David Perry Lindley (March 21, 1944 – March 3, 2023) was an American musician who founded the rock band El Rayo-X and worked with many other performers including Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, Ry Cooder, Bonnie Raitt, Warren Zevon, Curtis Mayfield and Dolly Parton. He mastered such a wide variety of instruments that Acoustic Guitar magazine referred to him not as a multi-instrumentalist but instead as a "maxi-instrumentalist."
The majority of the instruments that Lindley played are string instruments, including violin, acoustic and electric guitar, upright and electric bass, banjo, mandolin, dobro, hardingfele, bouzouki, cittern, bağlama, gumbus, charango, cümbüş, oud and zither. He was described as "the unparalleled master of the lap steel guitar" in the rock music sphere, and an expert in Hawaiian-style slide guitar blues.
Lindley was a founding member of the 1960s psychedelic band Kaleidoscope and worked as musical director for several touring artists. He occasionally scored and composed music for film.
Early life and career David Perry Lindley was born in San Marino, California, to Margaret () and John Royal Young Lindley (brother of actress Loretta Young) on March 21, 1944. When Lindley was growing up in Los Angeles, his father had an extensive collection of 78 rpm records that included Korean folk and Indian sitar music, as well as Spanish classical guitarists Andrés Segovia and Carlos Montoya. Lindley took up the violin at age three, and kept at it despite breaking the fragile bridge. He then moved on to the baritone ukulele in his early teens. Next he learned the banjo. By his late teens, he had won the Topanga Banjo•Fiddle Contest five times.
He played banjo with the Dry City Scat Band which included multi-instrumentalist Chris Darrow, and Richard Greene on fiddle. Lindley and his bandmates aspired to emulate multi-talented folk singer Mike Seeger.
Lindley began to frequent the Los Angeles–area folk music scene of the 1960s, primarily going to the Ash Grove club, but also attending the Troubador in West Hollywood, encountering an eclectic assortment of music including flamenco, Russian folk music, and Indian sitar music. At Ash Grove, Lindley shared ideas with local musicians such as Ry Cooder and Chris Hillman. Lindley formed an especially close relationship with Cooder; the two shared a love of "exotic music", and they both turned away from corporate mainstream music to focus on less popular idioms such as folk and world music. At Ash Grove, Lindley learned from traveling blues and folk musicians the "right" way to play certain styles, and he learned violin methods from local star Don "Sugarcane" Harris.
From 1966 to 1970, Lindley was a founding member of the psychedelic band Kaleidoscope which released four albums on Epic Records during that period. After Kaleidoscope broke up, Lindley went to England and played in Terry Reid's band for a couple of years. In 1972, he teamed with Jackson Browne, playing in his band through 1980 and occasionally afterward. During the 1970s he also toured as a member of the bands of Crosby-Nash, Linda Ronstadt and James Taylor.
In 1981, Lindley formed his own band, El Rayo-X. Jackson Browne produced their first album. The band's final show was December 31, 1989. After that, Lindley toured as a solo artist, first with Hani Naser accompanying on hand drums, then with reggae percussionist Wally Ingram. He also played on a multitude of studio sessions. Between his work in the studio as a session musician or on tour as a sideman or bandleader, Lindley learned new instruments. He was famous for having written the only song glorifying a brand of condoms, "Ram-a-Lamb-a-Man," from his album Win This Record! The media often commented on his colorful polyester clothing, Reprinted on March 15, 2011. with jarring contrasts between pants and shirt, earning him the nickname Prince of Polyester.
Work with other artists
Lindley was known for his work as a session musician. He contributed to years of recordings and live performances by Jackson Browne, and also supported Warren Zevon, Linda Ronstadt, Curtis Mayfield, James Taylor, David Crosby, Graham Nash, Terry Reid, Dolly Parton, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Toto, Rod Stewart, Joe Walsh and Dan Fogelberg. He collaborated with fellow guitarists Ry Cooder, Henry Kaiser and G. E. Smith. Artist Ben Harper credited Lindley's distinctive slide guitar style as a major influence on his own playing, and, in 2006, Lindley sat in on Harper's album Both Sides of the Gun.
