Immediate Family: Four Legendary Session Players Recall Their Roles in Rock History and Rock On

By Karen Gordon

Rating: B

If you were a music-loving kid in the late ‘60s, and early ‘70s listening to the singer-songwriter artists of the era like James Taylor and Carole King, you probably read the liner notes (didn’t everyone back then?).

And you may still remember the names of musicians who played on their records, and in their touring bands. 

For liner-note readers like us, a particular group of musicians—guitarist Danny ”Kooch” Kortchmar, Bassist Leland Sklar, drummer Russ Kunkel and guitarist Waddy Wachtel—were as legendary as the musicians they accompanied.

Carole King, James Taylor and Danny Kortchmar in the session-player rock doc Immediate Family

They are the subject of the affable and affectionate documentary Immediate Family that looks at their careers,  how they became some of the most sought after session players in the business, and still, after 50 years, are friends and colleagues still playing together..

Immediate Family is directed by Denny Tedesco, and is the follow up to his celebrated documentary The Wrecking Crew, about the famous studio musicians who played on hundreds of records through the ‘60s. 

Tedesco, whose father, guitarist Tommy, was a member of the Wrecking Crew, not only has an affection for the studio players, but his appreciation runs deeper. He understands the level of excellence that separates good musicians from the elite who become the most in demand players. They not only have to be accomplished musicians, but also chameleons capable of playing in a range of styles, while also having their own signature sound.

They’re also often arrangers, having the creativity to lift a song to another level: contributing the right bass-line, or a lead guitar line that can come to define a song, like Wachtel’s guitar part on Stevie Nicks’ Edge of Seventeen, or Russ Kunkel’s drums on James Taylor’s Fire and Rain.

And with these four musicians, come's a lot of hit records and a lot of musical history.

The story begins in the mid-‘60s on the East Coast with Kooch and James Taylor, who met when they were teenagers in school. Less than a decade later, the two met up again, when Taylor got his deal with the Beatles' label Apple Records. 

When they were preparing to record Taylor's second album, his producer, Peter Asher, moved to Los Angeles, and went looking for musicians to play on what would ultimately become Taylor's break out album, Sweet Baby James. 

Asher hired Carole King on keyboards, and drummer Russ Kunkel. Bassist Leland Sklar was recruited after the recording to play live dates. 

It took a while before guitar player Waddy Wachtel became part of this little gang.  That happened when both he and fellow guitarist Kortchmar were hired for a Tim Curry session.  Typical of the tone of the movie, Kooch describes his first meeting with  Wachtel as “love at first sight.” Wachtel returns the compliment. The love fest is genuine. 

That spirit of respect and love is part of what makes the documentary so enjoyable. The musicians are highly accomplished, with credits that go on for days. And while the film deals with some of that, the essence here is about this infinite respect, camaraderie, and a generosity of spirit.

The four musicians played together in various configurations, made solo albums, and also went on to be regular collaborators with other artists.  Sklar with Phil Collins.  Wachtel with Stevie Nicks, Warren Zevon, Linda Ronstadt, Keith Richards and the Rolling Stones, and went on to do film scores.

Don Henley talks about how Kooch pushed him to work as a solo artist as the Eagles were breaking up, and went on to produce, co-produce, write or co-write key songs.  Russ Kunkel has written songs for and produced artists including  Carly Simon, Clannad and Jimmy Buffet. They've all been prolific, but Leland Sklar has the most number of credits: He's played on more than 2600 records.  

Now into their 70s, after knowing each other for 50 years, the four men, plus a guitar player a generation younger named Steve Postel, have formed a band called Immediate Family (which is where the documentary gets its name), and are recording and touring together.

But most of this easygoing film is history:  The story of how they made their way to Los Angeles, how they met,  and what they saw in each other as musicians and as human beings.   There are testimonials from a number of key musicians, Phil Collins, Lyle Lovett, Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Keith Richards. 

There are few bumps in the road, for some of the members, including a touching admission by the bass player Sklar about his deep shyness. But there's nothing very groundbreaking or controversial here. This is essentially an affectionate documentary about a group of killer musicians, who are still working and obviously loving what they do and each other.  

That spirit of respect and love is part of what makes the documentary enjoyable.

CLICK HERE to watch Bonnie Laufer’s interview with Leland Sklar, Russ Kunkel, Waddy Wachtel and director Denny Tedesco.

Immediate Family, directed by Denny Tedesco, featuring Danny Kortchmar, Leland Sklar, Russ Kunkel, Waddy Wachtel, James Taylor, Carole King, Peter Asher, Don Henley, Keith Richards

In theatres in Toronto and Vancouver, December 15. Also available to rent or buy
across Canada on the Apple TV app/iTunes and Google Play.