Al Marotta

Posted by admin on Oct 8, 2013 in | 0 comments

A native of New York City by way of Washington DC, keyboardist Al Marotta has played in bands since childhood, starting with an abiding love for the music of British rock giants such as The Beatles, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Traffic, and The Who. As a teenager during the 1970's, getting into more progressive music, the likes of Jethro Tull, Yes, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Allman Brothers, Doobie Brothers, Michael McDonald, Frank Zappa, and Steely Dan, opened his ears, mind and playing further. Then, in college, Al heard jazz, and that's when it all came together! Jazz giants such as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Lee Morgan, Kenny Dorham, Thelonious Monk, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Bill Evans, Weather Report, and so many more, greatly informed his musical development. 

In the 1980's, Al became part of Washington DC's burgeoning new wave and reggae music scene spearheaded by bands like Bad Brains and Minor Threat, with whom he forged friendships. In response, Al founded a progressive original reggae band, The Lionhearts, which went on to achieve a good degree of regional success. After moving back to New York in the 90's to raise a family, Al went on to lead local jazz trio 3AM, as well as participating in various local jazz artists’ ensembles (Frank Lowe - Alice Coltrane; Michael Marcus - Don Sickler). In 1996, Al moved to Los Angeles, where he allied himself with a multitude of many great local musicians including Cory Phillips (R&B), Joe Sax (rock), Rat Soup (funk), and LA Standard Time (jazz), to name a few. Al’s love of the music, coupled with his high energy and musicality, make for exciting and satisfying performances wherever he happens to find himself.