A 60 year old working musician should have a lot to talk about when the conversation turns to his own career. Ron Levy is no exception. The Boston native has been seen playing his keyboards with the Philip Pemberton Band for the last several months. Those who’ve known him over the years, know that his career reaches back to the 1960s. Working and touring and appearing on TV with big names in the blues has been par for the course in his long, musical life.
But before the trip down Levy’s memory lane can commence, it is fair to mention that the keyboardist-composer-arranger-producer has a solo career of his own. His band The Wild Kingdom began as recording project for New Orlean’s Blacktop label while Levy was a member of Roomful of Blues in the early 1980s.
Wild Kingdom got its moniker because the band had no limits musically and because TV show host of Wild Kingdom, Marlin Perkins, was a hero of Levy‘s. Levy’s Wild Kingdom originally consisted of a 50/50 combination of the Roomful and Fabulous Thunderbird players. They began doing mostly blues and R&B. It has since morphed into a gumbo of various musical styles featuring Levy’s original compositions.
“I’ve enrolled many truly fabulous musicians such as Melvin Sparks, Karl Denson, Jerry Portnoy, Jeff Lockhart, Sax Gordon, Neville Brother guys, Anson Funderburg, Ronnie Earl, and various New Orleans & Memphis legends,” Levy said. “I’ve used this as a vehicle to expand on my musical ideas and have played organ, piano, electric piano, vibes, bass, guitar and basically anything I could get my hands on.”
Levy’s Wild Kingdom has toured as a trio, quartet, quintet across country and over seas. It was a lot of fun but it was also very hard work and it took a toll on Levy. He invested money into it, bought a truck and trailer, and he always guaranteed every one’s pay. He also ran up some subsequent debt.
“After a well-deserved hiatus,” Levy said, “we’re doing dates now locally, and I have two WK albums in the works that should be out relatively soon, and a book.”
“I am also working,” Levy continued, “on a project of Jewish music based on Chassidic melodies and my own compositions inspired by my family. My tribe, the Levites, as was Moses, were the musicians and temple singers of the first and second temples in Jerusalem some 2000 years ago. My project will be called ‘Shlishe’ which means the third. May we see this in our time.”
Wild Kingdom’s last CD, VooDoo Boogaloo, came out almost five years ago. Levy was quick to point out that the recording is available on CDBaby.com as well as his own website, www.levtron.com.
Although known as a blues man, Levy wasn’t aiming for any one specific genre on “Boogaloo.” Blues, soul, and R&B were just colors on his musical paint brush.
“I just play what I feel and love all kinds of good music done well,” Levy said. “When I compose, I usually start out with just a chord, a beat, and a feeling and concept, title -wise, and let it develop from there. The melody just hits me—on a good day—and I just refine it until I’m satisfied. It’s a craft like any other. I have various elements and formulas I use in my arsenal. It takes dedication and hard, but enjoyable, work.”
Instrumental music seems to work best for Levy, as his Wild Kingdom project is all music. “Instrumental music transcends words,” the musician said. “A famous Rabbi, Rav Zalman, 400 years ago once said, ‘words are the pen of the heart, music the pen of the soul.’”
Levy doesn’t have any interest in labeling his music. “It’s just Levtronic music to me. I’d rather just let the music speak for itself.”
When asked what turned him on to music when he was growing up, Levi gave a typical young man’s response: “Girls and women. Plus sounds of……too shy, to say.”
As a young man in his 20, Levy found himself working with B.B. King, and Levy has already went on tour with Albert King when he was only 18. To gather all of his memories, Levy has commenced to writing a book.
“It’s called ‘Tales of a Road Dog’. It is a ‘tell-some,’ not a ‘tell all’ humorous, I hope, account of all the characters I’ve met and worked with in my life. There are many, many stories about B.B. and Albert as well as many others, I’ve known, friend-ed and loved.”
Levy co-founded the Bullseye Blues label simply because the opportunity presented itself. He has many proud accomplishments from those years.
“Many, mostly everyone on the label, I hand picked ninety percent of our stable,” Levy said. “Charles Brown certainly stands out. We had a bunch of Grammy nominations, and I’ll always remember fondly those projects, as well as all the ones with Blacktop, Cannonball, Rounder, Blue Note & Tone-Cool. I’m very grateful for all the wonderful people & opportunities that I’ve been blessed with experiencing.”
Levy left the music biz around 2001, departing for personal reasons. “Both my parents passed away that year,” he said. “I was tired but mostly, my famil—son and aunt—needed me close to home to attend to their needs. I devoted myself to them, while studying, writing music, and observing my faith.
I also got into the Real Estate Landlord business, oye. I’ll be out of that, hopefully soon.”
When asked why he started his own label, Levtron.com, Levy gave a frank answer. “Why not? I’m a control freak,” he said. “I ran several record companies, Bullseye, Cannonball. I was tired of ‘partners’, although CDBaby has been a super distributor, and pays regularly.”
When asked why he can fit in so well with everyone from Albert King to Philip Pemberton, Levy stated: “I listen.”
When asked how the Phil Pemberton experience has been working out for him, he quipped: “Great, he’s become one of my best friends as well. We have wonderful things in store. Plus I look thin next to him as opposed to Stubbs. A skeleton looks fat next to that guy.”
Aside from Pemberton’s outfit, Levy works regularly with Matthew Stubbs, with whom he has a trio, the Levy-Stubbs-Rivelli Trio. “I’m very impressed with him,” Levy allowed. “We play at Sally O’Brien’s in Somerville every Tuesday. Another young guitar talent, Barrett Anderson, and Per Hanson (Ronnie Earl’s longtime drummer) have a trio as well. I love running organ bass and love the organ trio format. Most bass players around here are bugged with me. Willie Laws Jr. and I are putting a unit together, sometimes with Phil when he’s in town.”
Aside from playing his Hammond B3, Levy also composes, produces, and arranges music for other artists as well as his own outfit. He says he got his education and know-how the old-fashioned way.
“I just studied and worked hard to do so,” he said. “Had some great teachers such as Otis Spann, Albert and BB King, Willie Mitchell, Lloyd Glenn, Lowell Fulsom, Percy Mayfield, Jack McDuff and many others along the way. Plus a lot of music and spiritual books. I like to study and learn. I set time aside each every day to do so.”
Although Levy was originally a Boston native who loves his city, he ended up living in New Hampshire after buying some investment properties in the Granite State. He is now back to his beloved Hub.
“Heck, I’m a Boston boy,” he said. “I met a handful of great friends up there that I’ll always know and love, but like I said, I’m a Boston-Brookline boy. This is my hometown. Feels good to be back home. I recently married my home-town girl after all these years and we are happiest to be back home after all these years at last . Mwaah, love my Shell.”
And now the musician doesn’t have to commute down Route 93 to get to his gigs. “We live on Mass Ave. and I’m so happy to have most of my gigs down the street, 15 to 20 minutes away. Other than going to Israel, St. Louis, or Memphis, I have no interest in visiting anywhere else again. Although Mrs. Levy wants me to go to San Diego one time with her. Fish tacos on the beach, yum!”
Levy ended the interview with just two words: “Thanks maing”
