"Aside from my family, playing creative music
  is my only reason for being on this earth."
  ~ Arnie Lawrence

 

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new dates .

 

The Gil Evans Remembered band.  Made up of alumni of the Gil Evans Orchestra of the '70s and '80, the band just played at two major European jazz festivals this summer: Friday, 12 July, Estival Jazz in Lugano, Switzerland and Monday, 15 July, Umbria Jazz in Perugia, Italy.  Click on the image for the full page.

In November 2014, the band did a 2-hour set in New York City at The Cutting Room.  Dot Time Records will be releasing the album on October 25th.

JUMPER: Shortcuts to a few things 2018-24

Levin Brothers Canada 4/24 Anil Prasad Interviews Pete Band of Brothers 1/24 Levin Brothers 11/23
Recording Chris Mitchell 5/23 Concert for Charlie 4/23 Cliff Brucker @The Linda 1/23 Sharp 5 @ Bearsville 11/22
LevBro"Fade To Blue" tour 9/22 Levin Brothers 11/22 New Studio 2022 Sidestep live in Kingston 4/22
TOAPP Jazz Jam 2021 LevBro Vaccinating Rhythm 2021 Wednesdays at Annarella Holocaust Survivors 4/21
More Wednesdays Andy Toomey sessions 10/20 Studio Overhaul 9/20 LevBro @ Keegan Ales 8/20
 Bach Inventions Album Mobius Album LevinBro Snowtire Tour 12/19 Parker Bros @ Falcon 10/19
Local trio gigs 10/19 Hudson Valley Jazz Fest 8/19 Buffalo, NY tour 8/19 Paparozzi @The Falcon 7/19
Lisa Maxwell @ Cutting Room Levin Brothers 3/19 Roseanne Sureda 3/19 Levin Brothers West Coast 1/19
Veterans Xmas Concert 12/18 Maiko Hata @ BSP 11/18 Reeling In The Years 10/18 Mobius Band 2018
Mobius @ Jazz Forum 7/18 Cynthia Daniels recording 4/18 Cliff Brucker CD release 3/18 Zhang Ling China Tour 1/18

PETE'S 10-YEAR BLOG  (actually might be more)

 10/5/24  Woodstock guitarist Rennie Cantine organized the annual guitar street exhibition with the sidewalks lined with guitars decorated by local artists.  When its over, the guitars are auctioned off with the proceeds going to the Family Of Woodstock charity.  And of course, being Woodstock, there has to be live music at the auction - loud and rocking!  This year I sat in with Rennie and Sabrina Sa in Woodstock at The Pub for a warm-up set before the auction.  The band, "Sabrina & The Gems" had 'em dancing in the isles!

 10/1/24 Having caught our Band of Brothers West Coast tour last January with Pat and Joe Labarbara, Jazz Weekly journalist George Harris did in-depth interviews with Tony Levin and I. Tony does a lot of those; me not so often, so it really makes me think about my career, my life, and the iconic musicians I've worked with. The reviews were done separately, so its interesting to see how our thoughts and memories sync up - like our Jewish parents' disappointment when first I and then Tony opted for music rather than medical school.
The interviews just came out, nicely timed for Tony's solo album and my Gil Evans project releases. If you've got a few minutes, its a fun read. Thank you, George.

https://www.jazzweekly.com/2024/10/pete-levin-interview/

7/12/24  ESTIVAL JAZZ - LUGANO, SWITZERLAND
The Gil Evans Remembered band.  After one show in NYC 9 years ago, we're in Europe to play two major jazz festivals.  From the first show the band fell right into the old groove we had with Gil in the '70s.  And we did it to 2000 people!  The band was smokin!!

Lugano remembers Gil too.  I shamelessly got everybody to wave.

Pete Levin

Mark Egan

Dave Stryker

Danny Gottlieb

Beth Gottlieb

John Clark

Chris Hunter

Alex Foster

Alex Sipiagin

Dave Taylor

Tom Malone

7/15/24  UMBRIA JAZZ FESTIVAL - PERUGIA, ITALY
2nd show, in the beautiful old city of Perugia.  Again, to a huge festival crowd in the Arena Sam Giuliana

7/7/24  As you can see by my "LIVE" window above, I'm taking time off from live gigs this month.  Usually I do 4 or 5 local gigs a month here in the Hudson Valley, plus traveling to wherever and recording.  With the thunderstorms and brutal 90 degree weather over the last few weeks, schlepping amps seriously takes the fun out of the playing.  So this month, my focus is the European trip with the Gil Evans Remembered band next week.  All the guys are really looking forward to the trip.  The return to Perugia, Italy is extra special.  We played at the Umbria festival there many times with Gil over the years.  And coinciding with the trip, the live 2014 recording is being released by Dot Time Records. In about a week there will be physical CDs, with streaming downloads from Dot Time to follow.  Photos coming.  More news.  Stay tuned ...

6/26-27/24  The Levin Brothers played 2 nights, 4 shows, at the Rochester International Jazz Festival.  One of the biggest and best jazz festivals in the U.S., we've been hoping to land this gig for years. For 9 days, the festival takes over the city of Rochester.  Music everywhere, from early evening until the wee hours.  The band did shows at 2 downtown venues, The Montage Music Hall and the Wilder Room. With Ken Gioffre on another tour in Europe, Tony, Pete and Jeff we were joined by our friend, sax virtuoso Pat LaBarbera.  Also 3 days of hanging with our friend Steve Czubara, which started with an excellent dinner at Pane Vino.


Four hungry travelers.  Photo by Steve Czubara

5/30/24 Sweet trio gig in Port Imperial, New Jersey by the Hudson River. Perfect eather. The view in back of us didn't suck either!  Jeff Siegel, Steve Raleigh and I finished the evening at El Unico de Elena, a little restaurant in Union City that makes killin' Spanish food, and so inexpensive its almost embarrassing when you go to pay!  Our friend Kath Oliger has been running this Sunset Music Series for a few years.

5/19/24  Nice project coming up.  This Thursday, I'll be recording with master Brazilian percussionist Emilio Martins at Scott Petito's NRS Studio for his upcoming album.  In the studio: Ken Gioffre, Tony Levin, Jeff Siegel and I.  We didn't plan it this way, but it looks like The Levin Brothers Quartet playing with Emilio.  Of course it won't be promoted that way, but it's kind of a hoot.  Should be great!


Emilio Martins, Pete, Tony Levin, Jeff Siegel, Ken Gioffre
Recording att Scott Petito's NRS Studio 5/23/24

4/7/24  Back home from a Levin Brothers tour of Eastern Canada.  We played 2 great shows, co-billed with old friends of ours, the California Guitar Trio.  The Club Soda in Montreal - the name is misleading.  Its a theater, with great seating and tech support.  350 seats - sold out!!  The Palais Montcalm in Quebec is an incredible venue.  Beautiful inside and out, impeccable sound and facilities, and a terrific crew.  930 seats - sold out.  That might be the biggest audience the Levin Brothers Band has played to.  Paul, Bert and Tom of the California Guitar Trio say its one of their favorite venues in the world!

From The Palais Moncalm - The Levin Brothers play King Crimson's "Starless"
 
CLUB SODA - MONTREAL  APRIL 3, 2024

The next morning: Springtime in Montreal - Traveling to Quebec  April 4

The Trans-Canadian Highway in Spring - Yikes!
PALAIS MONTCALM - QUEBEC CITY  APRIL 5, 2024

The California Guitar Trio, with Tony sitting in

Both bands take a bow

 

2/21/24 After the long tour and 5 more gigs afterward, I've been taking it easy through February.  Took a week off in Florida, got a new dog, cleaned out my instrument storage locker.  (OK, that last wasn't restful, but it needed doing.)  Cleaning it out, I got my Leslie speaker cabinet out.  I haven't had it out on a gig in 10 years.  I cranked it up and played for a while.  Works great.  I was thinking to use it on an organ trio gig last night in Abany but decided not to.  Good thing.  The club had moved a huge dumpster in front of the club's load-in door.  I wouldn't have been able to get it in!
Recording projects coming up for Kathy Ingraham, Michael Veitch, Tony Levin, and the band Sidestep.  And I'll be working on new projects of my own.  Then looking ahead, Levin Brothers tours in April and June, and taking an 11-piece band to Europe in July, "Gil Evans Remembered" followed by a tour with Beledo.   Its looking to be a good year!

 Big news and a plan for this summer.  I've revived the "Monday Night Band" a Gil Evans tribute band I put together a few years ago.  What fell in my lap was an offer to bring the band to Perugia, Italy in July for a show at the Umbria Jazz Festival, a festival I played at with Gil many times.. Somewhat mind-boggling touring with an 11-piece band, but with a lot of help from two good booking agents, I'm going for it.  It'll be the same band that did the Cutting Room show in New York City in 2014, although sadly without Lew Soloff.  To be continued ...

 Music journalist Anil Prasad did an extensive interview with me for INNERVIEWS, strolling through the last 50 years of my diverse music career.  Even I'm amazed!  Anil posted this summary intro on Facebook.  Link to the full interview is at the bottom.

"Pete Levin's journey as a musician is one of diversity, discovery, and serendipity. While his core focus is as a soulful jazz keyboardist and composer, his six-decade career also includes high-profile experiences across the pop, rock, and soundtrack realms.
From 1973-1988, he was a key member of The Gil Evans Orchestra. His jazz credentials also include working with Jimmy Giuffre, Carla Bley, Mike Mainieri, Charles Mingus, Jaco Pastorius, John Scofield, Wayne Shorter, Lenny White, as well as The Levin Brothers, which he co-leads with his sibling, bassist and Chapman Stick player Tony Levin.

On the pop and rock side, he's contributed to the work of Bryan Ferry, Melissa Manchester, Liza Minnelli, Robbie Robertson, Annie Lennox, Carly Simon, and Paul Simon. And on the soundtrack front, you'll hear him on the scores of America's Most Wanted, The Color of Money, Red Scorpion, Lean on Me, Missing In Action, Invasion U.S.A., Maniac, Maniac Cop, Spin City, and Star Trek: The Next Generation."


Innerviews discusses Pete's expansive career in a comprehensive new interview.
Read the full interview here:
https://www.innerviews.org/inner/pete-levin

 
BAND OF BROTHERS

Two pairs of musical brothers - Tony & Pete Levin, and Pat & Joe La Barbera - unite to form this jazz quartet.  Their individual professional backgrounds are formidable: Pat (Elvin Jones, Buddy Rich), Joe (Bill Evans, Tony Bennett), Tony (Peter Gabriel, King Crimson), Pete (Gil Evans, Jimmy Giuffre).

January 2024   A West Coast tour with a new quartet project.  In Los Angeles a while ago, Tony bumped into legendary drummer Joe La Barbera.  They chatted a while and agreed, "Let's get together and play!"  2 things came out of that.  First, a jazz quartet - Tony and I with Joe and saxophonist Pat La Barbera - that we immediately named "BAND OF BROTHERS."  Second thing - a 3-week U.S. West Coast tour in January 2024.  Schedule is just below.  If you're somewhere in California, Oregon, Washington or Vancouver, hope you can make one of these gigs.  This is gonna be smokin!
Trivia:  We just found out that there's another band "Band Of Brothers."  So far, we don't think they know about us.  Neither band can really copyright the name, since the TV series pretty much locked it up.  Anyway, Shakespeare used it in Henry V.  By the time Bill notices, the tour will be over.

1/22/24  A ferry ride from Washington to Orcas Island, a very large and very beautiful place to be.  The community has built a wonderful Center For The Arts which includes an intimate theater with excellent seating and excellent sound.  A great crew helped all the way.


Tony & Pete, on the ferry


to Orcas Islane


my office for the evening

My amps were shipped in these boxes.  We put one inside the other 2 weeks ago to save space.  Now we can't get them apart.  I need them to ship the amps home on Tuesday.

1/15/24  A return for Tony and I to Arcata, California at the Arcata Playhouse.  We played here years ago with the Levin Brothers.  As before, we were made very welcome and greeted with a sold out house.  We love Arcata!  I was still buzzing from the Fazioli piano I got to play the night before in Oakland.  Tonight I had a sweet Yamaha grand - perfect for jazz.  No complaints.

1/12/24  Piedmont Piano Company in Oakland, California. Being a huge room filled with expensive pianos, it was an unusual venue for a jazz concert.  But the sound in the room is great, and they're able to set up seating for 75 people.  It was a special treat for me.  They had earlier asked me what piano I wanted to use for the show, my choice of a Steinway or a Yamaha or whatever.  Not wanting to be a pest, I told them that I'd be fine with anything - just don't make it one of the 9-foot grands because their stage isn't very big.  What they gave me to use - a gorgeous 7-foot Fazioli with a $185,000 price tag!  Made in Italy, Faziolis are considered by many to be the best pianos in the world.  I'll go along with that!  I was a very happy camper!!


Pete, Pat La Barbera, Tony Levin, Joe La Barbera

My date for the evening.

1/11/24  Concert in Stockton, CA at the remarkable Haggin Museum.  Fortunately we had some time to explore the exhibits and rare paintings.  Every so often its opened up for a concert.  The enthusiastic audience was standing room only tonight, 25 over fire regulations capacity.  (Don't say anything, OK?)  

1/6&7/24  First gigs on the tour, 2 nights in Los Angeles at the legendary jazz club Baked Potato.  Mostly feeling our way into playing together, there were some great moments.  4 sold-out shows to enthusiastic audiences.

1/4/24  The Band of Brothers West Coast tour begins with rehearsals at AFM Local 47 in Los Angeles.

 

 

11/12/23  Gearing up for a short Levin Brothers tour next month.  Just 5 shows, but they're all nice ones.  Joining us this time out is Ken Gioffre, a dynamite sax player who is a featured soloist with Nile Rogers, Chic, Smokey Robinson and Blood Sweat & Tears.  Hope to see some of you at one of these shows.

12-15-23  First show on the tour, and the first with Ken Gioffre.  Sellersville Theater in Sellersville, PA.  We've played here before.  Nice venue, great crew, great audience.

12-16-23  The Levin Brothers, back in the Hudson Valley in Albany, NY at WAMC's fine performance space "The Linda."  Another packed house and a great night.


Pete

Tony

Ken Gioffre

Jeff "Siege" Siegel
 

 

New album on Bandcamp!
All the jazz and rock aside, I'm a longtime fan of J. S. Bach. Looking for stuff to do during the pandemic, I dusted off my old classical hat, fired up the Moog and launched into this labor of love. With Classical music not being a big seller, this project was never intended to be a money-maker. Believe me, I was just having fun, and grooving on the very remarkable Mister Bach! Its on Bandcamp. Cheap download. Take a look ...

Extended schedule on Pete's "Live" page

 

 9/19/23  One more with  Steve Raleigh's "Soul/Jazz Collective" - this time in Albany, NY at the Lark Street Tavern, a sweet listening room in the heart of Albany.  We're joined here by the remarkable drummer Dean Sharp. Love the room, but the lighting is a bit bizarre - we look purple!

 9/15/23  Steve Raleigh's "Soul/Jazz Collective" in Beacon, NY at the Reserva Wine Bar.  Matt Garrity on drums.

8/20/23  Jazz brunch at Pearl Moon restaurant in the heart of Woodstock.  Guitarist Steve Raleigh's "Soul/Jazz Collective" - this time an organ trio with me and Jerry Marotta on drums.  I had just played here 2 weeks ago with a jazz piano trio.  This was a whole lot funkier!

 

 

8/9/23  After being suspended for 2 years during the pandemic, The TOAPP Music Camp was back this summer with 120 campers in attendance.  Hosted by Tony Levin, Pat Mastelotto and Adrian Belew, the music is eclectic but mostly Prog Rock.  My contribution on Wednesday each year is a 3 hour jazz set with Tony and I on bass and piano joined by dozens of campers in shifting configurations.  The campers perform for each other in the Roadhouse Club at night.  Playing jazz classics with open soloing, the jazz jam is a lot more relaxed by nature.  It always proves to be one of the week's popular events.  Below are a few of the groups that performed.

8/6/23  Piano trio jazz brunch in Woodstock today at Pearl Moon restaurant.  The usual suspects - bassist Rich Syracuse and drummer Jeff Siegel.  Love this place.  So does the rest of Woodstock - its always a full house there.  The TOAPP music camp in Big Indian, NY starts tomorrow. Many of the campers were in town early today for a kick-off dinner in Kingston.  Several of them came to hang at our brunch gig.  One of them, Chris Cowan, took these great shots of the band.

 

 

7/25/23  Some good stuff brewing for the end of the year.  Working on a Levin Brothers tour - Northeast U.S., for 2 weeks starting in mid-December.  We caught sax player Ken Gioffre between Nile Rodgers tours and are excited to be having him join us for this tour.  Details to be posted as things develop.

 

    Then, in January 2024, Tony and I will be on the West Coast for 2-3 weeks with BAND OF BROTHERS, a new jazz quartet with Tony and I with 2 other superb musicians, saxophonist Pat La Barbera and drummer Joe La Barbera.  Really looking forward to that.  Tour schedules for both in a couple more months, here and on Facebook.

7/13/23  Kath Oliger puts together this free summer music series on the walkway in Port Imperial, New Jersey, with spectacular views of Manhattan in the background.  The 3rd time I've done it, this time an organ trio with guitarist Mike DeMicco and drummer Jeff Siegel.  All the forecasts were for torrential rains and a heat index of 95 degrees.  They were all wrong - sunny skies and temps in the 70s with a breeze coming in from the river.  Lots of folks walking by, sitting a listening.  The little kids were the best.  A beautiful evening!


Kath Oliger & Jeff

7/2/23  I've been playing a lot of local gigs this year with guitarist Steve Raleigh.  Good music, lots of fun.  Here we're in Woodstock, NY in the lounge at the Mill Stream Tavern, buy the entrance to Woodstock.  The bassist is Jim Curtin.

