This is a Best Of...record, and it's the only B.W. Stevenson album I own. Known mainly (only?) for the catchy My Maria, B.W. Stevenson (October 1949 - April 1988), was born as Louis Charles Stevenson. He was a country pop artist, working in a genre that would later become known as progressive country. "B.W." stood for "Buckwheat." Born in Dallas, he attended W.H. Adamson High School with such other future noted musicians as Michael Martin Murphy, Ray Wylie Hubbard, and Larry Groce. "My Maria" became a large hit, reaching #9 on Billboard's Hot 100 for the week of September 29, 1973. Co-written by him and Daniel Moore, that gorgeous guitar portion (I think that is called a bridge) was played by the great Larry Carlton. As you probably know - it was covered much later by the country duo Brooks & Dunn, for whom it was a three-week #1 country hit in mid 1996. I read that Stevenson had several other successful chart singles, including "A Little Bit of Understanding" and the original version of Daniel Moore's "Shambala," which as a cover version by Three Dog Night reached #3. But alas - Stevenson never regained the success he had with "My Maria." He did make one Contemporary Christian album later on. Author Jan Reid devotes a chapter to Stevenson in his book, The Improbable Rise of Redneck Rock, dubbing him "The Voice." Sadly, he passed away while undergoing heart valve surgery at the age of 38. A place called Poor David's Pub in Dallas holds an annual songwriting competition in his memory.
Musically speaking (although the post link was not the song), an instrumental solo in a song is generally known as a "break", usually a restatement of the verse or chorus theme.
ReplyDeleteThe "bridge" is a connecting portion, usually after a "break", that leads back to the verse or chorus. 'Tain't the verse, 'tain't the chorus, but is a connector! ;-)