Ron Levy
| Ron Levy | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Reuvin Zev ben Yehoshua Ha Levi |
| Born |
May 29, 1951 Brookline, MA |
| Origin | Boston, MA |
| Genres | Blues, Funk, Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Blues piano and organist, composer |
| Years active | 1968–present |
| Associated acts | Roomful of Blues, B.B. King |
| Website |
www |
Ron Levy (born Reuvin Zev ben Yehoshua Ha Levi, May 29, 1951)[1] is an American electric blues[2] musician and composer.
Levy was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. He primarily plays piano and organ. Levy grew up in Brookline, MA, and began playing the piano after seeing Ray Charles in concert at age 13.[1] He later switched to playing a Hammond organ. After gaining experience playing in Boston nightclubs, Levy was hired by Albert King in 1968. After an eighteen-month association, Levy joined B. B. King's backing band. Throughout the years, Levy has performed and recorded with a wide range of blues, funk and jazz musical groups, notably including Roomful of Blues (1983–87) and Ron Levy's Wild Kingdom (1988 - 2014).[1]
After learning and refining his studio chops with Hammond Scott's Blacktop Records in New Orleans, Levy became the in-house record producer and co-founder, A&R for Rounder Records' Bullseye Blues record label, where he was nominated nine times for a Grammy Award as producer. He then recorded and produced 16 albums for his own label Cannonball Records from 1997 - 2000. He has since released numerous albums on his own imprint Levtron.com Records. Levy wrote in 2013 the book, Tales of A Road Dog - The Lowdown Along the Blues Highway (self-published by Levtron.com). Today, he teaches, records, produces and performs with his Soul-Jazz-Blues Hammond organ based group, Ron Levy's Wild Kingdom Trio.