13 Years Ago Today, We Said Goodbye to the Prolific Guitarist Who Rejected Paul McCartney’s Band Invitation

You may have never heard Hugh McCracken’s name, but you’ve certainly heard his magical riffs on recordings like Steely Dan’s “Hey Nineteen” and the Van Morrison classic “Brown Eyed Girl”. So sought after was the New Jersey-born session guitarist that he could afford to turn down Paul McCartney’s invitation to join the band Wings. McCracken died of leukemia on this day (March 28) in 2013. He was 70 years old. Today, we’re reflecting on one of music’s most impactful behind-the-scenes figures to ever play.

Videos by American Songwriter

Born March 31, 1942, in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, Hugh Carmine McCracken grew up in nearby Hackensack. He picked up his first guitar at age 14—mostly to impress girls, he said.

Much of McCracken’s musical education came from borrowing records from a nearby gas station mechanic’s expansive R&B collection. At 16, he formed his first band.

McCracken’s mother met saxophonist King Curtis at the club where she worked as a hat checker. She persuaded the iconic bandleader to hear her son play. Curtis did, and he was so impressed that he hired McCracken for his 1961 album Trouble in Mind.

Hugh McCracken Preferred to Stay Out of the Spotlight

In the mid-1960s, Hugh McCracken played in a North Jersey night club cover band called the Funatics before moving on to session work.

Throughout his five-decade career, McCracken’s resume included recordings by Hall & Oates, Van Morrison, Aretha Franklin, Don McLean, Steely Dan, B.B. King, Neil Diamond, Billy Joel, Carly Simon, Roberta Flack, Bob Dylan, the Monkees, and more.

Perhaps his greatest skill was improvisation. Before recording Flack’s chart-topping 1973 hit “Killing Me Softly with His Song”, McCracken began fooling around on his classical guitar. Producer Joel Dorn requested that he play his riff again. It became the song’s intro.

“His feel was immaculate,” record producer Leo Sacks told the New York Times. “It flowed with such ease.”

After working with Paul McCartney on his 1971 studio album Ram, the ex-Beatle invited McCracken to join his new group, Wings. Preferring a life behind the scenes to one on the road, McCracken turned him down.

[RELATED: The Story Behind “Dear Yoko” by John Lennon and How David Geffen Landed a Recording Contract with the Ex-Beatle]

Other career highlights include Paul Simon’s “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover,” Alicia Keys’ “If I Ain’t Got You,” and John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s “I’m Losing You.” McCracken also played rhythm guitar, mandolin and harmonica.

Featured image courtesy of X/Twitter