Alex Bevan (born 1950) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, poet, radio personality, and music producer.

Early life

Bevan began his musical career playing the

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

with his teacher Ruffier at Chambers Elementary School. In 1965, while at Shaw High School in East Cleveland, he acquired a six-string classical guitar. He played local night clubs and various coffeehouses in the Cleveland area such as "La Cave" and "Faragher's Back Room". His first position in a group was as a backup musician with Irish folk singers Gusty & Sean at Fagan's Beacon House in the Flats of

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, Ohio. While a student at the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classified ...

, Bevan was introduced to his first producer, Eric Stevens, who signed him to

Big Tree Records Big Tree Records was a record label founded by Doug Morris in 1970. It was best known for releases by Lobo, England Dan & John Ford Coley, Brownsville Station, Johnny Rivers, Dave and Ansel Collins, Canadian band April Wine April Wine is a C ...

. His first album, ''No Truth to Sell'', was released in 1971 along with the single "Linda's Song" b/w "Brady Street Hotel", which got some airplay. Between 1971 and 1979, Bevan performed as an opening act for such headliners as the

Earl Scruggs Earl Eugene Scruggs (January 6, 1924 – March 28, 2012) was an American musician noted for popularizing a three-finger banjo picking style, now called "Scruggs style", which is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music. His three-fin ...

Review,

Pure Prairie League Pure Prairie League is an American country rock band whose origins go back to 1965 and Waverly, Ohio, with singer and guitarist Craig Fuller, drummer Tom McGrail, guitarist and drummer Jim Caughlan and steel guitarist John David Call. Fuller st ...

, The

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country rock band formed in 1966. The group has existed in various forms since its founding in Long Beach, California. Between 1976 and 1981, the band performed and recorded as the Dirt Band. Constant ...

Jerry Jeff Walker Jerry Jeff Walker (born Ronald Clyde Crosby; March 16, 1942 – October 23, 2020) was an American country music and folk singer-songwriter. He was a leading figure in the progressive country and outlaw country music movement. He was best ...

Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (born December 25, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, and businessman. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffet ...

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...

Bo Diddley Ellas McDaniel (born Ellas Otha Bates; December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, incl ...

Livingston Taylor Livingston Taylor (born November 21, 1950) is an American singer-songwriter and folk musician. Born in Boston and raised in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, he is the brother of singer-songwriter James Taylor, singer-songwriter Kate Taylor, singer A ...

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist and songwriter. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man (song), Piano Man" after his album and signature song of the same name, he has led a commercially successful career as a solo ...

and others.

Musical career

The release of the album ''Springboard'' got him some public recognition due to the local hit song ''Skinny Little Boy''. In 1977 he performed on the air on Cleveland's

WMMS WMMS (100.7 FM) – branded ''100.7 WMMS: The Buzzard'' – is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio. Widely regarded as one of the most influential rock st ...

Radio with a band called ''Alex Bevan and the Buzzard Band'', featuring DJ Matt the Cat on guitar. He performed in the mid-1970s with an acoustic trio consisting of two guitars and electric bass, and opened for such acts as

Seals and Crofts Seals and Crofts was an American soft rock duo made up of James Eugene Seals (October 17, 1942 – June 6, 2022) and Darrell George "Dash" Crofts (born August 14, 1938) They are best known for their hits "Summer Breeze (song), Summer Breeze" (1 ...

, The

Michael Stanley Band Michael Stanley (born Michael Stanley Gee; March 25, 1948 – March 5, 2021) was an American singer-songwriter, musician, radio and television personality. Both as a solo artist and with the Michael Stanley Band (MSB), his brand of heartland r ...

, The

Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in 1970 in San Jose, California, known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies. Active for five decades, with their greatest success in the 1970s, ...

and

Hall & Oates Daryl Hall and John Oates, commonly known as Hall & Oates, are an American pop rock duo formed in Philadelphia in 1970. Daryl Hall is generally the lead vocalist; John Oates primarily plays electric guitar and provides backing vocals. The two ...

