In a diverse music
career spanning several decades, keyboardist/arranger Pete Levin has
performed and recorded with hundreds of Jazz and Pop artists - including
Paul Simon, Annie Lennox, Miles Davis, David Sanborn, Lenny White, Wayne
Shorter, Jaco Pastorius, Robbie Robertson and John Scofield - receiving
critical accolades for his work during a 15 year association with the
legendary Gil Evans, and his 8 year stint with jazz icon Jimmy Giuffre.
Says Levin,
“What I got from Gil
was the unshakable notion that playing music was to create from a place
where there are no boundaries. If it can be imagined then it can be
done.”
In
2010, Pete continues his organ trio CD series with JUMP!, this time featuring the
remarkable Dave Stryker on guitar and legendary drummer Lenny White.
They are joined on 5 tracks by percussionist Manolo Badrena. Pete
and Dave began playing together relatively recently, but Pete and
Lenny go back years to when they both were in Gil Evans' band. The
final track on the album has a special background. Pete
recorded Honeysuckle Rose with the late Joe Beck while planning an
album project in 2008. It wasn't used on the CD.
Recently Pete retrieved the track and finished it by having Danny
Gottlieb overdub drums. They had worked together many times as
a trio. It's straight ahead and "old school" but it's a
poignant tip of the hat to Joe.
With “DEACON
BLUES” for Motema Music, Pete re-emerged in 2007 as a band leader and master of
reinvention, embracing his roots and first love, the Hammond Organ.
Working with a group of iconic jazz sidemen (Joe Beck, Danny Gottlieb,
Tony Levin, Mike DeMicco) Levin and company demonstrated an uncanny
chemistry that was immediate and infectious. Pete followed up in
2008 with "CERTIFIED ORGANIC", continuing to push the envelope of
the classic organ trio. In addition to his soaring Hammond, he
demonstrates once more that he knows how to feature his sidemen, giving
plenty of playing space to the 4 guitarists on the album - John Cariddi,
Joe Beck, Mike DeMicco & Jesse Gress - as well as saxophonist Erik
Lawrence and drummer Harvey Sorgen.
While playing
French Horn with the Gil Evans Orchestra in the early 70s, Levin brought
a Moog Synthesizer to a gig at New York’s Village Vanguard. Already
known as a “go to” synthesizer specialist, Pete was at the vanguard of
that technology. Gil loved it and Levin’s role was permanently changed
as the band transformed itself into the electric/acoustic hybrid
ensemble that captivated audiences worldwide for years, winning two
Grammy® awards along the way.
“I started bringing a Clavinet, too.
Eventually Gil brought John Clark into the band because I couldn’t get
back to my horn in time. After a while, I just stopped bringing it. Name
another band leader that would let a sideman do that! I owe him a
lot.”
An in-demand New
York session keyboardist, Levin has also created electronic realizations
for hundreds of TV commercials, dramatic series and feature films,
including “Missing in Action,” “Lean on Me,” “Silver Bullet,” “Red
Scorpion,” “The Color of Money,” “Maniac,” “Spin City,” “America’s Most
Wanted” and “Star Trek.” In a dizzying array of unrelated commissions,
Levin composed orchestral scores for the feature film “Zelimo” and for a
stage production of “The Dybbuk;” had the honor of composing the anthem
for the 1992 United Nations Earth summit, “The Future is in Our Hands,”
performing it twice for the U.N. General Assembly; and, as far removed
from Jazz as it gets, was awarded the Army Commendation Medal for
writing the official military band arrangement of the U.S. Infantry
song.
But Levin, whose
wry sense of humor is never far from the surface, reveals that his all
time favorite recording session produced the top-40 hit single “Close to
You” by The Clams, a Spike Jones tribute band formed with his brother,
bassist Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel, King Crimson), drummer Steve Gadd
(Eric Clapton, Paul Simon) and Grammy® winning recording engineer Dixon
Van Winkle (Paul McCartney, Frank Sinatra). Thirty years later the
recording is still a cult classic.
