John Leventhal

Born in New York City, Leventhal began his career in the late 1970’s playing guitar in dozens of NYC area bands including those led by Billy Vera, Steve Forbert and Levon Helm. By the early 1980’s he had developed songwriting partnerships with Shawn Colvin and Jim Lauderdale which led to his producing their debut albums. This was followed by albums he produced for Rosanne Cash, Marc Cohn, Sarah Jarosz, William Bell, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Joan Osborne and many others. As a guitar player he has recorded and performed with Jackson Browne, Bruce Hornsby, Willie Nelson, The Tedeschi Trucks Band, Ry Cooder, Elvis Costello, Donald Fagen and recently, The National. Leventhal’s impulse to look for unexpected moments of beauty has served as a compass and survival tactic throughout his remarkable career. He’s been a Grammy winner in five consecutive decades, including as a co-writer and producer on Shawn Colvin’s 1998 smash “Sunny Came Home,” Cash’s moody The River and the Thread, and Stax legend William Bell’s sublime 2016 album This Is Where I Live. Presently, he’s releasing his first solo album "Rumble Strip" and is collaborating with Cash on a musical version of Norma Rae. His unique approach hasn’t always aligned Leventhal with whatever is reaping the biggest commercial rewards, but he figures that’s probably the only way he could’ve done it. We’re all the luckier for it.