He was known in the guitar community for his use of "cheap" instruments sold at Sears department stores and intended for amateurs. He used these for the unique sounds they produce, especially with a slide. In the early 1990s, he toured and recorded with Hani Naser adding percussive instruments to his solo performances, and his instrumental repertoire which he used in his session work. Lindley also toured extensively and recorded with reggae percussionist Wally Ingram.
Lindley's voice may be heard in the version of "Stay" performed by Jackson Browne. Browne's version is a continuation of "The Load Out", and its refrain is sung in progressively higher vocal ranges. The refrain of "Oh won't you stay, just a little bit longer" is sung first by Browne, then by Rosemary Butler, then by Lindley in falsetto.
Lindley joined Jackson Browne for a tour of Spain in 2006. Love Is Strange: En Vivo Con Tino, a 2-CD set of recordings from that tour, was released 2010, with Browne and Lindley touring together starting in June of that year. They played together at Glastonbury Festival in 2010, and they won an Independent Music Award for Best Live Performance Album in 2011."10th Annual Independent Music Awards Winners Announced. Independent Music Awards, March 29, 2011. Retrieved on September 9, 2013.
Instruments
Lindley had a large collection of rare and unusual guitars and other instruments from the Middle East and various parts of the world. He listed and categorized many of them on his website but admitted that he had "absolutely no idea" how many instruments he owned and played, having gathered them since the 1960s. A journalist described his home in 1994 as containing a "tidal flood of instruments strewn all over the house. In every room. On the floor, balanced against the wall, lying atop cabinets and just literally occupying virtually every inch of available floor space."
Personal life Lindley married Joan Darrow, the sister of his musical colleague Chris Darrow from the band Kaleidoscope. In 1970, Joan and David Lindley had a daughter named Rosanne who became a folk singer with the Bright Mountain Choir in the 1990s, collaborating with the Mountain Goats. In 1995, Rosanne joined Lindley in a series of concerts with Ry Cooder and his son Joachim Cooder, billed as the Cooder–Lindley Family. The Lindleys lived in a quiet neighborhood of Claremont, California.
Lindley died after a long illness on March 3, 2023, at the age of 78. He had COVID-19 in 2020, which his family said developed into long COVID, with chronic kidney damage.
Selected discography Solo Albums Year Title US Billboard 200 Label Notes 1981 El Rayo-X83Asylum1982 Win This Record!— Elektra 1983 El Rayo Live— Elektra / Rhino 1985 Mr. Dave— Wounded Bird 1988Very Greasy174 Elektra1991 The Indian Runner—original soundtrack with Jack Nitzsche A World Out of Time—Shanachie Recordswith Henry Kaiser in Madagascar 1992In the Running— Elektra/East West Recordswith Howard Jones1994 The Sweet Sunny North— Shanachie Records Wheels of the Sun— Hermans Records by Kazu Matsui with Hani NaserOfficial Bootleg #1: Live in Tokyo Playing Real Good — Ulftonewith Hani Naser1995 Song of Sacajawea — Rabbit EarsOfficial Bootleg #2: Live All Over the Place Playing Even Better— Ulftone with Hani Naser 2000Twango Bango Deluxe— with Wally Ingram 2001 Twango Bango II—with Wally Ingram 2003 Twango Bango III — with Wally Ingram 2004 Live in Europe — with Wally Ingram 2007 David Lindley—Big Twang—
With other musicians with Kaleidoscope Year Title US Billboard 200 Label 1967 Side Trips-Epic1967 A Beacon from Mars— Epic 1969Incredible! Kaleidoscope139 Epic 1970 Bernice— Epic
with Terry Reid Year Title US Billboard 200 Label 1972 River172 Atlantic1976 Seed of Memory— ABC
with Jackson Browne 1973 : For Everyman (Asylum) 1974 : Late for the Sky (Asylum) 1976 : The Pretender (Asylum) 1977 : Running on Empty (Asylum) 1980 : Hold Out (Asylum) 1986 : Lives in the Balance (Asylum) 1989 : World in Motion (Elektra) 1993 : I'm Alive (Elektra) 1996 : Looking East (Elektra) 2010 : Love Is Strange: En Vivo Con Tino (Inside Recordings)
with Crosby & Nash 1975 : Wind on the Water (ABC) 1976 : Whistling Down the Wire (ABC)
with Rod Stewart 1975 : Atlantic Crossing (Warner Bros.) 1976 : A Night on the Town (Warner Bros.) 1988 : Out of Order (Warner Bros.)