“All my arranging and
orchestrating work is grounded in what I experience in live performance,
interacting with other musicians and audiences. That’s what I was
trained to do. Synthesizers and computer programming came later. My best
and most creative ideas come from playing live.”
In 1990, Levin
signed with Gramavision to release his first solo jazz album, “Party in
the Basement,” followed by “A Solitary Man” in 1991. Collaborating with
drummer Danny Gottlieb, Pete released “The New Age of Christmas” on
Atlantic and “Masters in this Hall” for Gramavision. In the years
following, he released four New Age CDs for Alternate Mode Productions,
and a variety of eclectic albums for independent labels.
With “Deacon
Blues,” Pete returned to the cutting edge as a band leader, while
tipping his hat to his mainstream jazz roots. Expanding on the
traditional organ trio format, his innovative arrangements are flavored
with soul, samba and hip-hop grooves. The set mixes four Levin originals
with his unique treatments of familiar classics, including Steely Dan’s
“Deacon Blues,” Ralph Towner’s “Icarus,” the Beach Boys’ “Sail on
Sailor” and Erik Satie’s “First Gymnopedie.” The album features
outstanding performances by bassist Tony Levin, guitarist Mike DeMicco,
percussionists Ken Lovelett and Carlos Valdez, legendary jazz guitarist
Joe Beck, and drummer, Danny Gottlieb. For Levin, this recording was a
labor of love.
“The Hammond Organ
has got such a rich history. There’s really no other sound quite like
it. Even the best synth simulations fall short. You crank up the motor,
you hit a note and it sings to you. It’s like the soul of every organ
player is being breathed out from the instrument.”
Veteran career
side men and solo recording artists, both Levin brothers produce their
own albums close to home, collaborating with other world-class musicians
in their Woodstock, New York community. Pete’s Hammond is featured on
Tony’s latest critically acclaimed Narada release, “Resonator,” while
Tony’s basses grace several tracks on Pete’s “Deacon Blues.”
“It’s predictable
that most of my oldest and best friends are musicians. But, it’s amazing
how many of them have had an impact on the way their instruments are
played, and are respected by fans and peers all over the world. And I've
got all their phone numbers and you can't have them. Eat your heart
out!”
writer/arranger/orchestrator highlights
Music score and source music for the Alex Rosenberg feature film,
"ZELIMO"
Co-composer/orchestrator for Discovery TV film, "SECRETS OF THE HUMPBACK WHALE"
Electronic music realizations/arrangements for feature films "MISSING IN ACTION I, II, III", "MANIAC", "HARD CHOICES", "VERY CLOSE QUARTERS", "SILVER BULLET", "THE COLOR OF MONEY", "MANIAC COP I, II", "INVASION U.S.A.", "RED SCORPION", "LESS THAN ZERO", "RELENTLESS", "AMBULANCE", "FAR OUT, MAN" Arranger and keyboards for TV series "SPIN CITY"
Theme and music for TV series "HOT OFF THE GRILL, WITH BOBBY FLAY" Promos & music library for ANIMAL PLANET cable network
Composed Anthem for 1992 UNITED NATIONS EARTH SUMMIT
Electronic music score for award-winning SURGICAL AUDIOTAPE series
Orchestral score for Olsen Twins Billboard #1 video series "THE DETECTIVES"
Composer/arranger for TV series "THE COMEDY ZONE"
Show theme and music for Dr. Ruth series "LOVING FOR A LIFETIME"
