David Spinozza

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

David Spinozza is an American musician (guitar), who worked with former Beatles Paul McCartney and John Lennon during the 1970s, and had a long collaboration with singer-songwriter James Taylor, producing Taylor's album Walking Man. Spinozza also dated Yoko Ono during 1973 and 1974, during her separation from John Lennon.

Spinozza worked with McCartney during sessions for McCartney's Ram album during 1971. When the chance came to work with Lennon and Ono two years later, as Ono prepared her Feeling the Space album and Lennon his Mind Games, Spinozza discovered that Lennon was not aware he had previously worked with McCartney, and was afraid he would be fired if Lennon found out, given their recent feuding in the media. When Lennon did learn of it, his only comment was that McCartney "knows how to pick good people."

After the release of Mind Games, Lennon and Ono split, with Lennon taking their assistant May Pang to Los Angeles; a relationship that carried Ono's sanction. Ono turned her attentions to Spinozza, who encouraged her to completely break with Lennon, if she did not want to stay married to him. Ono nonetheless stayed in daily contact with Lennon and Pang, causing Spinozza's interest in her to wane.

Spinozza contributed to Ono's album A Story, recorded during 1974 (but not released until 1998), served as her bandleader during a residency at Kenny's Castaways, and rehearsed Ono's band to tour her native Japan, but parted ways with her when the tour began. After no communication for several years, Ono contacted Spinozza late in 1980, for his permission to release "It Happened", a track from A Story, as a B-side to "Walking on Thin Ice", her tribute to the recently-assassinated John Lennon and the last song they had recorded together. Spinozza gave his permission. The track appeared with a new coda, recorded by Lennon and Ono's band from Double Fantasy.

Spinozza later made contributions to the soundtracks of the movies Dead Man Walking, Happiness, and Just the Ticket.

[edit] References

Loving John by May Pang (Warner Books, 1982)
The Ballad of John and Yoko by The Editors of Rolling Stone (Rolling Stone Press, 1982)
The Last Days of John Lennon by Frederic Seaman (Warner Books, 1991)