Introduction
Bill Vitt (May 6, 1943 — July 16, 2019) was an American drummer and keyboardist known best for his collaborations with the Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia, Merl Saunders, and Tom Fogerty. He worked extensively as a live performer and as a session musician.
Life and career
Vitt was born on May 6, 1943, in Washington. In the mid-1960s, he moved to Los Angeles to focus on studio work. In Los Angeles, he worked with Don Costa (longtime Frank Sinatra producer), who helped him with gigs backing the likes of Eydie Gorme and Cathy Carlson.
Towards the end of the 1960s, Vitt moved to Northern California and found work performing with Mike Bloomfield's band The Electric Flag. While in the Bay Area, he also performed with Sons Of Champlin (Bill Champlin, Tamara Champlin). He took part in the famed jam sessions at the legendary Matrix Club in San Francisco soon after returning to the area.
Through his friendship with keyboardist Howard Wales, Vitt met Jerry Garcia and appeared on Wales and Garcia's 1971 jazz-rock fusion album Hooteroll?
In the 1970s, Vitt played with Brewer & Shipley (Mike Brewer and Tom Shipley), Jerry Garcia, Merl Saunders, and the Sons of Champlin.
Vitt, Garcia, Saunders, and bassist John Kahn played The Keystone many times, and their July 10 and 11, 1973 performances at the venue were recorded in the two-volume Live At Keystone releases in 1973. A definitive 4-CD set from the shows was issued in 2012 as Keystone Companions: The Complete 1973 Fantasy Recordings.
Over the years, Vitt also performed and/or recorded with Pee Wee Ellis, Sonny & Cher, Charlie Musselwhite, the Coasters, James Cotton, and many others.
Vitt retired from the music business in the 1980s, but became active again in the 2000s, playing live shows and recording albums. He returned to the Bay Area and participated in a Jerry Garcia tribute led by guitarist Steve Kimock that included dates at Sweetwater Music Hall in 2013 and 2014, an appearance on Jam Cruise, and a tour in 2015.
Death
Vitt died on July 16, 2019, at the age of 76.
Discography
- Tarkio – Brewer & Shipley – 1970
- Danny Cox – Danny Cox – 1971
- Hooteroll? – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1971
- Heavy Turbulence – Merl Saunders – 1972
- Rural Space – Brewer & Shipley – 1972
- Tom Fogerty – Tom Fogerty – 1972
- Excalibur – Tom Fogerty – 1972
- Fillmore: The Last Days – various artists – 1972 (as a member of Sons of Champlin)
- Casting Pearls – Mill Valley Bunch – 1972
- Fire Up – Merl Saunders – 1973
- Live at Keystone – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1973
- Keystone Encores – Merl Saunders, Jerry Garcia, John Kahn, Bill Vitt – 1988
- Fire Up Plus – Merl Saunders and Friends – 1992
- ASAP – David Collini – 1992
- Keepers – Merl Saunders – 1997
- Side Trips, Volume One – Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia – 1998
- Garcia Plays Dylan – Jerry Garcia – 2005
- Well-Matched: The Best of Merl Saunders & Jerry Garcia – Merl Saunders and Jerry Garcia – 2006
- State of Grace – Bill Vitt – 2008
- Keystone Companions: The Complete 1973 Fantasy Recordings – Merl Saunders and Jerry Garcia – 2012
- Back At It Again – Keystone Revisited – 2013
- Garcia Live Volume Six – Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders – 2016
- Garcia Live Volume Nine – Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders – 2017
- Garcia Live Volume 12 – Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders – 2019