Sounds: Felix Pappalardi: Peaks and valleys for Mountain man
The music world is littered with tragic figures, going all the way back to Stephen Foster (who died at age 37 in 1864, alcoholic and destitute). Since then, the list goes on and on.
And that list includes Felix Pappalardi, an unsung hero of sorts who created some memorable work onstage and off, and who had the unique and dubious distinction of collaborating with and being murdered by his wife at age 43.
Pappalardi was born in New York in 1939 and took to music at an early age. He studied it in high school and college and was classically trained, becoming adept at numerous instruments.
His skills in reading and writing music, and the good timing of being around as the folk revival in New York City was gaining steam in the early 1960s, led to session and arranging work for such upcoming recording artists as Joan Baez, Richard and Mimi Farina, Tim Hardin, Ian and Sylvia, Fred Neil and Tom Paxton.
It was during his folky days that Pappalardi met Gail Collins, herself an artist who would go on to provide lyrics for dozens of his original songs.
Pappalardi got his first real taste of attention in 1967 by producing the debut album of the Youngbloods, which contained their iconic hit "Get Together" (No. 5, 1969).
Greater appreciation came when Pappalardi produced three of the four albums released by Hall of Fame super trio Cream, featuring Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker.
The band members have acknowledged Papparlardi's contributions to Cream's success, however short-lived. He produced all five of their U.S. chart hits, and he and Collins rearranged Clapton's song "Lawdy Mama" and turned it into the classic "Strange Brew" (No. 17, U.K.).
On top of his production duties, Pappalardi also accompanied Cream in the studio. He played viola on "White Room" (No. 6, 1968) and keyboards on "Badge" (No. 60, 1969), the trio's last single, which Clapton co-wrote with George Harrison and an uncredited Ringo Starr.
With Cream, Pappalardi's innovative recording techniques came to the fore.
"Pappalardi brought rock out of its formative production phase by multi-tracking Ginger Baker's drum kit and giving it the center part of the listening spectrum, putting Clapton's guitars on one side and Jack Bruce's bass on the other," according to the liner notes of the 1995 Mountain compendium "Over the Top." "This innovation gave rock the majestic, larger-than-life sound that helped turn it into a unique musical genre."
Or, as West more succinctly put it: "Felix changed the face of rock music."
After Cream imploded, Pappalardi maintained his connection to the band by producing Bruce's first solo album, "Songs for a Tailor," usually regarded as his best.
Pappalardi then spent most of the 1970s as the producer, bassist, anchor and occasional vocalist for hard-rocking Mountain, a vehicle for guitar virtuoso Leslie West. The band had one major hit, the memorable "Mississippi Queen" (No. 21, 1970), and three Billboard Top 40 albums. But most important, Pappalardi and Collins wrote the majority of the original songs.
Mountain crumbled under the weight of drugs and disagreements, and Pappalardi and Collins' rocky relationship played a part.
Pappalardi released a couple of solo albums, but he had plateaued with Cream and Mountain. He was still with Collins, but clearly all was not well in the marriage. Pappalardi, who was an avid gun collector, was caught in a love triangle with his wife and another woman, and it all came to sad end 34 years ago on April 17, 1983, when Collins shot and killed him in their Manhattan apartment.
Collins claimed the shooting was an accident and was convicted of criminally negligent homicide, serving only two years in prison. She then vanished for nearly three decades. The next time her name came up was when it was announced that she had died from cancer in Mexico on Dec. 6, 2013.
Pappalardi's death could be viewed as just another casualty of the hedonistic rock 'n' roll lifestyle. But West saw it in much simpler terms: "Never buy your wife or girl a gun. A ring, boots, a miracle bra — but no gun!"
Email: mconstantino@calkins.com