. He soon added David Krauss from the band Tiny Alice to the group, supplying percussion and harmonica. They toured either under the name ''Grand River Band'' or ''Alex Bevan and Friends'' from 1979 until 1981, and produced the albums ''The Grand River Lullaby'', ''Alex Bevan and Friends Live'', and ''Simple Things Done Well''. In the early 80's Bevan produced the direct-to-disk

digital Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits. Technology and computing Hardware *Digital electronics, electronic circuits which operate using digital signals **Digital camera, which captures and stores digital i ...

solo album ''Tales of the Low Tech Troubadour Vol. 1''. He played in the band ''Alex Bevan & Cuttlefish'' from 1984 through 1986. In the late 80s to early 90s, he produced the albums ''Best Kept Secrets'', ''Cuttlefish Live'', and ''Watersongs''. His latest releases include ''South Shore Serenade'', ''Rules of the Road'', ''Fall & Angels'' and ''Live at the Kent Stage''. An avid producer of folk music, he has produced five recordings for the popular

Put-in-Bay Put-in-Bay is a village located on South Bass Island in Put-in-Bay Township, Ottawa County, Ohio, United States, east of Toledo. The population was 154 at the 2020 census. The village is a popular summer resort and recreational destinati ...

/Key West performer Pat Dailey, and written over one hundred radio and TV commercials. He still plays many venues, including the Hessler Street and Coventry Street Fairs in Greater Cleveland, Ohio, the

Starwood Festival The Starwood Festival is a seven-day Neo-Pagan, New Age, multi-cultural and world music festival, taking place every July in the United States of America. The Starwood Festival is a camping event which holds workshops on a variety of subjects. Th ...

, Put-In Bay, the Burning River Festival, Cain Park, and

Kelleys Island Kelleys Island is both a village in Erie County, Ohio, and the island which it fully occupies in Lake Erie. The British originally called it Sandusky Island. Later the United States took it over and officially designated it as Island Number 6 ...

. Bevan organized a benefit for fellow Cleveland area singer-songwriter

John Bassette John Bassette (December 28, 1941 – November 9, 2006) was a folk singer/songwriter, poet and cable television personality in the Greater Cleveland, Ohio, United States, area. He was born in Hampton, Virginia, USA. Musical career Bassette fi ...

on 19 May 2002 at the Beachland Ballroom & Tavern in Cleveland, OH, featuring Jim Ballard, Charlie Wiener, Michael Stanley, Jim Schafer, and many others. In 2007 a tribute CD for Bassette, ''Been Through So Much Together: The Songs of John Bassette'', was released by Skylyne Records, which featured Bevan and others. The tribute album was produced by Akron Songwriter and Producer and Bevan pal, Jim Ballard. Around the same time, Bevan released a posthumous collection of previously-unreleased songs by John Bassette called ''Rainbow Colored Clouds''. He also plays for the Roots of American Music Annual Benefit for Education.

Radio

Bevan appeared on the premiere broadcast of Cleveland's WNCR Radio station's Sunday night live concerts from Agency Recording in 1971. He was a frequent guest artist on WMMS' Coffeebreak Concerts, and co-hosted a show with

David Spero David Spero was a rock-radio pioneer in the 1970s and is a high-profile music manager and owner of the Cleveland office of Alliance Artists Ltd. Radio DJ At the age of 13, before beginning his career as a DJ at WXEN (now WHLK), WNCR (now ...

called ''A Folk Special for a Sunday Afternoon''. He also hosted a Saturday morning radio show on WMMS Cleveland for a short time. In 1988 Bevan did a series of musical radio advertisements for the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

. A new song each week of the season recapped the game from the week before and set up the upcoming game. Each week's song was in a different musical style.

Children's programs

Bevan collaborated with David Young on his first children's album, a musical fairytale with an environmental message titled ''Who Killed the Dragon?''. This was followed by two award-winning critically acclaimed works: ''Magic Moments from the Children's Nature Schoolhouse'' (produced for the Lake Metroparks) and ''All the Rivers Run'' (Produced for the Cuyahoga Valley Environmental Education Center).

