I was born on January 21, 1955 in New York City. My mother Esther and father Hy were wonderful, loving
parents. My mom died when I was 14 and my dad on my 30th birthday.
My best friend is my brother Randy. He is an amazing drummer and human being.
At eight years of age, I began studying guitar with Joe Breeze. He was the guitarist on the Ed Sullivan Show.
But his real instrument was the string bass. I followed in his footsteps, and bass became my primary instrument.
I
played
in
the
school
orchestra,
and
had
a
goal
to
go
to
Julliard.
Soon
I
found
that
I
could
really
impress
the
girls
with guitar, and slowly but surely guitar became my first love.
I
had
a
number
of
great
teachers.
Tommy
Lucas
(a
studio
genius)
and
Don
Arnone,
who
you've
heard
on
Bette
Midler's
“Boogie
Woogie
Bugle
Boy.”
I
was
very
lucky
that
all
of
my
teachers
basically
had
the
same
style
of
picking,
and
all
felt
that
reading
music
was
the
key
to
success.
To
this
day
my
reading
of
both
bass
and
treble
clef
is one of the things that I am known for.
In
the
1970's,
guitar
was
popular,
but
most
of
the
great
music
schools
only
recognized
guitar
as
a
classical
instrument,
or
not
at
all.
Soon
I
heard
about
Berklee
College
Of
Music
in
Boston.
Before
I
knew
it,
I
was
in
Boston
and four years later, in 1977, I graduated with a composition Bachelors Degree.
Mike
Ihde
is
a
fine
player
and
teacher.
He
helped
me
with
country
and
rock,
and
to
this
day,
we
are
friends.
Gary
Burton,
Herb
Pomeroy,
Mike
Gibbs,
and
so
many
more
are
part
of
me
and
I
thank
God
for
them
and
their
talents.
John
Damian
was
an
amazing
guitar
teacher,
and
not
only
influenced
my
playing
and
composing,
but
his
lessons
inspired
my
book,
Hear
The
Silence
.
Berklee
was
fantastic
and
I
loved
every
minute
of
it.
My
classes
were
from
9
to
3
and
then
I'd
sometimes
stay
until
3
in
the
morning,
listening
to
music,
other
players,
and
just
dreaming
of
my future.
It
was
a
magical
time
there.
Some
of
my
classmates
were
Vinnie
Colaiuta
(drummer
now
with
Sting;
he
has
played
on
about
a
million
records),
J.R.
Robinson
(who
is
famous
now
for
drums
with
Michael
Jackson
and
Quincy),
Mike
Stern
(the
great
guitarist),
Al
Dimeola,
Bill
Frizell,
Emily
Remler,
Tim
Landers,
Richard
Gibbs,
and
so
many
more
that
I
can't
believe
it
myself.
All
of
these
folks
remain
my
friends
and
we
all
were
the
lucky
ones
that took the magic of Berklee and created careers.
Steve
Smith
(the
incredible
drummer
for
Journey,
and
Vital
Information)
and
I
met
at
a
gig,
a
bar
mitzvah
in
Boston.
We
hit
it
off
immediately;
he
was
fun,
loved
to
play
loud,
and
liked
that
I
was
a
bit
over
the
edge.
When
he
got
the
gig
with
Jean
Luc
Ponty
and
Allen
Holdsworth
left
the
band,
he
quickly
got
me
an
audition.
Thanks
to
Steve, my professional career was started.
To
this
day,
playing
with
Jean
Luc
Ponty
is
my
favorite
gig.
He
is
the
most
talented,
wonderful,
sensitive
player
and
person
I
know.
I
played
with
him
at
a
reunion
concert
in
1998
and
he
seemed
God
like
to
me.
Still
does.
He
is
so
blessed
and
I
never
will
be
able
to
return
what
he
gave
me:
a
career,
a
friendship,
a
place
in
an
innovative
band.
I
feel
that
Jean
Luc
Ponty
was
the
one
that
found
who
I
was
as
a
musician.
He
worked
with
me
on
my
sound. He taught me about the road. He gave me confidence.
I
recall
one
day
in
Europe.
I
was
freaking
out.
Larry
Coryell,
Al
Dimeola,
Stanley
Jordon,
and
John
McLaughlin
all
were
to
play
before
us
at
a
festival.
I
walked
into
Jean
Luc's
room
and
said,
“I
can't
do
it.
I
can't
play.
These
are
my
heroes;
they
are
where
I
got
my
licks.”
Jean
Luc
laughed
and
asked
if
I
would
sit
down.
