“I’ve Been Privileged to Play on so Many Great and Important Records”: Session Veteran Waddy Wachtel Reveals His Top Six Career-Defining Tracks

***The following appeared in the February 2020 issue of Guitar Player***

Even a cursory look at Waddy Wachtel’s credits is enough to boggle the mind. During his decades-long career, the guitarist has toured and recorded with the Everly Brothers, Warren Zevon, Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, Keith Richards and dozens – no, hundreds – more.

“I came out from New York to Los Angeles in the late ’60s at just the right time,” he says. “The studio scene was changing, and I was able to get in with the right producers and musicians. It’s been an amazing ride. Sometimes I’ll just look at the guitar pick in my fingers and go, ‘It’s all your fault!’”

Wachtel considers himself a “rock and roll specialist.” “People call me when they want me to generate the kind of rhythm that gets a song going,” he explains. But he’s no slouch when it comes to tossing out searing, hook-filled improvised leads.

“When I started out, I found a way of emulating steel guitar on my Les Paul,” Wachtel recalls. “For years, I did that ‘phony steel guitar’ thing, like on Randy Newman’s ‘Rider in the Rain.’ People would hire me for rhythm, but then they’d always ask me to lay down some phony steel-guitar lines as well.”

During his career, Wachtel has seen many players come and go from the L.A. studio scene, but he’s still standing, and his dance card remains filled.

“A lot of great players can’t adapt to the studio thing because they think it’s about them,” he says. “Don’t get me wrong: I have an ego, too, and I love to grab the reins and go for it, but I never forget that it’s all about the song. The song always dictates what you should do. I’m very traditional in my approach. I don’t like to use effects, and I always think, What’s the best way to accompany the singer and the song? That’s what you’re there for.”

He’s performed alongside many newbies who went on to become music greats, but he’s also found himself standing in a studio next to bona fide legends. Asked if he’s ever been starstruck, Wachtel laughs. “I got over that quick,” he says. “One of my first gigs was working with the Everly Brothers. Once you meet them, you’re kind of set for anybody else who comes your way.

“Although one time I did have the distinct honor and pleasure of having John Lennon look in my face and go, [adopts British accent] ‘Hello, Waddy.’ I just about fell apart!”

Recently, Wachtel has been turning heads with his new band, the Immediate Family, which features fellow session legends Danny Kortchmar, Leland Sklar, Russ Kunkel and Steve Postell.

Below, he recounts the recording of six classic cuts he’s had a hand in. “I must say, it was difficult to choose just six,” he says. “I’ve been privileged to play on so many great and important records with unbelievable artists. This list could easily have been much, much longer.”

1. “That’ll Be the Day” by Linda Ronstadt from ‘Hasten Down the Wind’ (1976)

“When I started doing sessions, producers always told me, ‘Don’t play lead when we’re cutting basics. Don’t change the volume on your guitar. Just play rhythm and we’ll do solos later.’ But music affects me. I get excited and I let spontaneity take over. There are times when music has to be perfectly composed, and there are other times when it has to be spontaneous. ‘That’ll Be the Day’ was very much the latter.

“I had just started working for Linda. We had recorded a couple of pretty things, but ‘That’ll Be the Day’ was going to be our first rock and roll track together. We rehearsed it a few times. Peter Asher was the producer, and Andrew Gold was the other guitarist on the session.

“While we were recording, I just felt a solo coming up. Something inside kept saying, You gotta go for it! So I flicked my Strat into an out-of-phase setting and let it rip. I improvised the whole thing. Then Andrew did a solo – it was something he had planned out – and at the end of it we did a harmony thing together.

“We did a few passes, but I think the first one was the keeper. That always happens. Everybody was thrilled. I remember that song was the first time I actually heard myself on the radio. I was standing outside one day and ‘That’ll Be the Day’ was playing in somebody’s car. My solo came screaming out of the speakers, and I went, ‘Hey, all right! Nice!’”

2. “Werewolves of London” by Warren Zevon from ‘Excitable Boy’ (1978)

“I’m very proud of this song – I co-wrote and co-produced it. Everybody knew it was a terrific song, but for some reason it was one of the hardest rhythm tracks to lay down. The band was me, Warren, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie. I don’t know why, but we went all night trying to find the right take. We must have run through it 60 times.