Red Young was born in Fort Worth, Texas. Growing up with a classical background and listening to everyone from Van Cliburn (whom he met at age 11), Ray Charles, B.B. King, Lightnin' Hopkins, Ft. Worth natives Delbert McClinton, Ray Sharpe, King Curtis, Freddy King and many other Texas Blues and Jazz Players. He accompanied vocalists, choirs, played in bands and in general grew up with a well-rounded musical education. Upon leaving high school, he first went to North Texas State in Denton, then on the road with trumpeter Clyde McCoy's band in1967 (who recorded Sugar Blues in 1927 and worked thoughout the Big Band era), and performed on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson show from New York. In1968, Red joined the Air Force Band rather than get drafted and go to Viet Nam and was stationed first in Wichita Falls, Texas; then Ramstein, Germany; and finally Springfield, Massachusetts. In Springfield he learned a great deal about arranging for big band and horns and formed a Chicago/Blood, Sweat & Tears group which played concerts all over New England with the Air Force. He started playing the Hammond B3 Organ in 1970 and bought his first B3 in 1971. Upon discharge in 1972, he stayed around the New England area and traved with an organ trio-Hammond B-3, drums & saxophone. On Monday nights he would venture to New York to see the famed Thad Jones-Mel Lewis band play at the Village Vanguard which further fueled his interest in Big Band music.
After spending a number of years away from Texas, when an opportunity arose to go back, he took it. This time it was a band formed to back up Lloyd Price (Personality, Stagger Lee, Lawdy Miss Claudy). After the 3 month tour, Red again returned to Texas. He joined two brothers, Bill and Warren Ham form a 5 piece jazz-fusion band called the Ham Brothers Band. The band became successful on the local Dallas-Ft. Worth scene even opening for such acts as Chick Corea, Brian Auger and Weather Report among others. Through this association Red became an integral part of the recording scene in Dallas-Ft Worth and Sugar Hill Studios in Houston run by producer Huey Meaux. Red recorded on albums for Freddy Fender, Kinky Friedman, Noel Redding (bassist with Jimi Hendrix), and many other of Huey's clients. Red did vocal & instumental arrangements on numerous albums as well as keyboard & vocal harmony duties.
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Again Red felt the urge to move, this time getting a call to join Tompall Glaser's Outlaw Band in 1976 which included Mel Brown on guitar and Ben Keith on steel guitar & dobro. His first tour was a package tour with Willie Nelson, Jesse Coulter, Waylon Jennings and of course Tompall called the “Outlaws”. Willie and Waylon had a hit record with “Good Hearted Woman” so played to 20,000 people each night. After the tour, declining an offer to move to Nashville, Red moved to Los Angeles and was enlisted in Sonny & Cher's band (1976-77 tour including a TV special with Cher in 1978), then JOAN ARMATRADING (world tours 1977-79 which included 4 albums and a few TV shows), then his own jazz-fusion band, an album with Jerry Lynn Williams (1978), a tour, an album and a movie with DOLLY PARTON (1980-81), a tour and album with TANYA TUCKER (1981-Glen Campbell was along for a number of shows), a tour and a few television shows with ERIC BURDON (1982), and in 1983 he joined a group which became part of LINDA RONSTADT & NELSON RIDDLE tour of 1983-84 (What's New). Red did the vocal arrangements, played piano, sang and did horn arrangements for a section of the show which eventually became known as “Red and The Red Hots”. It became a favorite section of the show and started Red in a direction that he pursued for the next 20 years. Of course during the 1977-84 period in Los Angeles he recorded not only albums for numerous artists but also TV, movie scores and commercials for many of the popular shows and products.
After the end of the tour, Red returned again to Ft. Worth and formed his own band calling it “Red and the Red Hots” and continued in the swing/jazz vocal style, utilizing 3 vocals (2 girls and Red) using rhythm section (acoustic bass and drums) and saxophone making the core unit a six member band and using a horn section on occasion (2 trumpets/3 saxes) and occasionally working with big band or orchestra (he learned a great deal from the amazing Nelson Riddle-a year and a half of touring and listening to great arrangements with an orchestra does wonders for the inspiration). Also while living in Texas from 1984-88 Red became a prominent member of the local recording scene, doing many commercials, several albums and a few movies as well. RED & THE RED HOTS performed in many venues around the tri-state area (Texas-Oklahoma-Louisiana) playing concerts, nightclubs, festivals, private parties, big social events, and even played at the famous Peabody Hotel's Skyway room for New Year's Eve 1986 & 1987. During the 3 year period they performed more than 600 dates.
