Elliott Randall - Randall's Island (Reissue) (1970/2011)

Elliott Randall (born 1947) is an American guitarist, best known for being a session musician with popular artists. Randall played the well-known guitar solos from Steely Dan‘s song “Reelin’ in the Years” and “Fame”. It was reported that Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page said Randall’s solo on “Reelin’ in the Years” is his favorite guitar solo of all-time. The solo was ranked as the 40th best guitar solo of all-time by the readers of Guitar World magazine and the eighth best guitar solo by Q4 Music.

Randall began taking piano lessons at age five. At nine, in 1956, he switched to guitar. He attended New York City’s High School of Music & Art, where he was classmates with Laura Nyro and Michael Kamen. In 1963, at sixteen, Randall met Richie Havens in Greenwich Village and began gigging. Randall did some early work behind The Capris and The Ronnettes, and by 1964 was recording “small-time” demos.

Between 1966 and 1967, he taught music in Ohio. Returning to New York, he began working as a staff musician for the Musicor record company. He began recording with friends around 1968, including Tim Rose, and made demo recordings with Donald Fagen and Walter Becker—who at the time were with Jay and the Americans. In 1969, he joined the band Seatrain, opting for that band rather than joining Wilson Pickett in Muscle Shoals. In 1970, Randall signed with the Robert Stigwood Organization, which managed Cream, The Bee Gees, John Mayall, and The Staple Singers. He formed a band called Randall’s Island, which recorded a few albums on Polydor.