Les Fradkin (born 1951) is an American

MIDI MIDI (; Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a technical standard that describes a communications protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, computers, and re ...

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

keyboardist A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, and

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

. He is best known for being a member of the original cast of the hit Broadway show ''

Beatlemania Beatlemania was the fanaticism surrounding the English rock band the Beatles in the 1960s. The group's popularity grew in the United Kingdom throughout 1963, propelled by the singles "Please Please Me", "From Me to You" and "She Loves You". By ...

''. In addition to playing MIDI guitar, he plays

12 string guitar A twelve-string guitar (or 12-string guitar) is a steel-string guitar with 12 strings in six courses, which produces a thicker, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar. Typically, the strings of the lower four courses are tuned in o ...

, the

Starr Labs Starr Labs is a musical instrument manufacturer that was founded in 1986 in San Diego, California by musician and inventor Harvey Starr, former singer and guitarist with 1960s' band The Richard Kent Style of Manchester, England. The company manu ...

Ztar A guitar synthesizer is any one of a number of musical instrument systems that allow a guitarist to access synthesizer capabilities. Overview Today's guitar synths are direct descendants of 1970s devices from manufacturers (often in partnersh ...

guitar synthesizer A guitar synthesizer is any one of a number of musical instrument systems that allow a guitarist to access synthesizer capabilities. Overview Today's guitar synths are direct descendants of 1970s devices from manufacturers (often in partner ...

, SynthAxe,

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...

Mellotron The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which pushes a length of magnetic tape against a capstan, which pulls it across a playback head. A ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

, and

Moog synthesizer The Moog synthesizer is a modular synthesizer developed by the American engineer Robert Moog. Moog debuted it in 1964, and Moog's company R. A. Moog Co. (later known as Moog Music) produced numerous models from 1965 to 1981, and again from 20 ...

Early years

Fradkin was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and raised in Riverdale in the

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

. He travelled extensively in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, the United Kingdom, and the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

as a youngster. He began his musical education at the age of 10 being taught the basics of classical

from his mother, a former concert pianist. Inspired by seeing

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

on "

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...

" and hearing " Walk Don't Run '64" by

the Ventures The Ventures are an American instrumental rock band formed in Tacoma, Washington, in 1958, by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle. The band, which was a quartet for most of its existence, helped to popularize the electric guitar across the world during the ...

on the radio at the age of 13, he began to teach himself guitar. Other music that inspired him ranged from the

British Invasion The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of British culture became popular in the United States and significant to the rising "counterculture" on b ...

sounds of the day to American rock acts such as

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...

the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and frie ...

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

, and

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

. But what most held his interest and fascination was the art of

record production A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

. He was particularly interested in how producers such as

Les Paul Lester William Polsfuss (June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009), known as Les Paul, was an American jazz, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid-body electric guitar, and his prototype ...

Joe Meek Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 – 3 February 1967) was an English record producer, sound engineer and songwriter who pioneered space age and experimental pop music. He also assisted in the development of recording practices like over ...

, and

Phil Spector Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...

got their sounds and, in 1966, began tape experiments with

Sound on Sound ''Sound on Sound'' is an independently owned monthly music technology magazine published by SOS Publications Group, based in Cambridge, United Kingdom. The magazine includes product tests of electronic musical performance and recording devices, a ...

with a

Panasonic formerly between 1935 and 2008 and the first incarnation of between 2008 and 2022, is a major Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation, headquartered in Kadoma, Osaka, Kadoma, Osaka P ...

tape recorder he received as a birthday gift. By 1968, he could edit, splice, and overdub complex recordings at home. By 1969, he had written a large portfolio of original pop and rock songs and was proficient on guitar, bass guitar, Hammond organ, and piano. He turned professional that year and signed a staff songwriting contract with April-Blackwood Music, a division of

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

. This situation did not work out to either April's or Fradkin's satisfaction and April Music gave him his release in early 1970.

The MGM years

Fradkin moved over to

MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...

in August 1970 and signed a staff songwriter agreement with Leo Feist Music and a recording contract with the new MGM/

Sunflower Records Sunflower Records was a Los Angeles, California-based record label founded by songwriter Mack David and music industry veteran Danny Kessler that operated from 1970 to 1972. The label was distributed by MGM Records. Sunflower issued fewer than 30 ...

label headed up by songwriting legend

Mack David Mack David (July 5, 1912 – December 30, 1993) was an American lyricist and songwriter, best known for his work in film and television, with a career spanning the period between the early 1940s and the early 1970s. David was credited with writing ...

and industry veteran Danny Kessler. Fradkin signed as the first artist for Sunflower Records and debuted his first solo single " Song of a Thousand Voices" which was produced by

Randy Edelman Randy Edelman (born June 10, 1947) is an American musician, producer, and composer for film and television. He began his career as a member of Broadway's pit orchestras, and later went on to produce solo albums for songs that were picked up by ...