Composer/arranger for TV series "AMERICA'S MOST WANTED" Composer/arranger for TV series "GUIDING LIGHT"
Composer for PBS series "PROFILES IN PROGRESS"
Original music score for PBS documentary film "OF SNAKES & SOFTWARE"
Original music score for 1987 theatrical production of "THE DYBBUK"
Pete has performed with TV house bands
on: "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, "COMEDY ZONE", "THE NEW SHOW", "OUR COMMON FUTURE"
Performed on camera in the feature films "VERY CLOSE QUARTERS"
and "ZELIMO"
1964-present: Pete has recorded and/or performed with artists, including:
Gary
Anderson, Ron Aprea, Nikki
Armstrong, Jennifer Aylmer, Aztec
Two Step, Dave Bargeron, Joe Beck, Jeff Berlin, Marc Black, Terrance Blanchard, Carla Bley, Rosalinde Block, Blood Sweat & Tears, Boston Symphony Orchestra,
Beki Brindle, Broadside
Brass Bed Band, Hugh Brodie, Brubeck Brothers Quartet, Hiram Bullock, Donald Byrd, Rennie Cantine, Rondi Charleston, Jay Chattaway, Tommy Chong, Jeff Ciampa, The Clams, John Clark, Jimmy
Cobb, Judy Collins, Willie Colon, Commander Cody, Cray & Dempsey,
David Darling, Kal David, Betty Davis, Miles
Davis, Andrea Dawn, Debbie Deane, Mike DeMicco, Angela Deniro, Kenwood Dennard,
Jacque DeShetler, Danny Draher, Robbie Dupree, Mark Egan, Don Elliott, Doug Elliott, Jimmy
Eppard, Joey Eppard, Eric Erickson, Gil Evans, Miles Evans, Fania
All-Stars, Rachelle Farelle, Five Satins, 52nd Street, Bryan Ferry, Matt
Finck, Alex
Foster, Don Gardner, Jimmy Giuffre, Danny Gottlieb, Government Mule, Sarah Greene,
Nicole Hart, Richie
Hart, Jonas Helborg, Deborah Henson-Conant, Jana Herzen, Gregory Hines,
Erin Hobson, Clint Holmes,
Helen Hooke, Freddie Hubbard, Nick Humez, Chris Hunter, Howard Johnson,
Meg Johnson, Thad
Jones/Mel Lewis Band, Toshihiko Kankawa, Randy Kaye, Roman Klun, Charlie Kniceley, La La, Wayne Lammers,
Arnie Lawrence, Erik Lawrence, Annie Lennox,
Tony Levin, Ken Lovelett, Charles Lyonhart, Betty MacDonald, Rod MacDonald, Al MacDowell, Machan, Mike Mainieri, David Malachowski, Tom Malone, Melissa Manchester,
Chuck Mangione, Gap Mangione, Manhattan Project, Lou Marini, Keith
Marks, Janet Marlowe, Lee Marvin, Cynthia McCorkindale, Bucky Milam, Liza Minelli, Charles Mingus, Chris Mitchell,
Tommy Mitchell, Sam Morrison, Gerry Mulligan, Amina Claudine Myers, Bob Nieske, Olivia
Newton-John, New York Mary, New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Shunzo
Ohno, Jeff Oster, Jon Paris, Gil Parris, Pieces Of A
Dream, Vincent Pasternak, Jaco Pastorius, Roxy Perry, Lorenza Ponce, Jim
Pugh/Dave Taylor, Tony Purrone, Baron Raymonde, Billy Reed, Athena
Reich, The Retro Rockets, Nicki Richards, Amy Rogell, Robbie
Robertson, Teri Roiger, Andy Rothstein, Steve Rowell, Raphael Rudd, Bobby Rydell, Ali Ryerson,
Emily Saaen, Salt 'N Pepa, David
Sanborn, Ellie Sarty, Steve Satten, John Scofield, Mark Sganga, Marlene Shaw, Wayne Shorter, Carly Simon, Paul
Simon, Marilyn Sokol, Lew Soloff, Melvyn Sparks, Straight Ahead, Gani
Tamir, Peter Thomakos, Artie Traum, Happy Traum, Barbara Truex, Elijah Tucker, Joe Lynn Turner, Uncle Funk, Michal Urbaniak,
Michael Veitch, Lou
Volpe, Filippo Voltaggio, Voyceboxing, Joe Louis Walker, Corbett Wall,
Lynette Washington, Ernie Watts, Jim Weider, Peter Welker, Wet Paint, Vanessa
Williams, Lenny White, WhiteFlag, Woodstock All-Stars, Gary Wofsey, Chris Zaloom,
Zuice
selected discography
JUMP!
