Lester Abrams (born 1945) is a singer, songwriter, musician and producer who has played with such artists as

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

Peabo Bryson Robert Peapo "Peabo" Bryson (born April 13, 1951) is an American singer and songwriter. He is known for singing soul ballads (often as a duet with female singers) including the 1983 hit "Tonight, I Celebrate My Love" with Roberta Flack. Bryson ...

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

Manfred Mann Manfred Mann were an English rock band, formed in London and active between 1962 and 1969. The group were named after their keyboardist Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The band had two differen ...

Brian Auger Brian Albert Gordon Auger (born 18 July 1939) is an English jazz rock and rock music keyboardist who specialises in the Hammond organ. Auger has worked with Rod Stewart, Tony Williams, Jimi Hendrix, John McLaughlin, Sonny Boy Williamson, an ...

The Average White Band The Average White Band (also known as AWB) are a Scottish funk and R&B band that had a series of soul and disco hits between 1974 and 1980. They are best known for their million-selling instrumental track " Pick Up the Pieces", and their album ...

The Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in 1970 in San Jose, California, known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies. Active for five decades, with their greatest success in the 1970s, ...

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and many others. Two of his co-compositions appeared on the

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

–winning album ''

Minute by Minute ''Minute by Minute'' is the eighth studio album by American rock band The Doobie Brothers, released on December 1, 1978, by Warner Bros. Records. It was their last album to include members John Hartman (until '' Cycles'') and Jeff "Skunk" Bax ...

''. He has also composed songs for film and television; two of his works can be heard in the

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Stone won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as writer of '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and wrote the gangster film remake '' Sc ...

–produced movie '' South Central''. Lester Abrams was also a member of and/or associated with several other bands and people, including Leslie Smith, Arno Lucas, Rick Chudacoff, The Les Smith Soul Band, L.A. Carnival, Crackin' and more recently,

Connie Price and the Keystones Connie Price and the Keystones is a project helmed by guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Dan Ubick from Los Angeles, California, combining influences of funk, hip-hop, psych and soul. Besides Ubick, it had a revolving membership while they performe ...

Biography

Lester's maternal grandmother moved the Abrams family from the Southwest to

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

in the early 1900s; Lester's multi-racial father met his bi-racial mother there. Lester was born in 1945, and, as a child, had serious problems explaining his cultural background, which included ancestry from both Native and Black America. Lester's introduction to music was sitting next to his grandmother at her piano. However, although he "tinkered around" with the piano, his instrument of choice was the drums. His skill was such that his junior high bandleader, Harold Smith, allowed him to play with the high school dance band. By the time he started at the Omaha Technical High School in 1960, he had been playing in the dance band for nearly two years.(2003
L.A. Carnival
. StonesThrow.com. Retrieved 29 May 2007.

Career

Early years

Abrams' first band was the El Doradoes, with Michael Hatfield on rhythm guitar, Louie Walker on lead guitar, Danny Williams on tenor sax and Greg Williams on baritone sax. Through his teen years he developed his own style of drumming, adding a funk rhythm to established riffs, and playing in clubs in Omaha's Near North Side. In his early twenties, he took the lead of The Fabulous Impacts, with Joe Olivo on bass, Dave “Barney” Barnhart on guitar, Ed Finney on organ, Harry Roberts on trumpet and sax and ex–El Dorado Mike Hatfield on lead vocals. Funded by Olivo's father, and recorded at Sears Recording Studio by local label owner Eddie Haddad, the group crafted two 45s – the Abrams-composed “A Thousand Years” b/w “Cry Cry” (both featuring Lester on lead vocals) and Allen Toussaint's "

Get Out of My Life, Woman "Get Out of My Life, Woman" is a song written by Allen Toussaint and first recorded by Lee Dorsey. It reached number five on the U.S. ''Billboard'' R&B chart and number 44 on the Hot 100 singles chart in 1966. Background In a song review for Al ...

" backed with “Tell Me”.

