Posted on 09/06/2024 1:12:32 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter recalled how he helped make Donna Summer’s “Hot Stuff” a hit using a $35 guitar.
And the Steely Dan co-founder, who went on to work with the Doobie Brothers, said he nearly hadn’t bothered attending the session for Summer’s 1979 album Bad Girls.
The single was Summer’s second of four No. 1 hits. It opened her music to new listeners with a more rock-oriented sound as she crossed over from disco music under the auspices of Italian producer Giorgio Moroder.
“It almost didn’t happen,” Baxter told Vertex Effects in a recent interview (below). “My assistant forgot to tell me that Giorgio had called. I saw it on a message pad. So I called him back; I said, ‘What kind of music is it?’”
On being told it was disco, the guitarist’s response was muted, because he and his musical partner Jay Graydon had played a lot of sessions in the genre. “[N]ot to be snotty about it – but Jay and I [would] get together on a Monday and decide what riff we’re gonna play, for the whole week!” he explained. “To us it was all the same.”
So he told Moroder: “There’s a million guitar players who can do this. If you want something different, then I’m happy to do it. But I’d like to have some space.” The producer’s reply was: “Play whatever you want.”
The next issue was that Baxter was moving into a new house at the time, meaning he didn’t have access to his guitars. He went down to the nearby Hollywood branch of Guitar Center and spoke to the manager. “I said, ‘Paul, I need a guitar – now!’ So he laughed [and] pointed to a box in the middle of the store. The box said, ‘Buy me - $25.’ It had a bunch of weird guitars in it.”
Did ‘Skunk’ Baxter Know ‘Hot Stuff’ Was a Hit? For some reason he was drawn to an instrument that didn’t even have matching tuning pegs. “I picked it up, plugged it in, played it – ‘Okay, fine.’ I gave him $35. Bought a six-pack of Bud, went down to Rusk studios. And they played me the song… I turned everything up to 10, plugged the guitar in and said, ‘Roll tape.’ That was it – one take.”
Asked if he’d known how successful “Hot Stuff” would be, Baxter allowed: “I don’t think I had any foresight… After it was over, I thought, ‘Wow, this is different.’ And I said to Giorgio, ‘I think I know what you wanted to do.’ … [H]e said, ‘Absolutely.’”
He reflected: “All we can do is sew the body back up and see what happens!”
A HREF="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBDjUtCyMYo">Donna Summer - Hot Stuff 1979 HQ
Skunk is a mensch.
ps still think “I Feel Love” is a fascinating song.
Skunk has a top security DoD clearance. Fascinating guy.
And at some point, Donna had enough of the disco world and life, turned to Jesus and walked away from that world.
Skunk was unimportant.
Business Insider is even less important, and are quite repulsive Socialist MSM Shills.
He really is. Absolutely.
And he’ll knock your xoxoff.
Was the solo even on the radio edit? I don’t remember hearing it before. I’m the single. Honestly, the solo isn’t very good by his standards
Fo sho. Did you ever see “The Best”? They’re out there on YT.
Oh, you're a hoot! I'm gonna go listen now. I'll get back to you.
2:22. Beg to differ. Imaginative, energetic solo - surely not his best.
Solo's there for a reason: presumably crossover appeal. As for the song itself, it's among the bottom of the disco barrel, and that's saying something. Not Donna Summer's best, either, for sure. Smells like they were after a "hit."
Not to take anything away from Donna Summer's talent.
No, I will look, thanks
I was in a Bible study in a post-grad school, and a female friend decided that Donna Summer ought to be a Christian and we and especially her started praying for her, suspect of course that we were not the only ones in the world praying for her, of course, but God opened her eyes and she was saved.
I always thought she was very talented but her type of music was not what I listened to. Nonetheless, this entire thread is amazing and hearing again about her being saved is just one more cool aspect.
Great find, I had not heard them, listened and it lead to more Skunk all over.
“The Best” link example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30IaOvs-DMw
I love how he often sits down in a solid position to play.
He also has a great and intelligent voice talking to audiences.
Thanks
2:22. Beg to differ. Imaginative, energetic solo - surely not his best.
It’s ok, but his best is the out solo on Bodhisattva.
Oops that was just a Skunk jam band 2023.
Here is an actual “The Best” link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAvYHXz7XsA
Oops that was just a Skunk jam band 2023.
Here is an actual “The Best” link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAvYHXz7XsA
“It’s ok, but his best is the out solo on Bodhisattva.”
Indeed.
L
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