I
though
for
sure
he
was
gonna
fire
me.
He
said,
“Jamie,
who
is
the
guitarist
in
my
band?”
I
looked
at
him
and
said,
“Huh?”
He
asked
again.
I
said,
“Well,
.
.
.
me.”
Then
he
looked
at
me
like
a
brother,
and
said,
“Anyone
of
those
guys
could
be
in
this
band. In fact Coryell wanted the job. You are here because you are the best for this job. And I love your playing.
”I
was
so
blown
away;
he
wasn't
a
guy
who
complimented
like
that,
although
he
let
you
know
when
he
was
happy. I didn't know what to say, but I did know that I had to play my ass off for him. And that night the crowd went
nuts when I played my extended solo in “Enigmatic Ocean.”
There are many other stories like this one, but you get the idea.
After
a
couple
years
with
Jean-Luc,
he
felt
that
his
band
was
getting
too
rock
and
roll
and
he
let
Steve
Smith,
myself
and
Alan
Zavod
go.
Shortly
after
that,
I
joined
with
Lenny
White.
He
was
the
drummer
with
Return
To
Forever,
and
known
as
one
of
the
best
drummers
ever.
This
band
was
incredible.
Donald
Blackman,
kbds,
and
Nick
Moroch
on
guitar,
and
my
hero,
Marcus
Miller.
Marcus
and
I
got
very
tight
and
I
showed
him
guitar
licks
and
he
taught
me
how
to
slap
on
the
bass,
and
“to
not
play,
like
a
white
boy.”
Although
I
had
been
interested
in
R
and
B
and
funk,
these
guys
made
sure
I
knew
about
the
groove.
Lenny
made
me
watch
the
hi
hat.
Donald
worked
with me and lovingly told me that I was playing like a honky. He was the funkmeister for sure.
We
did
an
album
in
L.A.
and
rented
a
great
house
in
the
hills.
Chaka
Khan
lived
with
us
and
did
the
recording.
Larry
Dunn
from
Earth
Wind
and
Fire
produced.
Larry
let
me
watch
him
for
weeks,
and
I
must
say
my
producer
chops
are
largely
what
I
learned
from
him.
During
the
weeks
we
stayed
there,
I
wrote
a
tune
"Struttin"
in
thanks
to
Marcus
for
his
great
inspiration.
Well
it
ended
up
on
the
record
and
was
played
extensively
around
the
world.
This
was the first time that a bandleader that I had been with let the guys write.
I
moved
to
L.A.
and
noticed
that
I
was
getting
studio
work
for
jazzy
parts.
I
loved
rock
and
played
it
a
lot,
but
the
industry
didn't
know
that.
I
had
to
do
something,
and
quickly.
I
called
my
friend
Hernando
Cartwright
who
had
rejected
every
pop
song
I
wrote,
but
saw
me
every
two
weeks
anyway,
and
said
can
you
please
find
me
a
rock
band
that
I
could
shine
in.
A
week
later
I
was
in
the
studio
with
Bryan
Adams.
He
was
very
nice,
but
I
was
a
little
shocked at first. He said, “Man, I don't wanna hear any jazz licks. Go out there, turn up, and play!”
I
was
set
free,
and
the
whole
thing
worked
well.
Having
played
with
Bryan
was
a
gift
and
also
changed
and
empowered my career. I was now called for work with all styles.
I
also
have
worked
with
Bill
Conti
and
Ashley
Irwin
and
so
many
other
great
artists;
it’s
amazing.
Ashley
Irwin,
is
my
close
friend
now
and
he
is
an
inspiration
and
a
one
in
a
million
composer.
He
writes
with
such
sensitivity,
beauty,
and
purity
that
I
hardly
ever
see
anywhere
else.
He
also
has
been
a
guardian
angel,
and
is
responsible
for me meeting Bill Conti.
The
middle
of
the
80’s
and
the
90’s
were
some
of
the
most
exciting
times
for
me.
I
played
with
the
rock
band
Glass Moon, and we became superstars in Puerto Rico. They were a great bunch of guys from North Carolina.
I
loved
going
there
to
rehearse
and
eventually
recorded
two
albums
on
Atlantic
with
them
at
the
famed
Electric
Ladyland studios in New York.
My
work
in
TV
was
booming
,thanks
to
friend
and
composer
Jonathon
Wolff!
I
was
playing
on
shows
like
Seinfeld,
Married
With
Children,
Melrose
Place,
Dynasty,
Saved
By
the
Bell
and
many
more.
