Gayle Levant
Gayle Levant Richards (also Gail Le Vant, 1941 or 1942[1]) is an American session harpist who worked for several years in the Wrecking Crew. Nat King Cole nicknamed her Little Bit.[1]
Life and work
Gayle Levant began her musical studies at the age of three on piano. At age 11 she began playing the harp, accompanying Liberace at 17.[1] After orchestral training at the University of Southern California and UCLA, she played with the Debut Orchestra under Michael Tilson Thomas.
From 1965/66 Levant worked as a studio musician, often alongside other members of the Wrecking Crew, for such well-known artists as Randy Newman, Van Dyke Parks, Gary Puckett & the Union Gap, José Feliciano, Judy Garland, Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Barry Manilow, Celine Dion, Josh Groban, Rod Stewart and Michael Bublé. In 1969 she began a musical collaboration with Barbra Streisand and has worked on all of the singer's recording projects since. From the 1970s onwards she has also recorded with The Carpenters (Close to You, 1971), George Harrison, Paul McCartney and Wings, Frank Sinatra, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, Lana Del Rey, Della Reese, Dom Minasi, Tom Waits, The Manhattan Transfer, Diane Schuur, Harry Connick Jr., Natalie Cole, Kyle Eastwood, Jane Monheit and Frank Sinatra Jr.[1]
Levant has also recorded pieces of classical music such as Bach's "Prelude in C" from The Well-Tempered Clavier. She can be heard playing the signature melody opening each episode of The Simpsons, in the TV series Lost (2004), and in films such as Grease (1978), One from the Heart (1981), Grand Canyon (1991), The Interpreter (2005), The Bucket List (2007), Green Lantern (2011) and John Carter (2012).
In 1977, Levant was the first harpist to receive the Most Valuable Player award from The Recording Academy (NARAS). She continued to receive this award for another three years before receiving their Emeritus Award.
Levant's first marriage was to the arranger, songwriter and pianist Artie Butler. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her second husband, the former sound engineer John Richards.
Discography
- George Harrison: Dark Horse (1974)
- Paul McCartney and Wings: Venus and Mars (1975)
- George Harrison: George Harrison (1979)
- Eric Clapton: Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack RUSH (1992)
- Charlie Haden/Michael Brecker: American Dreams (2002)
- Lana Del Rey: Norman Fucking Rockwell! (2019)
Weblinks
- Gayle Levant on IMDb
- Gayle Levant at AllMusic
- Gayle Levant discography at Discogs
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Sarah Woolley (2019-10-10). "My harp will go on: meet Gayle Levant, Hollywood's favourite string-plucker". The Guardian. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
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