The "Brazil Album," released in early 1971, titled Best of Friends. A Brazilian record producer, Roberto Quartin, heard some of the demos Joe and Bing were recording in New York and asked for an album's worth of material.

The best thing to come from this experience was their introduction to Eumir Deodato, a talented arranger, composer, and musician. Eumir wrote several of the arrangements on the record, played some piano, and has been a good friend and supporter ever since. Eumir is probably best known for his hit rendition of "Also Sprach Zarathustra", the theme from Stanley Kubrick's Space Odyssey 2001. For a song list and roster of noted musicians who played on record, see the "White Album" credits below.

The Quartin single, featuring a picture of Roberto Quartin on the label. Side A: Walking Out on Yesterday (Daybreak); Side B: Just Plain Livin' Blues

The "White Album," which was a re-pressing of the Best of Friends album shown above. This one is rare, with only 1500 copies in existence. Beginning in April 1971, Joe and Bing sold these at their concerts throughout New England. The cover art has become a logo and was produced by Betsy Byrne, fiancée of Joe and Bing's college room-mate, Pat Hubner.

The songs on the album are: Daybreak, I'm Not Forgetting Your Name, If Love's In Season, Summer Sound, Just Plain Livin' Blues, Fennario, Sail, Drifting with the Time, It's OK, and Love the One You're With - a cover of the Stephen Stills song.

Musicians on the album included drummers Grady Tate, Dom Um Romao and Geoff Daking, bassist Russell George, guitarists Joe Beck and Bob Rose, keyboards by Eumir Deodato and Kenny Asher. There were strings and horns as well, contracted by Harry Lookofsky. Joe and Bing played all the acoustic guitars.

Daybreak

The first limited re-issue of the Best of Friends LP on the Black Horse label. Back cover with concert photos taken at Williams College in 1972. Graphics and audio quality are good in comparison to the CBS Italy LP released later. This record was distributed throughout Europe. With vendors recognizing that broadband developments have made the world wide web a vast market, it also can be found occasionally for sale on the internet.

Don Kirshner introduces Joe & Bing

This was a single of "Alaska Bloodline," released on Kirshner Records, distributed by Columbia/Epic, in 1974. On the flip side was the tectonic "San Andreas Fracture Zone Blues."

"Alaska Bloodline" would later be re-arranged and re-recorded first with Deodato and later on the RCA album. However, it was this recording that was a Top Singles Pick in both Billboard and Cashbox and became a regional hit in Alaska (though it did appear briefly at #105 on the Cashbox charts). Joe & Bing followed with several 6-week engagements at the Anchorage Westward Hotel.

Daybreak - Eumir Deodato and Best of Friends

The second limited re-issue of the Best of Friends album, this one on CBS Sugar (Italy) around 1976. Cover features a picture of Eumir Deodato. The audio quality of this record is generally poor and was most likely not cut from an authorized master tape.

The RCA album, Joe and Bing, was released in July 1976. As executive producer, music impresario Don Kirshner assigned the Tokens ("The Lion Sleeps Tonight') to produce the record. One of the Tokens, Mitch Margo, became a member of Joe and Bing's touring band, and Jay Siegel's classic falsetto can be heard on the album, most notably at the end of "Hockey Player." Look for an official BMG re-issue of this LP in the future.

Songs: Catchin' Hearts, Barnstormer, Oh Elizabeth, Alaska Bloodline, Library, Changing, Looking for Camelot, Hockey Player, Ripple in the Water, You Didn't Have to Go, You Can Dance to My Song.

There are some legendary musicians playing on the record: guitarist Elliot Randall, bassists Will Lee and Jay Leonhart, Steve Gadd and Allan Schwartzberg on drums, saxophonist David Sanborn, and Eric Weissberg on pedal steel guitar and fiddle.

The RCA single, "Barnstormer," released in June 1976, became Joe and Bing's only Top 100 song to date. Flip side: You Didn't Have to Go.