40 | OCTOBER 24 • 2024 

ARTS&LIFE
MUSIC

T

ony Levin is a rock ‘n’ 
roll equivalent of Forrest 
Gump. Or Zelig.
The guy is everywhere, in 
other words. That includes 
bands (King Crimson, Peter 
Gabriel) and voluminous credits 
recording and performing life 
with the likes of John Lennon, 
Paul Simon, Lou Reed, Pink 
Floyd, Carly Simon, James 
Taylor, Tom Waits, Stevie Nicks, 
Herbie Mann. It’s a list that 
piles up thicker than a Saturday 
morning siddur.
Born in Boston and raised 
in Brookline, Massachusetts, 
Levin — now 78 — began 
playing double bass when he 
was 10, adding tuba and singing 
in a barbershop quartet. He 
studied at the Eastman School of 
Music in Rochester, New York, 
and played in the Rochester 
Philharmonic Orchestra there, 
moving on to bass guitar and, 
later, the Chapman Stick, an 
electric stringed instrument that 
can be plucked, hammered or 
chorded using both hands on the 
neck. 
Levin also developed Funk 
Fingers, chopped-off drumsticks 
for a more percussive attack 
on his instrument, and became 
an active photographer who’s 
exhibited and published books 
and maintains visual road diaries 
on his website (tonylevin.com) 
and social media.
After touring again with 
Gabriel last year, Levin is 
working on two consuming 
projects now. One is touring with 
Beat, a new band with onetime 
King Crimson bandmate Adrian 
Belew — joined by all-star 
guitarist Steve Vai and Tool 
drummer Danny Carey — that’s 
playing the music Crimson 
created from 1981-84, their 
first tenure in the band. On the 
recording front, he has released 

Tony Levin will perform 
Tony Levin will perform 
with Beat this weekend 
with Beat this weekend 
at the Masonic.
at the Masonic.

GARY GRAFF 
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

TheBass
Bass

Master

Tony Levin 
in action

 JOHN LUINI/COURTESY OF BEAT