2010 (PLM): PETE LEVIN TRIO: LIVE IN FOGGIA
2009 (PLM): CERTIFIED ORGANIC
2008 (PLM): DEACON BLUES 2007
(Motema):A SOLITARY MAN 1991,
PARTY IN THE BASEMENT 1990, MASTERS IN THIS HALL 1990 (Gramavision):
MUSIC FOR THE DYBBUK
(PLM)
1974/1996: HARMONY (Alternate Mode)
1998: CRYSTALS
(Alternate Mode ) 2000: with Ali Ryerson, MEDITATIONS
(Alternate Mode JP10038) 2001: with Danny Gottlieb, THE NEW AGE OF CHRISTMAS
1989 (Atlantic): with Wayne Lammers, GOP PARTY MONSTERS 2004 (Pera):
with Tony Levin, THE CLAMS: CLOSE TO YOU (CTI), RESONATOR
(Narada): with John Scofield, ELECTRIC OUTLET (Gramavision): with
Jimmy Cobb, SO NOBODY ELSE CAN HEAR: with Richie Hart, BLUES
IN THE ALLEY, GREASY STREET (Zoho): with Gil Evans, PRIESTESS (Atlantic),
LIVE AT THE PUBLIC THEATER, THE MUSIC OF JIMI HENDRIX (RCA),
THERE COMES A TIME (RCA), BUD & BIRD (King), LIVE AT SWEET BASIL
(King): with The Brubeck Brothers Quartet, SECOND NATURE, INTUITION
(Blue Forest): with Jimmy Giuffre, DRAGONFLY, QUASAR, LIQUID DANCERS (Soulnote): with Lew
Soloff, LITTLE WING (Sweet Basil); HANNALAI BAY, MY ROMANCE
(King): with Wayne Shorter & Lenny White, MANHATTAN PROJECT (Blue
Note): with Mark Egan, DADE, IN THE SHADE (Big
World)
In a diverse music
career spanning several decades, keyboardist/arranger Pete Levin has
performed and recorded with hundreds of Jazz and Pop artists - including
Paul Simon, Annie Lennox, Miles Davis, David Sanborn, Lenny White, Wayne
Shorter, Jaco Pastorius, Robbie Robertson and John Scofield - receiving
critical accolades for his work during a 15 year association with the
legendary Gil Evans, and his 8 year stint with jazz icon Jimmy Giuffre.
Says Levin,
In
2010, Pete continues his organ trio CD series with JUMP!, this time featuring the
remarkable Dave Stryker on guitar and legendary drummer Lenny White.
They are joined on 5 tracks by percussionist Manolo Badrena. Pete
and Dave began playing together relatively recently, but Pete and
Lenny go back years to when they both were in Gil Evans' band. The
final track on the album has a special background. Pete
recorded Honeysuckle Rose with the late Joe Beck while planning an
album project in 2008. It wasn't used on the CD.
Recently Pete retrieved the track and finished it by having Danny
Gottlieb overdub drums. They had worked together many times as
a trio. It's straight ahead and "old school" but it's a
poignant tip of the hat to Joe.
With “DEACON
BLUES” for Motema Music, Pete re-emerged in 2007 as a band leader and master of
reinvention, embracing his roots and first love, the Hammond Organ.
Working with a group of iconic jazz sidemen (Joe Beck, Danny Gottlieb,
Tony Levin, Mike DeMicco) Levin and company demonstrated an uncanny
chemistry that was immediate and infectious. Pete followed up in
2008 with "CERTIFIED ORGANIC", continuing to push the envelope of
the classic organ trio. In addition to his soaring Hammond, he
demonstrates once more that he knows how to feature his sidemen, giving
plenty of playing space to the 4 guitarists on the album - John Cariddi,
Joe Beck, Mike DeMicco & Jesse Gress - as well as saxophonist Erik
Lawrence and drummer Harvey Sorgen. 
