Dan Lipton
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Dan Lipton

Band Alternative Singer/Songwriter

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Press


"Audra McDonald concert review"

"Backed by Dan Lipton's richly orchestral piano..."

- Joel Hirschhorn, 11/25/02
- Variety


"Audra McDonald concert review"

"Backed by Dan Lipton's richly orchestral piano..."

- Joel Hirschhorn, 11/25/02
- Variety


"Brian d'Arcy James concert review"

"...he brought back Dan Lipton, a pianist/guitarist who easily could have carried the show on his own. His piano swelled to fill the hall yet never overpowered James’ vocals. And what he did behind James’ duet with his sister was nothing short of amazing, given that he improvised, on the spot, without benefit of music or advance notice."

- Saginaw News, 3/1/04 - Saginaw News, Michigan


"Brian d'Arcy James concert review"

"...he brought back Dan Lipton, a pianist/guitarist who easily could have carried the show on his own. His piano swelled to fill the hall yet never overpowered James’ vocals. And what he did behind James’ duet with his sister was nothing short of amazing, given that he improvised, on the spot, without benefit of music or advance notice."

- Saginaw News, 3/1/04 - Saginaw News, Michigan


"Audra McDonald concert review"

"Composer Ricky Ian Gordon's lullaby to parents, Cradle And All, was novel with a haunting hypnotic piano accompaniment from Dan Lipton."

- R. Spencer Butler, 4/11/05 - Palm Beach Daily News, FL


"Audra McDonald concert review"

"Composer Ricky Ian Gordon's lullaby to parents, Cradle And All, was novel with a haunting hypnotic piano accompaniment from Dan Lipton."

- R. Spencer Butler, 4/11/05 - Palm Beach Daily News, FL


"Now they know who Audra is"

"Another of the evening's highlights was a stunningly haunting rendition of The Man That Got Away.... It was a stark arrangement, with only piano accompaniment by Dan Lipton, who would sometimes play chords, then nothing, the silences only serving to highlight the sadness and regret of the lyrics."

"Hayes, Lipton and McSweeney were an excellent trio, playing together smoothly, yet never overwhelming or overshadowing McDonald."

- Nancy Stetson, 4/12/05 - Naples Daily News, FL


"Now they know who Audra is"

"Another of the evening's highlights was a stunningly haunting rendition of The Man That Got Away.... It was a stark arrangement, with only piano accompaniment by Dan Lipton, who would sometimes play chords, then nothing, the silences only serving to highlight the sadness and regret of the lyrics."

"Hayes, Lipton and McSweeney were an excellent trio, playing together smoothly, yet never overwhelming or overshadowing McDonald."

- Nancy Stetson, 4/12/05 - Naples Daily News, FL


"McDonald fills house with songs"

"Throughout her 90-minute performance, McDonald was accompanied by a sensitive band that included pianist/leader Dan Lipton."

- Michael Eck, 4/17/05 - The Times Union, Schenectady NY


"McDonald fills house with songs"

"Throughout her 90-minute performance, McDonald was accompanied by a sensitive band that included pianist/leader Dan Lipton."

- Michael Eck, 4/17/05 - The Times Union, Schenectady NY


"Audra McDonald concert review"

"McDonald was backed by a tight, polished ensemble made up of pianist Dan Lipton, drummer/percussionist Sean McDaniel and bassist Peter Donovan. The ensemble was integral to the ease of her performance, supporting and matching her deliveries with artful interpretations of the music."

- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 9/17/06 - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WI


"Audra McDonald concert review"

"McDonald was backed by a tight, polished ensemble made up of pianist Dan Lipton, drummer/percussionist Sean McDaniel and bassist Peter Donovan. The ensemble was integral to the ease of her performance, supporting and matching her deliveries with artful interpretations of the music."

- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 9/17/06 - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WI


"Nightlife concert pick"

"DAN LIPTON
The eclectic accompanist (who's backed up everyone from John Lithgow to Audra McDonald) and hardworking musical director (for Don't Quit Your Night Job at Joe's Pub) has temporarily abandoned his role as the perennial supporting player. For a change, he's stepping into the spotlight with his band and Brazilian vocalist Eliane for a concert of songs off the genre-jumping album ZEITGEIST - a project that's entirely his own."

- Sara Cardace, 1/8/07 - New York Magazine


"Nightlife concert pick"

"DAN LIPTON
The eclectic accompanist (who's backed up everyone from John Lithgow to Audra McDonald) and hardworking musical director (for Don't Quit Your Night Job at Joe's Pub) has temporarily abandoned his role as the perennial supporting player. For a change, he's stepping into the spotlight with his band and Brazilian vocalist Eliane for a concert of songs off the genre-jumping album ZEITGEIST - a project that's entirely his own."