. Given front-page coverage in ''

Billboard Magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

'' and picked for the Top 40, "Song of a Thousand Voices" surfaced as a regional hit in September 1970. By October 1970, he co-produced, co-wrote, and sang another Sunflower regional hit single "Hippie Lady" under the pseudonym the Yummies. In early 1971, "Song of a Thousand Voices" was translated into French by Hubert Ithier and recorded by the French songstress

Mireille Mathieu Mireille Mathieu (; born 22 July 1946) is a French singer. She has recorded over 1200 songs in eleven languages, with more than 122 million records sold worldwide. Biography and career Early years Mireille Mathieu was born on 22 July 1946 in A ...

as "La Chansons Des Souvenirs" for her " Love Story" Extended Play single on the

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...

label. It was also released as a 45RPM

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

. Both versions became substantial hits in France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Israel. "Song of a Thousand Voices" has also been covered in a Spanish language hit version " Donde?" by Latin Pop star Roberto Jordan originally released on the

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Aris ...

label.

Early sessions

By 18 years of age, Fradkin was proficient on many instruments and this led to him finding extensive session work in studios in New York City and London, playing

, guitar, and piano.

The Left Banke sessions

In 1972 and 1973, Fradkin produced sessions sponsored by Bell Records for the

baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

pop group

the Left Banke The Left Banke was an American baroque pop band, formed in New York City in 1965. They are best remembered for their two U.S. hit singles, "Walk Away Renée" and "Pretty Ballerina". The band often used what the music press referred to as "baroqu ...

, famous for their hit "

Walk Away Renee Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...

". Although left unreleased at the time, one song, "I Could Make It Last Forever", appears on Fradkin's 2006 release ''Goin' Back''. A machima video of the song was produced and directed by Charlemagne Fezza and it appears on YouTube.

The Laurie Years

From 1973 through 1976 and again between 1981 through 1987, Fradkin signed on as a producer and songwriter with Gene Schwartz for the

Laurie Records Laurie Records was a record label established in New York City in 1958 by brothers Robert and Gene Schwartz, and Allan I. Sussel. Among the recording artists on Laurie's roster were Dion and the Belmonts (both together and as separate acts), T ...

label. Fradkin produced many artists for Laurie including Mara Lynn Brown, Tom Selden, New Hope, Barry Winslow of

the Royal Guardsmen The Royal Guardsmen are an American rock band, best known for their 1966 hit singles " Snoopy vs. the Red Baron", "The Return of The Red Baron", "Snoopy For President", and the Christmas follow up "Snoopy's Christmas". History Originally kno ...

, actress

Nell Carter Nell Carter (born Nell Ruth Hardy; September 13, 1948 – January 23, 2003) was an American singer and actress. Carter began her career in 1970, singing in the theater, and later crossed over to television. She was best known for her role as Ne ...

, chanteuse Valerie Tyler, pop stylist Barbara M., and a comedian Marty Brill, who released an LP called ''The Missing Tapes''. 22 singles and 4 albums for the Laurie label in all. But the most prolific artist he produced for Laurie and, perhaps, the most notable was the pop rock group,

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. Fradkin was an original member/singer/guitarist/keyboardist for the California group on Laurie Records in the US and

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

in the UK for its entire existence from 1973 through 1985. California had several chart records including the 1981 release "Summer Fun Medley"-a medley of

Beach Boys A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shell ...

hits, "Jeans On", "He's Almost You" (charting in the United Kingdom), and an appearance on the

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 198 ...

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'', abbreviated ''AB'', is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the pro ...

television show. And their single cover of "See You in September" saw honorary placement in the famous Laurie collectors series ''Collector Records of the 50s and 60s - Vol. 14''. Fradkin wrote many of the B-sides of California's singles and

Steve Martin Caro Carmelo Esteban "Steve" Martin Caro (October 12, 1948 – January 14, 2020), originally known as Steve Martin, was an American rock musician. He is best known as the original lead singer of the 1960s baroque pop band The Left Banke. The son of ...

and George Cameron of

were original members of California on the group's early releases.

The ESP-Disk years

By 1973, Fradkin had diversified his producer portfolio and made an agreement to license several of his productions to the Indie label

ESP-Disk ESP-Disk is a New York-based record company and label founded in 1963 by lawyer Bernard Stollman. History Though it originally existed to release Esperanto-based music, beginning with its second release (Albert Ayler's ''Spiritual Unity''), ESP b ...

. His production of "Give a Damn" by

Paul Thornton The Godz were a New York City-based avant-noise psychedelic music, psychedelic band that originally existed from 1966 to 1973. History The Godz musicians were guitarist Jim McCarthy, bassist Larry Kessler, autoharpist Jay Dillon, and drumme ...

(recorded at A-1 Sound Studios in New York City with

Herb Abramson Herbert C. Abramson (November 16, 1916 – November 9, 1999) was an American record executive, record producer, and co-founder of Atlantic Records. Life and career Abramson was born in 1916 to a Jewish family in Brooklyn. He studied to be a den ...

and Jonathan Thayer as co-engineers), saw release on the fourth Godz album ''Godzundheit'', and Fradkin guested as bass player on a solo album by Godz member Jim McCarthy entitled ''Alien''. Steve Martin Caro and George Cameron, both of the Left Banke also participated in these sessions, all recorded at A-1. 1974 saw the debut album on ESP-Disk by Thornton, Fradkin & Unger. The group's other members were

, an original member of the Godz on acoustic guitar and Bob Unger, bassist. Their album was called '' Pass On This Side'' and featured cover art consisting of a "do-it-yourself" blank black cover with a die cut sheet of stickers that buyers could arrange any way they pleased. The album received good reviews from ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'', ''

Crawdaddy The Crawdaddy Club was a music venue in Richmond, Surrey, England, which opened in 1963. The Rolling Stones were its house band in its first year and were followed by The Yardbirds. Several other notable British blues and rhythm and blues acts a ...

