John "Rabbit" Bundrick
Best known as the touring keyboardist for the Who since the late
`70s, John "Rabbit" Bundrick has also issued countless solo
releases, in addition to session work for other artists. Born on
November 21, 1948, in Houston, TX, Bundrick came from a very
musical family (his mother played piano, his father the bass,
and his brothers various other instruments), leading to the
youngster learning the piano at the age of seven. Four years
later, Bundrick joined his father in a local country band, and
at the age of 15, was an in-demand session musician at local
Houston recording studios. After a college career failed to pan
out (Bundrick flunked all his subjects except for music), the
young keyboardist relocated to Los Angeles, during which time he
picked up the nickname "Rabbit" due to his buck teeth. Bundrick
eventually returned back to Houston, where he picked up steady
session work once more, during which time he befriended
pop-reggae singer Johnny Nash.
After living in Sweden for a period of time, Bundrick united
with Nash in London, where he wrote several songs for and played
on Nash's hit 1972 album I Can See Clearly Now, which spawned a
massive hit single with its carefree title track. Through Nash,
Bundrick met Bob Marley, and lent his synthesizer/keyboard
talents to Marley's 1973 release Catch a Fire. Around the same
time, Bundrick was asked to join an offshoot project of the
British blues-rock outfit Free called Kossoff, Kirke, Tetsu &
Rabbit, who spawned a lone self-titled release before splitting
up. But it was through these projects that the floodgates for
further session work seemed to open for Bundrick, as he played
on recordings by Sandy Denny, Andy Fairweather-Low, Jim Capaldi,
Eric Burdon, Donovan, John Martyn, Silverhead, and Free (the
latter of which briefly reunited after the dissolution of
Kossoff, Kirke, Tetsu & Rabbit).
The early `70s also saw Bundrick issue his first few solo
releases, 1973's Broken Arrows and 1974's Dark Saloon, but
session work was his main focus, as he developed a friendship
with Who guitarist/songwriter Pete Townshend while playing on
his 1977 collaboration with Ronnie Lane, Rough Mix. Bundrick
then accepted an invite to join British hard rockers Crawler,
but besides a pair of albums (1977's Crawler and 1978's Snake
Rattle & Roll), Bundrick's stint with the group proved
unfruitful. It didn't take long for Bundrick to latch onto his
next project as the Who were looking to add a keyboardist to
their touring lineup for their comeback 1979 world tour.
Bundrick got the gig (with his first rehearsals with the group
documented on the Who's fine home video/DVD Thirty Years of
Maximum R&B Live), and has remained as the group's touring
keyboardist ever since, in addition to playing on subsequent
solo releases by Who members Townshend (1980's Empty Glass,
1985's White City: A Novel, 1989's Iron Man: A Musical) and
Roger Daltrey (1980's McVicar, 1994's Celebration: The Music of
the Who).
Bundrick has also found time to issue countless further solo
releases on his own, including such titles as Abendstimmung:
Evening Bliss, Dreamcatcher: Global Journey, Dream Jungle,
Echoes of Africa, The Fairy Garden, Moccasin Warrior, Moccasin
Warrior II, Run for Cover, Same Old Story, Spirit of the Wolf,
Tour Guide, Welcome to America, and With the Dolphins.
Additionally, Bundrick has kept up his steady session work
schedule, guesting on latter-day releases by such artists as
Mick Jagger, Roger Waters, Mick Taylor, Richard & Linda
Thompson, and Trevor Rabin, among others.
