Thomas Morgan Edwards (December 4, 1932 – June 23, 2022) was an American harmonicist and

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

, who had been active since the 1950s. He was considered one of the most heard harmonica players in the world, playing in over 500 feature films. Morgan's extraordinarily prolific career spanned seven decades, and included playing on (and occasionally composing) themes and incidental music for dozens of major Hollywood films, and hundreds of episodes of American television series, including main themes for The Rockford Files and

Sanford and Son ''Sanford and Son'' is an American sitcom television series that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977. It was based on the British sitcom ''Steptoe and Son'', which initially aired on BBC One in the United ...

. Although frequently uncredited in his earlier career (as was typical for session musicians of that era), Morgan also has a huge list of credits in popular music -- among the most notable in that field are his prominent contributions to the seminal mid-1960s recordings by The Beach Boys, including the '' Pet Sounds'' album, their number one single " Good Vibrations" and the recordings made for their uncompleted ''Smile'' project. He retired after a stroke in late 2013 and died at the age of 89 on June 23, 2022.

Awards

In 2001, Morgan received a Special Lifetime Achievement Award from

The Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica The Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica (SPAH) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation dedicated to players of the harmonica. Organized as a club, SPAH has members worldwide, though the majority of the members are located ...

Collaborations

* ''

Randy Newman Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist known for his Southern American English, Southern-accented singing style, early Americana (music), Americana-influenced songs (often ...

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(1968) * " Rainy Days and Mondays" - The Carpenters (1971) * '' Playing Possum'' -

Carly Simon Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, memoirist, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation" (No. 13), " The Right Thin ...

(1975) * ''

Beautiful Noise ''Beautiful Noise'' is the tenth album by Neil Diamond and his third with Columbia Records, released in 1976. "Dry Your Eyes" was performed with The Band at their farewell show and is featured in Martin Scorsese's ''The Last Waltz''. Overvi ...

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Neil Diamond Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. He has had ten No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 and Adul ...

(1976) * ''

Making a Good Thing Better ''Making a Good Thing Better'' is the ninth studio album by British-Australian singer Olivia Newton-John, released on June 1977. The album peaked at No. 34 on the US Pop chart and No. 13 on the Country chart. It was Newton-John's first album no ...

'' - Olivia Newton-John (1977) * ''

I'm Glad You're Here with Me Tonight ''I'm Glad You're Here with Me Tonight'' is the eleventh studio album by Neil Diamond, released on Columbia Records in 1977. It includes a solo version of the song "You Don't Bring Me Flowers". Diamond would score a #1 hit with a new version reco ...

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(1977) * '' Don't Cry Out Loud'' - Melissa Manchester (1978) * '' Change of Heart'' - Eric Carmen (1978) * '' Barry'' -

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

(1980) * ''

Dolly, Dolly, Dolly ''Dolly, Dolly, Dolly'' is the twenty-second solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. It was released on April 14, 1980, by RCA Victor. The album's two singles, " Starting Over Again" and "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to Yo ...

'' - Dolly Parton (1981) * '' Peter Cetera'' - Peter Cetera (1981) * '' Looking Back with Love'' - Mike Love (1981) * ''

Love Will Turn You Around ''Love Will Turn You Around'' is the thirteenth studio album by Kenny Rogers, released in 1982. The title cut was the debut single and charted well, reaching #1 on the U.S. and Canadian country charts and adult contemporary charts, and #13 on the ...

'' - Kenny Rogers (1982) * '' Lush Life'' - Linda Ronstadt (1984) * '' Jump!'' - Van Dyke Parks (1984) * '' Emotion'' - Juice Newton (1987) * '' The Rumour'' - Olivia Newton-John (1988) * '' Bellybutton'' - Jellyfish (1990) * '' The Crossing'' - Paul Young (1993) * ''

The Christmas Album, Volume II ''The Christmas Album, Volume II'' is the twenty-second studio album by Neil Diamond, and his second to feature Christmas music. It was produced by Peter Asher and released by Columbia Records in 1994, only two years after Diamond's previous C ...

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(1994) * '' Orange Crate Art'' -

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (born June 20, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and m ...

, Van Dyke Parks (1995) * ''

White Christmas White Christmas most commonly refers to: * White Christmas (weather), snowfall or snow-covered ground on Christmas Day * "White Christmas" (song), a 1942 song written by Irving Berlin White Christmas may also refer to: Film, television, and the ...

'' -

Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as " Botch-a-Me", " Mambo Italiano", ...

(1996) * '' Signs of Life'' - Steven Curtis Chapman (1996) * ''Peace on Earth'' - Peabo Bryson (1997) * ''

Pianist, Arranger, Composer, Conductor ''Pianist, Arranger, Composer, Conductor'' is the second solo album by American musician Richard Carpenter, released in 1998. It includes instrumental versions of popular songs of the Carpenters, and is dedicated to their deceased mother, Agnes ...

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Richard Carpenter Richard Carpenter may refer to: * Richard Carpenter (theologian) (1575–1627), English clergyman and theological writer * Richard Carpenter (ca. 1700–1750), original owner of the Belvale property in Virginia * Richard Cromwell Carpenter (1812� ...

(1998) * '' A Love Like Ours'' - Barbra Streisand (1999) * '' October Road'' - James Taylor (2002) * ''

Midnight Midnight is the transition time from one day to the next – the moment when the date changes, on the local official clock time for any particular jurisdiction. By clock time, midnight is the opposite of noon, differing from it by 12 hours. ...

'' - Diane Schuur (2003) * '' That Lucky Old Sun'' -

(2008) * '' Dreams'' -

(2010) * ''Red Dead Redemption Soundtrack (2010)'' * ''

It's the Girls! ''It's the Girls!'' is the fourteenth studio album by American singer Bette Midler. It was released by Warner Bros. Records on November 4, 2014. Midler's first release with the label since '' Bette'' (2000), the album is a collection representing ...

'' -

Bette Midler Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...

(2014)

Bibliography

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References

External links

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Interview on the Brian and Danielle Show
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Tommy 1932 births 2022 deaths American harmonica players American session musicians Musicians from Los Angeles