Magazine'', and several other publications. A 45 rpm single was released, " God Bless California," which charted in Belgium and The Netherlands. Fradkin played the role of

multi-instrumentalist A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays two or more musical instruments at a professional level of proficiency. Also known as doubling, the practice allows greater ensemble flexibility and more efficient employment of musicians, where ...

on the sessions with participation on lead vocals, 12-string guitar, Mellotron, Hammond organ, mandolin, and piano. Thornton, Fradkin & Unger toured that summer opening shows for the likes of

Roger McGuinn James Roger McGuinn (born James Joseph McGuinn III; July 13, 1942) is an American musician. He is best known for being the frontman and leader of the Byrds. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for his work with the Byrds. As a ...

Brewer & Shipley Brewer & Shipley are an American folk rock duo who enjoyed their peak success in the late 1960s through the 1970s, consisting of singer-songwriters Mike Brewer (born on April 14, 1944) and Tom Shipley (born on April 1, 1941). They were known ...

Richie Havens Richard Pierce Havens (January 21, 1941 – April 22, 2013) was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music encompassed elements of folk, soul (both of which he frequently covered), and rhythm and blues. He had a rhythmic guitar style ...

Blood, Sweat & Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is a jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. In addition to original music, the group has performed popular songs by Laura Ny ...

, and

Livingston Taylor Livingston Taylor (born November 21, 1950) is an American singer-songwriter and folk musician. Born in Boston and raised in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, he is the brother of singer-songwriter James Taylor, singer-songwriter Kate Taylor, singer A ...

. Fradkin played 12-string guitar and Mellotron on these shows. The group's largest and most important appearance took place during the summer of 1974 at the

Islip Speedway Islip Speedway was a .2-mile (320-meter) oval race track in Islip, New York which was open from 1947 until 1984. It is the smallest track to host NASCAR's Grand National Series, from 1964 to 1971. The first demolition derby took place at Islip ...

Outdoor Festival. 10,000 fans attended the all-day rock festival. The group disbanded in 1975. Fradkin returned to record production doing several projects for

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

along with his continuing role as a producer for Laurie Records.

Beatlemania: the Broadway musical

In July 1976, Fradkin auditioned for and won the role of

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

in ''Beatlemania'', the hit

Broadway show Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

of the late 1970s. ''Beatlemania'' was a Broadway musical revue focused on the life and music of

. Advertised as "Not the Beatles, but an Incredible Simulation", it ran from 1977 to 1979 for a total of 1006 performances. The ''Beatlemania'' show marked the birth of the "

Tribute Band A tribute act, tribute band or tribute group is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act. Tribute acts include individual performers who mimic the songs and style of an artist, such as Elvi ...

" industry. Fradkin appeared in over 1000 performances as lead guitarist. The show debuted in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

at the Colonial Theatre in April 1977 and opened for previews on May 26, 1977, at the

Winter Garden Theater The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It opened in 1911 under designs by architect William Albert Swasey. The Winter Garden's current design dates to 1922, when ...

. Quickly achieving sellout status without ever having an official "opening night", the Beatlemania band and the musical saw great success and worldwide publicity in ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' magazine, ''

People Magazine ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC (company), IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People ...

'', ''

Us Magazine ''Us Weekly'' is a weekly celebrity and entertainment magazine based in New York City. ''Us Weekly'' was founded in 1977 by The New York Times Company, who sold it in 1980. It was acquired by Wenner Media in 1986, and sold to American Media Inc ...

'', ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'', and ''

Rolling Stone Magazine ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its cov ...

''. For the first six months, every ticket for the show was sold out. Fradkin was also featured in performances with Beatlemania at the

Lunt-Fontanne Theatre The Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, originally the Globe Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 205 West 46th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1910, the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre was designed by Carrère and Hasting ...

Palace Theatre Palace Theatre, or Palace Theater, is the name of many theatres in different countries, including: Australia *Palace Theatre, Melbourne, Victoria *Palace Theatre, Sydney, New South Wales Canada *Palace Theatre, housed in the Robillard Block, Mo ...

in New York City; the Shubert Theatre in

Century City, Los Angeles, California Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of Downtown Los Angeles, Century City is one of ...

and the Pantages Theater in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

; and the Blackstone Theater (now the

Merle Reskin Theatre The Merle Reskin Theatre is a performing arts venue located in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. Originally named the Blackstone Theatre it was built in 1910. Renamed the Merle Reskin Theatre in 1992, it is now part of DePaul Unive ...

) in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. Fradkin performed with the show until its close on October 17, 1979.

