Peter-John Vettese (born 15 August 1956 in Scotland), also known as Peter Vettese, is a Scottish keyboardist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. Vettese is perhaps best known for being the keyboardist for

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. I ...

band Jethro Tull for most of the 1980s.

Early life

Peter Vettese grew up in a musical family in

Brechin Brechin (; gd, Breichin) is a city and former Royal burgh in Angus, Scotland. Traditionally Brechin was described as a city because of its cathedral and its status as the seat of a pre-Reformation Roman Catholic diocese (which continues today ...

, Angus, Scotland. He began his music studies with piano lessons at the age of 4. At 9, he began playing in public with his father's band. He left home at 17 to join one of the UK's biggest dance hall Big Bands, but was fired for rehearsing in company time with his own group. He then formed the jazz fusion group Solaris with guitarist Jim Condie, and toured Scotland and the US. He was playing in pubs and clubs in Scotland when he saw an advertisement for keyboard players in the music newspaper ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...

'', which turned out to be from the

band Jethro Tull.

Jethro Tull

Vettese joined Jethro Tull in 1982 for the recording of their album '' The Broadsword and the Beast'', and toured with the band extensively for the next couple of years, appearing on the album '' Live at Hammersmith '84''. Vettese made significant contributions to Tull's heavily electronic album '' Under Wraps'', (1984) toured with them again in 1986, and recorded as a guest musician on '' Rock Island'' (1989). Vettese also collaborated with Tull's frontman

Ian Anderson Ian Scott Anderson (born 10 August 1947) is a British musician, singer and songwriter best known for his work as the lead vocalist, flautist, acoustic guitarist and leader of the British rock band Jethro Tull. He is a multi-instrumentalist ...

on Anderson's 1983 solo album, ''

Walk into Light ''Walk into Light'' is the debut solo album released by Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson, released in 1983. (The album '' A'' was originally intended to be released as an Ian Anderson album, but instead was released as a Jethro Tull album.) ...

''. Vettese co-wrote half the songs on the album, which is notable for his innovative contributions on

electronic keyboard An electronic keyboard, portable keyboard, or digital keyboard is an electronic musical instrument, an electronic derivative of keyboard instruments. Electronic keyboards include synthesizers, digital pianos, stage pianos, electronic organs ...

Later career

Vettese began an independent career as a songwriter, arranger and producer. In the 1980s he worked with and produced a diverse range of artists including Cutting Crew,

Frankie Goes to Hollywood Frankie Goes to Hollywood were an English synth-pop band formed in Liverpool in 1980. The group's best-known line-up comprised Holly Johnson (vocals), Paul Rutherford (singer), Paul Rutherford (backing vocals), Peter Gill (FGTH drummer), Peter ...

, Go West,

Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo ...

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Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

, Foreigner,

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and

Clannad Clannad () is an Irish band formed in 1970 in Gweedore, County Donegal by siblings Ciarán, Pól, and Moya Brennan and their twin uncles Noel and Pádraig Duggan. They have adopted various musical styles throughout their history, including ...

. In 1987, he fulfilled a boyhood dream to play with

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

as a session musician, but he later turned down an offer to become a member of McCartney's re-formed band Wings. More recently he has worked with

Box of Frogs Box of Frogs were an English rock band formed in 1983 by former members of the Yardbirds, who released their first album in 1984. The core group consisted of Chris Dreja, Paul Samwell-Smith, and Jim McCarty. Vocals on their eponymous album w ...

Simple Minds Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977. They have released a string of hit singles, becoming best known internationally for " Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the '' Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United ...

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(the Grammy winning arrangement of ''

Walking on Broken Glass "Walking on Broken Glass" is a song written and performed by Scottish singer Annie Lennox, included on her debut solo studio album, '' Diva'' (1992). Released on 10 August 1992, the single peaked at number one in Canada, number eight in the Unit ...

''), Zucchero,

Simon Nicol Simon John Breckenridge Nicol (born 13 October 1950) is an English guitarist, singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He was a founding member of British folk rock group Fairport Convention and is the only founding member still in the ...

, Peter Cox, Heather Small, Dido, Sophie B. Hawkins,

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, Hanne Boel, Gary Barlow, Mark Owen,

Geri Halliwell Geraldine Estelle Horner (née Halliwell; born 6 August 1972) is an English singer, songwriter, author, and actress. She rose to prominence in the 1990s as Ginger Spice, a member of the girl group the Spice Girls. With over 100 million records ...

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(most notably on the album '' 50 St. Catherine's Drive'') Laura Critchley, Peter Heppner and Spark. Vettese is currently signed to Kobalt Music and has his own recording studio in

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batt ...

where he also writes, produces, and records music for film soundtracks.

Selected discography

With Jethro Tull

*'' The Broadsword and the Beast'' (1982) *'' Under Wraps'' (1984) *'' Rock Island'' (1989 - as guest member)

With Ian Anderson

*''

'' (1983)

With Bee Gees

*''

One 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

'' (1989) *'' Still Waters'' (1997) *'' This Is Where I Came In'' (2001)

With Simple Minds

*''

Real Life Real life is a phrase used originally in literature to distinguish between the real world and fictional, virtual or idealized worlds, and in acting to distinguish between actors and the characters they portray. It has become a popular term on the ...

'' (1991)

With Julian Lennon

*'' Everything Changes'' (2011) *'' Jude'' (2022)

With Robin Gibb

*'' 50 St. Catherine's Drive'' (2014)

References

External links

*
Biography on official Jethro Tull site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vettese, Peter-John 1956 births Living people People from Brechin Scottish keyboardists Scottish songwriters Scottish record producers Jethro Tull (band) members Scottish people of Italian descent