Livingston Taylor | The Rubin Museum - Naked Soul Series | Sept 8th | 8 PM
Livingston Taylor picked up his first guitar at the age of 13, beginning a 50-year career that has encompassed performance, songwriting and teaching. Born in Boston and raised in North Carolina, Livingston is the fourth child in a very musical family that includes Alex, James, Kate and Hugh. Livingston recorded his first record at the age of 18 and has continued to create well crafted, introspective, and original songs that have earned him listeners worldwide.
From top-40 hits “I Will Be in Love with You” and “I’ll Come Running,” to “I Can Dream of You” and “Boatman,” both recorded by his brother James, Livingston’s creative output has continued unabated. His musical knowledge has inspired a varied repertoire, and he is equally at home with a range of musical genres—folk, pop, gospel, jazz—and from upbeat storytelling to touching ballads.
Livingston has never stopped performing since those early coffeehouse days, touring with major artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Jimmy Buffett and Jethro Tull, and he maintains a busy concert schedule of over 80 shows a year. He is a natural performer, peppering his shows with personal stories, anecdotes and ineffable warmth that connect him to his fans. His relaxed on-stage presence belies the depth of his musical knowledge, and fans might just as often be treated to a classic Gershwin or something from the best of Broadway.
Livingston is a full professor at Berklee College of Music, where he has taught a Stage Performance course since 1989. He teaches young artists invaluable lessons learned over the course of an extensive career on the road; the course is consistently voted the most popular at the College. His book, Stage Performance, released in 2011 offers those lessons to anyone who is interested in elevating their presentation standards to professional standards.
Wednesday, January 18, 2017 was declared "Livingston Taylor Day" by Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker in celebration of Livingston's 50th year of making music.
Safe Home, the new album from the venerated songwriter, Livingston Taylor, is set to be released March 3rd, 2017. Featuring a world class band of Shelly Berg (piano), David Finck (bass), Bashiri Johnson (percussion), and Chelsea Berry (vocals), the album gives playful bend to musical classics like "Anything You Can Do", and also presents Livingston originals such as "I Must Be Doing Something Right". Pull up a chair and give a listen to this guaranteed toe tapper of an album.