Beatlemania: the album

In 1978, Beatlemania released a self-titled soundtrack to the show which included contributions from the first and second cast of performers from the show (as well as a few additional off stage keyboardists and musicians). Released on

Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertainmen ...

in 1978, the album received warm audience reaction, even placing on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for several weeks before falling into vinyl obscurity. Tracks from the album included most but not all of the original show's songlist and several of the tracks were either re-recorded entirely or partially re-recorded in the studio. The four original cast members that appear on the album included Mitch Weissman (

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

), Joe Pecorino (

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

), Les Fradkin (

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

), and Justin McNeill (

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

The 1980s

In the early 1980s, Fradkin returned to record production with the

label. 1981 saw the release of the California singles "Summer Fun Medley" and 1982's "He's Almost You" which had chart success. By 1983,

, a new interfacing technology for

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

was introduced and Fradkin saw new possibilities for his music productions. In 1984, he turned to the jingle and television music industry and guitar synthesis as a new form of musical expression. In 1983, he took up the

and has been a prime exponent of it ever since. He played the SynthAxe, the

Synclavier The Synclavier is an early digital synthesizer, polyphonic digital sampling system, and music workstation manufactured by New England Digital Corporation of Norwich, Vermont. It was produced in various forms from the late 1970s into the early 1 ...

, and various

Roland Corporation is a Japanese manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, electronic equipment, and software. It was founded by Ikutaro Kakehashi in Osaka on 18 April 1972. In 2005, its headquarters relocated to Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture. It has fact ...

GR guitar synthesizers over the years. He pioneered the introduction of completely

tapeless recording using the

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shareholder of Yamaha Motor Company (below). ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organization estab ...

QX1 digital sequencer and the

with the SynthAxe

MIDI guitar A guitar synthesizer is any one of a number of musical instrument systems that allow a guitarist to access synthesizer capabilities. Overview Today's guitar synths are direct descendants of 1970s devices from manufacturers (often in partner ...

controller and

Yamaha DX7 The Yamaha DX7 is a synthesizer manufactured by the Yamaha Corporation from 1983 to 1989. It was the first successful digital synthesizer and is one of the best-selling synthesizers in history, selling more than 200,000 units. In the early 1980 ...

and TX816 synthesizers in

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

music, and composed and programmed numerous successful jingles and movie soundtracks as well as many game show themes. He worked for

Score Productions Score Productions is an American musical production company specializing in background music and themes for television shows. Started in 1963 in a brownstone townhouse on the Upper East Side of Manhattan by music producer Bob Israel, Score has cre ...

and

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

and wrote national jingles for such products as

Cheerios Cheerios is a brand of cereal manufactured by General Mills in the United States, consisting of pulverized oats in the shape of a solid torus. In some countries, including the United Kingdom, Cheerios is marketed by Cereal Partners under the Ne ...

Campbell's Soup Campbell Soup Company, doing business as Campbell's, is an American processed food and snack company. The company is most closely associated with its flagship canned soup products; however, through mergers and acquisitions, it has grown to become ...

Nestlé Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Switzerland, Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other me ...

Crisco Crisco is an American brand of shortening that is produced by B%26G Foods. Introduced in June 1911 by Procter & Gamble, it was the first shortening to be made entirely of vegetable oil, originally cottonseed oil. Additional products marketed un ...

, and

American Express American Express Company (Amex) is an American multinational corporation specialized in payment card services headquartered at 200 Vesey Street in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The company was found ...

. He was the first composer in New York City to record entirely "direct-to-disk". His sonic innovations at that time with

and MIDI programming earned him great accolades in the television music industry which soon established him with the nickname "Dr. MIDI". 1985 saw a

Sutra Records Kama Sutra Records was started in 1964 by Arthur "Artie" Ripp, Hy Mizrahi and Phil Steinberg as Kama Sutra Productions, a production house. The "Kama Sutra" is an ancient Sanskrit text.Alan Betrock ''Girl groups: the story of a sound'' 1982 p.1 ...

guitar instrumental 12" single released of "

In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" (derived from "In the Garden of Eden") is a song recorded by Iron Butterfly, written by bandmember Doug Ingle and released on their 1968 album of the same name. At slightly over 17 minutes, it occupies the entire second s ...

". Fradkin recorded this as a duo with synthesist

Rob Hegel Robert Eric Hegel (born on August 5, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter best known for writing the Air Supply top twenty hit " Just as I Am" (with guitarist Dick Wagner) and the top ten disco hit "Sinner Man" for Sarah Dash (of Labelle). E ...

. The act was called Maddog.

3C Records Laurie Records was a record label established in New York City in 1958 by brothers Robert and Gene Schwartz, and Allan I. Sussel. Among the recording artists on Laurie's roster were Dion and the Belmonts (both together and as separate acts), T ...

released the first all-guitar synthesizer album, ''California-Electric Swing'' that year with Fradkin as producer, guitar synthesizer performer, and

synthesizer programmer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and f ...

. By 1989, Fradkin had programmed/composed/performed on over 50 national jingles and had 4 years of ''

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...

'' soap opera music under his belt.

The 1990s

Fradkin spent the 1990s composing new music and doing Beatlemania revival shows, including appearances across the United States, Canada,

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

, and the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...

. Most notably, the show, featuring Fradkin in his familiar

lead guitarist Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featured ...

role, played a successful week-long engagement in 1995 at the

Sahara Hotel and Casino Sahara Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It is owned and operated by the Meruelo Group. The hotel has 1,616 rooms, and the casino contains . The Sahara anchors the northern end of the Las Vegas ...

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

. In 1993,

signed a distribution deal with

ZYX Music ZYX Music GmbH & Co. KG is a German record label that was founded in 1971 by Bernhard Mikulski. It is one of the most successful German record labels of the 1980s and 1990s. Until 1992, the label's name was Pop-Import Bernhard Mikulski. The labe ...

