James Boyd Greenspoon (February 7, 1948 – March 11, 2015) was an American keyboard player and composer, best known as a member of the band Three Dog Night.
Jimmy Greenspoon | |
|---|---|
 Greenspoon in 2012 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | James Boyd Greenspoon |
| Also known as | The Maestro |
| Born | February 7, 1948 Beverly Hills, California, U.S. |
| Died | March 11, 2015 (aged 67) North Potomac, Maryland, U.S. |
| Genres | Rock, pop |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument(s) | Keyboards, vocals |
| Years active | 1963–2015 |
| Labels | Dunhill |
| Website | www |
Greenspoon performed and recorded with Linda Ronstadt, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, America, The Beach Boys, Beck, Bogert & Appice, Nils Lofgren, Lowell George, Kim Fowley, Donovan, Buddy Miles, Stephen Stills, Jeff Beck, Chris Hillman, Steve Cropper, Duck Dunn, James Burton, Hal Blaine, Leon Russell, The Wrecking Crew, Osibisa, Shaun Cassidy, Cheech & Chong, and Redbone.[1][2]
Early life and education
editGreenspoon was born in Los Angeles, California, and raised in Beverly Hills. His musical training began at the age of seven with classical piano lessons encouraged by his mother, Mary O'Brien, a silent film actress.[3][4] O'Brien's roles including the wife in Buster Keaton's 1926 movie Battling Butler. His aunt was Virginia O'Brien.
Greenspoon attended Beverly Hills High School along with Richard Dreyfuss, Bonnie Franklin, his childhood friends producer, Michael Lloyd and drummer, songwriter, singer Art Guy. Lloyd, Greenspoon and Guy had their first chart success with the surf group The New Dimensions, in 1963. Greenspoon attended the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music and studied with west coast piano instructor, Harry Fields. Greenspoon had one daughter, Heather Greenspoon.
Career
editEarly career
editGreenspoon worked on the Sunset Strip in the 1960s with the groups Sound of the Seventh Son and The East Side Kids. His bands held residence at The Trip, Stratford on Sunset (now The House Of Blues) Brave New World, Bidos Litos, Ciros, and The Whiskey. In approximately 1964, Greenspoon joined forces with drummer, singer, songwriter Art Guy, who he had attended school with and formed the band The New Dimensions with Michael Lloyd. Greenspoon and Guy were signed to Original Sounds Records, after penning and recording the original song; Funny Feelin', which the pair co-wrote, played and sang lead.
In late 1966, Greenspoon moved to Denver, Colorado, with the members of The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band and formed the group Superband.
Three Dog Night
editIn 1968, Greenspoon moved back to Los Angeles, where he met Danny Hutton, and subsequently formed Three Dog Night.
Greenspoon played with Three Dog Night the entire time they existed in his lifetime, from their formation in 1967 until their breakup in 1976 including all their albums, then again when they reformed in 1981 until his death in 2015, a total of 43 years. He was one of the longest-tenured of the band's musicians, closely followed by singer Cory Wells was in the group from 1967 until his death a few months after Greenspoon's.
Greenspoon served as an Entertainment and Media Consultant with the Murry-Wood Foundation and composed original music for the movies Fragment, produced by Lloyd Levin, United 93, Hellboy, Watchmen, Field of Dreams, Predator, and Die Hard. He collaborated with the composer Neil Argo. In 2000, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs, California, Walk of Stars was dedicated to him.[5]
Illness and death
editIn 2014, Greenspoon was diagnosed with metastatic melanoma, and stopped touring with Three Dog Night.[6] A year later, Greenspoon died at his home of cancer on March 11, 2015, in North Potomac, Maryland, at the age of 67.[7] Three Dog Night member Danny Hutton described him as a "brother".[4]
Bibliography
edit- Greenspoon, Jimmy; Bego, Mark (1991). One Is the Loneliest Number. Pharos Books. ISBN 978-0886876470.
References
edit- ^ "January to June 2015". The Dead Rock Stars Club. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
- ^ "Jimmy Greenspoon Credits". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
- ^ Lang, Derrik J. (2015-03-15). "Jimmy Greenspoon: Keyboard player with Three Dog Night who also played with Jimi Hendrix". The Independent. Retrieved 2024-10-15.
- ^ a b "Jimmy Greenspoon, Rest in Peace". www.thursdayreview.com. Retrieved 2024-10-15.
- ^ "Jimmy Greenspoon" (PDF). Palm Springs Walk of Stars. December 16, 2000. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 13, 2012.
- ^ Graff, Gary (October 24, 2014). "Ailing Three Dog Night keyboardist calls for fans' help". The Oakland Press.
- ^ "Jimmy Greenspoon, Keyboardist for Three Dog Night, Dies at 67". The New York Times. Associated Press. March 13, 2015. p. D8.
External links
edit- Jimmy Greenspoon discography at Discogs