The Les Smith Soul Band

As Lester was developing the Fabulous Impacts and a reputation as "the baddest drummer in town", Leslie Orlando Smith (born 1949 in Detroit) was attending North High School and singing lead in the band Sights and Sounds with, amongst others, schoolmate

Ron Cooley Lester Abrams (born 1945) is a singer, songwriter, musician and producer who has played with such artists as B.B. King, Stevie Wonder, Peabo Bryson, Quincy Jones, Manfred Mann, Brian Auger, The Average White Band, The Doobie Brothers, Rufus and ...

on guitar and a bass player from Central High, Rick Chudacoff. After a series of personnel and name changes, including the addition of Arno Lucas, they became the Les Smith Soul Band. After some time, Leslie invited Lester to a performance at a local high school, and subsequently to sit in on a rehearsal. At the rehearsal, Lester joined in, and by the end of the sessions was part of the band. He immediately took over control of the band, and it went from being a soul band to being a

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

band with the lineup: In 1969 the band cut three tracks, all written by Abrams: the soulful “Blind Man”, the Arno Lucas lead “Bad Luck”, and an instrumental funk number, “Blues for LA”.

L.A. Carnival

In 1969, Leslie Smith was drafted into the army and stationed in Seoul. Abrams changed the band's name to L.A. Carnival (L.A. as in Lester Abrams). Vocal duties were assumed mainly by Arno, with Abrams singing backup from behind the drum kit. Under that name, they released only one single, "Blind Man" b/w "Color" on Skip Wilson's Pacific Avenue label. Abrams arranged for an appearance in California on

Johnny Otis Johnny Otis (born Ioannis Alexandres Veliotes; December 28, 1921 – January 17, 2012) was an American singer, musician, composer, bandleader, record producer, and talent scout. He was a seminal influence on American R&B and rock and roll. He ...

’ show, but Rick, Ron, and Percy had student deferments and couldn't leave Omaha. ("Had we left school in Omaha, we would have been drafted and sent to Vietnam.”(2003
Interview with Rick Chudacoff
. Retrieved 29 May 2007.) By the time their single was released, the band members had other priorities. Leslie had returned from the army and signed on for

HAIR Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and f ...

’s nationwide tour, Rick and Arno were readying to join funk-rock outfit Crackin’, and Ron had joined a rock band called Pilot. As Rick Chudacoff recalls, "L.A. Carnival quietly faded away".

Crackin'

In the mid-70's, Lester became involved with Crackin', who released four LPs between 1975 and 1978. Lester played on the first three of these LPs. *1975 Crackin'-1 (Polydor PD6044) *1977 Makings of a Dream (Warner Bros. BS2989) *1977 Crackin' (Warner Bros. BS3123 ) *1978 Special Touch (Warner Bros. wb3235) Performers common to all four of the LPs were Rick Chudacoff (bass), Leslie Smith (vocals), Arno Lucas (vocals and percussion), Bob Bordy (guitars), and George T. Clinton (keyboards). Lester Abrams (vocals & keyboards) performed on the first three, Peter Bunetta (drums) performed on the last three, and Brian Ray (guitars) on the last two. Rick Chudacoff and Peter Bunetta went on to produce many albums. Often, Rick, Peter, Leslie, Arno, and Bob also performed on the albums. Chudacoff has also been referred to as "Noted Nashville hitmaker Rick Chudacoff (

The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive director. He was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief ...

Alison Krauss Alison Maria Krauss (born July 23, 1971) is an American bluegrass-country singer and musician. She entered the music industry at an early age, competing in local contests by the age of 8 and recording for the first time at 14. She signed with ...

)". On 30 September 2006, a performance at the Casino de Paris (in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

) involved many of these artists.

The Doobie Brothers

In the late '70s, Abrams moved to California and became involved with

' 1979

–winning ''

'' album. He arranged " What a Fool Believes", which won two 1979 Grammys for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. He is credited with piano and vocals on the album. He co-wrote the "Minute by Minute" single with McDonald, and "Open Your Eyes" with McDonald and

Henderson Henderson may refer to: People *Henderson (surname), description of the surname, and a list of people with the surname *Clan Henderson, a Scottish clan Places Argentina *Henderson, Buenos Aires Australia *Henderson, Western Australia Canada * H ...