Merenberg Merenberg is a municipality in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Merenberg lies on the southern edge of the Westerwald between the district seat of Limburg and Weilburg. Neighbouring communities Merenberg borders in ...

, Germany to reissue its entire catalog. ''Pass On This Side'' saw reissue as ''Godz Bless California'' with the cover art, artist name, and title changed without the artist's permission. Although this reissue series initially spurred a Godz reunion with Fradkin participating on guitar, the situation deteriorated and the reunion was quite brief with a show at New York's

The Bitter End The Bitter End is a 230-person capacity nightclub, coffeehouse and folk music venue in New York City's Greenwich Village. It opened in 1961 at 147 Bleecker Street under the auspices of owner Fred Weintraub. The club changed its name to ''The Ot ...

Cafe being the chief highlight for fans. Some new music was recorded during this period and several songs found their way onto later CD releases. By 1996, Fradkin relocated to

Redondo Beach, California Redondo Beach (Spanish for ''round'') is a coastal city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located in the South Bay region of the Greater Los Angeles area. It is one of three adjacent beach cities along the southern portion of Sa ...

where the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

provided a new direction for his musical efforts.

Trackbytrack Records and ''Get Wet''

He turned his focus to Internet

download In computer networks, download means to ''receive'' data from a remote system, typically a server such as a web server, an FTP server, an email server, or other similar system. This contrasts with uploading, where data is ''sent to'' a remote s ...

sales at the dawn of the era of Liquid Audio and mp3.com and formed his first independent record company known as Trackbytrack. Once again, Fradkin found himself at the center of the innovation tree as he developed a new take on the hitherto established

surf rock Surf music (or surf rock, surf pop, or surf guitar) is a Music genre, genre of rock music associated with surf culture, particularly as found in Southern California. It was especially popular from 1958 to 1964 in two major forms. The first is in ...

guitar sound which proved a great critical and sales success. Releasing a self-produced CD titled ''Get Wet'', tunes such as "Body Surfin'", "Surfin' the Classics, Parts 1 & 2", and "Reverbia" reached mp3.com's #1 position 16 times and garnered over 230,000 downloads. The music showed a blend of several notable influences including

Dick Dale Richard Anthony Monsour (May 4, 1937 – March 16, 2019), known professionally as Dick Dale, was an American rock guitarist. He was a pioneer of surf music, drawing on Middle Eastern music scale (music), scales and experimenting with reverb eff ...

Jeff Beck Geoffrey Arnold Beck (born 24 June 1944) is an English rock guitarist. He rose to prominence with the Yardbirds and after fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to a mainly instrumental style, with a focus ...

, and various

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

influences including

J.S. Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suite ...

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

, and Paganini. In 2001, a follow-up CD ''A Day at the Beach'' was released and had further success with three titles ("A Day at the Beach", "Hurricane Warning", and "The Bridge Across Forever") making the #1 slot on mp3.com. Fradkin also made a short lived licensing deal with

Renaissance Records Renaissance Recordings is a British record label, founded by the club Renaissance in 1994. It went into administration in September 2010 and the back catalogue was sold to Phoenix Music International Ltd. After a year of inactivity, in July 20 ...

to issue a CD entitled Paul Thornton & Les Fradkin - ''Godzology'' which featured archival unreleased material from past years from Thornton & Fradkin.

RRO Entertainment

In 2000, Fradkin relocated to Parker, Colorado and married. In 2003, he and his wife Loretta started a new recording and music publishing company called " RRO Entertainment" and Fradkin 2000 Music. The first release on the new indie label was ''Reality - The Rock Opera'', a Les Fradkin solo CD. Fradkin expanded his

concept and became a one-man virtual orchestra on this release playing

12-string guitar A twelve-string guitar (or 12-string guitar) is a steel-string guitar with 12 strings in six courses, which produces a thicker, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar. Typically, the strings of the lower four courses are tuned in o ...

6-string guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strings ...

, and

. This was quickly followed by the reissue of the two Get Wet CDs repackaged and remastered for 24-bit fidelity. The two CDs were now titled: Les Fradkin & Get Wet - ''Splash!'' and Les Fradkin & Get Wet - ''A Day at the Beach''. Critical acclaim and sales quickly followed these releases. Robert Silverstein wrote liner notes to both CDs and ''20th Century Guitar Magazine'' ran a feature article on Fradkin. In the

U.K. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, ''"New" Gandy Dancer'' instrumental rock magazine named ''A Day at the Beach'' its 2004 Album of the Year.

With the Ventures

This brought Fradkin to the attention of

Nokie Edwards Nole Floyd "Nokie" Edwards (May 9, 1935 – March 12, 2018) was an American musician and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was primarily a guitarist, best known for his work with The Ventures, and was known in Japan as the 'Ki ...

of the Ventures, during

LouieFest LouieFest is an American music festival featuring the prominent contributions to rock and roll by bands and performers, both emerging and established, from the Northwest region. Organized in 2003 by John 'Buck' Ormsby and Kent Morrill, members of Th ...

in summer 2004 in Tacoma, Washington. Edwards brought Fradkin to the attention of the Ventures who quickly signed him to an endorsement agreement with their new Wilson Bros. Ventures guitar line. In addition, Fradkin performed live with the Ventures as second lead guitarist at the Salmon Days Festival in

Issaquah Issaquah ( ) is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 40,051 at the 2020 census. Located in a valley and bisected by Interstate 90, the city is bordered by the Sammamish Plateau to the north and the "Issaquah Alp ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

in October, 2004.

also recorded with Fradkin on several occasions and was a featured guest on his '' While My Guitar Only Plays'' CD.