5/23/23   For the last 9 years, Jeff Siegel and Rich Syracuse have been doing Tuesday night jazz gigs at Catskill Mountain Pizza in the heart of Woodstock Village.  Each time they have a guest in to round out the band.  Two guests tonight: Pete & vocalist Lisa Markley.


Pete, Rich Syracuse, Jeff "Siege" Siegel, Lisa Markley.  Photo: Brock Purdy

5/21/23  Back at the Lark Street Tavern, a nice, intimate listening room in Albany, NY.  Organ trio led by guitarist Steve Raleigh along with Cliff Brucker on drums.  The trio does very little 'straight-ahead' jazz, leaning more toward funk tunes from the '60s and '70s.  Steve has dubbed the group "Soul Jazz Collective."


Photo by Kathy Conway

Photo by Bill McCann

5/7 23  Levin Brothers news:
While Tony is out touring with Peter Gabriel, we're developing two projects. The Levin Brothers quartet will be touring in mid-December through the Northeast U.S.  We won't have an itinerary for a while but we should be able to announce some shows by August.
Beyond that, something new.  Tony was chatting with an old friend, drummer Joe LaBarbera and they hit on the idea - "Band Of Brothers" a jazz quartet with Tony and Pete, and Joe and Pat LaBarbera.  Both Joe and Pat are known for their work in groups with jazz icons, Joe with the legendary pianist Bill Evans, and Pat with drummer Elvin Jones. The goal is a West Coast tour in January of 2024.  Its still in the planning stage, but we're all excited about it.  More news coming as the project develops - here, on Tony's website, on the Levin Brothers' website, and on Facebook.

5/2/23  Tracking for singer/songwriter Chris Mitchell in Mt. Tremper, NY at Ken Lovelett's Sonart Recording Studio.  Chris has been working on this album for years.  With this session, he'll have something like 20 songs in the can.  Too many for a single album.  We're waiting to see what it will turn out to be.  Great rhythm section for this date - Jerry Marotta (drums), Mike Visceglia (bass), Jeff Zona (guitar) up from Nashville, and Pete on keyboards.  Julie last engineering the date.


L to R: Julie Last, Jerry Marotta, Chris Mitchell, Mike Visceglia, Jeff Zone, Pete


Mike Visceglia

Jeff Zona

Chris Mitchell in the booth, Jerry Marotta

Stupid selfie while we set up the group pose above

 

4/23/23  Midday jazz in Woodstock and my favorite brunch place, Pearl Moon.  For whatever reasons, jazz brunch gigs are coming out of the woodwork these days.  That's fine with me.  Good food, good money, good music with good players, and I'm home in time for dinner!  Today's gig, piano trio with John Menegon (bass) and Matt Garrity (drums).

4/22/23  Long recording session today in Wilton, Connecticut for singer/songwriter Dwight Moody.  Along with tracking piano and organ on some good songs, it was a reunion with some old friends I hadn't seen or worked with in years: Project producer Bob Riccio, drummer John Cutrone, and master engineer Alec Head.  Alec recorded and mixed my first solo album for Gramavision Records in 1989.  He was also the engineer for  2 feature films I worked on for composer Jay Chattaway.  We've got some good history!

 

4/11/23  Once again, we're loving the Lark Street Tavern's Tuesday night jazz series.  Aside from the great food, The Lark is a real listening room.  Its gratifying to see people respond to that.  Last night's organ trio with guitarist Steve Raleigh and drummer Matt Garrity.  Trumpet player Chris Pasin sitting in.  Also loving these photos by Ed Conway

4/1/23  Concert For Charlie  The only April Fool issue this year was that we needed a bigger venue!  A full house - standing room only - at The Rosendale Theater watched a 3-1/2 hour concert by Charlie Kniceley's close friends and musical colleagues.  The lineup: Machan Taylor, Danny Louis, Jimmy Eppard, Joey Eppard, Gilles Malkine, Mikhail Horowitz, Lara Hope, Brenda Bufalino, Vena Gillis, Matt Goldpaugh, Matt Finck, Bob Shaut, Randy Ciarlante, Steve Rust, Harvey Sorgen, Chris Bowman, Paul Verdon, Kitt Potter & Pete Levin.  After intermission, many of the players and singers gathered on stage to form Phelonius Phunk, the front rows were cleared to create a dance floor, and the party moved into high gear with the dance floor packed.  What a night!  Photos by Ed Conway.


Charlie & Pete    photo: Pete Santora

Phelonious Phunk!
L to R: Pete Levin, Matt Finck, Machan Taylor, Randy Ciarlante (hidden behind Machan),
Steve Rust, Danny Louis, Chris Bowman (hidden behind Danny) Harvey Sorgen, Bob Shaut.

Joey Eppard

Horowitz & Malkine

Matt Goldpaugh and Lara Hope

Jimmy Eppard fronting the band

Brenda Bufalino: 85 years old and still dancing up a storm!

Phelonious Phunk rocks the house and packs the dance floor!

 

3/22/23  Congratulations to Leonardo Pavkovic - fantastic full page profile of Leonardo and MoonJune Records in this month's issue of Downbeat Magazine.

3/16/23  Jazz duo at Aroma Thyme in Ellenville, NY with bassist Rich Syracuse.  Rich's biggest fan - or maybe littlest - is definitely gonna be a bass player some day.  Alden getting a quick bowing lesson while his dad Jeremy looks on.

3/15/23  I've been pretty busy, but lazy about keeping up this blog.  I was never good at that.  Mostly local live gigs but a lot of recording projects in the works.  Currently working on tracks for Roseanne Sureda, Rob Carlson, Ken Lovelett, Kevin Kuhn and Tony Levin.  Plus chugging along with two projects of my own.  One of those is an album of all J.S.Bach pieces, done entirely on synthesizer - something I've been wanting to do for a long time.  Don't know what I'll do with it.  Obviously not a band that can sell CDs at live gigs.  Remains to be seen.  Bottom line: I'm busy and I'm having fun!

1/29/23  Nice organ trio gig at the beautiful Millstream Tavern in Woodstock, NY - with guitarist Steve Raleigh and drummer Matt Garrity.  Steve loves to take full-band selfies!  (Actually, I just did that a few days ago.  Scroll down.)

1/26/23  Drummer Cliff Brucker's "Full Circle" project.  2 albums released, but with the pandemic, live performances have been rare.  This one, at WAMC's amazing performance space in Albany, paid special tribute to saxophonist Leo Russo, part of the project since the beginning.  Leo is 86 years old, looks and acts 66, and is playing his butt off!  Great band with Leo, Dylan Canterbury (trumpet), Mike Novakowski (guitar), Pete Toigo (bass) Cliff on drums, and me, lucking out with the Linda's beautiful Yamaha grand.  No schlepping!  There were 80 advance tickets sold by soundcheck, and a lot of walk-ins.  Full house!


The rhythm section - my obligatory soundcheck selfie.  Me, Pete, Mike, Cliff

Leo, warming up

 

1/25/23  Levin Brothers on hiatus.  Doing mostly local gigs through the winter, this one with my favorite rhythm section, bassist Rich Syracuse and drummer Jeff Siegel.  We've been playing occasionally in an intimate listening room in Albany, NY, the Lark Street Tavern, as part of their Tuesday night jazz series.  I'm loving doing these piano trio gigs.

1/13/23  Mid-winter - and not much winter happening.  Only 2 snowfalls so far this season, and yesterday's storm has already melted.  7am this morning, its 45 degrees and headed for 50.  Global warming?  Ya think?
Meanwhile, doin' gigs and sessions and feeling pretty good.  Nice day in the studio Wednesday with vocalist Lisa Markley playing on a couple of her songs.  At home, doing tracks for people and working on a project of my own. But the biggest news: New hot tub delivered yesterday!  Woo Woo!  Now gotta get it wired up and filled with water.  Then, around midnight every night, you'll know where to find me. 
11/1/22  November - something in the air I think!  The usual handful of live gigs but also playing on several recording projects, mostly in Woodstock area studios. I just finished a tracking session for Elise Pittelman and Julie last.  Coming up, I'll be recording this month with Roseann Sureda, Andy Toomey, Derek Dempsey and Ken Lovelett.  Tracking in my home studio for Nanny Assis and others.  Great to see all this music production happening.  Gettin' it all in before Thanksgiving! 

 

11/3/22  The Sharp 5 band, finally doing some live shows to mark the release of our album "SHINE A BRIGHT LIGHT."  Led by jazz vocalist Teri Roiger, the band includes bassist John Menegon, drummer Jeff Siegel, and percussionist Nanny Assis.  Previous shows were canceled due to Covid, and regretfully, Nanny was unable to make this Bearsille show.  We'll get it going eventually.  Great photos by our friend Neil Segal.

10/25/22  Its been a tough month.  Covid!  Not the killer level, just quarantined at home for a couple of weeks feeling like shit.  Of course that meant missing several live gigs.  The worst of those - Progstock with Beledo on the 8th, The Jazz Forum with Sharp 5 on the 9th, and The Tasting Lab with "Funkshin" on the 16th - Scott Petito was also down with Covid for that one.  Beledo's set went on - big festival - but the 9th and 16th were cancelled.  Getting back to normal now, gigs and recording sessions coming up.  If anybody asks, Covid sucks!!

 

LEVIN BROTHERS
FADE TO BLUE TOUR    SEPTEMBER 2022

10/2/22  "Fade To Blue" tour is done, wrapped up with two nights at The Jazz Forum in Tarrytown, NY.  Great club, 2 nights of great audiences, lots of CDs sold and signed.  As always, our thanks to all the venues who took such good care of us, and to the folks who came out to hear us play.  You are all helping to keep the music alive in this nutty world!  Thank you!  Scroll on down to follow the tour.

Finishing up the tour in Manchester, Vermont - great photos by our friend David Cerilli
With the tour covering only a few sections of the U.S., many folks have asked about getting the new "FADE TO BLUE" CD or being able to download it.  We've finally made it available for downloading.  Please visit the Levin Brothers' Bandcamp page.  As always, thank you for your support.  Click on the link or the photo.

https://thelevinbrothers.bandcamp.com/album/fade-to-blue

8/27/22  The Levin Brothers with Ali Ryerson - all set to hit the road for our September tour.  Seems like we just got back off the road and its time to start packing again.  Meanwhile, post production for the new CD - "FADE TO BLUE" - is finished and its out being manufactured.  We'll have it with us in September.
Here's the itinerary:  * September 18th just added

 

Tues September 6 Rochester, NY Lovin' Cup
Wed September 7 Rochester, NY Lovin' Cup
Thu September 8 Waterloo, ON, Canada The Jazz Room
Fri September 9 Sarnia, ON, Canada Royal Canadian Legion
Sat September 10 Westland, MI Joy Manor
Sun September 11 Benton Harbor, MI The Livery
Wed September 14 Milwaukee, WI Shank Hall
Thu September 15 Moline, IL Rascals
Fri September 16 Chicago, IL Reggie's
Sat September 17 Indianapolis, IN Irving Theater
Sun September 18 Pittsburgh, PA This Is Red
Tue September 27 Manchester, VT S. Vermont Arts Center
Fri September 30 Tarrytown, NY Jazz Forum
Sat October 1 Tarrytown, NY Jazz Forum

 

 

LEVIN BROTHERS BAND
with Ali Ryerson
FADE TO BLUE TOUR
September 2022

9/6&7/22  The tour starts with a return to a wonderful venue in Rochester, NY, The Lovin' Cup.  The shows were promoted by Tom Kohn, who owns one of the most amazing record stores I've ever seen - thousands of vinyl albums carefully wrapped and sorted by genre.  The venue, great as always - and a terrific audience that turned out on a couple of school nights.  Rochester is one very cool town!  Our thanks to Aaron Winters for these great photos.

9/8/22 Canada, and a surprisingly easy trip through immigration - no lines!!  Waterloo, Ontario, returning to The Jazz Room, an intimate club that is a pleasure to play in.  One again a full house, enthusiastic audience, great food, and for me a real nice piano. What's not to like!

9/9/22  Canadian leg continues in Sarnia, Ontario.  The concert venue was at the Royal Canadian Legion Hall.  Sounds like it'd be more suited to bingo games, but it turned out to be a wonderful venue, with great sound and a sold out audience.  Further, we stayed in a 5-star hotel, a 60 second walk from the venue.  Goes to show, you never never know!

9/10/22 The pendulum swings.  The club had been booked for a bizarre event of some kind, so our show was moved to another building, a function hall - translate "Wedding Mill."  That in itself would have been weird, but there was a big wedding reception in the room above us, with a DJ's subwoofers very audible below.  Take out Italian was awful.  Suffice to say that we got through it.
No photos.

9/11/22  Once again, surprised by a venue.  At first glance, a basic beer and pizza joint.  Turned out to be a wonderful, intimate music venue with great sound, fantastic food and an enthusiastic audience.  Many folks had seen Tony's Stickmen Group there earlier this year.  Benton Harbor is pretty much a has-been industrial town with not much going on.  Predictably, everybody we chatted with loves this local venue. 


Our ride, "The Black Beast" - good mileage not a consideration.

9/14/22  Found ourselves with 2 days off, so we headed for Milwaukee, Wisconsin and camped out in a nice motel near the airport.  (Cheaper!)  Lucked out to find ourselves in a neighborhood with several excellent Middle Eastern restaurants.  Then on the 14th, into town for a show at Shank Hall. 


Got our name and image up in lights!  We haven't performed in suits and ties or used that image for 4 years, but its a hoot to see it.

Setup and soundcheck.  Some things never change.

 9/15/22  Great evening at this family-owned club in Moline.  Full house, a great audience, great sound, and a nice Mexican restaurant next door.  (Hey, its the road.  We've gotta eat!) 

 9/16/22  Reggie's - Chicago, IL.  A return to this bustling music club.  Tricky load-in, including a novel dumpster in the back, but a beautiful music room.  On the menu - killer fried pickles!
9/17/22  Another return, to Indianapolis, IN.  A new venue for us, a charming vintage theater, The Irving Theater

9/18/22  This Is Red  Pittsburgh, PA   Amazing church converted into a center for the arts.  The stage, the high ceiling ... amazing!  Add to that a great audience turnout, and it was great evening.  An unplanned extra:  Erik Lawrence, who toured with the Levin Brothers for 2 years, now lives in Pittsburgh.  Erik brought a flute and sat in with us for 2 tunes, including an inspiring version of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing" for our encore.  We never did figure out what "This Is Red" means.

9/27/22  Arkell Pavilion at the Southern Vermont Arts Center in Manchester, Vermont.  An amazing spot and venue, on acres of large sculptures and the kind of breathtaking landscape you expect to see in Vermont.  Beautiful theater.  Great sound.  Great audience.  And Manchester, the kind of picturesque town you usually only see in films.  What a great evening!

Hanging out before showtime ...
9/30/22 & 10/2/22 What a great way to wrap up the tour, with 2 nights at the beautiful Jazz Forum in Tarrytown, NY.  Great club, 2 nights of great audiences, lots of CDs sold and signed.  Great!

Jazz Forum owner/promoter talking about the venue and introducing the band.

Ali was staying in Manhattan during these 2 gigs.  On Friday, she stopped Zabar's on the way up.  Post-soundcheck snack was killin' lox, whitefish salad, and real-deal New York City bagels.  Yum!
 

 

8/25/22  Lately I've been doing a regular Thursday night gig at the Aroma Thyme Bistro in Ellenville, NY with Rich Syracuse and Jeff Siegel.  Nice, intimate restaurant with great farm-to-table food.  Jeff was out of town this week, so on a whim we called guitarist Steve Raleigh to fill in. Steve's a wonderful player.  No drums, but we were groovin!

7/7/22  The Levin Brothers spent 2 days at NRS Recording Studio in Catskill, NY with engineer Scott Petito.  This will be our first "studio" recording since our debut 2014 album.  We recorded much of the material that we were performing on the tour last month.  Now getting into post-production.  We'll be releasing a new CD soon, probably in late August to make available on our upcoming September tour.  The photo below:  The band - Ali Ryerson, Jeff, Tony & Pete - with Scott Petito.

6/15/22  The tour starts!  Full house and an enthusiastic audience at The Falcon in Marlboro, NY.  What a great way to start a tour.  The group was a little hesitant at first but we found our groove quickly.  Great night!  Photos by Jane Goodis Ciresi.
  
6/16/22  The Turning Point   Piermont, NY
6/17/22  Natick Center for the Arts (TCAN)  Natick, MA   Photos by Cheryl Gaines Casey
Every time we play this venue, the next morning means breakfast at Zaftig's!
6/18/22  Broad Brook Opera House   Broad Brook, CT   Photos by Alice Moore
6/19/22  Strand Theater   Hudson Falls, NY   Photos by Rudy Lu
6/21/22  Homestead Bar & Kitchen  Morristown, NJ
6/22/22  The Room at Cedar Grove  Lewes, DE
6/23/22  Kennett Flash  Kennett Square, PA   Photos by Avraham Bank
6/12/22  Starting rehearsals today.  Ali Ryerson flying in from California.  First show on Wednesday.  Gettin' excited!
6/11/22  Happy Birthday, Jeff!
6/6/22  Happy Birthday, Tony!

 

 

6/5/22  Fun pickup gig with a great group of players.  Organized by bassist Scott Petito, the group featured Eric Person on sax, percussionist Minu Cinelu, drummer Jeff Lipstein, and me on keyboard, Scott named the band "Funk-Shins."  The venue, a new one for me, was a marvelous bar and restaurant in a remote part of Green County, NY - the Tasting Lab.  Always new stuff to discover out here in the boonies!   Photos by our photographer friend Rudy Lu.