1980s

*1982 Leslie Smith released his first album, ''Heartache'' (Elektra), produced by Peter Bunetta and Rick Chudacoff, which contains cover versions such as Airplay's "Nothin' You Can Do About It" and Ned Doheny's "Love's A Heartache".(nd
Leslie Smith
Retrieved 29 May 2007. *1988 The song "Love Light", written, produced and arranged by Lester Abrams, appeared on the soundtrack to the 1988 movie '' The Party''.Not to be confused with the 1968 Peter Sellers film The Party(nd
The Party soundtrack
Retrieved 1 June 2007.

1990s

*1992 Leslie Smith releases ''Les Is More'', Polydor (POCP-1271). *1992 Lester Abrams became involved with the film '' South Central''.

2000s – Resurgence of L.A. Carnival

*In 2002, four of the members of L.A. Carnival reunited in Malibu Canyon, resulting in the complete set of L.A. Carnival / Les Smith Soul Band songs being re-released by

Now-Again Records Now-Again Records is a Los Angeles–based music imprint that specializes in reissues and compilations of funk, soul, and psychedelic rock from the 1960s to the 1980s. Founded in 2002 by Eothen "Egon" Alapatt as a subsidiary of Stones Throw Reco ...

in 2003.(2003
L.A. Carnival re-releases
StonesThrow.Com. Retrieved 29 May 2007. As part of that process, "Egon" (and friends) from Now-Again Records produced a 6-minute which includes an interview with Lester, and two partial renditions of "Flyin, one of which also includes Les Smith. *Also in 2003, Abrams composed "Bring It On" as a

charity single A charity record or charity single is a song released by musicians with most or all proceeds raised going to a dedicated foundation or charity. George Harrison's " Bangla Desh" single in 1971 is commonly acknowledged as the first ever purpose-mad ...

in support of the

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation JDRF is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that funds type 1 diabetes (T1D) research, provides a broad array of community and activist services to the T1D population and actively advocates for regulation favorable to medical research and approval o ...

. *"On 30 May 2004, Abrams and Smith joined forces with young funkateers

to bring the L.A. Carnival sound back to life, with a live performance at the Independent in San Francisco". *Abrams and Smith appear on Connie Price and the Keystones' 2004 album '' Wildflowers''. *In 2005, Lester, along with Arno Lucas and Leslie Smith (ex–L.A. Carnival and Crackin' members), were inducted into the

Omaha Black Music Hall of Fame The Omaha Black Music Hall of Fame, or the OBMHoF, is a nonprofit organization founded in 2005 to celebrate, document and honour the legacy of the many top vocalists and musicians whose musical careers began in the metropolitan area of Omaha, Nebr ...

Compositions

*1967 "A Thousand Years" - performed by The Fabulous Impacts *1969-71: A dozen songs performed by L.A. Carnival and/or The Les Smith Soul Band: "Bad Luck", “Black Man’s March”, "Blind Man", "Blues for LA", "Can You Hum a Tune", "Color", “Flying”, “Pose A Question”, "Scratchin, “Seven Lonely Steps” (also titled "7 Steps to Nowhere"), “The Klan” and “We Need Peace” (also titled "We Need Peace and Love") *1975-77: Over a dozen songs appearing on various Crackin' LPs, including "Wanna Dance", "Fall in Line", "Starring You", "Turn It Over", "The Force is Watching You" (with Michael Omartian and Leslie Orlando Smith), "Fallen Dancer", "I Know You Can" (with Rick Chudacoff and L. Lovingood), "Do You Need More Time" (with Arno Lucas and Leslie Orlando Smith), and "The World's A Fool for You". *1979 "Minute by Minute" (with Michael McDonald) **Performed by

: Appears on several Doobie Brothers albums, and on many compilation albums. **Others who have recorded a performance of "Minute by Minute" include

Stanley Clarke Stanley Clarke (born June 30, 1951) is an American bassist, film composer and founding member of Return to Forever, one of the first jazz fusion bands. Clarke gave the bass guitar a prominence it lacked in jazz-related music. He is the first jaz ...

Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...

