Artist Bread Song The Guitar Man Album Guitar Man Year 1972 Bread’s GUITAR MAN was not one of its most commercially successful albums–the album’s only chart single was the title track–but it’s a finely-crafted, well-constructed soft rock album which shows the group at its best. Bandleader David Gates first made his name as a session producer and songwriter in mid-’60s LA; the Monkees’ hard-pop “Saturday’s Child” is one of his best and best-known efforts. He clearly learned at the feet of such icons as Brian Wilson and Phil Spector, as even the weaker songs here are sublimely arranged, with crystalline production. The best songs, such as “Welcome to the Music” or “I Didn’t Even Know Her Name,” are comparable to the best of the Carpenters’ singles being released at the same time. Live Recording