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I want to make remark on the "..solo artist paradigm..." where the "... music industry business model which is attracted to solo artists that require a fraction of the production and management overhead compared to the overhead involved with a band comprising several people and multiple egos...."
Whilst I am not a psychologist in the field of multiple egos, I do find it ironic that a solo artist's album may well have an orchestral backup such as Robbie Williams, Josh Groban, Duffy, Christine Aguilera's "Beautiful" and Katie Melua to name a few.
Orchestras have many more people than a band. Even bands such as The Beatles and ABBA have orchestral backing. But the session musicians never get a mention as members of a group/band except in the latter years for example for artists such as Robbie Williams, Katie Melua and Duffy.
Listen to albums from Air Supply, Kevin Johnson, Sherbet, to name a few have orchestral backings which is greater in number than the number in the band/group.
Similarly, Frank Sinatra's albums have orchestral backing from the likes of Don Costa, Nelson Riddle, Count Basie and Harry James. Then who are the musicians in the backup orchestras? That's another issue.
I like Frank Sinatra more for the backup orchestra than for Frank Sinatra. Have a listen to Frank Sinatra's version of "Mrs Robinson". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mo-jA0AwdCM. .
Who'd ever thought that The Beach Boys' bass player was a session musician and recall the bass riff near the start of "California Girls", https://www.vulture.com/2016/04/carol-kaye-sets-record-straight.html .
However Carol Kaye was not the only bass player in the Beach Boys. One has to go to a site https://www.allmusic.com/album/pet-sounds-mw0000398074/credits?1646613347354 to find out that there were other bass players in the "Pet Sounds" album such as Ray Pohlman on electric bass and Lyle Ritz on upright bass.
Session musicians and backup orchestras are larger in number than the featured artist or band, but are rarely given credit in albums or when the song is back announced on radio.
Thank you,
Anthony from look at another perspective on solo artists or bands, Belfield in the land of the Wangal and Darug Peoples of the Eora Nation.