Jim Leverton (born 1946,

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, England) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

professional musician, with a career spanning nearly fifty years, including as a sidesman to the

Jimi Hendrix Experience James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

Noel Redding David Noel Redding (25 December 1945 – 11 May 2003) was an English rock musician, best known as the bass player for the Jimi Hendrix Experience and guitarist/singer for Fat Mattress. Following his departure from the Experience in 1969 a ...

Steve Marriott Stephen Peter Marriott (30 January 1947 – 20 April 1991) was an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He co-founded and played in the rock bands Small Faces and Humble Pie, in a career spanning over two decades. Marriott was inducted po ...

Blodwyn Pig Blodwyn Pig was a British blues rock musical ensemble, band, founded in 1968 by guitarist–vocalist–songwriter Mick Abrahams. Career Abrahams left Jethro Tull (band), Jethro Tull after their debut album, ''This Was'', was released, due to a ...

and the

Canterbury scene The Canterbury scene (or Canterbury sound) was a musical scene centred on the town of Canterbury, Kent, England during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Associated with progressive rock, the term describes a loosely-defined, improvisational styl ...

band

Caravan Caravan or caravans may refer to: Transport and travel *Caravan (travellers), a group of travellers journeying together **Caravanserai, a place where a caravan could stop *Camel train, a convoy using camels as pack animals *Convoy, a group of veh ...

Early years

After leaving school in

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a port town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour and shipping port for most of the 19th and 20t ...

in 1964, Leverton spent a short while as an apprentice bricklayer but it was not long before he decided his future was as a musician. By the early 1960s he was already working in semi-professional beat groups in and around Dover, including The Big Beats (1962–63). By 1964 he was ready to work full-time in music, and joined The Burnettes from Folkestone who had Leverton's friend

on guitar. They broke up 18 months later having released two singles. Leverton soon joined another band with Noel Redding, The Loving Kind (1965–67) formerly The Lonely Ones. They released three singles for

Pye Records Pye Records was a British record label. Its best known artists were Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), the Searchers (1963–1967), the Kinks (1964–1971), Sandie Shaw (1964–1971), Status Quo (1968–1971) and Brotherhoo ...

including a

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo ar ...

's "Ain't That Peculiar". Redding left the band to join the

, but The Loving Kind continued for a while and Leverton worked as a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

with Tom Jones,

Gilbert O'Sullivan Raymond Edward "Gilbert" O'Sullivan (born 1 December 1946) is an Irish singer-songwriter who achieved his most significant success during the early 1970s with hits including "Alone Again (Naturally)", " Clair", and " Get Down". O'Sullivan's s ...

and Engelbert Humperdinck. When Redding formed his new band

Fat Mattress Fat Mattress were an England, English folk rock band that formed in Folkestone in 1968. Founded by guitarist and vocalist Noel Redding, during his time as bassist for The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and vocalist Neil Landon, the band was completed ...

(1968–70) he was reunited with Leverton alongside

Neil Landon Neil Landon (born Patrick Cahill, 26 July 1941 – 26 March 2020) was an English singer, who has been credited with singing on a number of hits in the UK Singles Chart. In addition, he was a singer and songwriter with the band Fat Mattress, ...

(vocals) and Eric Dillon (drums). The band toured America and released two albums.

Later career

Leverton joined Juicy Lucy (1971) but left after their tour of America to take a few months rest. He was soon back at work, this time with Ellis (1972) fronted by the former Love Affair singer, Steve Ellis, and including keyboard player

Zoot Money George Bruno Money (born 17 July 1942) is an English vocalist, keyboardist and bandleader. He is best known for his playing of the Hammond organ and association with his Big Roll Band. Inspired by Jerry Lee Lewis and Ray Charles, he was drawn ...

. Next came two years with Hemlock (1972-3) led by Miller Anderson. Their album ''Hemlock'' was released on

Deram Records Deram Records was a subsidiary record label of Decca Records established in the United Kingdom in 1966. At the time, U.K. Decca was a different company from the Decca label in the United States, which was owned by MCA Inc. Deram recordings w ...

in 1973 and the band toured the UK, Europe and America. He moved on to work on a solo album for

Henry McCullough Henry Campbell Liken McCullough (21 July 1943 – 14 June 2016) was a Northern Irish guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was best known for his work as a member of Spooky Tooth, The Grease Band and Paul McCartney and Wings. He also perfo ...

leading to a lifelong friendship. He also gigged with singer

Frankie Miller Francis John Miller (born 2 November 1949) is a Scottish rock singer-songwriter and actor. Miller wrote for and performed with many recording artists and is best known for his 1977 album ''Full House'', the singles "Be Good To Yourself", " D ...

before joining

Savoy Brown Savoy Brown (originally Savoy Brown Blues Band) were an English blues rock band formed in Battersea, south west London, in 1965. Part of the late 1960s blues rock movement, Savoy Brown primarily achieved success in the United States, where they ...