An in-demand New
York session keyboardist, Levin has also created electronic realizations
for hundreds of TV commercials, dramatic series and feature films,
including “Missing in Action,” “Lean on Me,” “Silver Bullet,” “Red
Scorpion,” “The Color of Money,” “Maniac,” “Spin City,” “America’s Most
Wanted” and “Star Trek.” In a dizzying array of unrelated commissions,
Levin composed orchestral scores for the feature film “Zelimo” and for a
stage production of “The Dybbuk;” had the honor of composing the anthem
for the 1992 United Nations Earth summit, “The Future is in Our Hands,”
performing it twice for the U.N. General Assembly; and, as far removed
from Jazz as it gets, was awarded the Army Commendation Medal for
writing the official military band arrangement of the U.S. Infantry
song.
But Levin, whose
wry sense of humor is never far from the surface, reveals that his all
time favorite recording session produced the top-40 hit single “Close to
You” by The Clams, a Spike Jones tribute band formed with his brother,
bassist Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel, King Crimson), drummer Steve Gadd
(Eric Clapton, Paul Simon) and Grammy® winning recording engineer Dixon
Van Winkle (Paul McCartney, Frank Sinatra). Thirty years later the
recording is still a cult classic.
With “Deacon
Blues,” Pete returned to the cutting edge as a band leader, while
tipping his hat to his mainstream jazz roots. Expanding on the
traditional organ trio format, his innovative arrangements are flavored
with soul, samba and hip-hop grooves. The set mixes four Levin originals
with his unique treatments of familiar classics, including Steely Dan’s
“Deacon Blues,” Ralph Towner’s “Icarus,” the Beach Boys’ “Sail on
Sailor” and Erik Satie’s “First Gymnopedie.” The album features
outstanding performances by bassist Tony Levin, guitarist Mike DeMicco,
percussionists Ken Lovelett and Carlos Valdez, legendary jazz guitarist
Joe Beck, and drummer, Danny Gottlieb. For Levin, this recording was a
labor of love.
Arranger and keyboards for TV series "SPIN CITY"
Gary
Anderson, Ron Aprea, Nikki
Armstrong, Jennifer Aylmer, Aztec
Two Step, Dave Bargeron, Joe Beck, Jeff Berlin, Marc Black, Terrance Blanchard, Carla Bley, Rosalinde Block, Blood Sweat & Tears, Boston Symphony Orchestra,
Beki Brindle, Broadside
Brass Bed Band, Hugh Brodie, Brubeck Brothers Quartet, Hiram Bullock, Donald Byrd, Rennie Cantine, Rondi Charleston, Jay Chattaway, Tommy Chong, Jeff Ciampa, The Clams, John Clark, Jimmy
Cobb, Judy Collins, Willie Colon, Commander Cody, Cray & Dempsey,
David Darling, Kal David, Betty Davis, Miles
Davis, Andrea Dawn, Debbie Deane, Mike DeMicco, Angela Deniro, Kenwood Dennard,
Jacque DeShetler, Danny Draher, Robbie Dupree, Mark Egan, Don Elliott, Doug Elliott, Jimmy
Eppard, Joey Eppard, Eric Erickson, Gil Evans, Miles Evans, Fania
All-Stars, Rachelle Farelle, Five Satins, 52nd Street, Bryan Ferry, Matt
Finck, Alex
