ARTIST BIO

“I’ve used Labella strings on such tunes as “Touch me” by the doors, “Bitches Brew” by Miles Davis and “Highway 61 revisited by Bob Dylan. Just like these classic recordings Labella strings have never let me down.” – Harvey Brooks
New York-born musician Harvey Brooks has played on enough seminal recordings for any three careers, and, apart from being one of the more renowned bass players in popular music and jazz over the last four decades of the 20th century, was also one of folk-rock’s first electric bass players.  Brooks did his first recording session with Bob Dylan on the album Highway 61 Revisited.  Dylan was looking for a harder, in-your-face electric sound, and Brooks, along with guitarist Michael Bloomfield and organist Al Kooper, provided exactly what was needed on one of the most famous recordings of the ’60s. Brooks‘ career branched out in a multitude of directions, as he went on to play on records by folk artists like Eric Andersen at Vanguard Records, Richie Havens, Jim & Jean and Ian & Sylvia at Verve Records , David Blue & Tom Rush (whose producers were looking for a sound similar to that on the Highway 61 Revisited album), and various blues-rock fusion projects involving Michael Bloomfield and Al Kooper. Brooks played on Mama Cass‘ 1968 solo album “Dream a little dream with me, and also on some of the Doors‘ more elaborate sessions, including the Soft Parade album, and was very visible on the Michael Bloomfield/Al Kooper Super Session album, one of the iconic records in late-’60s rock music.
After a stint with Michael Bloomfield’s E;ectric Flag Harvey returned to NY as a staff producer at Columbia Records Brooks met  Miles Davis producer Teo Macero who, in turn, led him to Miles Davis. Working with Davis involved him with a freer manner of making music than he’d been used to even on the most ambitious sessions with Michael Bloomfield.  Brooks worked with the legendary jazz trumpet player and bandleader long enough to contribute memorably to the Bitches Brew and Big Fun albums.  Brooks was one of the busiest bassists in music, working with such varied artists as John Martyn, the Fabulous Thunderbirds,  John Simon, Loudon Wainwright III, John Cale, the Fabulous Rhinestones, John Sebastian and Seals & Crofts. Harvey and his wife Bonnie moved to Jerusalem, Israel where he continues to compose, record, perform and teach.