Alec Berlin

Guitarist and songwriter Alec Berlin’s musical palette extends from the orchestra pits of Broadway to recording studios all over New York and performance venues around the world. Alec’s music has won him fans all over the US, Canada, Israel, and Japan. “Beauty, Grazing At The Trough” represents the most complete distillation to date of his musical experiences.

Alec’s musical thirst was first quenched at Boston’s New England Conservatory, where he earned a Master’s of Music as a Jazz Guitar Performance Major. But New York beckoned, so Alec set up shop in Brooklyn and immediately formed the Alec Berlin Group, a vehicle for his energetic Jazz compositions. Three years of performances all over town (including the storied 55 Bar) culminated in the recording of “Crossing Paths” in 2000, a Jazz cd that features 8 of Alec’s original compositions, ranging in styles from be-bop to swing to more adventurous, Rock-inspired instrumental compositions.

Completing “Crossing Paths” marked a turning point for Alec. After studying Jazz for 10 years, he now directed his attention towards other styles of music in particular, the Rock and Pop music that he listened to growing up. He quickly found himself recruited to play in a variety of bands. This led to Alec’s work with some of the great acts of the ‘50s and ‘60s, including Lou Christie, The Shirelles, and Li’l Anthony and the Imperials.

Around this time, Alec also teamed up with some fellow veterans of the New York Rock scene to create Quixotic, a trio whose energy derives from the decades of experience its members bring to the table, experience playing every style of music from the most conventional pop to the most abstract Jazz. In 2005, after a year of collective composition and performance, Quixotic released “Sneakin’ In”, an exciting synthesis of these varied influences.

Never one to sit still for long, Alec began wworking on the material for “Beauty, Grazing At The Trough”. Alec wrote, arranged, produced, mixed, played guitars, and sang these songs after a year of test-driving the material in clubs around New York City. Described by one fan as “what it would sound like if Jimi Hendrix played in Elvis Costello’s band”, Alec’s music operates on many levels from the inventive harmonies and arrangements to the intelligent lyrics and the penetrating guitar playing. Stand-out tracks include the country-inflected “My Baby Likes To Eat”, emo-induced “Goner”, sci-fi fave “Chronic”, and the gentle “I Know The Truth”.

I play live all over New York City. Check out for more info.

The Beatles, Radiohead, Wilco, XTC, Paul Simon, The Format, Gomez, The Who, The Meters, Sigur Ros, Sondre Lerche, Squeeze

Strats, Les Pauls, Teles, Fender Deluxe, Taylors.

What would it sound like if Jimi Hendrix played with Elvis Costello? Have a listen and find out for yourself!