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I liked being challenged by music. It’s good for me.

Al Kooper

In the, uh, ’30s and ’40s, the Brill Building was the hub of, uh, musical activity in Tin Pan Alley in New York City.
AL KOOPER

Activity Alley Building Country Hib Music Pan Tin
Musically Bob [Dylan] is a primitive. He’s not a Gershwin, or somebody that uses eloquent music terms.
AL KOOPER

Bob Eloquent Music Musically Primitive Somebody Term Use User
Every day from 10 to 6, we’d go in there and pretend that we were 13 year old girls and write these songs. That was the gig.
AL KOOPER

Day Every Gig Old Pretend Six Song Ten Thirteen Write Year
And a little slate that came out of the wall that you could actually write on. And a door that locked from the outside.
AL KOOPER

Actual Came Door Little Lock Out Outside Slate Wall Write
Only through sheer ambition did I end up playing on [Bob Dylan sessions] and the fact that I could do that is a testament to how disorganized it really was.
AL KOOPER

Ambition Bob End Fact Play Session Sheer Through
So I would come in on the upbeat of one. I would wait until the band played the chord, and then as quickly as I could come in play the chord.
AL KOOPER

Band Chord One Play Quick Unbeat
The place that I worked I used to joke about it. There was a, every morning at 10:30 I’d come into work and I’d go into this cubicle that had a little upright piano and fake white cork bricks on the wall.
AL KOOPER

Cock Cubic Every Fake Joke Morning Paino Place Upright Wall White Work
Producing Bob Dylan was pretty much a spectator sport.
AL KOOPER

Bob Dylan Much Pretty Produce Sport
Every now and then we could steal somebody else’s stuff.
AL KOOPER

Now Somebody Steal Stuff Then
I started in the music business I was first introduced to 1650 Broadway, uh, which was in reality where everything happened in the ’60s.
AL KOOPER

Broadway Business Everything First Happen Introduce Music Reality Start
You couldn’t help being influenced by Dylan.
AL KOOPER

Being Help Influence Person
And he was about my age, and he just, that finished off my guitar career, just like that, in one afternoon.
AL KOOPER

Afternoon Age Career Finish Guitar Just My One
The “Highway 61” album [of Bob Dylan] was produced by Bob Johnston if I’m not incorrect. And Bob Johnston was an entirely different producer than Tom Wilson.
AL KOOPER

Album Differ Different Entirely Highway Incorrect Recor
The [Bob] Dylan sessions were very disorganized, to say the least. I mean, the “Like A Rolling Stone” session I was invited by the producer to watch.
AL KOOPER

Celebrity Disorganized Invite Least Like Mean Producer Roll Say Session Stone Watch
My influences were mostly gospel. So I was playing my twisted Jewish equivalent of gospel music over his twisted equivalent of rock and roll music. And it was a very excellent marriage.
AL KOOPER

Equivalent Excellent Gospel Influence Jewish Marriage Mostly Music Over Play Twist
Still being ambitious to want to play on the record, I was a mediocre keyboard player. And uh, I seized the opportunity and played the organ.
AL KOOPER

Ambitious Keyboard Mediocre Opportunity Organ Play Player Record Seize Still

I liked being challenged by music. It’s good for me.

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I liked being challenged by music. It’s good for me.

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