Foster, Don Gardner, Jimmy Giuffre, Danny Gottlieb, Government Mule, Sarah Greene,
Nicole Hart, Richie
Hart, Jonas Helborg, Deborah Henson-Conant, Jana Herzen, Gregory Hines,
Erin Hobson, Clint Holmes,
Helen Hooke, Freddie Hubbard, Nick Humez, Chris Hunter, Howard Johnson,
Meg Johnson, Thad
Jones/Mel Lewis Band, Toshihiko Kankawa, Randy Kaye, Roman Klun, Charlie Kniceley, La La, Wayne Lammers,
Arnie Lawrence, Erik Lawrence, Annie Lennox,
Tony Levin, Ken Lovelett, Charles Lyonhart, Betty MacDonald, Rod MacDonald, Al MacDowell, Machan, Mike Mainieri, David Malachowski, Tom Malone, Melissa Manchester,
Chuck Mangione, Gap Mangione, Manhattan Project, Lou Marini, Keith
Marks, Janet Marlowe, Lee Marvin, Cynthia McCorkindale, Bucky Milam, Liza Minelli, Charles Mingus, Chris Mitchell,
Tommy Mitchell, Sam Morrison, Gerry Mulligan, Amina Claudine Myers, Bob Nieske, Olivia
Newton-John, New York Mary, New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Shunzo
Ohno, Jeff Oster, Jon Paris, Gil Parris, Pieces Of A
Dream, Vincent Pasternak, Jaco Pastorius, Roxy Perry, Lorenza Ponce, Jim
Pugh/Dave Taylor, Tony Purrone, Baron Raymonde, Billy Reed, Athena
Reich, The Retro Rockets, Nicki Richards, Amy Rogell, Robbie
Robertson, Teri Roiger, Andy Rothstein, Steve Rowell, Raphael Rudd, Bobby Rydell, Ali Ryerson,
Emily Saaen, Salt 'N Pepa, David
Sanborn, Ellie Sarty, Steve Satten, John Scofield, Mark Sganga, Marlene Shaw, Wayne Shorter, Carly Simon, Paul
Simon, Marilyn Sokol, Lew Soloff, Melvyn Sparks, Straight Ahead, Gani
Tamir, Peter Thomakos, Artie Traum, Happy Traum, Barbara Truex, Elijah Tucker, Joe Lynn Turner, Uncle Funk, Michal Urbaniak,
Michael Veitch, Lou
Volpe, Filippo Voltaggio, Voyceboxing, Joe Louis Walker, Corbett Wall,
Lynette Washington, Ernie Watts, Jim Weider, Peter Welker, Wet Paint, Vanessa
Williams, Lenny White, WhiteFlag, Woodstock All-Stars, Gary Wofsey, Chris Zaloom,
Zuice
A SOLITARY MAN 1991,
PARTY IN THE BASEMENT 1990, MASTERS IN THIS HALL 1990 (Gramavision):
MUSIC FOR THE DYBBUK
(PLM)
1974/1996: HARMONY (Alternate Mode)
1998: CRYSTALS
(Alternate Mode ) 2000: with Ali Ryerson, MEDITATIONS
(Alternate Mode JP10038) 2001: with Danny Gottlieb, THE NEW AGE OF CHRISTMAS
1989 (Atlantic): with Wayne Lammers, GOP PARTY MONSTERS 2004 (Pera):
with Tony Levin, THE CLAMS: CLOSE TO YOU (CTI), RESONATOR
(Narada): with John Scofield, ELECTRIC OUTLET (Gramavision): with
Jimmy Cobb, SO NOBODY ELSE CAN HEAR: with Richie Hart, BLUES
IN THE ALLEY, GREASY STREET (Zoho): with Gil Evans, PRIESTESS (Atlantic),
LIVE AT THE PUBLIC THEATER, THE MUSIC OF JIMI HENDRIX (RCA),
THERE COMES A TIME (RCA), BUD & BIRD (King), LIVE AT SWEET BASIL
(King): with The Brubeck Brothers Quartet, SECOND NATURE, INTUITION
(Blue Forest): with Jimmy Giuffre, DRAGONFLY, QUASAR, LIQUID DANCERS (Soulnote): with Lew
Soloff, LITTLE WING (Sweet Basil); HANNALAI BAY, MY ROMANCE
(King): with Wayne Shorter & Lenny White, MANHATTAN PROJECT (Blue
Note): with Mark Egan, DADE, IN THE SHADE (Big
World)