Personal life

Bevan and his wife Deidre reside in

North Madison, Ohio North Madison is a census-designated place (CDP) comprising the unincorporated communities of Redbird and Madison-on-the-Lake in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 8,547 at the 2010 census. The CDP is located north of the uninc ...

. Bevan has a son, with a different wife named William Cody Bevan. The couple owned and operated two businesses: a line of home-grown gourmet pickles called Skinny Pickles and Stone Dragon Bakery. Those businesses are now closed.

Awards

Bevan won an

Emmy award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for his postscore of ''The Rustbelt Blues'' (1987), the final segment of

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

’s ''American Promise'' documentary series.

Discography

* ''No Truth to Sell'' (1971) Big Tree Records * ''Springboard'' (1976) Fiddler's Wynde (CD reissued by Little Fish Records) * ''The Grand River Lullaby'' (1978) Fiddler's Wynde (CD reissued by Little Fish Records) * ''Alex Bevan and Friends Live: Come for to See You...Come for to Sing!'' (1980) * ''Simple Things Done Well'' (1981) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Tales of the Low Tech Troubadour Vol. 1'' * ''Best Kept Secrets'' (1985) * ''Cuttlefish Live'' * ''Watersongs'' (1998) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Homework'' (CD – 31 October 2000) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Sweetwater Pete'' (23 January 2006) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Invitation'' (26 February 2008) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Who Killed the Dragon?'' (with David Young) * ''Magic Moments from the Children's Nature Schoolhouse'' – Lake Metroparks * ''D.A.T.'s The Way It's Done!'' (1992) Fiddler's Wynde Music – Cassette * ''All the Rivers Run'' – Cuyahoga Valley Environmental Education Center * ''South Shore Serenade'' (26 March 1998) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Rules of the Road'' (26 March 1998) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Live at the Kent Stage: Dancing With the Muse'' (18 November 2008) Little Fish Records * ''Connected to the Web'' (24 February 2004) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Fall & Angels'' (2008) Little Fish Records * ''A Tribute to the Great Lakes'' (with Pat Dailey & Murdock) (2006) Centers for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence * ''Fly Away'' (2010) Fiddler's Wynde * ''I have No Wings'' (2012) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Dreams Came'' (2015) Fiddler's Wynde (Alex Bevan and David J. Young) * ''Boomer'' (24 January 2016) Fiddler's Wynde * ''True Meridian'' (1 June 2017) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Hunker Downtime Demos'' (25 June 2020) Fiddler's Wynde * ''Sparrow'' (20 May 2023) Fiddler's Wynde

Also appears on

* ''The Pride of Cleveland: WMMS FM 101'' – Various (1980) (CD release 2002 Esquire Records) * ''Raw Bars'' – Pat Dailey (with Macaw) (1994) Olympia Records Inc. * ''Shorelines'' – Pat Dailey – Olympia Records * ''Pat Dailey Live 'N' Kickin'' (2000) Olympia Records Inc. * ''Woodchoppers Ball'' – Various (2007) Divine Wind Records * ''Been Through So Much Together: The Songs of John Bassette'' – Various (2007) Skylyne Records * ''...In Blue'' – Mike Calzone (2007) Little Fish Records

Filmography

Bevan performs in the TV special ''The Return of the Cuyahoga'' (2008) – Florentine Films/Hott Productions Inc., America's River Communities, Inc., and WVIZ/PBS ideastreamNew York Times Movie Website
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Media appearances

* *

Notes

References

* ''Radio Daze: Stories from the Front in Cleveland's FM Air Wars'' by Mike Olszewski (2003) Kent State University Press , * ''Rock 'n' Roll and the Cleveland Connection'' by Deanna R. Adams (2002) Kent State University Press ,

External links

* http://www.alexbevan.com Alex Bevan's Website
Skinny Pickles Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bevan, Alex Singers from Cleveland Radio personalities from Cleveland 1950 births Living people Singer-songwriters from Ohio Guitarists from Ohio American male guitarists 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians American male singer-songwriters Big Tree Records artists