Express, The Drifters, Big Joe Turner, T-Bone Walker, Sam & Dave, Tracy Nelson, Mother Earth, and The Isley Brothers.

His first major professional gig was as Maxine Brown's bandleader at the Apollo Theater and his first number one R&B hit single was "Funny".

Express, Taylor's efforts were recorded by Freddie King, Chubby Checker, Son Seals, Jimmy Witherspoon, Brook Benton, Jay and the Americans, Joey Dee, Maxine Brown, and Joe Tex.

Taylor also was the bandleader and/or guitarist for Big Joe Turner, The Isley Brothers, Tracy Nelson, Otis Redding, and Sam & Dave.

With fellow Starliter Dave Brigatti, Taylor had a strong influence on The Rascals, which included Brigati's younger brother Eddie.

After recording and appearing in two films with the Starliters including Two Tickets to Paris, Taylor took his friend Jimi Hendrix with him to tell Joey Dee and Morris Levy to let the young upstart take his place in the group.

He was told by the record producer Jeff Lane that, in exchange for helping them build up the company, he would be granted a solo deal for three albums.

Taylor played rhythm guitar on all tracks of the group's first five albums, with the first three being million sellers, Do It ('Til You're Satisfied), Non-Stop, and Energy to Burn.

Taylor also produced and wrote songs for Norma Jenkins' debut album, Patience is a Virtue, which included the soul track, "Reachin Out in Darkness".

By the late 1970s, he moved to Santa Monica, California, where at Venice Beach he and his weekly night show with his band A Band Called Sam attracted fellow artists such as Rickie Lee Jones, Gregory Hines, and Tom Waits, but drug addiction and medical problems threatened to dull his musical edge.

It was also in Arizona that Taylor began a modest acting career, appearing in movies and television with Louis Gossett Jr., Mario Van Peebles, and Barbara Eden.