John has said, “Working with family is wonderful. And the entire show has felt that way. Each band treated us warmly. It was my daughter Janiene, our associate producer, whose input started my interest in Leftover Salmon. The enthusiastic recommendation I received from Hollywood Record’s, Peter Holden, confirmed the idea. Pat, my partner, is also a singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He had been the opening act for John Hammond years ago. We all connected through our love of music and our mutual desire to bring something unusual to television that celebrated music as art, more than as something strictly commercial.
John continued, “The entire experience has been this great collaboration of people who care about what we are reaching for. Otherwise, it never could have happened. My wife, Jennifer, is a brilliant artist. She lent us her talent by overseeing the development of all the graphic art contained in the press and sales presentations. And the feeling of family extends to Oregon where our financial advisor, Douglas Gorman, who actively participated in the acquisition of the production financing, operates his ranch and financial consulting business.
“Ed Bogas, our composer, is married to a multitalented musical artist, Désirée Goyette. She’s twice Grammy nominated, and has vast experience. When she first heard the bossa nova sound for the end segment of Stay Tuned she spontaneously began a vocal vamp which was beautiful and completely finished the piece. Needless to say, her voice is now a part of the show.
John added, “This has been an experience where a willingness to allow fate to takeover has reaped us big rewards. Many times I’ve felt as if someone much bigger than any of us was making sure that we were at the right place at the right time. The venues we selected for the concerts are a great example of this phenomenon. Pat and I saw John Hammond in Hollywood, where I first interviewed him. His show was good, solid, and I walked away thinking, ‘Okay, this will make a good segment’. Then we land in San Francisco and the Great American Music Hall, and it was as if everyone was turned on by lightning. The beautiful old concert hall was absolutely electric that night. You can feel it when you watch the footage of the concert. The audience was especially alive and John and the band were totally connected to them. I was feeling emotion coming right through the camera lens and was so excited I actually had to tell myself to breathe. All the ghosts of that hall’s past were out grooving to the music that night.”
John added, “Bill Graham’s Fillmore was the same kind of great choice. I had seen Leftover Salmon at the House of Blues the week before. It was a good, exciting show. The house was crowded, everyone enthusiastic about the performance. Cut to San Francisco. It’s standing room only, in that amazing room where the walls are lined with posters that spell historical institution. Icons like Jimi Hendrix, Carlos Santana, Janice Joplin, you name them, they’ve played the Fillmore.”
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