Show Notes
Tony Levin’s love of the bass guitar began when he was just ten years old, when his focus was classical music and performing on a double bass - and he never looked back. His classical training transitioned to rock and jazz, and his reputation as an A-list session bassist filtered throughout the music industry. Of course, one of Tony’s primary gigs has been holding down the bass chair for Peter Gabriel since the late ‘70s, performing on nearly all of Peter’s recordings and tours. However, his resume is extensive, having performed with John Lennon, Stevie Nicks, Pink Floyd, Paul Simon, Lou Reed, Buddy Rich, David Bowie, and many other icons in the music industry, along with being a member of Stick Men and Liquid Tension Experiment. Tony has a brand new album set to release on September 13 titled "Bringing it Down to the Bass". He's currently rehearsing for the upcoming BEAT tour: A supergroup that also includes Steve Vai, Adrian Belew, and Tool drummer Danny Carey, who will perform music from the three King Crimson albums that were released in the '80s. Here to talk to us about these new projects and his extensive career is none other than Tony Levin.
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Lee Ritenour's career has been nothing short of extraordinary. Not only has he released over 50 albums, but he’s also performed on over 3,500 other projects as a studio musician. On October 23, he’ll release a new, live album that was amassed from a series of eight live shows at Ronnie Scott’s in London. Backed by a young and extremely talented group of musicians, which includes his son Wes on drums, this live album covers a variety of compositions from Lee's vast catalog, including fresh arrangements for many of them such as “Is It You”, “Captain Fingers”, and “Rio Funk”. He’s been on our radar for quite some time, and it’s our honor to finally welcome him to the show. Inside MusiCast is pleased to welcome Lee Ritenour.
You know the incredible voice of Paul Carrack. From the Ace hit "How Long", to "Tempted", by Squeeze, to several hits with Mike + The Mechanics and his solo projects. But Paul's love for music goes deeper than pop. He's always had a penchant for traditional country artists, such as George Jones, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Conway Twitty, and many others, and through a chance connection with Nashville country artist and producer, Steven Wood, the idea for a pair of country albums was born. On this new episode of Inside MusiCast, we chat with Paul about the creation of the albums, his approach to country music, and the deep respect he has for the country classics he recreated, along with a few original songs. And of course, we won’t miss the chance to discuss some of his classic pop projects, too. Inside MusiCast is pleased to welcome Paul Carrack.
Music runs deep with Bonnie Hayes. Growing up, her home was filled with music, and two of her brothers also traveled down a musical path: Her brother Chris was lead guitarist for Huey Lewis & The News, and brother Kevin was the drummer for the Robert Cray Band. As a young musician, Bonnie's focus was jazz, and one of her first jobs was teaching music at the Blue Bear School of Music in the Bay area. From there, she sidetracked into punk and new wave and started The Punts in San Francisco, which later became Bonnie Hayes with the Wild Combo. If you've seen the 1983 movie "Valley Girl", you'll hear the song "Girls Like Me" at the start of the film, along with "Shelley's Boyfriend." However, songwriting and education became Bonnie's focus, both for herself and for other musicians. Many of her songs were picked-up and recorded by a variety of artists, including Bonnie Raitt, Cher, David Crosby, Natalie Cole, Adam Ant, Huey Lewis, Bette Midler and many others. In 2013, Hayes became chair of the songwriting department at Berklee in Boston. In 2022, she returned to the Bay Area to found a youth All Star Songwriting Program at Blue Bear School of Music. To talk more about her extensive career in the music business, Inside MusiCast is pleased to welcome Bonnie Hayes.
Steve Farris is a man of a thousand...acres. After an incredibly successful music career, Steve turned his focus to his second love: Land. He's shaped thousands of acres of land into a fish and wildlife service where he worked in several states developing, designing, and building habitat and wetlands restoration. He's even been hired by the Fish and Wildlife Service, along with Ducks Unlimited, to lend his expertise to their organizations. And while he's officially retired from music, he still employs lessons he's learned from music into this second career. On this episode of Inside MusiCast, Steve reminisces about his path through the music business, the connections he made along the way, and that fateful audition that landed him the gig in Mr. Mister. Inside MusiCast is pleased to welcome Steve Farris.
Drummer, vocalist, and one of the founding members of The Blackbyrds, Keith Killgo has had music running through his veins since he was four-years-old. By the time he turned 11 he had already played drums with such greats as Sonny Stitt, Stan Getz, Miles Davis, Woody Shaw, Bill Hardman, Art Blakey's Band and Eddie Harris. His piano teacher? None other than Roberta Flack. Music was Keith’s destiny, and this path led him to meet Donald Byrd and the formation of The Blackbyrds in 1973. With a fusion of R&B, blues, and jazz, the band had several notable songs, including “Do It Fluid”, “Happy Music”, “Rock Creek Park”, and their Top 10 hit “Walking In Rhythm”. Here to chat about his amazing career in music, as well as his role as an educator, is Keith Killgo.