John Basile was born in Boston and graduated from New England Conservatory of Music in 1978. He then moved to New York City in 1979 with a Jazz Fellowship from the National Endowment For The Arts. Peggy Lee, Tony Bennett, Michel Legrand, and others were some of his early free-lance gigs. His first album, Very Early, was recorded in 1984 as a leader. After this first effort, he released two more albums on ProJazz, Quiet Passage and Sunnyside Up. John continued his work as an accompanist and recorded and performed with Sylvia Syms, Morgana King, Rosemary Clooney and Morgana King. He toured Italy in 1989 performing and sharing his knowledge at a series jazz seminars. The Desmond Project was released by Chesky Records in 1997. It featured the John Basile Quartet. John, Alien Mezquida (bassist), David Finck (bassist) and Payton Crossley (drummer) perform classic Paul Desmond songs as well as standard tunes that have become the saxophonist’s signature. John uses the same instruments that made “My Funny Valentine”, “Take Five” and other songs famous, but his arrangements are full o subtle tensions and quiet surprises that are all his. From www.chesky.com
