Greg Hawkes
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Greg Hawkes (born October 22, 1952[1]) is musician best known as the keyboardist for the New Wave group The Cars.
Hawkes, a native of Fulton, Maryland, attended Atholton High School where he played in a band called Teeth. He then attended Berklee College of Music for two years, majoring in composition and flute. He left to play in various bands, including Martin Mull and his Fabulous Furniture, where he played flute, saxophones and clarinet. He also played in a band called Richard and The Rabbits, which included future Cars bandmates Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr.
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[edit] The Cars
Greg Hawkes' most notable involvement was with The Cars. Hawkes pushed the limits of available technology and sequencing helping to forge the sound of the 1980s. His signature sounds include the Prophet-5 "touch sync" sound heard on "Let's Go" and "Hello Again" as well as arpeggiated and syncopated synth lines such as on "Shake it Up" and "Heartbeat City".
[edit] Other
Hawkes also played with Ric Ocasek as a solo artist, often playing both keyboards and bass guitar. He also did a solo album, Niagara Falls, which was released in 1983. He also plays guitar, percussion instruments, saxophone, clarinet and ukulele. He recently came out with a solo album on the ukulele, The Beatles Uke.
Hawkes also contributes to the alternative band 'Fierce Tibetan Gods' and to date writes lyrics, composes and arranges, and has contributed vocal, keyboard, and studio processing to all three of FTG's three CD's, from 1998 to the present.
[edit] Current
Hawkes lives in Lincoln, Massachusetts, where he works as a session musician. He was also a member of The New Cars[1], a quasi-reformation of The Cars also featuring original guitarist Elliot Easton. Filling in for other original Cars members are singer/guitarist Todd Rundgren, Utopia bassist/vocalist Kasim Sulton and former Tubes drummer Prairie Prince. Atom Ellis fills in at bass when Kasim is touring with Meatloaf. The band toured through the 2006–2007 season. A new live album with three studio tracks, It's Alive!, was released in June 2006.
Since 2001 Hawkes' has been playing and experimenting with the Ukulele.
Hawkes' ukulele renditions of The Cars songs can be heard here:
- "My Best Friend's Girl" ukuleledisco.com/bestgirl
- "Drive" ukuleledisco.com/drive
- "Tonight She Comes" ukuleledisco.com/shecomes
- "You Might Think" ukuleledisco.com/youmightthink
In 2008, Greg Hawkes[2] released “The Beatles Uke” CD (Solid Air Records), with instrumental versions of 15 Beatles classics (over 45 minutes of music) in what he calls a “UKEsymphonic” style, using multi-tracked recordings to create a ukulele orchestra. The CD is timeless testimony to the influence that Paul McCartney and the Beatles have had on Hawkes’ music and career.
In December 2008, Greg played a live web streamed solo performance from Cybersound Studios in Boston, to a virtual stage inside the Web game 'Second Life,' becoming the first publicly known rock musician to do a live real time virtual music show in cyberspace. The performance consisted of Cars covers, Beatles songs, and songs by The Fierce Tibetan Gods. Greg played ukelele, guitar and keyboards, and sang vocals for this historic show. Gregs Second Life solo concert was produced and coordinated for him by Gaius Luminos of Galaxy Productions, and is available for public viewing online on Second Life's SLCN TV Network.
Recently Greg has been playing with The Turtles (starring Flo and Eddie), and as of May 2009, sessioning in studio with The Fierce Tibetan Gods for their forthcoming release 'Monks, Tanks, and The Saffron Revoluton.'
[edit] Solo Album/Singles
- Niagara Falls (1982 Passport Records)
- "Jet Lag" (1983)
- "Backseat Waltz" (1983)
- "The Beatles Uke" (2008 Solid Air Records)
[edit] Albums with 'Fierce Tibetan Gods'
- "Dreams of Earth and Sky' (1998 Virtual Recordings)
- "Forbidden Frequencies" (2000 Virtual Recordings)
- "Monks, Tanks, and The Saffron Revolution" (2009, Virtual Recordings)
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Greg Hawkes's Official Website
- Greg Hawkes 2 hour interview on RundgrenRadio.com
- Greg Hawkes performs Eleanor Rigby
- Greg Hawkes on the Keyboards Special on RundgrenRadio.com
- Fierce Tibetan Gods Website
- Greg Hawkes live virtual solo show in Second Life, 2/12/08, produced by Gaius Luminos and Galaxy Productions
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