The Internet Download Years

RRO Entertainment entered the music marketplace during a time of declining

compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then rele ...

sales in the music industry in general. Fradkin decided to concentrate on the burgeoning

market through distribution with

CD Baby CD Baby, Inc. is an online distributor of independent music. The company was described as an "anti-label" by its parent company's Chief Operating Officer Tracy Maddux. The CD Baby music store was shut down in March 2020 with a statement that "C ...

and this strategy paid off handsomely. By 2009, Fradkin had released 31 albums on his RRO Entertainment label, 20 of them as solo CDs - all titles available through worldwide download outlets such as

Apple iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

Napster Napster was a peer-to-peer file sharing application. It originally launched on June 1, 1999, with an emphasis on digital audio file distribution. Audio songs shared on the service were typically encoded in the MP3 format. It was founded by Shawn ...

Rhapsody Rhapsody may refer to: * A work of epic poetry, or part of one, that is suitable for recitation at one time ** Rhapsode, a classical Greek professional performer of epic poetry Computer software * Rhapsody (online music service), an online m ...

, and many others. Many singles from these CDs became popular Apple iTunes downloads. Some of the singles, (featuring Fradkin on vocals,

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

, and

), including "

Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes) "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" is the debut single by Edison Lighthouse. The song reached the number one spot on the UK Singles Chart on the week ending 31 January 1970, where it remained for a total of five weeks. It also became the first ...

", " My Baby Loves Lovin", "

While My Guitar Gently Weeps "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 double album ''The Beatles'' (also known as "the White Album"). It was written by George Harrison, the band's lead guitarist. Harrison wrote "While My ...

" (done as a melodramatic guitar instrumental), "

My Sweet Lord "My Sweet Lord" is a song by English musician George Harrison, released in November 1970 on his triple album ''All Things Must Pass''. It was also released as a single, Harrison's first as a solo artist, and topped charts worldwide; it was the ...

" (a cover of the

smash hit featuring

Richie Furay Paul Richard Furay (born May 9, 1944) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member (with Buffalo Springfield). He is best known for forming the bands Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Neil Young, Bruc ...

on background vocals and acoustic guitar), "

Have I the Right "Have I the Right?" was the debut single and biggest hit of British band The Honeycombs. It was composed by Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley, who had made contact with The Honeycombs, a London-based group, then playing under the name of The Sheratons, ...

" (a cover of

the Honeycombs The Honeycombs were an English beat group, founded in 1963 in North London, best known for their chart-topping 1964 hit, the million selling "Have I the Right?" The band featured Honey Lantree on drums, one of the few female drummers in bands ...

hit), and " You Were On My Mind" (a cover of the famous hit by

We Five We Five was a 1960s folk rock musical group based in San Francisco, California. Their best-known hit was their 1965 remake of Ian & Sylvia's " You Were on My Mind", which reached No. 1 on the Cashbox chart, #3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and ...

) became popular sellers on Apple's download service. Fradkin's 2006 CD ''If Your Memory Serves You Well'' (a tribute to

) also scored with fans and his cover of "

Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn) "Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)" is a folk-rock song written by Bob Dylan and first recorded during ''The Basement Tapes'' sessions in 1967. The song was recorded in December 1967 and first released in January 1968 as "Mighty Quinn" by th ...

" a/k/a "The Mighty Quinn" sold well and received great critical acclaim. In particular, Fradkin exploited the absence of the Beatles catalog on iTunes and released several successful download CDs of Beatles guitar

instrumental rock Instrumental rock is rock music that emphasizes musical instruments and features very little or no singing. Examples of instrumental rock can be found in practically every subgenre of rock, often from musicians who specialize in the style. Instru ...

('' While My Guitar Only Plays'' featuring

of the Ventures, ''Pepper Front to Back'', ''The White Single'', and ''Guitar Revolution'') as well as two CDs of his vocal tribute to George Harrison's solo and Beatles material - ''Something for George'' and ''Love You 2''. Those sold especially well and established Fradkin as a prime exponent of Beatles cover material in the modern era. In the

market, Fradkin's two Get Wet reissues scored well with "

Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...

" and "

Good Vibrations "Good Vibrations" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was composed by Brian Wilson with lyrics by Mike Love. It was released as a single on October 10, 1966 and was an immediate critical and commercial hit, topping record c ...

" seeing success. His 2006 production of "

They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa! "They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!" is a 1966 novelty record written and performed by Jerry Samuels (billed as Napoleon XIV), and released on Warner Bros. Records. The song became an instant success in the United States, peaking at No. 3 on ...

" by Napoleon's Ghost rocked the

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

charts and brought RRO Entertainment a bona fide download hit single. He even recreated the backwards B-side "!aaaH-aH ,yawA eM ekaT oT gnimoC er'yehT." Other artists on RRO included Venus In Bluejeans,

Edison Lighthouse Edison Lighthouse are an English pop band, formed in London in 1969. The band was best known for their 1970 hit single "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" recorded in late 1969. Career Before the name Edison Lighthouse, they were known as ...

