From the Vaults, Vol. 2: The NBV Quintet 1980-1983

Howard Levy, Dave Urban, Steve Eisen, Kelly Sill, Jeff Czech, Paul Wertico

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“I started this band with trumpeter Dave Urban, bassist Curt Bley, and drummer Dave Derge in 1979. We were all part of the flourishing Chicago Jazz scene. NBV stands for “No Bad Vibes”. Either Curt or Dave Urban suggested that as the name, and it stuck. As time went by, I became the leader and added sax player Steve Eisen. Various drummers and

“I started this band with trumpeter Dave Urban, bassist Curt Bley, and drummer Dave Derge in 1979. We were all part of the flourishing Chicago Jazz scene. NBV stands for “No Bad Vibes”. Either Curt or Dave Urban suggested that as the name, and it stuck. As time went by, I became the leader and added sax player Steve Eisen. Various drummers and bass players passed through the group, each bringing his own special touch to the sound.

The band played regularly at The No Exit Café, The Piano Man, and other Chicago venues between 1980 and 1985.

We mostly played my tunes, but also some standards, Wayne Shorter tunes, etc. I played piano 95% of the time in this band, as the primary focus of the band was the sound of the trumpet and tenor sax with rhythm section.

I rediscovered old cassettes of our music as I was cleaning my attic last year. This gave me the impetus to put out the music that we had played together in the 1980’s in Chicago.”

Dave Urban - trumpet and flugelhorn

Steve Eisen - tenor saxophone

Howard Levy - piano

Kelly Sill - bass (tracks 1-3)

Jeff Czech - bass (tracks 5 & 6)

Paul Wertico - drums

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    22 Bars 8:13
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    Airborne 8:37
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    Moonchild 9:11
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    Mello Roast 10:28
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    Salt Lake Blowout 15:04
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From the Vaults Vol. 1-4
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  • From the Vaults Vol. 1-4
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$45.00

20% off.

(Since the "Howard and Jethro" CD is out of stock, this bundle offers 3 physical CDs and 1 album for download. Howard will sign one of the CDs.)

  • From the Vaults Series - Over Howard Levy’s long musical career, the 2-time Grammy Award winner has recorded on hundreds of albums and put out more than 15 of his own. His stylistic and

20% off.

(Since the "Howard and Jethro" CD is out of stock, this bundle offers 3 physical CDs and 1 album for download. Howard will sign one of the CDs.)

  • From the Vaults Series - Over Howard Levy’s long musical career, the 2-time Grammy Award winner has recorded on hundreds of albums and put out more than 15 of his own. His stylistic and compositional range encompasses more musical genres than most people could ever imagine. In 2018, Howard started releasing some of the best music he ever recorded that, for one reason or another, was never put out on CDs. The “Vaults” series contains 4 brilliant recordings done over a 25-year span, in styles including Swing, World Music, Jazz, Latin Jazz, and Blues. Preserved on tape, cassettes, and digital audiotape and then remastered, the excellent sound quality on all 4 recordings enhances the adventurous, surprising, and energetic music- it sounds as fresh now as it did then, bursting with humor, depth and creativity!

Vol. 1 Harmonica Jazz This is the re-release of a cassette album that Howard put out in 1987. It is the first Jazz album ever recorded by a diatonic harmonica player and stands as a milestone in the history of harmonica recordings.

Vol. 2 The NBV Quintet 1980-1983 Howard started this band in 1979. NBV stands for “No Bad Vibes”. Howard composed all the tunes on the album and plays only piano, as the primary focus of the band was the classic sound of trumpet and tenor sax with a rhythm section.

Vol. 3 Howard and Jethro- Super Session of Swing This album documents the exhilarating first concert that Howard and Jethro Burns (great Mandolin player from “Homer and Jethro”) played as co-leaders. Jethro’s hilarious spoken intros are included as an essential part of the Jethro experience.

Vol. 4: Duets with Friends As the crowning jewel from Howard's musical vaults, “Duets with Friends” shines with the light of spontaneous creativity. While there are still more unheard treasures, this album is the 4th and last of the "From the Vaults" series. Paired up with some of Chicago’s greatest musicians, Howard creates deep, grooving, exploratory improvisations, blending Indian, Latin, and Jazz styles together into a unique sonic stew.

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