Leadon and
Randy Meisner, they formed the
Eagles. (1980) playing lap steel guitar Some sidemen become famous for their musical specialties, and become highly sought after by
pop, rock,
blues,
jazz and
country music bands. Examples of some of these include multi-instrumentalists.
David Lindley is a multi-instrumentalist who has worked with such diverse musicians as
Curtis Mayfield,
Dolly Parton,
Jackson Browne, and
Hani Naser.
Waddy Wachtel's guitar licks and experience have placed him as a bandleader while on tour with
Stevie Nicks, and
Chuck Leavell, who has toured with
The Allman Brothers Band, but more often, is onstage with
The Rolling Stones on keyboards. Often sidemen go on to form their own groups and/or solo careers; for instance,
John Lennon,
Paul McCartney,
George Harrison, and
Pete Best acted as sidemen to
Tony Sheridan before becoming famous as
The Beatles, with the addition of
Ringo Starr.
Jimmy Page left his first attempts working in bands to hone his skills as a session player, where he met
John Paul Jones; he later recruited
Robert Plant and
John Bonham to form
Led Zeppelin.
Bob Dylan's first recorded song was as a harmonica sideman on
Harry Belafonte's cover of "
Midnight Special". Other musicians may take time from their own bands to tour or record as a sideman for other artists, such as punk bassist
Mike Watt with
J Mascis and the Fog or
Iggy and the Stooges. ==See also==