, the Dirt Surfers, and a four volume tribute to

entitled "Timeless Flyte" with extensive liner notes by noted Byrds historian John Einarson and rock critic Eric Sorensen. Some of the artists on the "Timeless Flyte" project included

Andrew Gold Andrew Maurice Gold (August 2, 1951 – June 3, 2011) was an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and record producer who influenced much of the Los Angeles-dominated pop rock, pop/soft rock sound in the 1970s. Gold played on scor ...

, Bill Lloyd, Jefferey Foskett, the Kennedys, the Shambles,

Walter Egan Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...

Alice Stuart Alice Stuart (born June 15, 1942 in Chelan, Washington, United States) is an American blues and folk singer-songwriter and guitarist. She toured the UK with Van Morrison and throughout the United States with Mississippi John Hurt. Her singin ...

, Bob Harris, Bedsit Poets, Bill Kaffenberger,

the Dixie Bee-Liners The Dixie Bee-Liners are an American Bluegrass group, formed in New York City in 2002 by Buddy Woodward and Brandi Hart. Their music has been called Bluegrass, Americana, alt-country, Folk, and "Bible Belt Noir". The Bee-Liners have released ...

, and Tony Poole of

Starry Eyed and Laughing Starry Eyed and Laughing were an English rock band of the 1970s. Formed in 1973, they released two albums on CBS, recorded three Peel Sessions and undertook a US tour, before briefly evolving into Starry Eyed, and finally disbanding in 1976. His ...

. In 2008, he licensed the download rights for the CD ''Colorado to Liverpool - A Tribute To The Beatles'', from

Firefall Firefall is an American country rock band that formed in Boulder, Colorado, in 1974. It was founded by Rick Roberts, former member of the Flying Burrito Brothers, and Jock Bartley, who had been Tommy Bolin's replacement in Zephyr. The band ...

, stars of country rock. In October 2008, RRO Entertainment released a YouTube video of his song "Everything Is Wrong" from his ''Reality - The Rock Opera'' CD. The financial crisis of America which was prophetically depicted in the lyric of "Everything Is Wrong" back in 2003, quickly found a worldwide audience of empathy and drove the download single of "Everything Is Wrong" to the top of Fradkin's best seller Apple iTunes list. In May 2009, Fradkin released his second album featuring

entitled ''Baroque Rocks!'', taking Baroque works by

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his training i ...

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

, and

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread a ...

(including '' The Four Seasons'') and applying rock treatments; Fradkin's classical influence came most fully to the fore with this release. ''Baroque Rocks!'' also featured a cover version for

of the

Mason Williams Mason Douglas Williams (born August 24, 1938) is an American classical guitarist, composer, singer, writer, comedian, and poet, best known for his 1968 instrumental "Classical Gas" and for his work as a comedy writer on ''The Smothers Brothers ...

instrumental "

Classical Gas "Classical Gas" is an instrumental musical piece composed and originally performed by American guitarist Mason Williams with instrumental backing by members of the Wrecking Crew. Originally released in 1968 on the album ''The Mason Williams Ph ...

" on which Fradkin performed the entire arrangement on the

and

. This CD also features Fradkin's brand new arrangement for "

Canon in D Pachelbel's Canon (also known as the Canon in D, P 37) is an accompanied canon by the German Baroque composer Johann Pachelbel. The canon was originally scored for three violins and basso continuo and paired with a gigue, known as ''Canon and G ...

". Fradkin performed the entire arrangement on the Starr Labs

, which consists of a brand new melodic composition over the original classical orchestral parts to yield a brand new work.

Technique and equipment

Fradkin uses a combination of

compression Compression may refer to: Physical science *Compression (physics), size reduction due to forces *Compression member, a structural element such as a column *Compressibility, susceptibility to compression *Gas compression *Compression ratio, of a c ...

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

delay Delay (from Latin: dilatio) may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Delay 1968'', a 1981 album by German experimental rock band Can * ''The Delay'', a 2012 Uruguayan film People * B. H. DeLay (1891–1923), American aviator and acto ...

, and

reverb Reverberation (also known as reverb), in acoustics, is a persistence of sound, after a sound is produced. Reverberation is created when a sound or signal is reflected causing numerous reflections to build up and then decay as the sound is abso ...

for his guitar sound. He generally records his guitar parts in

stereo Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...

, often using a VG-8 Virtual Guitar System by

in addition to the guitar's regular output signal. His main guitars for recording and performance work are the

Fender Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of electric guitar designed from 1952 into 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corporation has continuously ...

Fender Jaguar The Fender Jaguar is an electric guitar by Fender Musical Instruments characterized by an offset-waist body, a relatively unusual switching system with two separate circuits for lead and rhythm, and a short-scale 24" neck. Owing some roots to th ...

, and Wilson Bros. Ventures guitars which are new Don Wilson designed variants of the

Mosrite Mosrite is an American guitar manufacturing company, based in Bakersfield, California, from the late 1950s to the early 1990s. Founded by Semie Moseley, Mosrite guitars were played by many rock and roll and country artists. Mosrite guitars were ...

guitars that the Ventures endorsed in the 1960s. He favors a

Rickenbacker 360/12 The Rickenbacker 360/12 is the Rickenbacker company's 12-string variant of their 360 electric guitar model. Mainly known for producing " jangly" sounds, it was among the first electric 12-string guitars. The 360/12 was given worldwide attention ...

