Nick D'Virgilio

Nick D'Virgilio
Nick D'Virgilio in concert with Spock's Beard at BB Kings, NYC, April 27, 2007.
Background information
Birth name	Nicholas D'Virgilio
Born	12 November 1968 (age 42)
Origin	Whittier, CA
Genres	Progressive rock
Occupations	Musician
Instruments	drums, vocals, keyboards, guitar, trumpet, bass guitar
Years active	1992-
Associated acts	Spock's Beard, Genesis, Big Big Train
Website	http://www.ndvmusic.com/

Nick D'Virgilio is an American drummer and multi-instrumentalist musician, often referred to as NDV, best known as a former member of the progressive rock band Spock's Beard. He was also one of two drummers chosen to replace Phil Collins in Genesis on the Calling All Stations album. He has also done session work with many artists including Tears for Fears, and is an official member of Big Big Train.

Career

D'Virgilio has been the drummer in Spock's Beard since the band began in the early 1990s. After Neal Morse left in 2002, D'Virgilio took over on lead vocals and has since recorded four albums, Feel Euphoria, Octane, the self titled Spock's Beard, and X.

In 1994, D'Virgilio joined Kevin Gilbert's reformed band Giraffe for a one-off performance of the Genesis piece "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" at Progfest '94. In 1995, he performed drums as part of Gilbert's touring band, Thud, which recorded a live album, Live at the Troubadour, released in 1999. After Gilbert's death in 1996, D'Virgilio was asked by Gilbert's estate to complete his second solo album, The Shaming of the True, based on the extant tapes and Gilbert's notes. Shaming was released posthumously in 2000 and has D'Virgilio on many tracks contributing drums, percussion, bass, guitar, keyboards and backing vocals. In November 2002, D'Virgilio headlined Progwest in Claremont, California and played the entire The Shaming of the True album live in a band consisting of other friends and colleagues of Gilbert's. In 2008, video tapes of the Troubadour concert were uncovered for the first time, leading to a DVD, entitled Welcome to Joytown - Thud Live at The Troubadour, released in 2009.^{[citation needed]}

D'Virgilio was a full member of the Mike Keneally Band from 2001 to 2004, playing on the tour supporting Keneally's 2000 album Dancing and later providing drums and vocals on the 2004 album Dog, as can be seen on the DVD included as part of the Dog Special Edition in both live as well as "making-of" studio footage. Previous Keneally drummer Joe Travers took D'Virgilio's place in the band for the subsequent Guitar Therapy tour.

D'Virgilio's first solo album, Karma, was recorded in 2001 at Kevin Gilbert's former studio, Lawnmower and Garden Supplies Studio, in Pasadena. The album included performances by Mike Keneally and Bryan Beller, D'Virgilio's bandmates in The Mike Keneally Band. D'Virgilio also served as the chief engineer on Beller's solo album View, recorded at the same studio as Karma.

D'Virgilio filled in for Mark Zonder on Fates Warning's summer tour with Dream Theater and Queensrÿche in 2003. Zonder's prior commitments prevented him from taking part in the tour, and he ceased performing with the band following its 2005 release FWX due to a reported aversion to touring. D'Virgilio played with the band on a handful of gigs supporting that album and appeared on the 2006 DVD release Live in Athens.

D'Virgilio has appeared on Jordan Rudess' 2007 album The Road Home and on several releases by Big Big Train, their albums The Difference Machine (2007) and The Underfall Yard (2009), and the 2010 EP Far Skies Deep Time.

On July 26, 2011, D'Virgilio released a solo EP called Pieces. He performed a show in Quebec City, Canada performing the EP in its entirety with local musicians on the day of the album release.

On November 18, 2011, D'Virgillio announced that he's left Spock's Beard, because of his work with Cirque Du Soleil: "It is very hard for me to write this, but as all good things come to an end at sometime or another, unfortunately I have to tell you all that my time with Spock’s Beard has come to a close."

Discography

Solo Albums

• Karma (2001)
• Pieces (EP) (2011)

With Spock's Beard

Studio albums

Main article: Spock's Beard discography

• The Light (1995)
• Beware of Darkness (1996)
• The Kindness of Strangers (1998)
• Day for Night (1999)
• V (2000)
• Snow (2002)
• Feel Euphoria (2003)
• Octane (2005)
• Spock's Beard (2006)
• X (2010)

Live albums

• Official Live Bootleg/The Beard is Out There (1996) (recorded 1995)
• Live at the Whisky and NEARfest (1999)
• Don't Try This at Home (April 2000) (recorded 1999) (live)
• Nick 'n Neal live in Europe - Two Separate Gorillas (October, 2000) (From the Vaults, Series 2)
• Don't Try This @ Home Either (2000) (recorded 1999) (live - From the Vaults, Series 3)
• There and Here (2000) (live - From the Vaults, Series 4)
• The Beard Is Out There-Live (2003)
• Gluttons for Punishment (2005) (live)
• Live (2008) (live)

With Genesis

• Calling All Stations (1997)

With Mike Keneally Band

• Dog (2004)

With Big Big Train

• The Difference Machine (2007)
• The Underfall Yard (2009)
• Far Skies Deep Time (2010)
• English Electric (tbc)^{[citation needed]}

Rewiring Genesis

• A Tribute to the Lamb Lies Down on Broadway (2008)

External links

• Official website
• Rubinoos website