 

5/24/22  Levin Brothers will be touring the Northeast U.S. in June and later in September.  Jazz flautist Ali Ryerson will be joining the core trio of Tony, Jeff Siegel and myself.  Ali is a fantastic player and an internationally-known recording artist who consistently places in the Downbeat Reader' Poll.  It'll mean a refreshing change in what the band does, and a great shot of new energy.  8 confirmed dates in June, a couple of new venues and returning to a few of our favorites.  Hope to see you at one of them.  Up to date info will be posted here and on the Levin Brothers website.

Wed June 15 - Marlboro, NY (The Falcon’s)
Thu June 16 - Piermont, NY (The Turning Point)

Fri June 17- Natick, MA (The Natick Arts Center)
Sat June 18 - Broad Brook, CT (Broad Brook Opera House)
Sun June 19 - Hudson Falls, NY (Strand Theater)
Tue June 21 - Morristown, NJ (Homestead Bar & Kitchen)
Wed June 22 - Lewes, DE (The Room at the Cedar Grove)
Thu June 23 - Kennett Square, PA (Kennett Flash)

Meanwhile, we're just back from Los Angeles where we were celebrating Tony's daughter Maggie's wedding to Scott Derrickson.  Beautiful couple, beautiful ceremony and fantastic reception.  My first time on an airplane in quite a while.  Nothing there has changed - flying sucks, but it gets you where you need to be.

4/2/22  Spring finally happening, and April showers on the way.  Combined with local gigs picking up, that translates to loading gear in the rain.  Nothing's perfect - but great to have the gigs picking up again.  I'm continuing to do keyboard tracks for people at home and in studios.  Did a couple of sessions for singer/songwriter George Barrett at Carriage House Studio in Stamford, CT.  Hadn't been there in a few years.  1 or 2 tours being planned with guitarist Bele Beledo.  I did a short tour with him last November.  Looking forward to more - its a great band! Meanwhile, we're working on plans for the Levin Brothers Band - local gigs, touring maybe, new music likely.  Stay tuned ...
2/6/22  Big ice storm and sub-freezing temps.  Today is the 3rd day of no electricity = no heat, no water, no internet, no cable, no Breaking Bad binging.  Wah!  :(  Friday night, my trio with Rich Syracuse and Jeff Siegel had a gig in Albany.  Cancelled due to hazardous driving conditions.  We've rescheduled it for Friday, February 18th.  We'll keep trying until we do the gig!!
2/2/22  February: Deep in the throes of moving now.  Not an easy undertaking with single-digit temps every day and night, but the end is in sight.  Looking forward to getting settled.  Meanwhile, the live music scene is pretty rocky.  3 gigs scheduled and cancelled this month.  2 survived.  In the balance, I need the time and physical energy for the move this month.  March is already looking better - 5 gigs scheduled and more coming in, lots of talk about tours being planned, my own music projects being planned.  So far, 2022 is looking good.
1/1/22  Happy new year.  Hope it'll be a better one than 2021.  With the new Covid surge going on, almost all live gigs are being cancelled.  Spring and Summer tours are tentative - Levin Brothers, Beledo, Sharp 5, my own trio.  Hoping it'll turn around.  Meanwhile, I've moved into a new house next door - same neighborhood, same gorgeous view.  My son Paul came up this weekend, and together we moved my studio into the new digs.  Lots of bugs to iron out, but it went better then I expected.  Several projects await.
12/2/21 Lots of music happening. Things aren't back to normal, but for a while it feels like it.  Did a great holiday show at the Bearsville Theater with Marc Black and the band.  And just coming down from a terrific set at Bearsville - Rich Syracuse, Jeff Siegel and I backing the dynamic vibraphonist Bill Ware to an enthusiastic sold-out audience.  All of us saying that 'we've gotta do this again!'  More coming up this weekend.  An organ trio gig with guitarist Mike Jackson.  In addition, my trio with Rich and Jeff is now doing all the Sunday jazz brunch gigs at Pearl Moon this month.  Not quite an artist-in-residence situation, but close to it.
11/21/21  Not getting to this as often as I should.  Very much tied up with building the new house.  Moving some furniture in tomorrow.  The rest in 2 weeks.  So Thanksgiving in the new digs won't happen, but its looking good for Christmas.  Still making music.  Doing a few trio gigs every month with Rich Syracuse and Jeff Siegel, and enjoying that.  We've been doing an occasional Sunday jazz brunch at Pearl Moon in Woodstock, with great success.  They've offered us every Sunday in December.  With that and some dates with Beledo, it'll be a good month.
10/14/21  Scattered local gigs this month, mostly piano trio gigs with Rich Syracuse and Jeff Siegel.  I'm really enjoying those.  Starting to woodshed a few new Bill Evans pieces, and working on Beledo's music.  Meanwhile, the house is coming along.  Trying to plot out fitting all my studio stuff into a smaller space.  For starters, the couch has got to go.  That was the easy part.  Looking to move in early November.  Thanksgiving dinner in the new digs!  Hope the stove works.
9/1/21  Lots going on.  Building a house, planning the move, doing local gigs.  Many gigs booked and cancelled as restaurants struggle with low attendance and difficulties getting staff.  Meanwhile, recording projects go on.  Looking toward November and December, touring with Beledo to celebrate his new album release.  For recreation - Tony gets back from England on Saturday and we'll be headed for a Met performance of Boris Godunov.  Great to have The Met back!
8/24/21  Two beautiful albums I took part in are being released next week: "To Love Again" by vocalist Karuna Shinsho, and "Shine A Bright Light" by the group 'Sharp 5' featuring Teri Roiger and Nanny Assis.  We did a video shoot with Karuna last week, a couple of pieces from the album.  They'll be on Youtube shortly.  Meanwhile, 'Sharp 5' has live gigs coming up in September, including a CD release show at the unique Senate Garage in Kingston, NY.  More info soon ...

8/12/21  Big Indian, NY at the TOAPP Music Camp (Three of a Perfect Pair).  Some 75 enthusiastic musical campers make for a great hang.  I'll be heading up a clinic and jazz "jam" as well as sitting in with several ensembles.  Cancelled last year - what wasn't? - this is an annual gathering, hosted by Tony Levin, Pat Mastellotto and Adrien Belew, and attended by a great bunch of folks.  We're having a ball!  A few photos below - more coming .

Later this week: Friday - Duo with bassist John Menegon in a small Saugerties eatery "Love Bites" - great food!  Saturday - Duo with virtuoso bassist Don Miller.  Sunday - Hudson Valley Jazz Festival, organ trio with Jeff Ciampa and Jeff Siegel.  Our event is at the Buckbee Center in Warwick, NY.

 

 

* New tour photos below.  Click the image in the right column.
 

The Levin Brothers band just wrapped up an eight-city tour in June.  We were carrying a new CD release, recorded live in 2020 at Daryl's House, and tour t-shirts - first time we've done that.  We returned to some of the venues we played a year ago.  Great to see that they've survived the pandemic when so many haven't.  With audience size restrictions still in place, some of these shows were sold out to a limited audience; toward the end, houses were at full capacity again.
Here's Tony, modeling our spiffy new designer VACCINATING RHYTHM TOUR T-shirt.

Wednesday June 9th - Marlboro, NY @ The Falcon
Thursday June 10 - Sellersville, PA @ Sellersville Theater
Saturday June 12 - Lewes, DE @ The Room at Cedar Grove
Sunday June 13 - Kennett Square, PA @ Kennett Flash
Wednesday June 16 - Pawling, NY @ Daryl's House

Thursday June 17 - Hudson Falls, NY @ Strand Theater
Friday June 18  Syracuse, NY @ Wescott Theater
Saturday June 26 - Woodstock, NY @ Bearsville Theater

 

 

My catalog of solo CDs and albums and Levin Brothers' releases are now available on line through MOONJUNE RECORDS on the Bandcamp website, both the physical albums and downloads.  The first catalog re-releases are "Mobius"  "Jump!" and The Levin Brothers' "Special Delivery."  Moonjune has just added 3 more: "Certified Organic"  "A Solitary Man" and "Icarus." 

Click on any of these images.

Featuring an array of extraordinary musicians: 

CLIFF ALMOND (A Solitary Man), RAY ANDERSON (A Solitary Man), NANNY ASSIS, (Möbius), MANOLO BADRENA (Jump!, A Solitary Man), JOE BECK (Icarus, Certified Organic), JEFF BERLIN (A Solitary Man), JOHN CARIDDI (Certified Organic), JEFF CIAMPA (Möbius), ERNIE COLON (Certified Organic), KAL DAVID (Möbius), MIKE DEMICCO (Icarus, Certified Organic), ALEX FOSTER (Möbius, A Solitary Man), DANNY GOTTLIEB (Icarus), JESSE GRESS (Certified Organic), ERIK LAWRENCE (Special Delivery, Certified Organic), TONY LEVIN (Special Delivery, Möbius, Icarus), KEN LOVELETT (Icarus, Certified Organic), JERRY MAROTTA (Möbius), CHRIS PASIN (Möbius), ROB PAPAROZZI (Möbius), JEFF SIEGEL (Special Delivery), LEW SOLOFF (A Solitary Man), HARVEY SORGEN (Certified Organic), DAVE STRYKER (Jump!), LENNY WHITE (Möbius, Jump!)

 

Levin Brothers
December 2019/January 2020 "Snowtire Tour"
Take the tour with us on our photo page. Click the snowtire.

  I recently completed a new movement for a project I'm working on with percussionist Ken Lovelett.  What started as just casual recording of some of Ken's more experimental American Percussion instruments and sound sculpture pieces has turned into multi-movement piece. Along with many beautiful still images, the new piece "Serengeti" is up on Youtube.  Click the image.

 

  September 2020:  With the pandemic going on and few live gigs, taking the opportunity to tackle a long overdue rebuild of my home studio, with a lot of help from my son Paul, who's a skilled video editor and a tech whiz.

ORDER "MöBIUS"

5/8/22  Mothers' Day jazz brunch at Pearl Moon in Woodstock.  With the regular piano trio with Rich Syracuse and Jeff "Siege" Siegel and our special guest, vocalist Kitt Potter.  Great afternoon of music!  Photos by our friend Neil Segal.

5/7/22  Organ trio with Jeff "Siege" Siegel and guitarist Mike Jackson in Stone Ridge at Lydia's Cafe.  Lydia's has been closed for quite a while, for the pandemic and more recently for an extensive remodeling.  This was their first weekend open with live music back.  Great to play there again.

4/23/22  A reunion of old friends for this live streaming event at the Green Kill Gallery in Kingston, NY.  The core of the experimental/improvisational group "Sidestep" - Barbara Truex - dulcimer, Vinnie Pasternak - guitar & viola, and Ken Lovelett - percussion - have been together for decades.  For this video recording, Jordan Jancz was added on bass, as well as percussionist Brian Melick and me on keyboards, as well as poetry by Chris White.  Live streamed on Youtube, its also there for viewing now - SIDESTEP @ GREENKILL

4/10/22  Jazz Brunch in Woodstock, NY at Pearl Moon Cafe.  Singer/songwriter Lisa Markley leading a nice quartet with Rich Syracuse and myself and special guest Don Byron.

3/16/22  One more quartet gig with Ali Ryerson before she headed back home to Florida - in Bethel, CT at La Zingara.  Tom Carruthers of the Connecticut Film Festival puts on a continuing Wednesday night series of jazz gigs at this wonderful Italian restaurant.  Ali and I both lived nearby for many years, so a lot of old friends turned out.  Full house!  Gotta love that!


Ali Ryerson

Pete

Rich Syracuse

Jeff "Siege" Siegel

3/4/22  Our paths hadn't crossed in a few years, so it was a treat to play with virtuoso guitarist Mark Sganga and a groovin' band at the '76 House in Tappan, NY. 

3/3/22  Reunited with my old friend, jazz flutist Ali Ryerson, for a great show at The Bearsville Theater in Woodstock.  They made it "dinner show" and we had a full house.  In addition, this gig seems to mark the beginning of live shows coming back after the Covid Doldrums.  The band was smokin' and we had a great time.  Rich Syracuse on bass, Jeff Siegel on drums.  Photos by our friend Neil Segal.

2/18/22  Nice trio gig in Albany, NY with drummer Jeff Siegel and bassist Adam Cote at Grappa '72, a terrific Italian restaurant.  Still not much happening, so it was good to get out and make some music.

1/23/22  Not much happening this year.  Covid cancellations.  But this one went ahead.  Organ trio with guitarist Jeff Ciampa and drummer Jeff Siegel at the beautiful Cove Castle Restaurant in Greenwood Lake, New York.  This is the 2nd time I've played here.  Enthusiastic crowds turn out for these jazz brunches.  Looking forward to doing it again soon.

12/7/21  Winding up shows with Beledo for 2021 in Hudson Falls, NY at the beautiful Strand Theater.  Beledo, Scott Petito on bass, Kenny Grohowski on drums, and me on a killer 9-foot Steinway.  Don't see them too often on jazz gigs!  Looking forward to touring with this quartet in 2022.


Soundcheck.  9-foot Steinway!   Woo Woo!

Leonardo catching some z's

12/2/21  Kicking off a new jazz series at Woodstock's Bearsville Theater, Rich Syracuse, Jeff Siegel and I backed up dynamic vibraphonist Bill Ware in a terrific set to an enthusiastic sold-out audience.  Jazz is alive and well in Woodstock!  Some excellent photographs here by our friend Neil Segal, and a nice band shot by Siouxzanne Harris.

11/27/21  Folk/Rock singer/songwriter Marc Black for a Thanksgiving weekend dance-fest at Woodstock's Bearsville Theater.  Mar is a long-time fixture in Woodstock.  Always an enthusiastic audience turns out for his shows.  I'm relatively new to the band; Amy, Eric, Mike and Don have been playing with Marc for a long time.

 

11/21/21  Jammin' old-school organ trio style with guitarist Mike Jackson and drummer Jeff Siegel at Cove Castle.  First time in this beautiful venue overlooking Greenwood Lake, NY, and a full house appreciative audience - unusual for a weekly Sunday brunch gig.

November 2021  Supporting the release of his new album, "Seriously Deep", I've started touring with Uruguayan guitarist, pianist, and composer Bele Beledo.  Its a wonderful quartet.  Besides myself, bassist Scott Petito and drummer Kenny Grohowski.  The music is complex and difficult, but its coming together nicely.  More shows coming up in December.


Pete, Kenny, Scott, Beledo - and our agent/manager Leonardo Pavkovic
Rehearsing
Shows

10/17/21  Trio jazz at a new venue in town.  For years it was a funky Chinese restaurant, "Wok & Roll" now converted and completely transformed into "Pearl Moon" a beautiful venue with music 4 nights a week.  Predictably, folks are coming out.  Today's gig - a piano trio with bassist Rich Syracuse and drummer Jeff "Siege" Siegel.

9/3/21  Friday night at The Colony in Woodstock, NY with vocalist Lisa Markley, along with a great rhythm section, Lew Scott on bass and Matt Garrity on drums.  Lisa's a wonderful jazz vocalist, relatively new to the Woodstock area but people are starting to discover her.  The Colony back yard is knicknamed "The Beer Garden" and has almost continuous live music on weekends.  Its a beautiful venue inside, but they're still not opting for indoor music.  Soon, we hope. 


Soundcheck

Showtime, under a full moon

8/29/21  Sunday jazz brunch at the newly renovated Millstream Tavern - with Rich Syracuse/bass and Jeff Siegel/drums.  Beautiful setting on the deck by the stream and overlooking the Woodstock golf course.  The heat wave had finally broken, it was a comfortable 70 degrees.

 

8/13/21  Nice, relaxed gig at one of my favorite local eateries, Love Bites in Saugerties, NY - a duo with bassist John Menegon.  They have interesting art work on the walls, including that very goofy heart behind me.  Looking at the photo, it looks more like I'm playing The Muppet Show!

7/28/21  Organ trio in the lounge at Annarella with guitarist Mike DeMicco and drummer Jeff  "Siege" Siegel.  Usually the room is quiet and laid -back, with a semi-formal dining room adjacent.  Not tonight; the place was hoppin!  3 friends came up to sing and tore it up!  No mic, just belting it out - and the packed room love it.  This might be a new trend for the restaurant.


Pete, Jeff & Mike - groovilating!

Yeah, I'm happy!

Our friend Barry "Sweet" Jackson came up to sing - tore it up!

7/25/21 Long, beautiful drive through the Adirondacks to Norwood, New York for a concert with Brazilian percussionist/vocalist Nanny Assis and a terrific band.  The music - all Brazilian and almost all completely new for me.  An afternoon rehearsal let me catch up to them.  A wonderful evening.  Apparently vocalist Maggie Gould was scheduled to sing with us, but was unable to board her flight.  2020 - it ain't over yet!


Paul Meyers, Nanny Assis, Pete, Leo Lucini

7/18/21  Summer jazz series continues at Annarella.  Tonight - Rich Syracuse, Jeff Siegel and I backing vocalist Lisa Markley.  Full house.  A couple of  friends sitting in.  Nice night!

7/14/21  Trio night at Annarella, this time with guitarist Mike DeMicco and bassist Rich Syracuse.  No drums, but we were groovilating!  Phtos by Neil Segal

6/30/21  Piano trio at Annarella Ristorante in Saugerties, NY with Rich Syracuse and Jeff Siegel

 

6/26/21  Back home where we wrapped up the Vaccinating Rhythm Tour at the newly renovated Bearsville Theater in Woodstock, NY.  Great to have a hometown crowd come out, and great to have a terrific stage and sound situation thanks to our friend Robert Frazza and his crew.  For the past 3 weeks, we've been hearing and seeing over and over how exuberant folks are at being able to finally get out and hear live music again.  For us, there are no words to express how great we feel about performing live again after 15 months of purgatory.  Our heartfelt thanks to everyone who came out to hear us, to the 8 venues that hosted us and to their crews who made us look and sound good, and to our agent/manager/merchandise guru and friend Leonardo Pavkovic who put the tour together and kept it running smoothly.


