By Thomas Semioli

A session legend, producer, composer and first-call bassist / sideman- it would be easier to list artists whom Emory Lee Gordy Jr. hasn’t’ anchored on stage and on record! 

Emory’s musical skills were evident as a child in his native Atlanta, Georgia. By the time he was in high school he was a multi-instrumentalist working in ensembles spanning Dixieland Jazz to Top 40 to garage rock. A music student at Georgia State, Gordy’s career in the studio began in 1964, collaborating with Tommy Roe, Lou Christie, Rufus Thomas, and Joe South, among others. He moved to Los Angeles in 1970, working sessions as a bassist, producer, and engineer for such artists as Debbie Reynolds, Liberace, and Neil Diamond.

In ’72 Gordy anchored Elvis’ TCB Band. In the mid-70s he co-founded Emmylou Harris Hot Band while continuing his studio work with Billy Joel, Tom Petty, and Rosanne Cash, John Denver, and Rodney Crowell to cite a very select few.

In ’83 Gordy gave up the road full time and turned to production, helming such sides as Steve Earle’s Exit 0 and Guitar Town, along with releases by Vince Gill, and his wife Patty Loveless. Nowadays Gordy lives in semi-retirement and occasionally works a session or one-off performances in Nashville or his home in Atlanta.  Gordy and Loveless are members of the Georgia Music Hall of Fame.

Emory Gordy Jr. Sound & Vision…

Elvis Presley: “Burning Love” https://youtu.be/zf2VYAtqRe0

Elvis Presley: “Separate Ways”  https://youtu.be/zeUSTbdaiZk

Gram Parsons: “Return of the Grievous Angel” https://youtu.be/h_Iz0iVvhEc

Emmy Lou Harris Hot Band Old Grey Whistle Test 1977: https://youtu.be/lpNMrugveLE

Rodney Crowell “Ain’t No Money” https://youtu.be/tfwGTMJW5XY

Rosanne Cash “Ain’t No Money” https://youtu.be/AgqxbnogP3E

Neil Diamond  “Longfellow Serenade” https://youtu.be/4XRGMaI46zw

Linda Ronstadt “Dark End of the Street” https://youtu.be/PKBvG8XJrSU

Tom Petty “Strangered in the Night” https://youtu.be/gC9FDx3HISw

Patty Loveless “A Little Bit In Love” https://youtu.be/T-5MN8JuEhc