Steve Adams (musician)

Steve Adams
Birth name	Steven Rue Adams
Born	(1975-01-16) January 16, 1975 San Jose, California, United States
Genres	rock, jam
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instrument(s)	bass guitar, string bass, keys, vocals
Labels	Brushfire Records
Website	www.stevenrueadams.com

Steven Rue Adams (born January 16, 1975 San Jose, California) is a California-based American bassist and co-founder of San Francisco rock/pop/jamband Animal Liberation Orchestra (aka, ALO). In addition to his work with ALO, Steve has toured and recorded with many other musicians. Recording credits include Jack Johnson, Tim Bluhm, Nicki Bluhm, Zach Gill, Forest Sun, John Craigie and Big Light. Performing credits include Brett Dennen, Sara Bareilles, Tea Leaf Green, Laurie Lewis and Matt Costa.

Biography

Early years

Steve was born in San Jose, and has been in California most of his life. He lived in Germany for a couple years where his little brother was born. By age 5, his family had settled in Saratoga, California. Steve and his two brothers and one sister all studied music growing up. His older sister studied piano and his older brother, the baritone horn. Steve took piano lessons off and on from age 5 and up. He also joined the school string orchestra in 5th grade playing violin, and played alto saxophone in the school concert band in 6th and 7th grades.

By the end of 7th grade, Steve had met up with future ALO bandmates Zach Gill and Dan Lebowitz to form their first rock band, One Percent Away. Steve bought a short-scale electric bass guitar and started lessons at the local guitar store, Torres Guitars, as well as taking notes from Gill's dad. The band changed their name to Django in high school and recorded their first album during their senior year, entitled Contact.

College years

Steve and his bandmates left for Santa Barbara, California after graduating high school to pursue degrees in music. After waivering between different studies within the UCSB Music Department, Steve took his last couple years of college to focus on a degree in ethnomusicology, writing his final thesis on the origin and evolution of Mariachi music from Mexico. Steve was also very active in the Jazz and Middle Eastern Music Ensembles. In the middle of college, Django had picked up drummer Dave Brogan for the Summer, just before folding the project all together. Following Django, Steve and bandmates Gill and Lebowitz continued creating new bands, including Magnum Family, I.V. Dogs, The LAG Acoustic Buffet and eventually, in their last year at UCSB, The Animal Liberation Orchestra & The Free Range Horns.

After graduating from UCSB, Steve went on tour with Gill, Lebowitz and high school friend Rob Binkley, driving around the U.S. playing coffee shops, bars, small clubs and street corners, under the name The BLAG Buffet. On this trip, Steve acquired his grandfather's Vega Artist banjo upon a pitsop visit in Billings, MT. Upon his return to CA, Steve resettled back in his hometown of Saratoga for a few months, just before moving to San Francisco, California, which would be his home for the next 6 years.

San Francisco years

In San Francisco, Steve worked restaurant jobs and eventually picked up a full-time job at a design firm where he learned print and web design skills that would later apply to a number of years as a freelance designer. Steve continued playing with ALO while in SF, with the addition of Shree Shyam Das on drums, who became a close friend and musical collaborator. Steve also picked up many gigs within the local scene, playing local clubs as well as private events for the booming dot-com businesses in the Bay Area. Through an outreach from Gill's keyboard repair technician, Steve ended up joining a bluegrass outfit called Philboyd Studge, playing string bass and singing occasional lead vocals. He also filled in occasionally with college friends who had also relocated to SF, The Court & Spark, as well as lending string bass to several of their studio recordings. During a break with ALO, Steve and Lebowitz did some Winter touring with the group Global Funk Council, a spin-off of Karl Denson's Tiny Universe.

ALO reunited in the Spring of 2002 with college bandmate Dave Brogan on drums, and has been touring the globe and recording steadily ever since. Through their college friendship with surfer/singer/songwriter Jack Johnson, Steve has also became part of the Brushfire Records family with ALO signing a record contract with the label in 2005. Steve has not only recorded two full-length records with ALO for Brushfire, but also appeared on several label compilations such as A Brokedown Melody and Thank You... Goodnight. With occasional breaks and the on-going interest to promote side-projects from within the band, Steve has additionally toured with Brett Dennen, whom he met at the High Sierra Music Festival one Summer. And while on tour with Dennen, met support act Sara Bareilles which later resulted in touring with Sara and her band as well. Through the Bay Area jamband scene connection and from a long-time friendship with keyboardist Trevor Garrod who also graduated from Saratoga High, Steve has also done substantial touring with San Francisco rockers, Tea Leaf Green, filling in for their permanent bassist, Reed Mathis.