I
even
sang
and
played
on
Beverly
Hills
90210.
John
E.
Oliver
became
my
adopted
father
and
mentor
and
showed
me
off
every
chance
he
had. He was president of Film Service, which provided musicians for sessions and sidelines (like extras for film).
I
had
appearances
on
Perfect
Strangers,
Love
Boat,
and
the
movie
Deliberate
Stranger,
the
story
of
Ted
Bundy.
In
the
film,
I
played
the
hippie
guitarist
on
the
campus
in
Florida
before
Ted
Bundy
killed.
Jonathon
has
not
only
been there for me professionally but he was instrumental in "saving" my life when I had problems in the late 90's.
The late 80’s brought some great work.I I was playing guitar for the last two years of The Merv Griffen Show.
I
was
subbing
for
Pat
Kelly.
I
loved
doing
Merv’s
show,
especially
the
pleasure
of
working
with
people
like
Buddy
Rich
and
comedians
like
Don
Rickles.
I
also
had
the
pleasure
of
working
high-end
casuals,
(general
business,
club
dates
corporate
work)
with
L.A.
great
Allen
Weiss
of
Sounds
of
Music.
He
helped
me
to
become
a
strong
M.C.
and
bandleader.
I
also
loved
my
work
for
Jack
Bielen’s
Fifth
Avenue
Orchestras.
I
have
the
pleasure
of
still
working for L.A. legendary bandleader and entertainment company owner Ron Rubin of Ron Rubin Events.
I
had
the
pleasure
of
playing
with
people
like
Iggy
Pop,
Tanya
Tucker,
Poison,
the
Temptations,
and
the
Gatlin
Bros.,
thanks
to
my
continued
TV
work.
At
the
same
time,
I
had
the
distinct
pleasure
of
doing
a
year
of
touring
with
virtuoso
Chick
Corea
and
his
Electrik
Band.
Playing
with
him,
John
Pattitucci,
and
Dave
Wekl
was
an
extraordinary
time.
I
soon
joined
the
Grammy
Award
winning
band
Manhattan
Transfer,
touring
and
recording
on
a album with them. It was a great time.
One
of
the
most
amazing
things
to
happen
during
this
same
time
period
was
my
involvement
with
Hispanic
music.
My
career,
my
knowledge
of
music,
my
notoriety
around
the
world
were
all
sealed
when
I
began
working
in
this
market.
Jose
Silva
was
the
guy
who
really
helped
me,
loved
me,
and
brought
me
to
the
people.
We
did
the
first
known
rap
record
in
Spanish.
We
recorded
constantly,
and
I
even
wrote
and
co-produced
some
great
records
with him. One of my favorite artists was Gustavo Alarco.
Soon
I
was
working
with
the
great
engineer
Brian
Stott
at
Milagro
Studios
and
working
with
the
genius
Horacio
Lanzi.
What
a
fantastic
compsoer
and
producer.
Eventually,
I
became
the
guitarist
for
Gloria
Trevi.
She
is
the
biggest pop female artist in Mexico and her only competition was Selina.
What
a
great
couple
of
years
I’ve
had
with
friend
and
composer/producer
Daniel
Indart,
President
of
Latin
Music
Specialists.
Along
with
his
partner
and
studio
singer
Sara,
and
his
associate
Danny
(a
fine
guitarist
in
his
own
right),
we
conquered
the
Anglo-Hispanic
jingle
market.
Albertsons,
Wells
Fargo,
Carl’s
Jr,
major
motion
pictures,
a
complete
library
of
great
music,
and
even
music
for
video
arcade
games
have
been
some
things
I’ve
shared
with
them. I love those guys a lot and continue to work with them to this day.
In
1994
I
was
trapped
in
my
studio
in
the
L.A.
earthquake.
Although
I
was
only
scratched
up
a
little,
I
suffered
emotional
and
mental
problems
after
this
catastrophe.
Eventually,
after
losing
much
of
my
worldly
possessions,
drummer
friend
Bob
Leatherbarrow
and
Jonathon
Wolff
suggested
that
I
get
help.
They
knew
that
my
problems
like
being
broke
and
underweight
were
not
due
to
typical
reasons
you’d
think
of,
like
substance
abuse.
I
saw
a
wonderful
psychiatrist
by
the
name
of
Richard
Elpers,
and
after
being
diagnosed
with
posttraumatic
stress
disorder, I was on my way to recovery.
My
book
Hear
The
Silence
has
just
been
released
(2006)
and
is
an
inspirational
book
for
people
who
may
be
depressed
or
who
are
having
tough
times.