Custom t-shirts and masks - it doesn't get any classier than this!

6/20/21 First gig of a double header today: Brunch jazz in the lounge at the newly renovated Bearsville Theater in Woodstock, NY.  Love working with this rhythm section - Rich Syracuse and Jeff Siegel - and a treat to just walk into a venue and play their piano.  No amplifier schlepping!!  Great photos by our friend Neil Segal

6/20/21  After a long time down, Annarella Ristorante in Saugerties, NY has resumed Wednesday night jazz, and a few Sunday nights too to make up a summer series.  Played there last night with a smokin' piano trio - Rich Syracuse on bass and Jeff "Siege" Siegel on drums.  Bottom line, this is my favorite kind of gig - winging it with no set list, no rehearsing, just having a great meal then seeing where the music takes us.  Live music is coming back, for sure.

6/18/21  After years of touring, this was our first time in Syracuse, NY.  The Westcott Theater, perhaps more theater-like at one time, is now a prog-rock type club with some seating but mostly standing.  Lack of air-conditioning made it kind of funky.  But the upside is that clubs like this are really focused on music and often have a very good sound system and crew.  The Westcott does.  The on-stage sound for us was as good as we ever get.  If you don't count getting sweaty, it was a perfect show.

6/17/21  Hudson Falls, NY at the Strand Theater.  Oddly, we had no plans for this June at all.  Then, a few months ago, The Strand contacted us and asked if we'd come back.  We built this tour around that show.  Its a wonderful venue that also provides top notch hospitality to visiting performers.

 
6/16/21  Returning to one of our favorite venues - Daryl's House Club in Pawling, NY.  They do a great job with the sound and live video streaming, and the food is great.  Still restricted as to audience size, but we still had a great crowd.  As always, thanks to everybody who came out.

6/13/21  Returning to Kennett Flash, in Kennett Square, PA.  This time out, instead of playing in the club, concerts were being held on the upper level of a huge parking garage, open to the stars.  Thunderstorms were predicted, but they never happened.  Wonderful outdoor concert.  We're doing all the shows now wearing our Vaccinating Rhythm t-shirts.


Our friend and booking agent Leonardo Pavkovic

6/12/21  Far down the shoreline in Lewes Delaware, we played a charming room to a full house - The Room At Cedar Grove.  Stage smaller than what we're used to, so a bit cramped, but it all worked out nicely.  Good show  Nice people.  Many thanks to our host, chef and music enthusiast Paul Cullen.

6/10/21  Great returning to this beautiful theater in Sellersville, PA - great capacity crowd, great stage and sound crew - that's the stuff that makes a traveling band happy!  We've decided to wear our VACCINATING RHYTHM TOUR t-shirts on stage for a while.  Lots of folks buying them after the show.  We love that too!


Leonardo at the merch table - and a nice lady with her new Vaccinating Rhythm tour shirt!
6/9/21 The Levin Bothers VACCINATING RHYTHM TOUR kicks off with a show at the Falcon in Marlboro, NY.  We love this very special venue.  We played to a capacity crowd who snapped up many t-shirts.  Hoping we have enough to last the tour!  Thanks to everybody who came out.  Now, off to Pennsylvania.   Photos by our friend Neil Segal

 

6/6/21  Sunny (hot!) afternoon in Woodstock Village.  Played an afternoon show on the Colony's outdoor stage with singer Lisa Markley.  Lou Pappas on bass and Matt Garrity on drums.  Lisa's teriffic.  This was my first gig with her - hopefully there'll be more soon. 

6/2/21  First jazz gig of 2021 - and many more to come!  Back at Annarella, my favorite local hang for years, to kick off the Wednesday night jazz series - this with bassist Rich Syracuse and drummer Jeff "Siege" Siegel.  The whole music scene is exploding everywhere.  Great to be back!

 

5/6/21  New project with jazz vocalist Teri Roiger and a new band, "Sharp 5 Quintet" doing Latin-flavored jazz.  Teri, Pete, bassist John Menegon, drummer Jeff Siegel, and featuring percussionist Nanny Assis.  Our first live gig - and my first in a long time - and Cafe Lena in Saratoga Springs, NY.

 

 

5/1/21  First live gig in 7 months!  Organ trio with Mike DeMicco and Jeff "Siege" Siegel.  Just a house concert with a small but appreciative audience, but it was great to be back playing live - and a glorious day to be outdoors.  Photos by Lisa Saalfield and Rudy Lu

 

4/13/21  Video shoot for the Holocaust Survivor Song Project with Woodstock singer/songwriter Michael Veitch at the historic, newly renovated Bearsville Theater.  For the same video session, I also played piano for Judy Kass, doing a song I had previously recorded for her.  In the 2nd photo below, Michael caught me doing a candid selfie and photobombed it.  In the bottom row, producer Julie Last and I.

11/11/20  Groovin' with the Teri Roiger Quartet at Annarella, possibly the last one we'll be able to do until next year.  Chilly, but totally manageable.  Teri on vocals, with bassist John Menegon, drummer Jeff Siegel and me.

 

11/4/20  The Teri Roiger Quartet, on the patio at Annarella, under a full moon and a gorgeous clear winter sky.  A little chilly, but you can see that we're dressed for it.

10/28/20  The music continues on the patio at Annarella with the Teri Roiger Quartet.  Teri backed by bassist John Menegon, drummer Jeff Siegel, and myself on Piano.  A bit chilly, but totally enjoyable.

10/14/20  Piano trio at Annarella Ristoranti with bassist Lou Pappas and drummer Peter O'Brien.  Nice playing with these 2 guys - they make it easy.  Not quite so nice, the temperature drops quite a bit between starting at 6:30 and finishing up around 9:00   Not sure how much longer we can keep this.  Still no practical (or legal) way to move it indoors.  Don't know how lond we can keep this up.

10/09/20  Organ trio at Annarella Ristoranti in Saugerties, NY - with guitarist Mike DeMicco and drummer Jeff "Siege" Siegel.  A bit chilly, but not so you'd notice.  Anyway, they've got these big propane heaters on the patio that keep everybody comfy.

 

10/3-4/20  Recording at Dreamland Studio in Woodstock, NY for Andy Toomey's album project.  My favorite rhythm section - my brother Tony on bass and Jerry Marotta on drums.  It doesn't get more solid than that!  Special treat for me is Dreamland's collection of vintage keyboard instruments.  I  had my choice of some exotic instruments, but with time a factor I went with the conventional ones.  We laid down 11 basic tracks in 2 days.  Its gonna be a good one.


Happiness is when they set you up a keyboard "station"

singer/songwriter Andy Toomey

Jerry Marotta

Tony Levin

My favorite sweatshirt:
"Celebrating 25 years of lousy car advice"

 

9/30/20  Back on the patio at Annarella in Saugerties, NY with vocalist Teri Roiger and bassist John Mennegon.  Tuesday's rainstorm had moved on, leaving us with a clear sky and a bright, full moon.  Its getting chilly on these fall evenings though.  Not sure how long this weekly gig will continue.  Photo: Siouxanne Harris

9/24/20  Public concert in Schenectady, NY with drummer Cliff Brucker's "Full Circle" - organ trio with guitarist Chad McLoughlin and myself.  Perfect day to be doin' it outdoors.  Great that this kind of thing is happening in Schenectady.  Nice town!

9/12/20 The Levin Brothers do a fun local jam at our favorite local watering hole, Keegan Ales in Kingston, NY.   Just a trio - Tony, Pete and Jeff Siegel.  We hadn't done a show since January, so some of our originals were a bit shaky.  But it was great to play live for a couple of hours.  Great local crowd, great Middle Eastern food, and of course our favorite beer, "Mother's Milk"  Photos by our friend Neil Segal.

 

9/3/20 Finally getting to a long overdue overhaul to my studio.  My son Paul is up for the long weekend, and masterminding the job.  Paul is a highly skilled video and audio editor, and he knows PCs and Protools inside out.  2 long days so far.  The room is a wreck, but it looks like everything is functional, or close to it.  Back at it tomorrow, trouble shooting and cleaning up.  Still many hours work to go getting my keyboard and sampler gear interfaced with the recording systems, but its looking good!


The client couch is a bit cluttered.  OK, so I'm not finished yet.
 

8/26/20  The Levin-DeMicco-Siegel organ trio, on the patio at Annarella Ristoranti in Saugerties, NY.  I played here in a Wednesday night jazz series for a long time.  They've been doing outdoor dining on their new patio, and just now started the jazz Wednesdays up again.  Obviously good-weather dependent, so we're not sure how long it will last.  But its great to be back playing at what is my favorite restaurant in the Hudson Valley.

8/8/20  The Levin-DeMicco-Siegel organ trio - after 5 months of quarantining with no live music, its really great to be back to playing live.  Lydia's Cafe in Stone Ridge, NY - well set up for outdoor dining and hanging picnic-style on the lawn.  Terrific crowd came out, actually more than th was table seating available for.  Live music is slowly coming back to the Hudson Valley.
Photos below by Lisa Saalfield and Samantha Levin


Pete, Jeff "Siege" Siegel, Mike DeMicco

3/9/20  The Levin-DeMicco-Siegel organ trio, groovilating at Quinn's in Beacon, NY.  The 2nd of our whirlwind 4-city world tour.  Photo by James Keepnews

3/7/20  The Levin-DeMicco-Siegel organ trio, groovilating at Lydia's in Stone Ridge, NY.  The first of our whirlwind 4-city world tour.  Love playing at this intimate restaurant.  Owner Mark Usvolk has built the place into one of the best small music venues in the area. 
Photos by our friends Rita Ryan and Neil Segal.

 

2/14/20  Vocalist Roseann Sureda at The Beverly in Kingston, NY.  Backing trio - Peter O'Brien, Ari Goldstein and Pete

2/7/20  Jazz piano trio in Albany, NY at Grappa '72 with Rich Syracuse and Jeff Siegel. 

 

The Levin Brothers Band - 1919-20 Snowtire Tour
Part 1 - December
Click here for photos from the whole tour


This is how it started.  Headed for New York City for the 1st show.
11/25/19  Rehearsing for the upcoming Levin Brothers tour.  Photos by Avraham Bank

 

11/6/19  Guitarist John Cariddi joined John Menegon and I for an evening of trio jazz at Annarella.  Cariddi and I have been playing together for many years, including recordings and European tours with my organ trios.  Great to have him come up for this laid-back gig.  Making the evening more special, a couple of good friends sat in with us - vocalist Janice Hardgrove and trumpeter Chris Pasin.  We were groovin'! Our friend Rudy Lu took these great photos.  (That's what he does!)

10/23/19  Trio at Annarella Ristoranti in Saugerties, NY - with trumpeter Chris Pasin and Jim Curtin on bass.  Photo by Kath Oliger

 

10/18/19  The annual Parker Brothers Extravaganza with The Levin Brothers and Vito Petroccitto.  This amazing family of world-class drummers - Chris, Eric, Tony, Nick and their father Bob - throw this annual celebration at The Falcon in Marlboro, New York, one of our favorite Hudson Valley venues.  4 bands and many special guests, playing to a sold-out house.  The headlining band had Vito Petroccitto fronting a quintet with Chris and Eric drumming and Tony and I.  Great evening - lots of fun!


Tony, Pete, Chris, Vito, Eric

Setting the stage up - lots of drums!

Tim Moore & Pete - Tony Parker, Eric Parker & Tony Levin in back

My office today

Tony Parker, Eric Parker & Tony Levin

Eric Parker & Vito

Eric Parker & Tony

Nick Parker & Vito

Tony

Tony Parker

David Laks

c

Pete, Chris, Eric

 

10/12/19  Lydia's Cafe in Stone Ridge, NY: Organ trio with Mike DeMicco and Jeff "Siege" Siegel
10/9/19  Jazz Wednesdays continue at Annarella Ristoranti in Saugerties, NY.  Joining Pete this week, guitarist Mike Jackson and bassist Lou Pappas

10/2/19  Jazz Wednesdays continue at Annarella Ristoranti in Saugerties, NY.  Joining Pete this week, guitarist Jeff Ciampa and bassist Lou Pappas

 

9/18/19  Jazz Wednesdays continue at Annarella Ristoranti in Saugerties, NY.  This week, vocalist Teri Roiger & bassist John Menegon

9/7/19  Organ trio night at The Wherehouse in Newburgh, NY - a very hip neighborhood bar and restaurant with great food and live music.  Hard groovin' trio with guitarist Mike Jackson and drummer Jeff "Siege" Siegel - and of course, my new Hammond SKX was on the gig.  Love it!

9/4/19  Jazz Wednesdays continue at Annarella Ristoranti in Saugerties, NY.  This week, trumpet player Chris Pasin joined Lou Pappas and I.  Nice surprise to have German saxophonist Julia Banholzer sitting in.  We've been getting more of that these days, people sitting in.  There's no PA, but several singers who come up sing a tune or two.  So by necessity its low volume acoustic, intimate.  Love it.  Joining us recently - Janice Hardgrove, Sarah Fimm, Lindsey Webster, Bruce Milner.


Pete and Bruce Milner

 

8/11/19  The Hudson Valley Jazz Festival, at The Rustic Wheelhouse in Chester, NY, formerly the famouse Bodles Opera House.  Nice quartet with Rob Paparozzi on vocals and harmonica, John Menegon on bass, and Jeff Siegel on drums.


Rob Paparozzi, Pete, John Menegon, Jeff Siegel

8/9/19 The Hudson Valley Jazz Festival, at Warwick Valley Winery with the Jeff Ciampa Group.   Jeff on guitar, Dave Mann  on sax, Bob Meyer on drums, and me with my brand new Hammond SKX organ.  UPS delivered it at 11am this morning.  At 2pm it was in my car and heading for Warwick.  At 6pm it was doing its first gig; I'd only had it for 7 hours!

8/7/19 Trio jazz at Annarella Ristoranti in Saugerties, NY with guitarist Mike DeMicco and bassist Lou Pappas

 

7/25/19  Sometimes they're easy:  Jeff Ciampa and I playing jazz duo by the Riverfront in West New York, NJ.  (Who thought up that name?!?)  Amazing view of the NYC skyline in back of us.  Our friend Kath Oliger books the summer music series there, and hooked us up.  Wonder what apartments are renting for around there.  Better not to ask ..


Kath crashing a band photo.
(Oh, wait. She's taking the photo.  Never mind ...)

 

July 19-21 Spent a long weekend in Buffalo, NY area, hanging out, listening to music and playing 3 gigs.  I haven't been in Buffalo for many years, and never got to hang out there.  Its a great music town - music everywhere and great players.  I got to meet and play with several of them this past weekend.
The 3rd venue is very unusual.  The historic "Colored Musicians Club" goes back over 100 years to an era when the Buffalo musicians' union was still segregated.  Local and famous touring black musicians had no place to hang out after their regular gigs. So the CMC was born, becoming home to years of legendary late-night jam sessions.  Today, the name seems socially and politically incorrect, but its been a fixture in Buffalo and nobody seems to object to it.

PAUSA ART HOUSE  BUFFALO, NY
with Joe Goehle (bass) and Joe Goretti (drums)

LACKAWANNA BLUES FESTIVAL
the Willie May Band
COLORED MUSICIANS CLUB   BUFFALO, NY
with Joe Goretti (drums), Mark Harris (bass) & Stu Weissman (guitar)
 

7/14/19  The Paparozzi/Levin/Tropea/Marotta quartet returns to The Falcon in Marlboro, NY for a fun-filled jazz/blues brunch.  This mini -all-star quartet basically gets together once or twice a year and does a relaxed, unstructured gig that's a ball.  Audience sings along ... the whole bit.  With Rob Paparozzi and John Tropea both currently touring with the Blues Brothers Band, sometimes we'll wing something from that repertoire.  The photos are all by our friend Ed Conway.

5/31/19  A virtually unannounced casual Levin Brothers gig in our back yard at the amazing Annarella Ristoranti.  A final hit before Tony takes off on tour with King Crimson. Tony, Jeff and I doing some quiet jazz in the lounge, then tying into some of the best Italian cuisine in the Hudson Valley.  Advertising wasn't necessary - it was a packed house.

 

5/27/19  NYC arranger Lisa Maxwell has been working on her dream big-band recording project for over a year.  The album, "Shiny," is dedicated to our old friend Lew Soloff.  The sessions and the live show at the Cutting Room featured dozens of first string NYC players.  Great hang - and a blast to come into town and play with the old gang.  The place was packed, actually the biggest crowd I've ever seen at the Cutting Room.  The band was smokin!  Great job, Lisa!
On stage - I'll never get them all: Lisa, Blue Lou Marini, Ada Rovatti, Randy Brecker, Tony Kadleck, Roger Rosenberg, Lawrence Feldman, Dave Mann, Tom Malone, Dan Levine, Dave Taylor, Andy Ezrin, Carmen Staaf, Leni Stern, Oz Noy, Ben Perowsky, Danny Gottlieb, Steve Wolf, Beth Gottieb, Will Lee, Claire Daly ... and more that I can't think of now.


Yes, this is a club!  Big video screen for folks in the nosebleed seats.

Lisa conducting and part of the horn section.

There were rotating rhythm section players.  Here - Steve Wolf, Will Lee, Oz Noy and Andy Ezrin.

Another rhytm section - Danny Gottlieb, Will Lee, Leni Stern, and Beth Gottlieb's shoulder on the right

No way I could get everyone in the photo.

One goofy selfie shot:  DJ/music journalist Ken Dashow, Beth Gottlieb, Pete, Danny Gottlieb

 

3/29/19  After shows in Northampton Mass and Brookline, New Hampshire, we wrapped up this March tour in Schenectady, NY at The Van Dyck Music Hall.  We've played this venue many times over the years - good to be back. And we're loving this new quartet with guitarist David Spinozza!


