The Music of John Pape and Friends

Here in northern Alabama we were fortunate enough to experience cooler than normal temperatures for a few days in the middle of this past summer. It got my creative juices flowing and this tune, Summer Chill, is the result. My ES-330 (played through my Fender Mustang LT50) was used for the guitar melody while my Les Paul and PRS Mira (played through my UAD Dream 65 Reverb Amp) handled the intro and the other rhythm guitar parts. If you listen closely during the verses you can hear a Fender Rhodes type piano part which I played on my Roland synth. Logic Pro drummer Austin handled the drum chores while my friend Tom “Mr. Precision” Linscott came up with the bass part.

When coming up with something new I usually decide first what type of tune I want to do, e.g. something with horns or synths, something acoustic, a cover tune, etc. For Fuzzy Logic I decided on something somewhat heavier with guitar harmonies. As usual, my partner Tom Linscott cranked out an appropriate bass track while Austin from Logic Pro handled the drums. I used my Performer Strat and Gibson SG to handle the guitar chores. Both were run through my Mustang LT50 straight into my Apollo Twin.

Southern Fried features the Press On Horns carrying the melody except for the second verse where i sneak in my Martin 000-15S. The Logic Pro piano loops I used were the basic building blocks for this tune. Once again my first call bass player, Tom Linscott, did a fine job on the low end. The rhythm guitar parts were played on my favorite Tele through my new UAD Dream 65 Reverb Amp which is an awesome piece of equipment. The solo was played on my SG through my Mustang LT50 amp (I think). The drums were handled by Logic Pro Drummer Aiden. Enjoy!

I built the rhythm guitar track for Retro Rock again using Logic Pro loops (no fuss no muss). I broke out my SG for the melody and harmony guitar parts and my Fender Performer Strat for the solo. Mr. Fender Bass, Tom Linscott, laid down the bass funkiness and contributed the Hammond organ bits. Logic Pro drummer Logan was on the skins for this track. This is our first effort for 2024. Let me know what you think.

Swing Thing started life as several Apple Logic Pro loops sliced and diced to form a rhythm track in the key of C. Tom Linscott contributed the tasty bass track along with all the Hammond organ bits including the second verse solo. Using a Telecaster through a Fender Mustang LT50 i came up with the lead guitar parts. I also played the piano and arranged the drum track which was played by Logic Pro drummer Austin. The nifty unison sax melody was the brainchild of the Press On Horns.

This is one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite bands, Chicago. Bassmeister Tom Linscott laid down the low end for this one and the Press On Horns did their thing. That’s me on rhythm guitar (Fender Cabronita Tele, Fender Strat), lead guitar (Gibson Les Paul), and piano, percussion and drum programming (Yamaha workstation). That’s also me on the vocals.

I wrote this piece as a tribute to my wife’s older brother, Eddie, who passed recently. We spent Eddie’s last few days at his bedside hoping for a miracle. He was a gentle soul, loved by everyone who knew him and I firmly believe he is now in a better place. For this one I played all the parts with the exception of drums, which were played by Logan. Instruments used were: my Gibson ES330 and Martin 000-15S for the rhythm parts, my Gibson Les Paul Traditional for the chorus and verse guitar riffs, my Roland Juno 61 for the piano parts, my Martin 000-15S for the acoustic melody, my Gibson SG for the guitar solo, and my Squier Precision Bass for, you guessed it, the bass track.

Little Martha, a track from The Allman Brothers’ Eat A Peach album, was written by the late, great Duane Allman and recorded by Duane and Dickey Betts. I’ve always loved this little guitar piece and have fooled around with bits and pieces of it over the years. This rendition is done in standard tuning as opposed to the open E tuning used on the album. As a result, I took some liberties in the arrangement to compensate. For this tune I used my Martin 000-15 Special (see the Featured Gear Page).

Closet Funk is my first effort of 2023 and is my humble tribute to the late great Jeff Beck. My main axe for this tune was a recently acquired 1984 Gibson SG. I used my new candy apple red Strat parts-caster (I built it last Fall) for the chorus. All guitar parts were played through my Fender Mustang LT50 amp into a UAD Apollo Twin. Tom Linscott once again provided the solid bass track, this time on his new Fender American Professional II Precision.

Probably my biggest influence on guitar was The Beatles’ George Harrison. And one of my favorite George Harrison tunes is Here Comes the Sun from the Abbey Road album. Turns out it’s also a favorite of my Granddaughter Brittany who’s getting married in a few weeks. She asked her Papa (me) to play an instrumental version of the tune during the wedding. And being the best Papa in the world I told her of course I would. I know the Beatles version well and figured it wouldn’t be that hard to come up with an arrangement. Brittany, however, had another version in mind, one she found on a CD of pop tunes fingerpicked by an anonymous guitarist on a classical guitar. Since I don’t have a classical guitar and suck at fingerpicking I came up with a reasonably close rendition which I flat picked on my trusty Martin 000-15S. She loved it…see what you think.