It
is
a
book
about
all
the
great
things
that
people
don’t
notice,
and
all
the things I learned after hitting bottom and being homeless and broke, even while my career moved along!
In
2002
I
teamed
up
with
my
buddy
from
New
York,
amazing
composer
David
Dachinger
of
DD
music.
Dave
and
I
went
to
high
school
and
Berklee
together.
We
have
cornered
the
sports
market
and
have
our
compositions
on
ABC,
and
CBS
sports
as
well
as
PGA
Golf
and
College
football.
Thanks
to
our
publisher
Rob
Aster
(
Radical
Rob)
We are always busy composing for quality TV.
In
recent
years
the
music
I
have
composed
can
be
heard
on
many
broadcasts
owned
by
parent
company
the
Discovery
Network.
I
have
also
had
main
titles
for
syndicated
shows
like
Stuntmasters,
and
I
am
very
grateful
for
that.
I
decided
when
I
moved
to
Utah
that
I
wanted
to
focus
on
composing,
producingand
not
do
much
live
work
anymore. This was a major shift for me but it’s worked out well.
In
2015
I
joined
the
Anderson
Ponty
Band
(
APB)
with
Jon
Anderson
from
Yesand
the
same
Ponty
Band
I
played
with in the late 80’s. It was a really good timeand we released one record and did two years of tours off and on.
In 2017 the Ponty band did a reunion tour in the USA and that was a great experience.
Along
with
music
I
have
used
my
marketing
and
business
expertise
to
form
a
social
media
management
company
and
we
are
proud
to
represent
and
promote
grammy
award
musicians,
lesser-known
people
in
music
as well as businesses of all kinds. JG Social Media Solutions is celebrating our 8
th
year in business now in 2023.
I
have
another
business
mastering
recordings
and
have
done
quite
a
bit
for
amazing
artists.
You
can
read
more
about
that
on
the
mastering
page
and
hear
samples
here
on
the
website.I
am
very
grateful
for
the
many
recording
sessions
I
receive
as
a
guitarist
and
seeing
success
of
the
artists
I
record
with.
You
can
hear
some
of
the
most
recent recordings on the “recordings” page.
I
realize
every
day
that
I
would
be
unknown
and
nobody
without
you,
the
fans,
I
thank
you,
each
and
every
one,
for helping me to realize my dreams. Don’t hesitate to email me; I will always try to respond.
Biography
William Leavitt
My
father
was
an
incredible
lyricist
and
craftsmen.
His
songs
were
recorded
by
people
like
Nat
King
Cole,
Frank
Sinatra,
Sarah
Vaughn,
and
Joe
Williams.
Although
these
sometimes
are
considered
jazz
artists,
my
father
wrote
pop
songs;
he
didn't
really
know
about
"jazz."
He
was
a
Tin
Pan
Alley
composer
like
Sammy
Cahn
and
Rogers
and
Hammerstein.
His
book
Writing
Lyrics
That
Make
Sense
and
Dollars
is
still
at
the
top
of
ASCAP’s
reading
list.
He
was
my
inspiration,
my
mentor,
my
friend,
my
partner,
and
I
miss
him
every
minute
of
every day. If I could be half the man he was, I'd be pretty amazing!.
William
Leavitt,
the
chairman
of
guitar,
was
by
far
my
greatest
teacher.
He
was
the
guardian
angel
that
was
sent
to
me
to
fulfill
my
dreams.
He
suggested
that
I
switch
to
composition,
so
that
I
would
have
more
influence
than
a
traditional
guitar
student.
He
also
knew
that
I
already
was
a
composer
with
published
works.
There
were
amazing
teachers
at
Berklee.
I
was
inspired
by
all
of
them,
but
only
a few really changed my life.
In 2001, I moved to Salt Lake City.
Thanks to the Brunson Brothers I got a head start here
doing sessions and arrangements in their recording studio.
While
I
was
doing
a
concert
in
L.A.
with
Lenny
at
the
Roxy,
Jean
Luc
walked
through
the
doors.
I
was
so
pleased
to
see
him.
He
asked
if
I
would
have
lunch
with
him
and
I
was
thrilled.
He
told
me
that
he
wanted
to
make
a
change
and
that
he
had
a
world
tour
and
a
live
album, and he would double my old salary if I'd come back.
Holy
S...
I
said,
“YES!!!!”
So
we
stayed
together
for
many
more
years
and although it was hard to leave Lenny, I made the right decision.