After a 1987 concert with the Ft. Worth Symphony Orchestra, Red felt the need to go back to Los Angeles. On his return, he joined a tour with JUICE NEWTON, which turned into a 5 year commitment, all the while performing with the Red Hots in between concerts with Juice. He did many TV Shows, movies and recordings. In 1993 he took a commitment as musical director of the Moonlight Tango Cafe in Sherman Oaks, Ca with his trio which turned into a year and a half engagement. In 1994, he again began to perform more engagements with the RED HOTS. Starting in June of 1995, the Red Hots added the 5 horn section on a permanent basis and became part of the Swing scene in Los Angeles at such places as The Derby, Disneyland, Twin Palms Restaurant, the El Rey Theatre, The Viper Room, The Rhino Room and many other venues. They recorded 4 albums (”Red & the Red Hots”-1987, “Red Hot Jazz”-1994, and “The Boogie Man”-1998 and “Gettin' Around”-1999) all available through the website and other outlets �" iTunes, Amazon, etc. Many songs were licensed to TV shows such as Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Everybody Loves Raymond and others and Red also had a couple of songs on In The Line Of Fire (Clint Eastwood).
During the last few years in Los Angeles, Red continued his career as arranger and performer with “Red and the Red Hots”, started his own 24 track studio in which he recorded not only his own projects but with his many friends throughout the industry, such as Joey Altruda (Cocktails with Joey), David Sommerville (The Diamonds, the Four Preps), Teresa James and the Rhythm Tramps, Alexis Gershwin, Plas Johnson, Ernest Ranglin and many others. He also contributed arrangements and performed with many others including BIG BAD VOODOO DADDY , ROYAL CROWN REVUE, BRIAN SETZER and others. (He worked with Big Bad Voodoo Daddy on the TV show “Big Deal” (Fox) and is also on the movie soundtrack for “Swingers”. He recorded an album with fellow Texan and old friend JOHNNY RENO on his album for Coolsville Records, recorded on a Lee Rocker album (Stray Cats), Royal Crown Revue on their album “Walk On Fire” and performed with them on selected dates throughout the summer of 1999 including 2 nights at the Hollywood Bowl with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra in which he arranged their songs for the 80-member ensemble. In the Blues world, he recorded several albums with Janiva Magness and Kid Ramos.
IN 1999 Red again went back to his roots and started a band based around his Hammond B3 organ which he played in the late 1960's through the 1970's which became BROTHER RED. The personel was James Achor from Royal Crown Revue (guitar) and Kenny Sara from the Red Hots (drums) and also on the album was Anthony Wilson (guitar-Diana Krall) and Willie McNeil (drums)
In 2001 Red recorded on a new album by longtime friend STEPHEN BRUTON “Spirit World” for New West Records and performed with him in his touring band and was encouraged to relocate to Austin, Tx. from Los Angeles which he did in 2002, and became a part of the musical scene there performing with STEPHEN, pianist and vocalist MARCIA BALL as well as his own organ quartet at such places as the ELEPHANT ROOM and other venues. He also toured with ADAM LEVY (guitarist with Norah Jones) and drummer extraordinaire Brannen Temple. MARCIA BALL and others around the country and the world. His first RED YOUNG TRIO album was released in March 2003 on the BLUES LEAF LABEL and became immersed in the tremedous Jazz scene in Austin and played with various artists there.
In late 2003 Red became involved in a nightclub in Addison, Tx. called Django On The Parkway. Starting with an initial steady Wednesday night engagement with his Soul Jazz Organ Quartet, it expanded to first working with Johnny Reno on occasional Thursdays, then becoming totally involved in the club in performance with bands such as Cold Blue Steel, Robert Lee Kobb and Mike Morgan and the Crawl. In addition to his initial keyboard duties, he began doing sound, lights and total production in the club for the more than two year run. He not only performed with his own bands, Red and the Red Hots and Red Young & Friends (which his Wednesday night band became known with many touring artists sitting in on his nights there), he also put together a Memphis Soul band called Red Young and the Soulmen, He performed with George Clinton and sat in with countless artists that played the club including Elvis T Busboy, Anson Funderburgh & the Rockets, Jimmy Sommers, and many others. It was an eye-opening experience on the 'other side' of the music business and many lessons learned and things experienced that many musicians do not see.
After the two year run of Django On The Parkway, in 2006 Red got an offer from former employer and musical collaborator ERIC BURDON who asked Red to rejoin THE ANIMALS for his continuing world tours. Red has been touring with Eric throughout Europe, Canada, Australia and the United States ever since. Many TV appearances and sold-out concerts throughout the world gave Red another excuse to bring his own music to the world.
During his first tour with Eric in Europe, Red met his future wife, vocalist/pianist/composer SILVIE RIDER and eventually married and moved back to the fertile music scene of Austin, Tx., this time with a different world view of what direction he could go. Red started AUSTIN JAZZ ARTISTS a collaboration of the ongoing creativity that thrives in this oasis in the middle of Texas. He continues to record and produce his own albums and recordings with others. He arranged and produced SILVIE RIDER’s album Je Te Connais in 2009 and is currently working on piano and jazz organ albums, as well as recording with Eric Burdon and others.
Awards
2012 Austin Music Awards Winner (Black Red Black)
Gear
1970 Hammond B3 / 1964 Hammond C3 / 1938 Hammond BC / 1979 Mason & Hamlin BB Grand Piano / various synthesizers, sound modules, recording gear and microphones. Studion in Austin,Texas
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