Leon Russell born Claude Russell Bridges ; April 2, [1] — November 13, was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling pop music records during his year career. His genres included pop , country , rock , folk , gospel , bluegrass , rhythm and blues , folk rock , blues rock , surf , standards , and Tulsa Sound. His collaborations rank as some of the most successful in music history, and as a touring musician he performed with hundreds of notable artists. One of his biggest early fans, [11] [12] Elton John said that Russell was a "mentor" and an "inspiration". He wrote and recorded the hits " Tight Rope " and " Lady Blue ". His recordings earned six gold records. He received two Grammy Awards from seven nominations. Russell was born in Lawton, Oklahoma [1] and began playing the piano at the age of four. Russell and Gates played and recorded together as the Fencemen.

About Billboard

# 9 – On A Distant Shore
It was a collaborative effort with Marc Benno. In , Leon Russell released his first solo album entitled Leon Russell. While Leon Russell had already established himself as a sought after pianist, he had now graduated to the status of a brilliant songwriter and an artist to be reckoned with.
Frequently bought together
Although he was mostly known as a superstar sideman and a musical master of ceremonies, the late Leon Russell left behind a body of work that elevated him well beyond the role of support musician and session player. Russell recruited some heavy-duty associates when he launched his solo career with his eponymous debut album. Indeed, few other musicians could not only have inspired interest early on from various Beatles, Stones, Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood and Joe Cocker, but then also enlist them to lend their support. He later formed core musical relationships with George Harrison and Bob Dylan that came to fruition at the superstar summit known as The Concert for Bangladesh. In honor of the late musician, here are the songs for which Russell will be best remembered. The album reached No.
Despite his sweeping talent as a singer, songwriter and sideman, Russell remained doggedly independent and, more often than not, just as consistently in the shadows. He didn't release his first solo album until , but by then he'd already played on literally hundreds of songs as a key member of the famous Wrecking Crew session band. Tambourine Man" by the Byrds , among many others. Even after he'd found a short period of consistent recognition in the early '70s — touring with Joe Cocker 's legendary Mad Dogs and Englishmen troupe, scoring three Top 20 hit albums and stealing the show as part of George Harrison 's concert for Bangladesh — his biggest hit songs were still voiced by others.