John Cameron: "Whole Lotta Love" by CCS

The role of the arranger is often overlooked in the story of pop music, so let’s meet one of the busiest in the business in the 1960s and ‘70s, John Cameron, who’s very first commissioned arrangement, Donovan’s Sunshine Superman went to No. 1 in the USA. It started a long association with producer Mickie Most and the RAK label, which, in 1970, led to Most signing Cameron’s own act, C.C.S - aka The Collective Consciousness Society - a 25-piece big band featuring the cream of British jazz players tackling blues, rock, funk and flamenco tunes. Their version of Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love was a worldwide hit and became the theme to Top Of The Pops for many years.

In this extended episode, John guides us through the making of Whole Lotta Love and a varied career which includes work with Eric Idle, Donovan, Bobbie Gentry, Ken Loach, Hot Chocolate and Heatwave. He talks about the demands of arranging, film scoring, the UK session scene, his much-sampled library music for KPM and Bruton, walking out on Serge Gainsbourg and having better luck with some other Frenchmen to become the arranger of smash stage musical, Les Miserables.

An accompanying playlist is available on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1nS7q6gNuxPXaUmPSPdoqu?si=bdb5861fb6ab40d8