“Delta Haze” started with a smoky Logic guitar loop which I later trashed in favor of cutting my own rhythm guitar track. This tune reminds me of Bourbon Street music with the brash horns (ably provided by the Press On horn section) and the lazy driving back beat. The bass track and wurly piano track (right speaker) were contributed by that renowned sideman, Tom Linscott, while Kyle handled the drums. The rest is yours truly. Enjoy.

This is a cover of a popular tune from the Chicago Transit Authority album, Chicago’s first. Plenty of horn action on this one handled capably by the Press On Horns. Tom “Mr. Precision” Linscott handles the bass chores while I take care of the rest. The guitar track was played on a Tele and the piano on my Roland DS61. The drum track was built using Xpand!2 in Pro Tools. Those are my 71 year-old vocal chords (so cut me some slack please) on the lead.

This retro tune may remind you of something you heard in the 80s. Actually the impetus for this tune was my new Roland synthesizer. Tom Linscott contributed the thundering bass track, a guy named Kyle played drums and I handled the rest of the chores. All the guitar parts were played on my cherryburst Les Paul. This was a fun departure from the usual and there will be more like this I’m sure.

I like this tune a lot. It was written, recorded, and engineered by my bass-playing partner Tom Linscott. He started with a drum track built from a loop and added the rest of the parts himself using his Precision bass, Pawn Shop 51guitar, Nord keyboard and Hammond organ. This song reminds me of the 60s and California surf music…The Ventures, Dick Dale, and who can forget The Surfaris.

You’d expect to hear this tune at a Texas Roadhouse. In fact, it reminds me of a little old band from Texas. The rhythm guitar track is a mishmash of three short loops I found in Logic’s loop library. The bass guitar track, the Hammond organ parts and piano solos were contributed by Brother Tom Linscott. Zak played drums and I handled the guitars. That’s a Fender Modern Player Jaguar with P90s on the low unison melody parts and solos. The octave unison part was played on a Tele and the slide work was done on my trusty and ancient Gibson L6-S. All guitar parts were tracked through a Fender Mustang LT50 amp going direct.

First tune for 2022 features Mr. Precision Tom Linscott on the bass, a guy named Gavin on the drums and yours truly on the rest. The basic rhythm track started life as a four chord Apple guitar loop and morphed from there. Lately I have mostly been working in Apple’s Logic Pro X which has a ton of loops just begging to be used. In an effort to get a jazzier feel for this tune I used my Gibson ES-330 through a jazz amp setting on my Fender Mustang Amp (LT 50) for all the recorded guitar parts. I was (humbly) thinking George Benson on this one.

This catchy little tune was written and performed by that Hammond Maniac of the Pacific Northwest, Bill Linscott. Bill’s brother Tom provided the bass guitar track as well as the drum arrangement. I provided the guitar stuff using my PRS Mira and my Blackguard Tele.

Written as a result of an embarrassing neck injury this tune features the Press On Horns laying down the Motownish melody. My good pal Tom Linscott contributed the bass track while yours truly took care of the rest. The guitar solos were done on my cherryburst Les Paul.

Lots of guitar in this one. The drums, acoustic guitar, muted electric guitar and synthesizer parts were performed by those zany guys from the local Wrecking Crew. As usual, Tom Linscott provided the bass track. I was responsible for the slide guitar lead, middle guitar solo, and the arrangement.

This is a cover of a Beatles tune generally acknowledged to be a John Lennon composition. Tom Linscott, provided the bass, organ and piano tracks, and that’s me on guitar, vocals, and drum programming. The Press On Horns make a rare guest appearance.

This tune was written by that musician of many talents, Tom Linscott. He also contributed the bass, piano, and drum tracks and mixed/mastered the final product. Local guitar legend, Toot Snoddy (FB), provided several tracks of tasty guitar fills and the acoustic and slide guitar tracks were contributed by yours truly.

Another lounge type track, Tom started the ball rolling on this one by creating the bass, organ, piano and drum tracks. I contributed a couple of guitar tracks. The Press On horn section is heard in a support role while their star saxman, Marvin “Lipsey” Russell, knocks out the sultry sax lead.

This uptempo instrumental features the mighty Press On Horns laying down the funk. Mr. Precision, Tom Linscott, contributed the bass track (including solo), the Hammond Organ track and the spicy Wurlitzer piano solo. In addition to writing and arranging, I provided the guitar solo via my Blackie Strat. Members of the local “Wrecking Crew” contributed clavinet, guitar and drum tracks for this funkfest.