12-string electric for jangly tones. His use of Rickenbacker 12-string is especially prominent in his stint with ''

'' as well as some of his solo CD releases such as ''Jangleholic'', ''Spirit of Christmas'', ''If Your Memory Serves You Well'', ''Goin' Back'', and ''12''. His guitar parts are always recorded direct with amp simulators to keep noise to an absolute minimum and are usually double tracked. His guitar effects include the Janglebox,

compressor, and Vox Tonelab. To construct his backing tracks, on which he usually plays all the instruments, he uses a

Z7s to control various

synthesizers, the GForce M-Tron (a software instrument representation of a

), the

Vienna Symphonic Library Vienna Symphonic Library GmbH (VSL) is one of the leading developers of sample libraries and music production software for classical orchestral music. The company is located in a landmark protected building, called Synchron Stage Vienna based in t ...

, and drums. He handles bass parts with a

Rickenbacker Rickenbacker International Corporation is a string instrument manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California. The company is credited as the first known maker of electric guitars – a steel guitar in 1932 – and today produces a range ...

bass, a 12 String Bass, as well as the Ztar. His production style is chiefly characterized by generous amounts of compression, loud recording levels, and a dense sonic arrangement wall which many have compared favorably with the likes of

and

. Although he always records digitally with

Digital Performer Digital Performer is a digital audio workstation and music sequencer software package published by Mark of the Unicorn (MOTU) of Cambridge, Massachusetts for the Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows platforms. Ancestry In 1984, Mark of the Un ...

Ableton Live Ableton Live is a digital audio workstation for macOS and Windows developed by the German company Ableton. In contrast to many other software sequencers, Ableton Live is designed to be an instrument for live performances as well as a tool f ...

, Apple

Logic Pro Logic Pro is a digital audio workstation (DAW) and MIDI music sequencer, sequencer software application for the macOS platform. It was originally created in the early 1990s as Notator Logic, or Logic, by German software developer C-Lab which ...

, and the

VSR-880, his sound is quite reminiscent of the warmth embodied in 1960s

analog recording Analog recording is a technique used for the recording of analog signals which, among many possibilities, allows analog audio for later playback. Analog audio recording began with mechanical systems such as the phonautograph and phonograph. ...

technique. In 2007, he acquired a

which revealed new possibilities for his

technique with his 2008 releases of his popular cover of

the Tornados The Tornados (The Tornadoes in North America) were an English instrumental rock group of the 1960s that acted as backing group for many of record producer Joe Meek's productions and also for singer Billy Fury. They enjoyed several chart hits ...

' "

Telstar Telstar is the name of various communications satellites. The first two Telstar satellites were experimental and nearly identical. Telstar 1 launched on top of a Thor-Delta rocket on July 10, 1962. It successfully relayed through space the fir ...

" and his 2008 full-length CD ''One Link Between Them''. Fradkin now has the ability to offer melody, rhythm, bass, looping, percussion, and

clip cueing all live under his hands with the

, making him, effectively, an

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

One Man Band A one-man band is a musician who plays a number of instruments simultaneously using their hands, feet, limbs, and various mechanical or electronic contraptions. One-man bands also often sing while they perform. The simplest type of "one-man ban ...

References

* "Like a Rolling Stone - The Strange Life of a Tribute Band", Steven Kurutz Broadway Books, New York, 2008 * "John Willis' Theater World - Volume 34 1977-1978" Crown Publishers, New York 1979 * "The Ultimate

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

Encyclopedia",

Bill Harry William Harry (born 17 September 1938) is the creator of '' Mersey Beat'', a newspaper of the early 1960s which focused on the Liverpool music scene. Harry had previously started various magazines and newspapers, such as ''Biped'' and ''Premier ...

, Hyperion Publishers, New York 1992 * "MP3 for Dummies" by

Andy Rathbone Andy Rathbone is the author of a number of ...for Dummies books about Microsoft Windows as well as other computing books. Biography Rathbone was born in San Diego, California. He attended San Diego State University, majoring in comparative litera ...

(First Edition) IDG Books, New York, 1999 * "Bubblegum Music Is the Naked Truth", Kim Cooper & David Smay, Feral House, 2001 * "Those Were the Days - An Unofficial History of The Beatles Apple Organization 1967-2002", Stefan Granados, Cherry Red Books, 2002 * "Urban Spacemen & Wayfaring Strangers - Overlooked Innovators and Eccentric Visionaries of '60s Rock", Richie Unterberger, Miller Freeman, 2000 * "All Together Now - The First Complete Beatles Discography 1961-1975", Harry Castleman and Wally Podzarik, Pierian Press, 1975 * "

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

to Rock" (3rd Edition), Backbeat Books, 2002 * ''TIME'' magazine "I Want to Hold Your Hand - Again" Beatlemania Article, 1977
TIME website
* "Beatlemania's Boys in the Band" by John Mendelssohn for

External links

Beatlemania Alumni.com

IBDB listing

lesfradkin.com

Dave Thompson-"A Music Lover's Guide To Record Collecting"

A Complete History of California featuring Les Fradkin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fradkin, Les American male composers 20th-century American composers Living people Musicians from New York City Musicians from Redondo Beach, California MGM Records artists Laurie Records artists 1951 births Guitarists from California 20th-century American guitarists American male guitarists 20th-century American male musicians Edison Lighthouse members