Pete, Jeff Siegel, David Spinozza, Tony
 

3/16/19  The Levin Brothers tour continued in our own back yard, something that happens rarely.  Part of the "Jazzstock" concert series, promoted by Teri Roiger and John Menegon, the show was at the old Senate Garage in the historic Kingston Stockade district. - a beautiful and unique performance space.  We were fortunate to have two of our friends in the audience who are terrific photographers, Rudy Lu and Neil Segal.  Here are some of their shots, along with some amazing ones by Tony.

 

3/9/19 The Levin Brothers Band, kicking off a handful of shows in the Northeast, this was the first - 2 nights at The Jazz Forum in Tarrytown, NY.  For these 6 gigs, we're joined by master guitarist David Spinozza, making it a new, exploratory experience for Tony Jeff and I.  Lots of fun!  We played 2 shows each on Friday and Saturday nights to great audiences, 2 of the shows sold out.  We usually don't use an acoustic piano, even if there's one at the venue.  But they just got a brand new Steinway in, and its a killer!  Had to go for it.  The Forum is a beautiful jazz venue, being well-run.  Not many of those left.


Pete, David Spinozza, Jeff Siegel, Tony

Friday soundcheck.  Couldn't resist a selfie with the Steinway.

Between songs - view from the bridge

 

3/1/19  Kingston, NY @ BSP - CD release show with vocalist Roseann Sureda, "Its Called Love."  Roseann and a 6-piece band played to a packed house at this performance venue in Kingston.  Pete, John Cariddi - guitar, Eric Person - sax, Scott Petito - bass, Jeff "Siege" Siegel - drums, and Nanny Assis - percussion.


Backstage L to R: John Cariddi, Nanny Assis, Pete, Roseann, Scott Petito, Eric Person, Jeff Siegel

2/9/19   Stone Ridge, NY @ Lydia's Cafe.  Nice set with the Teri Roiger Trio with special guest, saxophonist George Deleon.

2/6/19  Back home after the tour and back to the regular routines.  Un-jetlagged just in time to do a trio gig in Woodstock with bassist Rich Syracuse and drummer Jeff "Siege" Siegel.

 

2/2  Scottsdale, Arizona at The Scottsdale Center For the Arts.  A final double bill with Soft Machine at this beautiful theater, and the last show on our West Coast tour.  Flying back to Newark tomorrow, hopefully in time to catch the 2nd half of the Super Bowl.

2/1  In Mexicali, Mexico @ Bol Bol.  An unusual venue to say the least.  We had some trouble navigating our way to the stage - a sort of "Spinal Tap" moment.  On a whim, I pulled out my cell phone and captured it on video.

 

1/29 & 30   The Baked Potato - Los Angeles, California.  Wonderful intimate club, the Potato is the only true jazz venue on this whole tour.  Its a pretty special place.  All over the U.S., clubs like this one are disappearing, which is a sad and bitter loss for the jazz world and the art form.  We played 4 sold-out shows over the two nights, and had a ball.


Photo: Laurie Reimer

Photo: Laurie Reimer

Photo: Melanie Escombe

Photo: Melanie Escombe

Photo: Melanie Escombe

Photo: Melanie Escombe

Photo: Melanie Escombe

Photo: Melanie Escombe
1/27/19  The Tower Theater - Fresno, California

Pretty cool!

In the lobby

Don't ask!
 
1/25/19  Flynn's - Santa Cruz, California. A double billing with the British Band "Soft Machine"

Front window display.  We're on there, along with the "Girl's Night Out" dancers, a Jerry Garcia tribute band, Red Dog Ash, Wild Child" ... I don't think it's a jazz club.

Cleanhead photo-op: Tony, music journalist Anil Prasad, Pete, Soft Machine bassist Roy Babbington
1/24/19  Freight & Salvage - Berkeley, California.  A double billing with the British Band "Soft Machine"
 
1/23/19  Tsakapolous Arts Center - Sacramento, Calfornia

1/20-21/19  The Levin Brothers West Coast tour started with two sold-out shows at the charming Arcata Playhouse in Arcata, California.  Wonderful venue, great sound, terrific audiences - and we found a killer breakfast place in Arcata.  Great way to start a tour!

 

12/7/18  The 7th annual Christmas for Veterans concert, organized and MC'd by Bill Edwards in Peekskill, NY at the Paramount Theater. Once more it was the 13-piece Westchester All-Stars house band, with vocalists Bill Edwards, Vaneese Thomas, Duchess Di, Maryann Renza, Kathy Policastro and Tom Dudley - plus special guests John Sebastian and Gene Cornish.  The packed theater audience included many uniformed servicemen and many veterans, some from WW2 - one of them a Pearl Harbor survivor.  A high spot for me was accompanying Vaneese Thomas singing the National Anthem while flanked by a Marine color guard.  It was a terrific evening.


Pianist Scott Staton & me on organ, horn players Stefan Waldman, Sal Lagonia, Mark Swigart, John Lissauer, Marc Belladino, Roy Victor, Tony Gorruso, vocalists Kathy Policastro, Maryann Renza,Duchess Di, Bill Edwards, Andy Foster, Tom Dudley, Paul Opelach, Wayne Warnecke, Kristen Capolino and Rick Agosta

 

11/18/18  Jazz vocalist Maiko Hata celebrating her debut CD release in Kingston, NY at Backstage Productions Theater with my favorite Hudson Valley rhythm section and featuring saxophonist Eric Person.  Photos by our friend Neil Segal


L to R:  Charlie Schikowitz, Maiko Hata, Eric Person, Jeff Siegel, John Menegon, Pete

11/14/18  Late night jam at Catskill Mountain Pizza in Woodstock, NY.  Woodstock proving again that its really "Music City."  The regular Wednesday night jazz gig is anchored by drummer Jeff Siegel and bassist Rich Syracuse.  This week was different.  Jim Curtin was on bass with  Woodstock guitarist Peter Einhorn. Sitting in - me, George DeLeon on sax, and special guest Brazilian percussionist Emilio Martins, who was in town for a few days.  It was groovilatin!


Pete, George DeLeon, Peter Einhorn, Jim Curtin, Emilio Martins, Jeff Siegel

 

11/11/18  Rob Paparozzi & Friends, back at The Falcon in Marlboro, NY for a Jazz/Blues/Whatever brunch.  Rob on harmonica and vocals, John Carridi on guitar, Lee Finkelstein on drums, and me on the house's Hammond B-3. 


Pete, Lee Finkelstein, Rob Paparozzi, John Cariddi

11/3/18  Chester, NY at The Rustic Wheelhouse.  Drummer Jeff Siegel and I played a nice, straight-ahead organ trio with Mike Jackson, a wonderful jazz guitarist, plus featured guest vocalist Nicole Pasternak.  The Wheelhouse used to be the famous Bodle's Opera House, a venue I'd played several times over the years.  It's been completely redone and is now a great Italian restaurant.  They've only recently started having live music.  Wishing them the best of luck.


Mike Jackson, Pete, Nicole Pasternak, Jeff Siegel

 

10/12/18  Reelin' In The Years returns to The Falcon in Marlboro, NY, celebrating the music of Steely Dan.  The 11-piece band played a 2-hour set to a packed house.  People were literally dancing in the aisles!  Love this music!  Excellent photos by our friend Neil Segal.


L to R:  John Cariddi, Pete , Dave Andrews, Joey Eppard, Jerry Marotta, Janice Hardgrove, Chris Eminizer, Don Mikkelson, Chris Pasin, Jay Collins, Matt Finck.
 

2017-2018  The Teri Roiger Trio, Teri, bassist John Menegon and I;  Realized that we've been doing this Wednesday night gig for a year and a half!  Why? It's easy, Teri and John are the greatest people, the music is beautiful, we get to play quietly in the intimate lounge at Annarella, and we eat dinner before we play.  The food is probably the best Italian cuisine in the NY Hudson Valley.  If you're anywhere nearby, join us on one of these Wednesdays.  We have folks coming down from Albany (1 hour drive) for this.  Occasionally we have someone interesting sit in.  Last week, recording artist Roseann Sureda.  The week before, Dr. Bruce Milner sang his top-40 mega hit from the '60s  (We did a Bossa Nova groove.)  It's like that.  Here's some odds and ends photos:


Pete, Teri & John

Pete & John with jazz trumpet player Chris Pasin

The trio, with the very remarkable Doctor George DeLeon

 

MOBIUS BAND - RECORDING AND LIVE

Saturday, August 11th: The Mobius band in Warwick, NY for the Hudson Valley Jazz Festival.  Scheduled as an outdoor concert on the Warwick Village Green, the weather was uncooperative.  So we moved indoors to the spacious and beautiful Warwick Reformed Church.

Friday, August 10th:  The Mobius band in Montclair, New Jersey @ Trumpets Jazz Club
 

Tuesday, August 7th:  Recording with master percussionist Nanny Assis for his new album.  At Scott Petito's NRS Studio with Nanny and Tony Levin on bass.

Saturday, July 28:  Jazz vocalist Kitt Potter put together a program based on the history of black and gay American performers who moved to Paris to find work and get a decent life.  The show, at the historic Maverick Concert Hall in Woodstock, NY, featured Kitt backed by a nice quartet - bassist Ira Coleman, sax player Joe Giardullo, percussionist Arti Disxon, and myself on piano.  (The Maverick's 7-foot Yamaha grand - love that!!)  Also featured was Poet Gold, who joined us for some improvised pieces.  It was a beautiful evening.

Sunday, July 22nd: Reelin' In The Years in Pawling, NY at Daryl's House.  After playing an amphitheater yesterday, fitting 12 players on the stage at Daryl's was a challenge.   Love this club!  For our two weekend gigs, we were joined by drummer Rick Marotta, Jerry's brother.  That's a pretty serious groove!  Making it more special, Rick is the drummer on many of Steely Dan's recordings.


Joey Eppard

Lindsey Skeye

Pete

Jerry Marotta

Matt Finck

Jesse Gress

Rick Marotta

Jennifer Maidman

Chris Eminizer, Chris Pasin, Don Mikkelson, Ken Gioffre

Pete with Jerry & Rick Marotta

Saturday, July 21st: Reelin' In The Years in Schenectady, NY at the Rivers Casino Amphitheater.  For our two weekend gigs, we were joined by drummer Rick Marotta, Jerry's brother.  That's a pretty serious groove!  Making it more special, Rick is the drummer on many of Steely Dan's recordings.

Friday, June 29th.  "Reelin' In The Years" an all-star Woodstock band doing all Steely Dan material in Marlboro, New York at The Falcon.  We did a 140-minute show to a capacity crowd.  Folks who couldn't find seating were literally dancing in the isles.  It's a great band doing really great music. Two shows coming up later this month, in Schenectady and in Pawling, New York.


L to R: Pete, Jesse Gress, Dave Anderson, Lindsey Skye, Jerry Marotta, Chris Eminizer, Don Mikkelson, Joey Eppard, Chris Pasin, Jay Collins, Matt Finck.

Tuesday, June 19th - The Mobius Band in New York City at Iridium.  Always a thrill to play this beautiful, classic NYC venue.  The band - the usual suspects - was smokin!  These photos taken by our friend Leonardo Pavkovic.


L to R: Pete, Alex Foster, Jeff Ciampa, Chris Pasin,
Nanny Assis, Ira Coleman, Lenny White

Wednesday, June 13th - The Mobius Band in Pawling, New York at Daryl's House Club.  This was the first of four shows the band is doing this summer in the NYC Metro area.  We don't play that often and never rehearse, so there's a great factor of spontaneity - same music, but each show is different.  Next up, New York City @ Iridium.  Love this band!!


L to R: Pete, Chris Pasin, Alex Foster, Jeff Ciampa,
Nanny Assis, Ira Coleman, Lenny White.

Friday, June 8, in South Salem, NY @ Brother Vic's, my first gig in the keyboard chair with "Reelin' In The Years," an all-star band out of Woodstock that does all Steely Dan music.  Led by drummer Jerry Marotta, the band features lead vocalist Joey Eppard and master guitarists Jesse Gress and Matt Finck.  That plus a killer horn section.  Looking forward to many more dates with this band.  We have 2 coming up in July that will include Jerry's brother Rick Marotta, who is the drummer on many of Steely Dan's hit recordings.  (Yup, 2 drummers!)


L to R: Pete, Jesse Gress, Zoe Zeeman, Joey Eppard, Jerry Marotta,
Matt Finck, Lindsey Skye, Chris Eminizer, Chris Pasin, Bill Harris

Sunday, June 3rd in Schenectady, NY @ Van Slykes at the Rivers Casino with Cliff Brucker's Full Circle Sextette, featuring Dylan Canterbury and Leo Rossi

5/21/18  Back for another jazz/blues/r&b/whatever brunch in Marlboro, NY at The Falcon.  Rob Paparozzi, John Tropea, Jerry Marotta and I.  We only do this 2 or 3 times a year, but they're always a blast. A few dynamite friends sat in and took it over the top - Tommy "Pipes" McDonnell (Blues Brothers), Emily Bindiger, Violinist Phil Girlando, and bassist Evan Conway.  With Tommy sitting in - 3 photos down - Rob, Tommy and John all currently tour with the Original Blues Brothers Band.  Of course, we had to do several of their biggest hits.  Not quite the same without the horn section, but it was groovilating!


photo: Sal Miccio

photo: Rudy Lu

photo: Terre Levin

photo: Terre Levin

photo: Rudy Lu

photo: Rudy Lu

photo: Sal Miccio

4/23 & 24  Composer/arranger Lisa Maxwell recording her new album "Shiny" at Sear Sound in New York City.  Lisa used a big lineup of A-string NYC studio players going back many years, so the sessions had the atmosphere of a happy reunion.  Just a few - Randy Brecker, Tony Kadleck, Blue Lou Marini, Alex Foster, Lawrence Feldman, Roger Rosenberg, Dave Taylor, Paul Shaffer, Oz Noy, Leni Stern, Will Lee, Mark Egan, Ben Perowsky, Steve Wolf, Danny Gottlieb, etc ...  Walter Sear was one of the pioneers of the electronic music scene, having one of 3 modular Moog synthesizers in New York.  Walter build Sear Sound for his own use, and ultimately as a commercial recording facility.  These days, it's one of the last major studios in Manhattan that could handle a session this size.  The album will be dedicated to trumpeter Lew Soloff, a longtime friend of Lisa's. 


John Clark, Pete, Lisa Maxwell

Pete, Paul Shaffer, Lisa

recording engineer Noah Evans

Paul & Pete go for a Cleanhead photo-op

Mark Egan, Pete, Danny Gottlieb

Noah Evans, Pete, Danny Gottlieb

3/31/18  The Möbius Band's first gig this year at the Jazz Forum in Tarrytown, NY.  A 2-nighter, in fact: Friday March 30th and Saturday March 31st.  The band was smokin!  These photos from the 2nd night (31st)  First night photos below:
Alex Foster (sax), Chris Pasin (trumpet), Jeff Ciampa (guitar), Nanny Assis (percussion), Ira Coleman (bass, and Jeff "Siege" Siegel (drums)


Jazz Forum owner & great trumpet player sitting in with us; Mark Morganelli

3/30/18  The Möbius Band did it's first gig this year at the Jazz Forum in Tarrytown, NY.  A 2-nighter, in fact.  We're playing there again tonight (Saturday the 31st).  It's been a few months since we did this.  A few minor train wrecks, but the band was smokin!
Alex Foster (sax), Chris Pasin (trumpet), Jeff Ciampa (guitar), Nanny Assis (percussion), Ira Coleman (bass, and Lenny White (drums)

3/11/18  Drummer/arranger Cliff Brucker just released his latest CD, "Full Circle, vol 2" which I got to play on a few months ago.  Celebrating the release, Cliff did a CD release show at Van Slykes in the Rivers Casino in Schenectady, featuring the full band from the recording: Dylan Canterbury (trumpet), Leo Russo (sax), Mike Novakowski (guitar), Otto Gardner (bass), Cliff and me.  Photos by our good friend Rudy Lu.


WCDB's jazz maven, Bill McCann was in the house.

Speaking of the house, this isn't exactly the typical view from the bandstand

January 2018  Spent a week in China, rehearsing and doing a 5-city tour with bassist/vocalist Zhang Ling.  Ling had recorded his last album here in New York with American musicians.  It was tricky working out getting there to play live with him, but we pulled it off.  It was my first time in China.  It's a pretty amazing place!


Zhang "Big John" Ling

Robin Liu

Jason Coffey

Tour kickoff at the Blue Note in Beijing

Ling, Leonardo Pavkovic, Pete

Post-show: Band with audience photo

January 2018.   The Levin Brothers Band in Japan: Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya and Osaka.


The band with our Japanese promoter, Masa Goto

Nagoya @ Star Eyes: Pete, Erik Lawrence, Jeff Siegel, Tony

Osaka @ Banana Hall:  Soundcheck

Pete and Masa Goto

Tokyo @ Blues Alley

Pete and Leonardo Pavkovic, waiting for the Bullet Train to Osaka

Yokohama @ Motion Blue: Soundcheck

Tokyo

January 2018.   The Levin Brothers Band hits the road for 6 gigs in the U.S., then on to Japan.  Photos below, taken by Avraham Bank, are from our show at the Ramshead in Annapolis, MD.

1/13/18  Blues Brothers Band frontman Rob Paparozzi fronting a jazz quintet at Mohonk Mountain House for the 19th annual WBGO Jazz Festival.  Rob on vocals and harmonica, Dave Stryker - guitar, Sue Williams - bass, Warren Odze - drums, and me on piano and organ.  We had 'em dancin' in the isles!