with Warren Zevon 1976 : Warren Zevon 1987 : Sentimental Hygiene (Virgin) 1989 : Transverse City (Virgin) 1994 : Mutineer (Giant) 2003 : The Wind (Artemis)
with Ry Cooder 1978 : Jazz (Warner Bros.) 1979 : Bop Till You Drop (Warner Bros.) 1995 : Cooder-Lindley Family Live at the Vienna Opera House
with other artists 1967 : Songs of Leonard Cohen (Columbia) with Leonard Cohen 1969 : Elephant Mountain (RCA) with the Youngbloods 1971 : America (Warner Bros.) America 1973: Maria Muldaur (Reprise Records) Maria Muldaur 1974: Some Days You Eat the Bear (Elektra) Iain Matthews 1976: In the Pocket (Warner Bros) James Taylor 1977: Lonnie Mack and Pismo (Capitol) Lonnie Mack 1977 : Here You Come Again (RCA) with Dolly Parton 1978: Leo Sayer (Warner Bros.) with Leo Sayer 1979 : Restless Nights (Karla Bonoff album) (Columbia) with Karla Bonoff 1981 : There Goes the Neighborhood (Asylum) with Joe Walsh 1987 : Freight Train Heart with Jimmy Barnes 1987 : Trio (Warner Bros.) with Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt and Dolly Parton 1988 : Ancient Heart (Reprise Records) with Tanita Tikaram 1988 : Everything (Columbia Records) with The Bangles 1989 : Good Evening (Warner Bros.) with Marshall Crenshaw 1990 : Under the Red Sky (Columbia) with Bob Dylan 1992 : Fat City (Columbia) with Shawn Colvin 1997: Cool & Unusual (Martin Simpson album) (Red House Records) with Martin Simpson 2003 : Oil (Cosmo Sex School Records) with Jerry Joseph and Dzuiks Küche 2006 : Both Sides of the Gun (Virgin) with Ben Harper 2008 : Insides Out (New West Records) with Jordan Zevon 2012 : The Devil You Know (Fantasy Records) with Rickie Lee Jones 2015 : Slide Guitar Summit with Arlen Roth (Aquinnah Records) 2017 : The Bucket List (Rocker Chick Media) with the Sound Field
Other appearances Year Title Artist Album Note1971"Simple Man" Graham NashSongs for Beginners plays fiddle1974"Wild Tales" Graham Nash Wild Tales plays electric slide guitar"Grave Concern" plays electric slide guitar"Prison Song"plays mandolin "Heart Like a Wheel"Linda Ronstadt Heart Like a Wheel plays fiddleI Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You) plays fiddle1975Love Is a Rose Prisoner in Disguise plays fiddle"The Sweetest Gift" plays fiddle"You Tell Me That I'm Falling Down" plays fiddle1980 "Earth & Sky"Graham NashEarth & Sky plays rhythm guitar"Out on the Island" plays Hawaiian guitar "Skychild" plays lead guitar"Barrel of Pain" played lead guitar"In the 80's" plays guitar1988 "Lost in You"Rod StewartOut of Orderplays mandolin"The Wild Horse"plays mandolin"Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" plays slide guitar"Almost Illegal" plays fiddle2010 Racing in the Street ('78)Bruce Springsteen & the E Street BandThe Promiseplays violin "Come On (Let's Go Tonight)"plays violin
References
External links The Official David Lindley Web Page Interview on Modern Guitars Magazine
David Lindley Interview at NAMM Oral History Collection