Tony Levin on BEAT, David Gilmour & John Lennon | On The Record

Tony Levin might be your favorite bassist's favorite bassist. A stalwart of King Crimson, frequent collaborator on iconic Peter Gabriel tracks (including Sledgehammer), as well as an accomplished solo artist and multi-instrumentalist in his own right, Levin has done it all, from prog rock to pop.

In this exclusive On The Record interview, Tony discusses collaborating with Peter Gabriel, Robert Fripp and seven different drummers for his new record. He also shares what makes a good bass track, the times he played with Pink Floyd, John Lennon, and Eddie Van Halen.

Dive into the whole interview and discover bass tabs to your favorite Tony Levin, King Crimson and Peter Gabriel songs on the Ultimate Guitar site or app.

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▬▬▬▬▬▬ Contents ▬▬▬▬▬▬
0:00 — Intro
1:38 — On the new record
2:44 — Meeting Ron Carter
4:15 — The recording process
6:05 — Recording with Robert Fripp
8:24 — Recording with Vinnie Colaiuta
10:30 — BEAT King Crimson tour with Steve Vai
13:33 — Playing with Danny Carey
14:04 — On the 1981 'Discipline' album
17:03 — On his King Crimson 'audition'
18:32 — The challenge of disco
20:44 — Collaborating with Nick D'Virgilio
22:30 — What makes a good bass part?
24:20 — On Jaco Pastorius & Hejira
26:06 — On John Lennon and Yoko Ono
29:29 — Collaborating with Pink Floyd
32:21 — Jamming with Eddie Van Halen
33:35 — David Gilmour & the tribute to Les Paul
35:13 — On the Chapman Stick
36:54 — On bass hammer-ons
38:34 — On Liquid Tension Experiment & Jordan Rudess
43:20 — On his brother Pete Levin
45:33 — Outro

#kingcrimson #bassguitar #tonylevin

[rufusbass]

Excellent questions, AND importantly, thankyou for allowing Tony to fully answer...SO many great moments in this.

[DaniloMarrone]

This is a remarkable interview. Excellent questions with great responses from Maestro Levin.

[cflatminor]

awesome interview... wonderful to get to know Tony....

[kiwimurray]

Tony Levin was the original bassist that John McLaughlin wanted for the Mahavishnu Orchestra. That goes to show just how long Tony’s been in the business for

[scottcohen]

Tony you seem like the coolest dude. I graduated from Crouse College in 1994. You are one of my heroes! Psyched to see you on tour with Beat

[joesatchton]

What a total LEGEND....HYSTERICAL story about Liquid Tension Experiment!! XD And I am certain Tony is being incredibly modest and humble. John, Jordan and Mike would NOT play with Tony unless Tony was actually a virtuoso monster player.

[gmswhackos]

I saw Tony with Peter Gabriel in 1982 at a show in Normal, Illinois. Great show.

[tomhenninger]

Tony - you are so cool and authentic! First saw you on the Shock the Monkey tour. '82. Thanks for the stories, honesty and your time!
Rock on!

[thomasmoroney]

I feel like I know this guy! I saw Crimson and Gabriel so many times I can’t even count❤

[johncopeland]

Brilliant work with the late, great brilliant, Robbie Robertson ...so cool to have 2 geniuses on the same record !

[GraachAhim]

Back in the early eighties Tony looked like an old guy. Now, 45 years on, he looks like a young one.

[wsellers]

Great interview.... Do I see a Dingwall in the background? ;) Maybe another multi-scale bass....

[randallkeller]

I'd love to know the other bassists that Fripp had audition for that 80's Crimson lineup.

[clanrewired]

"we could probably talk for several hours, but people would get bored and leave" oohp.... did that come out wrong...

[westfield]

One of the very few people in history I wish I had the opportunity to meet was John Lennon

[NesconProductions]

My personal experiences hearing Tony playing live have been with Peter Gabriel & King Crimson. Besides his amazing technique what isn't displayed in this interview is his incredible energy on stage 😘! Instantly apparent watching that he's enjoying his craft, playing great music with other extremely talented musicians. Having seen Pat Metheny (solo & Group) on numerous occasions Tony's comments on Jaco's playing on Joni Mitchell's _Shadows & Light_ struck a cord, for a truly amazing performance (by all involved..). Thanks for this really interesting interview !

[jwardcomo]

I have to ask, looking like a dope, who is the interviewer?

[vbassone]

The 1981 newly formed version of KC was called Discipline initially, not Disciple. Obviously it was later decided to call the band King Crimson and the record Discipline.

[terrydavis]

Vai replacing Yea that is a heck of a job.

[clubderunzensiertendichter]

Thank you very much for posting this !
In solidarity with the fighters for peace, love, justice & truth we express our feelings with music on our channel.
MAGISCHES THEATER (wer nicht wagt, der nicht gewinnt):
Greetings from Germany ... CLUB OF THE UNCENSORED POETS