12/30/17  Last gig of 2017: Organ trio with guitarist Mike DeMicco and drummer Jeff Siegel at Maureen's, an intimate jazz club in Nyack, NY. 

12/29/17  Gospel vocalist Rene Bailey's CD release show at the Falcon in Marlboro, NY.  A 15-piece ensemble laid down backup for Rene's album "Good Old Songs."   I was on Hammond organ for the date, along side Reverend Lee Stowe playing piano.  Lee is the real deal - a treat for me to play with him.  Except for a couple of lame shots taken with my phone, photos were taken by Neil Segal.


Pete, Lee Stowe, Rene, Dave Winograd

Taken at soundcheck

12/1/17  Bill Edwards & the Westchester All-Stars, with special guests, The Vanilla Fudge - the annual Christmas For Wounded Veterans concert.  Bill's been doing this for 6 years; this is my 3rd, playing organ in the "house" band, backing a terrific lineup of vocalists.  The Fudge is celebrating it's 50th year - amazing!  And they're killin' it!  For the show finale, we all joined them on stage to do their arrangement of "Silent Night" - rockin' out, 'cause that's what they do!  Photos by Steve Giacobello


Mark Stein, Pete, Kathy Polocastro, Dianne Cricchio, Maryanne Renza, Vince Martell, Corrin Huddleston, Carmine Appice, Tom Dudley, Bill Edwards, Pete Bremy, Kristen Capolino, Santa Claus, Andrew Foster.  (I probably missed a couple)

Bill Edwards

Vanneese Thomas sings the National Anthem

Tom "Blues Buddah" Dudley

Scott Staten

Carmine Appice

Corrin Huddleston

Vanilla Fudge

Mark Stein

Vince Martell

Pete Bremy

Dianne Cricchio

Kathy, Santa, Maryanne

11/12/17 Tony and I are working with Scott Petito, mixing the upcoming Levin Brothers Band Live CD - to be released in December 2017 in time for our East Coast tour in January.  Then we're off to Japan.  Stay tuned ...

11/8/17 CD release performance of the Möbius album in New York City at The Cutting Room.  Pete, with Lenny White, Alex Foster, Jeff Ciampa, Chris Pasin, Ira Coleman & Nanny Assis.  We did a 2-hour set for a very  receptive audience. A lot of complex music, and somewhat under-rehearsed, the band was groovin' hard!  Sitting in with us, Joel Levine, an incredible jazz recorder player.  Photos: Samantha Levin


L to R: Pete, Jeff Ciampa, Chris Pasin, Ira Coleman, Alex Foster, Nanny Assis, Lenny White

10/12/17 Myself and 2 other "special guests" - Bill Edwards and The Rascals' Gene Cornish - joined Kristen Capolino and her band to rock the house in Marlboro, NY at The Falcon.  Kristen's a dynamo!  Good vocalist and slammin' guitarist.  Standing room only at the Falcon; not bad for a school night!  Bill, Gene, Kristen and I will all be taking part in the annual concert for wounded veterans in December at the Paramount Theater in Peekskill, NY.  More info coming on that.


Pete, Devin Daversa, Chuck Torres, Kristen, Gene Cornish, Andrew Foster

Kristen & the band with Bill Edwards

10/8/17  To celebrate Thelonius Monk's 100th birthday year, vocalist Teri Roiger and Jazzstock put together a concert at the historic Senate Garage in Kingston, NY.  Teri and Judi Silvano were the featured vocalists.  It was an enthusiastic response from a standing room only audience.  The band - Jay Collins on sax, John Menegon on bass, and Jeff Siegel on drums.  Happy birthday, Monk!  Photos by Neil Segal


Pete, John Menegon, Teri Roiger, Judi Silvano, Jeff Siegel, Jay Collins

8/25/17  Nice trio gig in Great Barrington, Mass. @ the Castle Street Cafe.  This jazz club has been around for decades.  I last played there sometime in the '90s.  New owner and new chef; otherwise, it hasn't changed a bit.  My bud Jerry Marotta was playing drums.  My first time meeting bassist Fran Tokarz.  Definite family resemblance there.  Made for a nice Cleanhead photo-op.

8/19/17 Guitarist Jeff Ciampa hooked us up with the Hudson Valley Jazz Festival in Warwick, New York.  It was a little premature to debut the band from the new album, and not enough dough to field the 7-man group, but it was a nice chance to flex our muscles a bit.  We did it as a quintet - Jeff, Me, Alex Foster, Lenny White, and the superb bassist Ira Colman filling in for Tony Levin.  It felt pretty good.  Lots of plans in the works for this group.  Stay tuned ...


Pete, Alex Foster, Jeff Ciampa, Ira Coleman, Lenny White

8/16/17  The Teri Roiger Trio at Annarella Ristorante - Teri, John Menegon on bass, and me on piano. This steady Wednesday night gig started a year ago, and we're still at it.  Sometimes the lounge is crowded, sometimes not so much.  Sometimes some amazing people sit in with us.  One thing that never changes - the Italian cuisine is fantastic.  We go early to eat a leisurely dinner before we play.  I can't even pick a menu favorite. (But the Lasagna is killin!) If it goes for another year, I won't complain.
The photo below, I was trying out a new selfie stick.  It works!


John Menegon, Teri Roiger, Pete

7/9/17  Just back from a few days, deep in the Catskills for the annual TAOPP  music camp. ("Three Of A Perfect Pair") - the 3 being Tony Levin, Adrian Belew and Pat Mastelotto, core members of King Crimson 10 years ago. The guys have been hosting this event for 6 years.  Amateur and pro musicians come from all over the country to hang out and sit in with the guys for 5 days of great music and great food - a few even came from Europe. Tony and I hosted a jazz jam, 4 hours of jazz standards with many "campers" sitting in with the Levin Brothers.  99 campers!  I took a few shots with my phone, but the good photos are by Avraham Bank.


In the Barn: Former King Crimson members Adrian, Tony & Pat, plus Julie Slick & Markus Reuter, rehearsing some of the old repertoire.

Markus and Tony

That's a lot of friggin' pedals!

This is why I drive an SUV

Full house in the bar: jazz jam with the Levin Brothers

Getting ready for the annual photo

Had to do a couple of selfies!

TOAPP 2017.  Can you find me in the photo?
(Hint: in the selfies above, I'm right next to Julie Slick.  You can't miss Julie's hair!)

7/17/17  Recording the Gil Evans Orchestra 2017.  The project continues at Avatar Studios in NYC.  Players from the band in the '70s and '80s led by Miles Evans and recorded by Noah Evans.  We've been doing occasional sessions for the past year or so.  This is going to be an amazing tribute album.


Studio A at Avatar

Control room.  Visible ... John Clark, Mark Egan, Kenwood Dennard, Miles Evans, Birch Johnson, Noah Evans, Shunzo Ohno, Alex Foster, Charles Blenzig

The keyboard department - Pete & Charles Blenzig

Alex Sipiagin, Kenwood, Shunzo

Dave Taylor, Mark Egan, Charles
 

7/3/17  Just spent 3 days in the studio with Ryan Endris, music faculty and choral director at Colgate University.  Working from very old scores, Ryan resurrected a bunch of choral music by 19th century composer Antonio Juanas, scored it for 8 voices and 4 musicians, and brought the project to Sonart Recording Studio in Mt. Tremper, NY - and hired me to record and mix the project.  Beautiful music performed by a terrific group of musicians.  I was lovin' it!  Album will be released later this year.  Stay tuned ...


Ryan & lead soprano Jessica


Ryan, Sonart Studio owner Ken Lovelett, Pete

Jessica selfies the whole gang on the front steps at Sonart.
Ryan's in the middle, Ken Lovelett and I in back.
 
7/2/17  Folk/Rock singer songwriter and Woodstock favorite Marc Black returns to the Bearsville Theater, along with his band of regular suspects - Pete, Don Davis, Erik Parker and Mike Esposito.

6/21/17  Regular Wednesday night gig at Annarella with Teri Roiger and John Menegon.  We were joined by veteran tenor sax player George De Leon and vocalist Bruce Milner.  A popular dentist in Woodstock, NY in another life, Bruce was singing on hit pop records.  He's out of the music biz now - a wise man! 


Bruce Milner, Teri Roiger, Pete, John Menegon, George De Leon

5/23/17  The Levin Brothers at NRS Studio.  Working with engineer Scott Petito, recording a track for the 2017 Christmas for Wounded Veterans CD - engroovilating God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.


Scott Petito, Jeff Siegel, Pete, Tony Levin, Erik Lawrence

5/21/17  Rob Paparozzi and the Blues Farm all-stars, back at The Falcon for a jazz/blues brunch.  OK, so we're not the best-dressed band in town, but we do groove!


Pete, Jerry Marotta, Rob Paparozzi, John Cariddi

5/20/17  The Levin Brothers band winds up its 2017 tour with a Hudson Valley hometown show at one of our favorite venues - The Falcon, in Marlboro, NY.  Great audience - full house, in fact.  We loosened up and had a ball.

 

 

5/20/17 Encore show in our own back yard.  Tony is home for a few weeks, and we managed to book a Saturday night at The Falcon, one of our favorite Hudson Valley venues.  Great turnout, great audience.  A nice way to end the tour.  Photos below, taken by our friend Al Cagan.  Sorry to say that we won't be able to schedule anything until 2018, but we're working on that.  To be continued ...

4/5/17  We're home - having just played in NYC at Iridium last night, winding up a 7-city swing through the Northeast.  We recorded 3 of the shows and are looking toward a live album release later this year.  Meanwhile, we just added an encore date - Saturday, May 20th at The Falcon in Marlboro, NY.  It was unexpected, but great to be able to do it one more time before Tony heads out on tour with King Crimson.  And we love The Falcon!

3/25/17  Final South America concert last night in San Salvador.  Tomorrow, a red-eye flight back to Newark, NJ and home.  2 days off and we start a 7-gig run in the Northeast, beginning in Pawling, New York at Daryl's House Club.  The full schedule is just below this blog, with links (in blue) to the venues' websites.  We'll be recording in Natick, MA and Rochester, NY for a live album to be released later this year.  They're all terrific venues that we played on the 2015 Levin Brothers Band tour.  Hope to see many of you there at these shows.

3/22/17  Two airplanes and a hell of a lot of paperwork and we've arrived in San Salvador, El Salvador.  We've got a day off here, set aside for sightseeing.  Concert Friday night; then on Saturday we fly to Newark and home. A couple of days to get our heads screwed on, and we're off on a 7-concert swing through the Northeast.  Check the itinerary just above; the blue text has links to the clubs' websites.
3/21/17  Concert tonight in Le Paz, Bolivia.  We arrived in this beautiful city last night, and were blown away by the spectacular views of the millions of lights on the surrounding hills and temperatures in the mid-'60s.  The only down side here is the altitude - 12,000 feet above sea level!  For us gringos, it's an effort just walking slowly up a small incline. What's that like performing?  I guess will find out.
Tomorrow we fly to El Salvador for a concert, and then back home for a couple of days rest before our Northeast U.S. gigs.

3/19/17  Day off in Buenos Aries.  We did our last show in Argentina last night.  Tomorrow, we say goodbye to the band bus and fly to Le Paz, Bolivia for our next show.  I looked it up:  12,000 feet above sea level.  That's way higher than Denver, Colorado!  We've been jokingly asking for oxygen as part of the back line.  Maybe not so much of a joke.  Stay tuned ...
3/14/17  It's a van tour now, with our agent Leonardo and the irrepressible road manager, Max.  All over Argentina.  The weather is beautiful, in contrast to the news we're getting from home - 2 feet of snow in Woodstock so far!
3/10/17 Santiago, Chile.  Doing an open rehearsal & informal concert at the Pro Jazz music school today.  Great school.  Kind of like Santiago's version of the Berklee School in Boston.  Photos below.
3/8/17  We're camped out in Santiago, Chile.  Beautiful weather, beautiful city and people.  We're rehearsing tomorrow at the ProJazz school.  Then on Saturday, we fly to Uruguay and the tour starts for real.  Photos here and on the Levin Brothers site when we've got 'em.

3/5/17  In just a few days, we hit the road! The Levin Brothers Band - Tony, Pete, Erik Lawrence & Jeff "Siege" Siegel - will be touring starting this month in South America, then back to New York in April and the Northeast U.S. We began last night in our own Woodstock back yard.  Good chance to work out the kinks, revisit a lot of the material from our album, try some new music, and say thanks to our local Woodstock peeps.  With four busy musicians, it's been difficult aligning our schedules to do this.  But it's a labor of love for us, and we're all confirmed road-rats!  Along the way, we're going to record live in Natick, MA and in Rochester, NY, looking to come out of it with a live album.
The final itinerary is just below.  (Hopefully Trump won't institute a ban on jazz musicians entering the country before we get back!) You can click on the blue text to visit the U.S. venues' websites.  Hopefully, one of the shows will in your 'hood. We'll be lookin' for ya.
Band & tour info at  thelevinbrothers.com

 

4/30/17  Catskill, NY at the New York Restaurant.  Nice brunch organ trio jam, with guitarist Jeff Ciampa, Drummer Peter O'brien and Chris Pasin on trumpet.

 LEVIN BROTHERS 2017 TOUR

Photo: Guillermo De La Fuente

 


4/2/17  New Hope, PA @ Havana   Photos: Avraham Bank

4/1/17  Rochester, NY @ The Lovin' Cup

3/30/17  Natick, MA @ Center For The Arts

3/29/17  Pawling, NY @ Daryl's House

   
3/24/17  San Salvador, El Salvador


Live on Radio Fuego: Tony, Juan Martinez, Pete, Leonardo Pavkovik

Heading for the airport and New York City


Final bow in South America

3/21/17  La Paz, Bolivia

3/18/17  Buenos Aires, Argentina   Photos: Eduardo Cesario
3/17/17  Rosario, Argentina

3/16/17  La Plata, Argentina


Photo: Sofia Rottoli


Photo: Sofia Rottoli

3/15/17  Mar Del Plata, Argentina


The Teatro Colon in Mar Del Plata - beautiful, old theater.


Photo: Guillermo De La Fuente
3/12/17  Montevideo, Uruguay

3/10/17 Santiago, Chile.  Doing an open rehearsal & informal concert at the Pro Jazz music school today.  Great school.  Kind of like Santiago's version of the Berklee School in Boston.

3/4/17 The 2017 Levin Brothers Band tour kicks off with a local Woodstock, NY gig at the intimate Rosendale Cafe.  Tony and I , along with Erik Lawrence and Jeff "Siege" Siegel.  We've done this every tour, started with a local gig to warm up, get the kinks out or our set lists, and be back home in 20 minutes. (No hotels, no travel expenses!) Revived a lot of the repertoire from our album, and tried out some new, adventurous material too. Packed house, standing room only for both sets.  Great way to start a tour.  Thanks to the photographers whose shots I borrowed below - Samantha Levin, Rudy Lu and Steve Czubara

12/26/16  Got a great group of players up into the boonies for the first tracking sessions for my new solo album.  I've been writing a lot - some conventional jazz and some experimental.  It's a treat to lay your charts in front of great players and see what happens.  I haven't done a solo album like this in a long time - band, live in the studio, no overdubbing.  Here's the first batch of photos, taken by my daughter Samantha.


Pete & Scott Petito

Lenny White

Jeff Ciampa

Tony Levin

Nanny Assis

Alex Foster

Chris Pasin

12/3/16  Singer/Songwriter Marc Black's connection with Woodstock goes back for decades.  Around this time of year, he comes home to the Bearsville Theater for one or two shows, that more often than not turn into dance parties.  Marc tore the place up on Saturday.  We're going to it again on January 1st.  The band was missing keyboardist Warren Bernhardt.  Warren is newly cancer-free, but still hurting from the chemo.  We wish him the best and look forward to jamming with him on New Year's Day.

12/2/16  Once again, I was part of Bill Edwards' Westchester All-Stars annual benefit concert for Wounded Veterans at the Paramount Theater in Peeksill, NY.  A big turnout to see this terrific lineup. And once again, it was a big financial success.


Bill Edwards

The amazing Vaneese Thomas

Vaneese Thomas

Gene Cornish

Pete & Bill Edwards

11/16/16  The Woodstock area music series "Jazzstock" kicked off a new season this past Friday night at an amazing new venue - the "Senate Garage" in Kingston.  Vocalist Teri Roiger expanded her usual trio format to a sextet, being featured as well as backing her vocals.  Bassist John Menegon and drummer Tony Jefferson rounded out the rhythm section.  Up front, Chris Pasin on trumpet and Eric Person on sax.

11/5/16  Sometimes, rockin' out in a packed neighborhood bar is the most fun.  Saturday night, we did just that - drummer Rob Wallis' "Rhythm Method Band."  Fronted by R&B vocalist Curtis Winchester, the band features guitarist Gil Parris and sax player Don Cipriano.  And a special guest, NY Yankees legend Bernie Williams - who also happens to be a killin' guitarist!


L to R: Gil Parris, Rob Wallis, Curtis Winchester, Paul Brisbano, Pete, Dan Cipriano, Bernie Williams

10/25/16  Promo video shoot for Bill Edwards' Wounded Veterans Project.  Bill and the Westchester "All-Stars" rock the house at a huge fund-raiser concert every December in Peekskill, NY.  This video shoot features Bill and guitarist Gene Cornish, along with the band and a roomful of folks clad in red.  (Not my color, but I needed to blend.)  I even used my Nord C-1 organ for the shoot - the "reddest" instrument I've got.


Pete, John Cariddi, Gene Cornish

10/15/16  Joined blues singer/guitarist Albert Cummings's trio for a terrific concert performance at the beautiful '62 Theater For the Arts in Williamstown, Mass.  Albert lives in this sleepy college town.  He tours internationally, but has never performed here in his hometown.  Predictably, it was an enthusiastic sell-out audience. 


