Carey, David (14th February 1926-8th April 2019)

Percussionist born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, often known as Dave, who recorded with Stan Getz in the mid-to-late ’60s on tracks that would appear on What the World Needs Now: Stan Getz Plays Bacharach and David. Around the same time, he was helping Artie Butler ask the musical question, Have You Met Miss Jones? In June 1969, he was in the studio with Bob Freedman recording Journeys of Odysseus: A Jazz Suite for Chamber Orchestra. On all of these albums, he was credited with vibes, although he did double duty in 1974 on Lou Courtney’s I’m in Need of Love, playing timpani and vibraphone.

Frequently, he is just listed as “percussion”, as he was on Dory Previn’s 1976 release, We’re Children of Coincidence and Harpo Marx. He played vibes on Stanley Turrentine’s The Man with the Sad Face, also released in America’s bicentennial year. A year later, he lent his percussive talents to Roberta Flack’s Blue Lights in the Basement.

In the late ’70s, David was involved with a disco/funk/soul outfit called Jebadiah that may not have made the cover of the Rolling Stone, but did plenty of covers of The Rolling Stones, including “Brown Sugar”, “Get off My Cloud”, “Honky Tonk Women”, “Ruby Tuesday”, and “Under My Thumb“. In 1978, the same year they released Rock ‘n’ Soul, David played marimbas on Carly Simon’s Boys in the Trees and also appeared on David Spinozza’s self-titled album, Spinozza. The following year, he was one of myriad session players on Frank Sinatra’s boxed set, Trilogy. On 13^th January 1983, he had the honor of premiering “Music for Viola, Piano and Percussion”, penned by Kermit Moore , at Alice Tully Hall in New York.

There are ample opportunities to hear David Carey in all of his CD clarity on releases such as Snowfall: The Tony Bennett Christmas Album, Astrud Gilberto’s Astrud for Lovers, Cris Williamson’s eponymous solo effort, and The Very Best of Ashford & Simpson. Other albums on which he appears include The Empire Brass Plays “Annie” and Garnet Mims Has it All.

In 1998, he returned to the music of Burt Bacharach on Burt’s collaboration with Elvis Costello, Painted from Memory.

A composer in his own right, David’s “Suite for Xylophone and Orchestra” has become a staple in championships, competitions, and even recommended reading for some schools’ music programs. In 2004, it was one of the test pieces at the Australian Championships, and one of the featured percussion solos in the junior mallet division at Launceston College. Nazareth College’s music department features David’s “Suite” as part of their sample literature. There is also a piano reduction that figured in the 4^th European Solo Competition for Brass and Percussion Instruments.

He died in April 2019 when he was 93 years old.

Frank Sinatra recordings
That’s What God Looks Like To Me (Stan Irvin/Lan O’Kun)
Reprise RPS 49233 (XNY2101S) (US 45)
Theme from “New York, New York” (Fred Ebb/John Kander)
Reprise RPS49233 (XNY 2103 S) (US 45)

Here is his Concerto for Xylophone and Orchestra, Mvt. 2 with the piano reduction…

Sources:

Carey, David (14th February1926-8th April 2019)

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