5 Things You Might Not Know About Delaney & Bonnie
During the course of their years as a couple, Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett recorded several strong albums and made a lot of big-name friends, as you can see by checking the credits of any of those LPs, but how much do you know about the other aspects of their lives and careers?
- Not only was Bonnie a member of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, she was the first white Ikette.
“Tina overwhelmed me,” Bonnie recalled in a 2000 interview with GRITZ. “My relationship was at first with Ike. He was grooming guitar players at that time. He was grooming Herbie L. Summer in east St. Louis, a white dude, and grooming Jimi Hendrix in California. Jimi was like 14-15 then.” Bonnie remembered Ike as “kind, but very stern.”
- Delaney was a member of the Shindogs, the house band for the ABC series Shindig!
And, oh, what a house band it was. If you’ve never heard about the lineup, here’s a list of some of the folks who were among the Shindogs’ ranks at one time or another: Glen Campbell, Billy Preston, James Burton, Larry Knechtel, Leon Russell, and Glen D. Hardin, along with musical director / fellow member Ray Pohlman. Seriously, that’s got to rival Paul Shaffer and the World’s Most Dangerous Band in terms of top TV show house bands.
- Delaney & Bonnie were performers on the famed Festival Express in 1970.
In 1970, a bunch of musicians and bands hopped aboard a train and rocked their way across Canada. They made a documentary about it in 2003, using a combination of footage from the train, from the concerts they played along the way, and from new remembrances from folks who were there. Unfortunately, you only just barely glimpse Delaney & Bonnie during the course of the film, but we can assure you that they were there, along with the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band, Buddy Guy, and the Flying Burrito Brothers.
- Bonnie appeared on Saturday Night Live in 1981, playing in Delbert McClinton’s band.
Granted, it was in the excruciating scene after the original Not Ready for Prime-Time Players left, but at least Bill Murray was hosting.
- In addition to her work in music, Bonnie has also done a bit of acting.
You may already know that she appeared on numerous episodes of Roseanne, playing a character named – believe it or not – Bonnie, but she also popped up on an episode of Fame in 1986.
- Just before he died, Delaney surprised fans by releasing a new album, A NEW KIND OF BLUES.
As an Amazon commenter put it, “Actually, with all apologies to Delaney, this CD is not a new kind of blues, rather it's the same old blues that D.B. has always done. And this is a good thing.” Unfortunately, the album flew so far under the radar that it doesn’t even appear in Bramlett’s discography on Discogs.com, but it’s a passionate piece of work and a strong final effort.