Pete, Albert, Warren Grant, Yanko Valez

Soundcheck.  View from the bridge

Pete, Albert, Warren Grant, Yanko Valez, Kit Hollday, Lydia Harrell

10/7/16  Reunion of sorts with guitarist Lou Volpe at Showmans Jazz Club in New York City.  Lou and I go way back in the New York studio scene; we're on each other albums and have played together on other artists' projects.  Showmans is a small, vintage jazz club in Harlem that's been running continuously since 1942, and it's still got that old-school jazz vibe.  Making it even nicer for me, there's a good Hammond B-3 there, so ... no schlepping!  Also joining Lou were Woodstock bassist Rich Syracuse and New York drummer John Cooksey.

9/11/16  Rob Paparozzi and friends, back in Marlboro, NY at The Falcon for a Sunday brunch show.  Lee Finkelstein on drums and George Naha on guitar.  For the 2nd set, we were joined by Rob's Blues Brothers bandmate Bobby Harden.  The two of them tore the place up! We were also joined by my Woodstock neighbor, vocalist Janice Hardgrove.  Janice and I go back to the New York City studio scene of the '70s and '80s.


Pete, Rob Paparozzi, Bobby Harden, Lee Finkelstein, George Naha

6/17/16  Spent 3 days in New York City this week, recording with a band of all-star alumni of the Gil Evans Orchestra.  Separate from my own "Monday Night Band" project, this is being produced by Gil's sons,  Noah and Miles.  We recorded several pieces that Gil arranged, but were rarely or never recorded, as well as one of my own compositions, "Subway", a piece I wrote for the band in 1986.  Great New York brass section behind me there - Shunzo Ohno, Jon Faddis, Dave Bargeron, Dave Taylor and John Clark.  Off camera to the right - Chris Hunter, Alex Foster, Gary Smulyan.  Made me smile!

7/27/16  Two updates on the weekly Wednesday night jazz at Annarella Ristorante in Saugerties, NY I've been doing: We've added acclaimed jazz vocalist Teri Roiger, an it's now a regular Wednesday night gig.  Veteran bassist John Menegon (Dewey Redman, David “Fathead” Newman, Jack DeJohnette, Sheila Jordan) is on the case.  Annarella is easily among the best Italian restaurants in the Hudson Valley - relaxed atmosphere, excellent food, and it's practically in my back yard.  I'm lovin' it!  No cover charge.  (The Fettucini in Lobster Sauce is to die!)

7/16/16  Back at Brian's Backyard BBQ with one of my favorite jam bands - Rob Paparozzi and the Blues Farm All-Stars.  Rob, John Tropea and I were joined by a couple of special guests; drummer Vito Luizzi, a veteran of Johnny Winter's band, and the amazing Vaneese Thomas, who brought the house down.


Pete, Rob Paparozzi, Vito Luizzi, Vaneese Thomas, John Tropea

7/2/16  The Don Byron tour continued in Marlboro, NY at The Falcon, easily our favorite Hudson Valley venue.
6/25/16  Kicked off a 4-city tour with Don Byron and an all-star group - an eclectic funk & soul experience.  (Only way I can describe it.)  Basically, we do a lot of Junior Walker material, but anything else is game.  Don on sax, clarinet and vocals, the amazing Dean Bowman on vocals, Zach Alford on drums, Scott Petito on bass, and Matt Finck on guitar.  A nice crowd came out to Helsinki in Hudson, NY, sang along, clapped and grooved with us.

Photo: Gary McKeever

6/8-9/16 Spent a couple of days at Scott Petito's NRS Studio doing tracks for vocalist Roseann Sureda's upcoming CD release.  Roseann is hustling to get these last 5 tunes done in time for her CD Release Show at the Metropolitan Room in New York City next month.


Scott Petito, Roseann, Jerry Marotta, Pete


Scott Petito


Jerry Marotta


Nanny Assis


Pete


Chris Pasin, Pete, Erik Lawrence

6/5/16  Rob Paparozzi and The Blues Farm, back for another Sunday brunch in Marlboro, NY @ The Falcon.  A gloomy rainy day produced a near capacity crowd that inspired us to kick it up several notches.  Some renditions of Blues Brothers standards had folks dancing in the aisles.  Nice way to spend Sunday.  Rob on vocals and harmonica, the amazing John Tropea on guitar, and Jerry Marotta on drums.


Photo: Ed Conway

Photo: Ed Conway

Photo: Ellen Armm

Photo: Ellen Armm

5/29/16  Joe Beesmer, who leads the Woodstock-based band "Uncle Funk" has been having some medical issues and was short on funds.  So of course, a musical extravaganza was in order.  A great crowd came out for the 10-band lineup at Keegan Ales, our favorite are watering hole.  Bassist Scott Petito assembled a terrific group to headline the evening, then named it "The Inmates" and Photoshopped the band PR photo below.  (The band is better than the photo!)  Vocalists Leslie Ritter and Amy Fradon, guitarist Mike DeMicco, drummer Eric Parker, Scott on bass and me on keyboard.  And of course, Joe "Uncle Funk" Beesmer sittin' in.


L to R: Pete, Leslie Ritter, Scott Petito, Amy Fradon,

Mike DeMicco, Eric Parker, our agent

5/20/16  Kingston, NY @ Alley Cat.  Celebrating her upcoming CD release, this was Roseann Sureda's first live outing with the backing trio from the album - bassist Scott Petito and drummer Peter O'Brien.  This is a brand new, recently opened venue - nice, comfortable bar.  Wishing them well.  Photo by Jimbo Marzano

5/18/16  Jazz on the Hudson - and BBQ!  Good pickup jazz group fronted by the iconic Lillie Howard.  Me and a few of my favorite Hudson Valley cats - guitarist Mike Jackson, saxophonist Rich Maraday, and drummer Ernie Colon.  A couple of interesting points:  Back in the '60s, Lillie was part of the hit pop duo, "Billy and Lillie."  None of that on this gig though.  Ernie Colon - first time I've done a gig with him on drums.  Ernie is a killin' conga player, playing on my "Certified Organic" CD and in the live quartet.

4/24/16  Vocalist Roseann Sureda and a nice trio doing the jazz brunch at the New York Restaurant in Catskill, NY.  Rich Syracuse is on bass, Chris Pasin on trumpet.  Great restaurant with a really nice vibe to the room and this teriffic Sunday jazz series that they're doing.  Check it out.

4/17/16  Rob Paparozzi & The Blues Farm All-Stars - back for a jazz 'n blues brunch at our favorite venue, The Falcon in Marlboro, NY.  Rob, John Tropea, Lee Finkelstein and me on the house's Hammond B3.

3/27/16  Jazz brunch at New York Restaurant, a wonderful new Hudson Valley venue.  Great food, and they have a great jazz lineup every Sunday.  Today was a trio with virtuoso trumpet player and bassist John Menegon.  (Notice the absence of hair on the bandstand.  This should have been billed as the "Cleanhead Trio!")  Many people sat in with us.  Sometimes that can be a drag, but today it was great.  Great food, nice folks.  Doing this again twice next month.  Looking forward!

3/20/16 Played 3 concerts in Syracuse, NY produced by CNY Jazz, with Nigerian/British soul/jazz vocalist Ona Onabule.  Ola is an incredible composer and vocalist, and a dynamic performer.  Backed by an all-star NYC quartet doing mostly pieces from his latest album, it was a total pleasure.  I highly recommend that you check him out and hear this album.  Along with me, bassist Ivan Bodley, drummer Joe Goretti and guitarist Ron Jackson. 

2/14/16  Rob Paparozzi & The Blues Farm All-Stars - back and groovin' at the Falcon in Marlboro, NY for a Valentine's Day brunch jam.  John Cariddi on guitar, Lee Finkelstein on drums, and me on Hammond organ.  Woodstock bassist Charlie Kniceley sat in on bass.  A nice crowd turned out, braving single digit temperatures to show some love.  Speaking of love ... I love it that I get to just walk in and play the house organ.  Love The Falcon!

2/9/16  I've been at Mark Dann's Woodstock studio for the last several days, recording piano and organ tracks for Kurt Henry's new album, along with drummer/producer Eric Parker and bassist/engineer Mark Dann.  Kurt's a wonderful singer/songwriter, and a fine guitarist.  It's going to be a really nice album.


Kurt Henry, Pete, Eric Parker


Pete, in the closet with the Hammond B-3

Mark Dann

2/1/16  I've been working at Sonart Studio, mixing Native American vocalist Joan Henry's album, "Uprising." Meanwhile, I've been tracking keyboards at Mark Dann's Woodstock studio for Kurt Henry's (no relation to Joan) new album, being produced by Eric Parker.  Kurt's a terrific singer/songwriter.  Looking forward to hearing the end result.

Here are some pics from the Sonart sessions.  Watching Joan sing is almost as much fun as listening to her sing!


Pete, Sonart Studio's Ken Lovelett, Joan, producer Gus Mancini

1/1/16  Starting the new year off with a bang: I joined folk/rock singer Marc Black and his band for a free dance party/concert at Woodstock's Bearsville Theater.  Great turnout and a great night of music.  Toward the end, Marc was inviting dancers to come up on stage - a dangerous move, but fortunately it wasn't a heavy drinking crowd and all was well.  Woodstock knows how to party!  In the top photo, Don Davis, Pete, Marc, Amy Fradon, Eric Parker and Mike Esposito.  Warren Bernhardt, on the far right, unfortunately  got cut out of this shot, the only full band shot I could find from the evening.

12/27/15  Sunday brunch at The Falcon in Marlboro, NY with Rob Paparozzi & The Blues Farm.  Really eclectic, rather than blues - jazz, blues, R&B, whatever.  And with 3 of the quartet currently touring with the Blues Brother Band, you never know when we're going to launch into one of their signature tunes.  Rob on harmonica and vocals, John Tropea on guitar, Lee Finkelstein on drums, and me on Hammond Organ.  By the end of the gig, we had Evan Conway sitting in on bass, Steve Finkelstein on congas, and Mike Torsone and I sharing the Hammond.  Lots of fun!


Mike Torsone, Pete, Rob, John, Lee, Evan Conway, Steve Finkelstein

12/11/15  Over 20 performers gathered at the Unitarian Church in Schenectady, NY for a tribute/memorial to jazz pianist Lee Shaw.  A near capacity crowd turned out to hear 4 hours of great music, film, images and stories.  A great evening.  I performed in the final group of the evening, a sextet built on Lee's rhythm section for over 20 years, bassist Righ Syracuse and drummer Jeff Siegel.  Completing the group, Chris Pasin on trumpet, Brian Patinaude on sax, and Matt Finck on guitar.


The Sextet: Pete, Brian, Chris, Rich, Jeff & Matt

Group shot with all the performers: In no special order ...
Peg Delaney, Bill Delaney, Gene Garone, Patti Melita, Joe Barna, Nick Hetko, Lou Pappas, Adam Siegel, John Esposito, Peter O'Brien, Otto Gardner, Mike Demicco, Rich Syracuse, Sarah Pedinotti, Jeff Siegel, John Medeski, Jason Rogers, Chris Pasin, Brian Patneaude, Matt Finck, Susan Robbins

12/4/15  Bill Edwards & The Westchester All-Stars at the Paramount Theater in Peekskill, NY for the 4th annual concert to benefit Wounded Veterans organizations.  Bill puts in a tremendous effort to mount this show every year.  An amazing lineup of singers and musicians did a 3 hour show to a packed house.  Performers included Vaneese Thomas, Joni Blondell, MaryAnn Renza, Kathy Policastro, Chuck St. Troy, Angel Rissoff, Tom Dudley, Dianne Cricchio, Corrin Huddleston, Gene Cornish, Carmine Appice, Rob Wallis, Wayne Warnecke, Kristen Capolino, Scott Staten, Paul Opalach, an 8-piece horn section, and several more folks sittin in.  An amazing evening that kicked off with me on piano and a Color Guard accompanying the amazing Vaneese Thomas singing the National Anthem.  Wow!


Pete, Bill Edwards, Vaneese Thomas

11/28/15  Don Byron all-stars played to a packed house at Club Helsinki in Hudson, NY.  Totally eclectic band where things just happen unexpectedly.  We had a great time.  Dean Bowman (Screaming Headless Torsos) on vocals, Zach Alford (Davie Bowie) on drums, Scott Petito (The Fugs) on bass, Matt Finck on guitar and me on organ and piano.  Wish this band could play more often, but with Don teaching college in Colorado and Dean Bowman living in Denmark, it's hard to get us together.  Photos by Samantha Levin 

11/21/15  With Don Byron back in town for a couple of weeks, we put together a couple of impromptu gigs.  Loosely based on Don's Jr. Walker tribute album, we stretched out and did a lot of obscure R&B from Walker, Ray Charles, Marvin Gaye, etc.  Seems like I've been playing with a streak of "all-star" bands lately; this one included the amazing Dean Bowman, Zach Alford & Scott Petito.  Nice!


Pete, Dean Bowman, Don Byron, Zach Alford, Scott Petito, Matt Finck

11/20/15  Played here in the Hudson Valley with The City Boys All-Stars, a band I played with over 20 years ago.  It's still going strong - and seems to have gotten bigger.  Original R&B/Rock.  Great players.  Nobody got a photo with everybody visible.

11/4/15  Spending several days in New Jersey at Kaleidoscope Sound recording an album for Zhang Ling, a very talented vocalist and bassist from Beijing, best known for his association with Chinese rock star Cuijian.  Ling came to New York to do his solo album with American musicians, including John Tropea, Lenny White, Tony Jefferson and John Cariddi.  It's mostly Blues, and he's great at it.  (Although with Chinese lyrics, we're not sure what he's singing about, but it's probably Blues.)  Some of my photos from the sessions ...


The rhythm section, doing tracks on day 2:
Ling, Lenny White, Pete, John Tropea


Leonardo Pavkovik, John Tropea, Lenny White, Ling, Pete, Randy Crafton

11/01/15 A large local crowd came out to Keegan Ales in Kingston to hear dozens of musicians jamming in tribute to our saxophonist friend Peter Buettner, who is overwhelmed by medical bills.  I did a set with Erik Lawrence, Scott Petito and Jeff "Siege" Siegel, pictured below.  Somebody quipped that "Petito, Levin, Siegel & Lawrence" sounds like a law firm, which has opened the gates to numerous jokes - Passing the bar, etc.  (Feel free to go on Facebook and add your own.)  Later in the evening I sat in with Joe Beesmer, Vito Petrocitto and Eric Parker.  Rocked the joint!


Erik Lawrence, Scott Petito, Jeff Siegel, Pete  Photo: Rita Ryan

10/25/15  Erik Lawrence Quartet in Marlboro, NY at The Falcon.  Erik and I do this venue often with a jazz quartet.  Joining us this time on guitar, Jeff Ciampa and Lee Falco on drums.

10/15/15  Bassist Jim Curtin and I backed vocalist Pamela Pentony as part of the jazz concert series at the Arts Upstairs gallery in Phoenicia, NY.  Karin Wolf created this wonderful series of intimate shows earlier this year.  It's a good vibe place to perform in, surrounded by modern art.  Karin also took these photos.


Jim Curtin, Pamela Pentony, Pete

10/9/15  Nice, intimate jazz set with the Al Guart Trio at Kindred Spirits in Palenville, NY.  Jim Curtin on bass.  How often to I get to play a white grand piano?  Pretty classy!

10/2/15  Preceding the Woodstock Film Festival's screening of "Lee's 88 Keys" - a documentary by director Susan Robbins about the amazing and inspirational jazz pianist Lee Shaw - her trio was scheduled to perform in a small restaurant around the corner from the theater.  When it was apparent that Lee would be unable to make the gig, I was asked to step in, joining her longtime rhythm section, drummer  Jeff "Siege" Siegel and bassist Rich Syracuse.  I learned several of Lee's original pieces, and we performed them to a packed house, before bopping around the corner to the Orpheum Theater to catch the film.  What a great evening! 


Jeff, Rich, Pete

9/11/15  I used to see guitarist Lou Volpe in New York studios all the time, but we hadn't played together in several years.  We had this mini reunion at Showmans Jazz Club, one of Harlem's premier old school jazz clubs and a cultural landmark since the '40s when it opened next to the Apollo Theater.  It hasn't changed a whole lot - old dusty wooden walls, long narrow room with a small stage at one end and a vintage bar running the whole length of the room.  The room has a great vibe.  And, a nice Hammond B-3 on stage, so ... no shlepping!

8/29/15  The annual Hudson Valley Jazz Festival finally expanded this year to include Kingston at ASK - the Arts Society of Kingston.  3 bands covered the evening, with me headlining.  Basically it was a trio with bassist Rich Syracuse and drummer (and honorary Levin Brother) Jeff "Siege" Siegel.  As a special guest, we were joined by trumpet player Chris Pasin.  Nice evening.  Good crowd.  Hope this is a sign that it will continue.  Sure is nice playing festivals in my own neighborhood!


Pete, Rich Syracuse, Jeff Siegel, Chris Pasin

8/6/15  Jazz clarinetist Don Byron put together an all-star group for a one-time show doing music from his CD "Do The Boomerang" - music of Motown legend Junior Walker.  The set featured the remarkable jazz/blues vocalist Dean Bowman (of "Screaming Headless Torsos")  along with guitarist Matt Finck, "Fugs" bassist Scott Petito, David Bowie drummer Zach Alford, and me on organ mostly.  We were somewhat under-rehearsed, but sometimes that makes for the best spontaneous performances - and this was that.  Wonderful night.  With Dean living in Denmark and Don in Denver, Colorado, it'll be tough getting this bunch together for an encore, but we're hoping to give it a try this winter.  Stay tuned ...

