In the movie Forest Gump, Forest finds himself a significant part of many major historical moments from the 1950’s onward. From meeting a young Elvis, to investing in Apple, Gump was everywhere. Perhaps the same could be said about the late keyboardist Nicky Hopkins, who played a significant role in recording some of the most important albums of the 60’s and 70’s, who helped shape the sound of1960’s Rock N Roll and who went on tour with some of the biggest acts of that time.

Hopkins begin his career in the early 60’s playing keyboards for a band called “Screaming Lord Sutch’s Savages” which included Richie Blackmore, the founder of Deep Purple. He also played keyboards on records by The Kinks, and several albums by the Rolling Stones including Between the Buttons, Their Satanic Majesties Request, Beggars Banquet and Let It Bleed.

In 1965, Hopkins played keyboards on The Who’s first album, My Generation. In 1967 he joined the Jeff Beck Group, which featured legendary performers such as Jeff Beck, Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood. Hopkins also performed on The Beatles song “Revolution” and contributed to solo recordings from John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison.

Nicky Hopkins also made his way across the Atlantic to the West Coast, playing with bands such as The Jefferson Airplane, The Steve Miller Band and New Riders of the Purple Sage where he helped define the “San Francisco Sound.”

Along with performing on many of the Rolling Stones albums from the 60’s, Hopkins joined the Stones on several tours in the early 1970’s and contributed heavily to The Rolling Stones classic album Exile on Main Street. In 1975 he found himself on tour with the Jerry Garcia Band.

Other famous rock music moments Nicky Hopkins can be found on:

Joe Cocker: “You Are So Beautiful” (1974)
Cat Stevens: “Matthew and Son” (1967)
David Bowie: “Early On” (1966 sessions with the Lower Third)
Led Zeppelin: “Rock and Roll” (1969)