Bassman extraordinaire Tom Linscott came up with the idea for this eclectic tune. He also contributed the bass and piano tracks as well as a counterpoint guitar riff in the song’s chorus. Tom’s brother Bill supplied the Hammond organ solo from his studio in Seattle and local musician Billy Teichmiller recorded the drum track at his studio here in town. My contribution includes the melody and the rhythm and solo guitar tracks.

This Allman flavored tune started life as a guitar riff which gradually took on a life of its own. That’s session man Tom Linscott on the Fender Precision as well as the Hammond organ, and yours truly on the guitars. My choice of axes for this track included a PRS Custom 24 and a Les Paul Traditional, both run through a Boss Katana amp.

This cover of the popular Beatles tune was arranged by Seattle-based Hammond extraordinaire Bill Linscott. His brother Tom plays bass and I cover the drums and guitar parts. My Gibson ES-330 made its recording debut on this song. I call this one Day Tripper for Lounge Lizards.

The Press On horns take center stage for our version of this jazz classic. That’s Tom Linscott on bass guitar, organ and piano and yours truly on guitar, drums and percussion. The percussion tracks were created on my Yamaha workstation.

This tune is a tribute to my faithful companion Trixie who passed away shortly before Christmas 2018. On this track Tom Linscott plays the bass while I handle the guitar, piano and drum parts. Guitars used included a PRS, a Les Paul, a Telecaster, a Fender Pawn Shop 51and a Martin acoustic. The piano and drums were created on my Yamaha workstation.

This tune is the brainchild of brothers Tom and Bill Linscott. Besides the Press On horn section, the tune features Bill on the organ, Tom on bass and piano, and me on the guitars and horn arrangement. A local studio musician, Billy Teichmiller, played and recorded the drums at his studio here in town.

This is our arrangement of the classic Paul McCartney tune. Tom Linscott played bass and I handled the guitar, organ and vocals. That's also me actually playing the drums. I used my Fender Eric Clapton Strat on this one.

This track is a cool departure from the kinds of things we normally do. That bass playing phenom Tom Linscott created this tune and played the bass, piano and percussion parts. I contributed the melody and the guitar parts using a PRS Custom 24.

I believe this tune is a mash-up of several tracks that Bill Linscott found on the Internet. As usual, it features the Press On House Band with Bill on the Hammond, Brother Tom on the Fender bass and drum programming, and me on guitar. I used my Clapton Strat on this one.

This is a cover of a tune that our organist, Bill Linscott, found on the Internet somewhere. It’s not the Midnight Special that Creedence Clearwater Revival (and many others) covered and I have no idea who the original author is (a Hammond organist no doubt). Joining Bill on this jazzy-bluesy track is his brother Tom on bass and drum programming and yours truly on guitar.

This tune was written by keyboard extraordinaire Stanley Traylor, a former bandmate of ours. Legend has it that the tune was inspired by a bunch of hell-raising partiers that decided to take to the pool fully clothed during one of our gigs. This version features the house band— Bill Linscott on organ, brother Tom on bass, and me on guitar and drum programming.

This Blues classic was written by the great T-Bone Walker. Our rendition includes Tom Linscott on the Fender Bass, his brother Bill on the Hammond organ, and yours truly on vocals, guitar and drum programming.

Another Booker T classic, this one features Bill Linscott on the Hammond organ, Tom Linscott on the Precision Bass and drum programming, and me on the guitar. I used my Cabronita Tele for both the main riff and the solo.

This is an old tune that has been covered by lots of folks. Tom Linscott played bass, piano, and organ, and programmed the drums. I played my Strat through a tweed Fender Vibro Champ.

I originally wrote and recorded this track in the fall of 2008 as one of my first serious recording efforts. This 2020 version has been updated with a couple of new acoustic guitar tracks and remixed. I played all the parts on this one except for the drum track which I cobbled together using loops from Apple’s Logic software. Guitars heard include a Les Paul, Telecaster, Fender bass and an Ibanez acoustic.

This tune was originally recorded in 2007 was built around of a handful of Garageband loops. In 2014 the song was updated with a new bass track played by Tom Linscott and some additional guitar tracks from me. Guitars used included a Telecaster, PRS Mira and a Les Paul.

Finished in December 2011, this track is a remake of a tune that was written and recorded back in the mid 1980s. Tom Linscott plays the Fender Bass and I play the other stuff. I used a Fender Pawn Shop ’51 for the electric guitar parts with the exception of the solo, which was played on a PRS Mira. The acoustic parts were played on an Ibanez. It’s also my recording debut actually playing drums.

This is also a remake of a tune written and recorded in the early 80s. Tom Linscott recorded the bass part in his Seattle studio and the rest is me recorded here in the Heart of Dixie. I used an Ibanez acoustic and a Fender Pawn Shop 51 for the guitar parts and laid the drum track down on my Yamaha electronic set.