7/26/15  Sunday Jazz Brunch in Marlboro, NY at The Falcon with the Erik Lawrence Quartet.  Matt Finck is on guitar and Tony Jefferson on drums.  Photos by Rita Ryan

7/18/15 Rapidly becoming my favorite pickup jam band - "The Blues Farm" fronted by vocalist/harmonica master Rob Paparozzi (who also currently fronts the Original Blues Brothers Band).  Also on board, guitarist John Tropea and drummer Jerry Marotta.  (No bass - I'm  playing organ.)  The hit was at Brian's Backyard BBQ in Middletown, NY, a real old-fashioned road house that features both Hudson Valley groups and national touring bands.  In the photos, check out the walls; hundreds of musicians from all walks have autographed it.  Great venue.  (And the smoked prime rib is to die!)


Pete, Brian Remaley (the Brian of Brian's Backyard BBQ), John, Rob, Jerry

7/1/15 Another great Woodstock jazz Wednesday at Catskill Pizza.  Usually I'm a guest with Jeff Siegel's band here, but this time it was with trumpet player, Chris Pasin.  Lew Scott on bass and Peter O'Brien on drums.  Our friend Lisa Saalfield makes all of these Wednesday night gigs, and often is the only one to take photos.  This time, we got her to pose for one with the band.

6/28/15  Sunday jazz brunch at The Falcon, my favorite Hudson Valley music venue. (Not the least of reasons is that I just walk in and play their Hammond B-3.  No schlepping!)  Erik Lawrence put together this nice quartet with me, guitarist Matt Finck and drummer Tony Jefferson. Funny that Erik and I had just played here with The Levin Brothers Band 2 weeks ago.  Scroll down a bit and you'll see.  No suits this time!

6/22/15  I've been playing occasionally with singer/guitarist Beki Brindle and also playing on the album she's working on.  We just did a shoot for a music video for one of the songs from the album.  Actor Brad Dourif joined us onstage, portraying a faded rock star.  Lot's of fun - if you don't count playing the same song 60 times over a 5 hour span.  (I think I've got it memorized now.)

6/13/15  The Levin Brothers - Tony & Pete with Erik Lawrence and Jeff "Siege" Siegel - played to a capacity audience in Marlboro, NY at The Falcon, one of our favorite Hudson Valley venues.  With Tony's 2015 touring schedule with King Crimson, this is likely the last Hudson Valley show we'll be able to do this year.  We're working on our 2016 plans, including another swing through the Northeast U.S., Europe, Japan, and a new album.  We'll keep you posted.  Here's some shots from Saturday's show.

6/12/15 The Levin Brothers - Tony & Pete with Erik Lawrence and Jeff "Siege" Siegel - continue their 2015 touring with a show in Albany, NY at WAMC's historic performance space "The Linda."  Photos: Lisa Saalfield

6/10/15  Catskill Mountain Pizza for a nice local jazz gig - piano trio with the Siegel/Syracuse duo.  Small room intimate, no cover charge.  Love playing with these guys, and it's a great chance for me to try out new ideas.  Trumpeter Chris Pasin sat in with us.

  6/8/15 Borden Auditorium @ Manhattan School of Music in New York City.  Dozens of musicians and performers joined together for this joyful celebration of Lew Soloff's life and career. A superlative trumpet player and my friend for decades, Lew passed away unexpectedly a few weeks ago.  The lineup of performers and the standing-room-only turnout underscored how much Lew was loved.  The large band was fundamentally the Gil Evans Orchestra, with many extra players rotating through the evening.  The show opened with Wynton Marsallis leading a Dixieland band through the hall in a real-deal New Orleans funeral scene.  (Two photos below) In the photo just below, the band is playing "Spinning Wheel" with Will Lee doing the vocal.  The 7 trumpet players on stage played Lew's iconic solo in unison.  Pretty crazy!


Gil Goldstein, Paul Shaffer, Danny Gottlieb, Lisa Maxwell, Alex Foster, "Blue Lou" Marini, Chris Potter, Dave Taylor, Conrad Herwig, Dave Bargeron, Tom "Bones" Malone, John Clark, Bob Stewart, Shunzo Ohno, Brandon Soloff, Jon Faddis, Miles Evans, Jeff "Tain" Watts, Jeff Berlin, Bernie Williams, Pete


Jeff Berlin, Bernie Williams, Pete

Wynton Marsallis leads a New Orleans-style procession through the audience.


Pete & Lew.  New York City 2012

  5/31/15  Another jazz brunch in Marlboro, NY at The Falcon - this time with a groovin' organ trio featuring guitarist Matt Finck and drummer Tony Jefferson.  As always, an enjoyable gig for us at this Hudson Valley venue - especially for me, since I get to just walk in and play the club's Hammond B-3.  Nice extra bonus for Matt and I as well as the audience when Tony came up front and scatted a bebop tune; he's a great vocalist as well as a great drummer.  We're doing this again on Sunday, June 28th, adding Erik Lawrence on sax.

  5/12/15  French hornist John Clark and his experimental jazz group, "The Odd Couple Quintet" performing at the ShapeShifter Lab in Brooklyn, NY in a premier performance of John's jazz arrangements of 2 of the Mozart Horn Concertos, and celebrate the CD release of the two pieces.  Not many jazz groups have a configuration of rhythm section with French Horn and Bassoon up front.  In fact, this is the only one.  Pretty cool! 


Pete, John Clark, Michael Rabinowitz, Mark Egan, Freddie Bryant, Karl Latham

  4/26/15  The Blues Farm, a new all-star quartet fronted by Rob Paparozzi and including master guitarist John Tropea and funkmeister Lee Finkelstein, woke up the Marlboro, NY 'hood with a rockin' Sunday Brunch at The Falcon.  We were definitely groovilating!

Pete, Rob, Lee, John.  photo: Kathy Conway

  April 3, 2015:  Most of the town of Rosendale (NY) turned out to memorialize and share some love for Gail Kniceley, wife of my good friend, bassist Charlie Kniceley.  Dozens of performers in 5 or 6 band configurations.  It was a beautiful evening.


L to R: Pete, Charlie, Randy Ciarlante, Machan Taylor, Matt Finck, Danny Louis, Bob Shaut

  March 2015:  The first Levin Brothers Band tour, celebrating its 2014 album release.  Tony playing bass & cello, Pete playing piano and organ, Erik Lawrence on saxes and flute, and Jeff "Siege" Siegel on drums. The tour started with a capacity crowd at the Rosendale Cafe - special for two reasons; it was the band's first gig ever, and it was in our Hudson Valley back yard.  Sunday night we had a standing-room-only crowd at a classic music club, The Turning Point in Piermont, NY.  Then we we took off on the road for real, with a swing through upstate New York.  Groovilating New York State, one town at a time!


3/17/15  Medici House ~ East Aurora, NY


3/18/15  Lovin' Cup ~ Rochester, NY


3/20/15  Van Dyck ~ Schenectady, NY

  1/22-25/15  Spent the weekend at the NAMM show in Anaheim, California.  Tony and I did 8 shows at the NS Design booth, playing music as a duo from our Levin Brothers album. We were there in support of the Steinberger basses and cellos that Tony plays.  I had a loaner Electro 4 from the Nord company.  We had a lot of fun playing the tunes live; first time we've done that.  Good practice for our tour in March.  Also, a great hang.  Lots of friends stopped by to say hello and listen.  (See photos below)  In a strange epilog, the "Historic  Snowstorm" on the east coast got our flights cancelled.  So we had a few extra days to hang in the California sunshine.  Back to normal now.


The Levin Brothers at the NS Design booth. Photo: Gary Banfield & TourBusLive.com

Pete, Tony and the Steinberger crew at the end of the show on Sunday

 

6/27/13 Full house at the Bearsville Theater in Woodstock for the Gabriel Butterfield Band with special guests Kal David and Lauri Bono.  We rocked the joint.  A former Woodstock resident, Kal was the frontman for The Fabulous Rhinestones. A California resident for decades, he hadn't performed in Woodstock in almost 10 years.  Many of his fans came out to hear a mixture of Butterfield and Rhinestones hits.  Lauri joined us on stage for a couple of tunes and tore the place up.  We love Lauri!


Jimmy Eppard, Rob Paparozzi, Gabe Butterfield, Kal David, Jim Curtin, Pete

5/18/13  Rob Paparozzi Quartet in Marlboro, NY @ The Falcon, my favorite Hudson Valley music venue.  In addition to his singing chops (he's currently front man for the Blues Brothers Band) Rob is one of the world's top harmonica players.  When he does his own small groups, it's billed as the "Hudson River Rats" - and it grooves like crazy!  Last night, I was one of the Rats, along with Dave Stryker on Guitar and Lee Finkelstein on drums.

5/13/13  Three decades of Gil Evans Orchestra alumni gathered for a concert to celebrate Gil's birthday.  Great music.  Great reunion for us.  Chris Hunter, David Binney, Tim Heggarty, Dave Mann, Alex Foster, John Clark, Bob Stewart, Lew Soloff, Shunzo Ohno, Miles Evans, Noah Evans, Tom Malone, Dave Bargeron, Earl McIntyre, Mark Egan, Delmar Brown, Kenwood Dennard, Mino Cinelu, Paul Metzke, Oz Noy, Matt Garrison, Don Pate .... whew!  Photos by John Ward

4/25/13  The Ali Ryerson quintet in Marlbory, NY at the Falcon.  We had a double problem come up: Drummer Karl Latham had hand surgery and couldn't play, and bassist Mark Egan had a last minute emergency.  No rhythm section ... yikes!  Luckily Thierry Arpino and Tony Levin were available and jumped in.  A short rehearsal, soundcheck and we killed it.

February 27 - New York, NY at The Iridium. CD release party with an all-star septet - Lenny White, Dave Stryker, Lew Soloff, Alex Foster, Tom Malone and John Clark.  This is a reunion of Gil Evans Orchestra alumni, celebrating Gil and the live recording we did here last April. We did a pretty well reviving the spirit of the dynamic, controlled chaos of the Gil Evans Orchestra of the late 70's and early 80's.  Photos by Samantha Levin


Tom Malone, Dave Stryker, Pete, Lew Soloff, Lenny White, John Clark, Alex Foster

November 29th & 30th.  Recording Nick Holmes new CD at Avatar Studio in NYC - great band doing it the old way, direct to 2-track.


Jay Messina, Pete, Steve Gadd, Michael Bacon, Sid McGinnis,
Nick Holmes, Mike Mainieri, Dave Mann, Tony Levin

Updated
Tuesday, October 08, 2024

 

ARCHIVE 2011-15

UPDATED EPK 9/9/17

 

  I've been cataloging a lot of studio and live music gear that I don't use any more and putting it up on line Lots of good stuff, and more going up every day. Take a look at my music "store" at

 

Recordings I've played on recently

 

HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN (single)
   Kathy Ingraham
HANGING ON FOR LOVE (single)
   Roseann Sureda
LIVE IN PERUGIA
  Gil Evans Remembered  Band
LIVE IN LUGANO
  Gil Evans Remembered 
LIVE IN NYC: GIL EVANS REMEMBERED (CD: Dot Time Records)
  Gil Evans Remembered  Band
KING OF SPAIN (video)
   Andy Toomey
BRINGING IT DOWN TO
  THE BASS (album)
   Tony Levin
DESAFINADO (single)
   Kathy Ingraham
TOMBO (album)
DE VOLTA AO CAMINHO
RAPAZ DE BEM
IF
GOOD NEWS
FINGERS
   Emilio Martins
REINDEER GAMES (single)
   Janice Dempsey
DAVY CROCKETT KID
   Sidestep
REINDEER GAMES
   Bob Riccio
MARMALADE
GATO NEGRO
OSCALETA BLUES
MACHAIS RIVER
   Sidestep
GIVE THE CELLO SOME
   Tony Levin
MELUSINA (Single)
   Kathy Ingraham
THE HEART OF AN AMERICAN (Single)
   Eric Erickson
ONE ISLAND TO ANOTHER
HUNGRY DOGS OF NEW MEXICO
   Michael Veitch
SONIC INVENTOR (album)
   Ken Lovelett
CUPPA JOE
   Tony Levin
DREAM ON
   Kathy Ingraham
LIVE AT SWIMMING HOLE (album)
   Sidestep
THROUGH THE WIRE (album)
   Jeremy Nesse
THE PUMP
    Tony Levin
BLUE IN GREEN (Single)
    Dani Assis
ANGEL DOWN (Single)
THIS IS LOVE (Single)
   Chris Mitchell
PURPLE HEART
    Dwight Moody
RETREAT (Single)
    Bob Riccio
MAD HONEY
    Ken Lovelett
NARWHALE
    Ken Lovelett
FOREVER NOW
    Rita Hoang
SMOKE GETS IN YOUR EYES
   Roseann Sureda
SERENGETI

OPPO
    Ken Lovelett
ANGEL DOWN
FOREVER YOU
GENTLE VOICE
THIS IS LOVE
    Chris Mitchell
COFFEE SHOP
LOOKING 4 AMERICA
LAST TIME
TRACES
    Dwight Moody
SHINE
FOOLISH
LAYDOWN
FADE
STRONG WINDS
    Dwight Moody
BETTER LIFE
    Andy Toomey
BRINGING IT DOWN TO THE BASS
    Tony Levin
FROM A LONG LINE
A SON'S LOVE
    Teddy Frank
RIVER DANCE
    Ken Lovelett
SHADRACH, MESHACH & ABEDNEGO
    Rob Carlson
EASY CHAIR
CHILD'S ERRAND
    Lisa Markley
THE FALLING DREAM
    Kevin Kuhn
HAND-PAN DANCE
    Ken Lovelett
LOVE IS MY SHEPHERD
    Marc Black
SAM'S SONG
THE POLICY SONG
THE RON SONG
WHAT DO WE DO
    Derek Dempsey
MANHATTAN AT MIDNIGHT
MILES AWAY
TIJUANA TUESDAY
A GOOD ONE
    Andy Toomey
THE GOOD OL' DAYS ARE NOW
    Roseann Sureda
FATHER'S DAY
FALLEN ANGEL
SHAYNA MADELN
    Elise Pittelman
MOON RIVER
    Rob Paparozzi
FADE TO BLUE - album
   The Levin Brothers
OPTIMISTIC MYSTIC
LET GO
   Denise DiRenzo

SHINE A BRIGHT LIGHT
    Teri Roiger & Sharp 5

LUCKY SON OF A GUN
RETURN OF THE LIGHT
SPINNING MY WHEELS
THE POTTER
   Eric Erickson
TAKING THE 5TH
THE FALLING DREAM
    Kevin Kuhn
ROB CARLSON
    Rob Carlson
ONE LAST TIME
    Sidestep
MACHIAS RIVER
    Sidestep
SONG FOR UKRAINE
    Tad Wise
TAKIN' THE FIFTH
    Kevin Kuhn
THE FALLING DREAM
   Kevin Kuhn
MYSTERY
    George Barrett
THE BEST IS YET TO
   COME
STILL IN LOVE WITH
   SOMEONE ELSE
    David Young
HOW I FEEL
    Tom Vali
THE MISERY
    Andy Toomey
WACHTRAUM
    Michael Veitch
JUST WALK AWAY
    George Barrett
EVERYBODY WANTS
   MY HAT
    Marc Black
KING OF SPAIN
GET MARGARET
    Andy Toomey
BLOOD OF EDEN
    Jeremy Nesse
LETTERS
HEAVEN IN HER EYES
    Tom Vali
TO LOVE AGAIN
    Karuna Shinsho
OUR TIME
   Joe Lemonik
DOWN TO EARTH
    Levin Brothers with
  Gail Ann Dorsey
THERE WILL ALWAYS
   BE VERMONT
    Michael Veitch
SIDEMEN - album
   Peter Welker
SPRING SONG
    Teri Roiger
I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT
   ITS OVER
    Joe Lemonik
WHY
    Ling Zhang
SHARP 5
    Sharp 5 Quintet
ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE
    Michael Veitch
CHOICE
    Ling Zhang
C YOU SMILE
    DA Cole
STONES
    Judy Kass
WHOLLY EARTH
    Teri Roiger
BITTER WINTER BLUES
    Jerry Marotta
AFTERTHOUGHT

    Rick Laird/Jane Meryll

LOVE DANCE
    Karuna Shinsho
CRY ME A RIVER
    Kathy Ingraham
ICARUS
    Levin Brothers
SERENGETI
    Ken Lovelett
I WRITE MY NAME
    Marc Black
YOUR OWN LYIN' EYES

    Rob Carlson
PEACE BEGINS WITH US
   Jane Meryll
SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL
   Kyf Brewer/Larry Baeder
ONLY US
   Jeremy Nesse
INFINITE MONKEYS
   Rob Carlson
PAPER DOLL
   Kathy Ingraham
CATSKILL DOGS
    Kurt Henry
WHEN IT GOES
    Old Dogs New Tricks
GONNA LET IT HAPPEN
    Peter Welker & Bill
  Champlin
SHINY - album
    Lisa Maxwell
ITS CALLED LOVE - album
   Roseann Sureda
HIDDEN TREASURES - album
   The Gil Evans Orchestra
CHRISTMAS FOR
   WOUNDED VETERANS, VOL 8 - album
  Bill Edwards
A CHRISTMAS WITH YOU
   Don Miller
CHRISTMAS CAROL
    Carol Nethen
PARALLEL UNIVERSE
    Thomasina Levy & David Darling
BEGINNING AGAIN
    Rod MacDonald
FULL DETROIT
   Paul Sachs
SPECIAL DELIVERY - album
    Levin Brothers
FULL CIRCLE
   Cliff Brucker
LIVE AT 62 CENTER - album
   Albert Cummings
BARCELONA NOTE-
  BOOK - album
  Vinnie Pasternak
BLUES - album
   Ling Zhang
GOOD OLD SONGS - album
    Rene Bailey

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   
 

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