Bobby Lyle Robert Lyle (born March 11, 1944) is a jazz pianist/organist and educator. Early life Lyle was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on March 11, 1944 to parents Robert and Elise Lyle. He grew up in a musical household after the family moved from Memphis ...

, Kim Pensyl and

. **Larry Carlton won a Grammy in 1987 for his version of the song. *1979 "Open Your Eyes" (with McDonald and

) - performed by The Doobie Brothers, and also by

Maria Muldaur Maria Muldaur (born Maria Grazia Rosa Domenica D'Amato; September 12, 1942) is an American folk and blues singer who was part of the American folk music revival in the early 1960s. She recorded the 1973 hit song "Midnight at the Oasis" and has ...

*1986 "You Want It Your Way, Always" (with Sandee Burnett) - performed by

Fizzy Qwick Fizzy Qwick (born February 9, 1953) is an American singer and songwriter who has recorded in various musical styles ranging from R&B to new wave. Her recordings from the early 1980s have become popular among fans of Northern soul since the ea ...

*1988 "Love Light" *2003
Bring It On

Discography

1967 The Fabulous Impacts

Two 45s * “A Thousand Years” b/w “Cry Cry” * "

" backed with “Tell Me”

1969 The Les Smith Soul Band

The band cut three tracks *“Blind Man” *“Bad Luck” *“Blues for LA”

1971 L.A. Carnival

One single: "Blind Man" b/w "Color" on Skip Wilson's Pacific Avenue label.

1975–1978 Crackin'

Crackin'–1

*Format: LP *Released: 1975 *Label: Polydor *Catalog No: PD 6044 *Playing Time: 33:21 *Track list

Makings of a Dream

*Format: LP *Released: 1977 *Label: Warner Bros. *Catalog No: BS2989

Crackin'

*Format: LP(nd
Discography Crackin'
Retrieved 1 June 2007. *Released: 1977 *Label: Warner Brothers *Catalog No: BS 3123 *Playing Time: 35:23 *Track list

Special Touch

*Format: LP *Released: 1978 *Label: Warner Brothers *Catalog No: BS 3235 *Track list

2003 L.A. Carnival / Les Smith Soul Band re-releases

In 2003, the complete set of L.A. Carnival / Les Smith Soul Band songs, all written by Abrams, were re-released by

"Color" b/w "Blind Man"

*NA7003 / STH7024 – 7" single – 2003 – produced by Scott Abrams *Track list *# Color *# Blind Man

"Blind Man"

*NA2003 / STH2053 – 12" single – 2003 – produced by Lester Abrams *Track list

"Pose a Question" b/w "Can You Hum a Tune"

*NA7011 – 7" single – 2003 – produced by Lester Abrams *Track list *# Pose a Question *# Can You Hum a Tune?

"Would Like to Pose a Question"

*NA5009 – 2LP/CD – 2003 – produced by Lester Abrams *Track list *CD track list *#Flyin' 4:48 *#We Need Peace and Love 4:03 *#(We'd Like To) Pose a Question 3:22 *#7 Steps to Nowhere 4:57 *#Blind Man 2:59 *#Can You Hum a Tune 2:00 *#Color 2:30 *#The Klan 7:42 *#Black Man's March 3:14 *#Ron's Tune 4:34 *#Scratchin' ive5:41 *#Ron's Tune lternate Take – live6:34 *#Bad Luck ive3:06 *#Blues for L.A. ive2:49

Filmography credits

*1988 '' The Party'' – Song ("Love Light") *1992 '' South Central'' – Songs *1992 ''South Central'' – Song Performer ("Love Light", "Drink the Water") *2005 ''

The 40-Year-Old Virgin ''The 40-Year-Old Virgin'' is a 2005 American romantic comedy film directed by Judd Apatow, who produced the film with Clayton Townsend and Shauna Robertson. It features Steve Carell as the titular 40-year-old virgin Andy, an employee at an el ...

'' - Song ("Minute by Minute")

References

External links

Official Site Lester Abrams Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (2015) {{DEFAULTSORT:Abrams, Lester Musicians from Omaha, Nebraska American funk singers 1945 births Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Now-Again Records artists