(1974) touring the States and releasing the album ''Boogie Brothers''. In 1975 he spent some time with

Leo Sayer Gerard Hugh "Leo" Sayer (born 21 May 1948) is an English-Australian singer and songwriter whose singing career has spanned five decades. He has been an Australian citizen and resident since 2009. Sayer launched his career in the United Kingdom ...

's band before joining Joe Brown and the Bruvvers (1976–77) and linking up again with Zoot Money. In 1978,

a long-time friend of Joe Brown went to one of their gigs. He needed a bass player/vocalist, heard Leverton and persuaded Leverton and Brown that they should join Steve Marriott and Blind Drunk (1978–79). That was the start of a long working relationship with Marriott until his death in 1991. Marriott and Leverton were together in a succession of Marriott led bands, including Steve Marriott and Packet of Three (1980-1991). The album ''

Majik Mijits ''The Legendary Majik Mijits'' is an album that was recorded by former Small Faces members Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane when they reformed under the name of ''Majik Mijits'' in 1981 and gave a one-off concert at the Bridgehouse pub in East Lond ...

'' was recorded with Marriott and Ronnie Lane and was released in 2000. A number of live albums are also still available today. Ine the 1990s, Leverton briefly joined the reformed

and subsequently played with

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer. Due to his virtuosic playing, but relative lack of fame compared to some others, he has been referred to as "the greatest ...

from 1992. He then met Geoffrey Richardson. They started a long and successful gigging partnership, and they recorded their first album ''Follow Your Heart'' in 1996. Meanwhile, in 1995 Richardson, who had been with

since the early 1970s, suggested Leverton as a replacement.

Current

Leverton continues to play with Caravan and with The Blue Devils in Kent. He also plays bass with

Rocky and the Natives Rocky and the Natives are an English country rock band, formed in 2011 in Kent. The band is composed of songwriter/musicians Chris Godden (guitar/lap steel guitar) and Malcolm Barnard (vocals) and featuring Jim Leverton (bass), Andy Newmark (dr ...

alongside

Andy Newmark Andrew Newmark (born July 14, 1950)

(drums), Chris Godden (guitar), Malcolm Barnard (vocals) and Geoffrey Richardson (violin) and produced their debut album ''Let’s Hear it for the Old Guys'' in 2013.

Selected discography

* 1969: ''Fat Mattress'',

* 1970: ''Fat Mattress II'', Fat Mattress * 1971: ''Get a Whiff a This'', Juicy Lucy * 1972: ''Riding on the Crest of a Slump'',

Ellis Ellis is a surname of Welsh and English origin. Retrieved 21 January 2014 An independent French origin of the surname is said to derive from the phrase fleur-de-lis. Surname A * Abe Ellis (Stargate), a fictional character in the TV series ' ...

* 1973: ''Hemlock'', Hemlock * 1974: ''Boogie Brothers'',

* 1975: ''Mind Your Own Business'',

* 1993: ''Packet of Three: Live'',

* 1995: ''The Battle of Hastings'',

* 1998: ''

Dingwalls Dingwalls was a live music and comedy venue adjacent to Camden Lock, Camden, London, England. The building itself is one of many industrial Victorian buildings that were put to new use in the 20th century. The original owner of the building, ...

6.7.84'', Steve Marriott * 2000: ''The Legendary Majik Mijits'', Steve Marriott and

Ronnie Lane Ronald Frederick Lane (1 April 1946 – 4 June 1997) was an English musician and songwriter who is best known as the bass guitarist and founding member of Small Faces (1965–69) and subsequently Faces (1969–73). Lane formed Small Faces in ...

* 2003: ''Poor Man's Rich Man'', Jim Leverton and Geoffrey Richardson * 2003: ''Nowhere to Hide'', Caravan * 2005: ''Bright New Way'', Jim Leverton * 2006: ''End of the Pier Show'', Jim Leverton and Geoffrey Richardson * 2012: ''

Lennon Bermuda ''Lennon Bermuda'' is a tribute album and book inspired by John Lennon’s visit to Bermuda in 1980, where he wrote a portion of his ''Double Fantasy'' album. The ''Lennon Bermuda'' boxed set comprises two discs by various artists with a connectio ...

'', (Disc 2, Track 9) with

* 2013: ''Let's Hear It For the Old Guys'', Rocky and the Natives

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leverton, Jim 1946 births Living people English rock bass guitarists Male bass guitarists People from Dover, Kent Musicians from Kent Fat Mattress members Caravan (band) members Blodwyn Pig members