Present

Currently, Steve resides in Oakland, California where he has been since 2006, and has spent a lot of the 2008 Summer recording and playing with San Francisco indie/jam/rock band Big Light. Steve is scheduled for more shows with ALO, Tea Leaf Green and Big Light in the Fall, as well as debuting a new project, Region Of Darkness.

Discography

With Animal Liberation Orchestra

Year	Album	Label
1998	ALO vs. LAG	Lagmusic Records
1999	One Size Fits All Soundtrack	Lagmusic Records
2002	Time Expander	Lagmusic Records
2006	Fly Between Falls	Brushfire Records
2006	Surf Stronger Vol. 1	Surf Stronger
2006	A Brokedown Melody Soundtrack	Brushfire Records
2007	Roses & Clover	Brushfire Records
2007	Endless Highway: A Tribute to The Band	429 Records
2007	Thank You. Goodnight. Live Tracks from Bonnaroo & Vegoose	Brushfire Records
2009	This Warm December: A Brushfire Holiday Vol. 1	Brushfire Records
2010	One Percent For The Planet, The Music Vol. 1	One Percent For The Planet
2010	Man of the World	Brushfire Records
2011	This Warm December: A Brushfire Holiday Vol. 2	Brushfire Records

With Other Artists

Year	Artist	Album	Contribution
2000	Philboyd Studge	Philboyd Studge	string bass, vocals
2001	Matt Butler	Good Options	bass guitar
2003	Jack Johnson, Zach Gill & Dan Lebowitz	Thicker Than Water	bass guitar on "Sandbar", bonus DVD content
2004	Samantha Stollenwerck	Square One	bass guitar on all tracks except "Don't Ya Know" & "The Party Life"
2004	The Court & Spark	Witch Season	string bass on "Steeplechasing"
2005	Forest Sun	Walk Through Walls	string bass
2005	Jack Johnson	A Weekend at the Greek	bass guitar on "Girl, I Wann Lay You Down" & "Walls of Jericho"
2006	Michael Talbott & The Wolfkings	Freeze, Die, Live	string bass on "Winter Streets" & "Angel of Light"
2006	The Court & Spark	Hearts	string bass on "We Were All Uptown Rulers" & "The Oyster is a Wealthy Beast"
2006	Jack Johnson, Matt Costa, Zach Gill & Dan Lebowitz	A Brokedown Melody	bass guitar on "Let it be Sung"
2006	Tim Bluhm	Surf Stronger Vol.1	bass guitar on "Junipero Dusk"
2007	Jack Johnson & Animal Liberation Orchestra	Endless Highway: The Music of The Band	bass guitar on "I Shall Be Released"
2008	Forest Sun	So Nice	bass guitar, acoustic bass guitar & string bass
2008	Forest Sun	Harlequin Goodnight	bass guitar, acoustic bass guitar, string bass
2008	Zach Gill	Zach Gill's Stuff	bass guitar on "Back in the Day", "Bettina", "Handy Man", "Poseidon's Navel", "Beautiful Reason" & "Fine Wine"
2008	Surf Stronger House Band: Tim Bluhm, Adam Topol, Dan Lebowitz & Jackie Greene	Surf Stronger Vol. 2	bass guitar, production
2008	Nicki Bluhm	Toby's Song	bass guitar on "Love, Home & Me", "Down The Beach" & "Danny's Song"
2008	Tim Bluhm	House of Bluhm	bass guitar on "You Can't Dive In"
2008	Big Light	Big Light EP	bass guitar on "Hard Knocks" & "Separation Anxiety"
2008	Tistrya	Seremplicity	bass guitar on "The Way I Like To Be", "Nervous Hands", "Inspiration Song" & "Creeping Thoughts"
2009	Bill Schafer	First to Believe	string bass, bass guitar
2009	Jeconte	Sweet Northern California	bass guitar on "Downtown Brown" & "Run to the Sea"
2010	Big Light	Animals in Bloom	bass guitar, vocals, piano, organ
2011	Nicki Bluhm	Driftwood	bass guitar
2011	John Craigie	October is the Kindest Month	bass guitar, acoustic bass guitar, string bass

External links

• Official website
• Interview with Music In Schools Today