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Al Kooper (born Alan Peter Kuperschmidt; February 5, 1944) is an American songwriter, record producer, and musician. Throughout much of the 1960s and 1970s he was a prolific studio musician, including playing organ on the Bob Dylan song "Like a Rolling Stone", French horn and piano on the Rolling Stones song "You Can't Always Get What You Want", and lead guitar on Rita Coolidge's "The Lady's Not for Sale". He also formed and named Blood, Sweat & Tears, though he did not stay with the group long enough to share in its subsequent popularity. Kooper produced a number of one-off collaboration albums, such as the Super Session album that saw him work separately with guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills.

In the 1970s Kooper was a successful manager and producer, recording Lynyrd Skynyrd's first three albums. He has had a successful solo career, writing music for film soundtracks, and has lectured in musical composition. Kooper was selected for induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2023.

Early life

Kooper was born Alan Peter Kuperschmidt in Brooklyn, New York City, on February 5, 1944. He grew up in a Jewish family in Hollis Hills, Queens.

Career

Professional debut

Kooper's first professional work was as a 14-year-old guitarist in the Royal Teens, best known for their 1958 ABC Records novelty song "Short Shorts" (although Kooper did not play on that recording). In 1960, he teamed up with songwriters Bob Brass and Irwin Levine to write and record demos for Sea-Lark Music Publishing. The trio's biggest hits were "This Diamond Ring", recorded by Gary Lewis and the Playboys, and "I Must Be Seeing Things", recorded by Gene Pitney (both 1965). When he was 21, Kooper moved to Greenwich Village in Manhattan.

With Bob Dylan

He first performed with Bob Dylan playing the Hammond organ riffs on "Like a Rolling Stone". He had been invited to watch the recording by producer Tom Wilson. In those recording sessions, Kooper met and befriended Mike Bloomfield, whose guitar playing he admired. He worked with Bloomfield for several years. In 1965, Kooper played with Dylan in concert and played Hammond organ with Dylan at the Newport Folk Festival and in the recording studio in 1965 and 1966. He played organ once again with Dylan during his 1981 world tour.

The Blues Project and Blood, Sweat & Tears

Kooper joined the Blues Project as their keyboardist in 1965. He left the band shortly before their gig at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, although he did play a solo set, as evidenced by The Criterion Collection Blu-ray extended edition of the event. He formed Blood, Sweat & Tears in 1967, leaving due to creative differences in 1968, after the release of the group's first album, Child Is Father to the Man. He recorded Super Session with Bloomfield and Stephen Stills in 1968, and in 1969 he collaborated with 15-year-old guitarist Shuggie Otis on the album Kooper Session. In 1972, he rejoined The Blues Project at a charity concert promoted by Bruce Blakeman at Valley Stream Central High School.

Other work

As musician

Kooper has played on hundreds of records, including ones by the Rolling Stones, B.B. King, the Who, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Alice Cooper, and Cream. On occasion he overdubbed his own efforts, as on The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper and other albums, under the pseudonym "Roosevelt Gook".

As record producer

In 1969, Kooper produced, arranged, and conducted the album Appaloosa, a "folk-baroque" style of music that combined rock and classical. Among other artists who were all arranging folk-oriented material with classical-influenced orchestration were Judy Collins, Donovan, Tim Hardin, and Tom Rush. Kooper was joined by Boston musicians John Parker Compton, singer and acoustic guitarist, Robin Batteau on violin, Eugene Rosov on cello, and David Reiser on electric bass. Contributing to the album was saxophonist Fred Lipsius and Blood, Sweat & Tears drummer Bobby Colomby. After moving to Atlanta in 1972, he discovered the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and produced and performed on their first three albums, including the singles "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird". In 1975 he produced the debut album of the Tubes.

TV and Film Scores

Kooper wrote the scores for the TV series Crime Story and the films The Landlord and King of the Corner, as well as several made-for-television movies. He was the musical force behind many pop tunes, including "You're the Lovin' End", for The Banana Splits, a children's television program.

Studio

In the late 1980s, Kooper had his own dedicated keyboard studio in the historic Sound Emporium recording studio in Nashville, next to Studio B.

Rock Bottom Remainders

Kooper's status as a published author enabled him to join (and act as musical director of) the Rock Bottom Remainders, a band made up of writers including Dave Barry, Barbara Kingsolver, Stephen King, Amy Tan, and Matt Groening.