- Sara Cardace, 1/8/07 - New York Magazine


Discography

Northern State - Can I Keep This Pen? (2007)
The NYC white female hip-hop trio's third album features DL on the track "Away Away" playing Wurlitzer electric piano and a Casio SK-1 toy keyboard.

The Coast of Utopia - music from the Broadway play (2007)
The Lincoln Center Theater production of Tom Stoppard's epic trilogy was nomianted for, and won, more Tony Awards than any straight play in Broadway history. The score is by Mark Bennett. DL on piano and musical coordinator. (Ghostlight Records)

John Lithgow - The Sunny Side of the Street (2006)
The actor's third album for kids features Dan Lipton on piano, kazoo and additional musical arrangements. Grammy nomination for Best Children's Album. (Razor & Tie Records)

Colby Beserra and Dan Lipton - Jukebox Saloon (2006)
Beserra and Lipton are a piano/vocal jazz duo in the spirit of Tony Bennett and Bill Evans, re-imagining pop songs of the day (by Beck, Cowboy Junkies, Stevie Wonder, Led Zeppelin...)

Dan Lipton - ZEITGEIST (2005)
The third DL solo release is a 19-track playlist of eclectic collaborations. DL on piano, acoustic guitar, marimba, vibraphone, organ, synths, electric piano, etc. ASCAPlus Award for Popular Music. (Two Straws Music)

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - Original Broadway Cast (2005)
David Yazbek's Tony-nominated show features DL on piano and additional musical arrangements. Grammy-nominated recording. (Ghostlight Records)

Colby Beserra - Colby Beserra (2005)
The Chicago-based singer/songwriter's debut album features DL on Rhodes electric piano.

Dan Lipton - Life In Pictures (2003)
Second DL solo album is 11 songs of widescreen, sonic pop. ASCAPlus Award for Popular Music. (Two Straws Music)

Kill Henry Sugar - Sell This Place (2002)
Metropolitan folk duo KHS features DL on piano for the song "Decorations." (Surprise Truck Records)

Dan Lipton - Fazed EP (2001)
5 songs short, DL debut on guitar. (Two Straws Music)

The Full Monty - Original Broadway Cast (2000)
David Yazbek's Tony-nominated show features DL on piano. Grammy-nominated recording. (RCA Victor)

Dan Lipton - Travelogue (1999)
Debut DL solo album is a pop song cycle for piano and 4 voices, following a fictional Traveler on a metaphorical journey. (Two Straws Music)

Sean McCourt - Stick Figure Dancing (1998)
NYC singer/songwriter's debut album features DL on piano. Songs from this album were used in the film "Snow Days" starring Bernadette Peters.

Photos

Bio

An only child, Dan Lipton was born in Hackensack, NJ and grew up in and around New York City. Named for an Elton John song, he gravitated cosmically to the living room piano before he knew how to play it. He wrote his first song shortly after his first piano lesson, at age seven. He joined his first rock band at age ten.

At thirteen, Lipton inherited his late uncle’s vinyl collection, which became the soundtrack to his adolescence: every Beatles album plus many Beatles solo efforts, every Stones, every Doors… jazz records by Billie Holliday, Jimmy Heath, McCoy Tyner… Broadway cast recordings from Hair to West Side Story to The Fantasticks… It was an eclectic basement musical education that paralleled his training at The Mannes College of Music in NYC. He performed Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue with orchestra at age sixteen, then landed at Northwestern University in Chicago, majoring in classical piano.

At college, DL threw himself into any and all areas of music. He worked with the campus comedy improv troupe as well as its children’s theater group. He created music for dance pieces, scored plays, played with jazz groups… yet at solo coffeehouse gigs, he would cover Green Day and Matthew Sweet songs on the piano. Modern classical pieces, art songs, theater music and jazz arranging earned him a degree in music composition. He moved back to NYC to figure out what one does with that.

Relying on his impressive chops, Lipton quickly found work as a piano player.

In the music business for one quick decade, Dan Lipton has played on Grammy-nominated recordings, he has scored award-winning short films, he has arranged music for movie stars, he has rocked clubs across the US with indie pop bands, he has performed with symphony orchestras, he has played at Carnegie Hall and he has performed for the President in the East Room of the White House. In 2007, he played piano onstage in Tom Stoppard's epic play THE COAST OF UTOPIA on Broadway.

Dan Lipton is a musical sparkplug who is building a diverse career a la Jon Brion or even Quincy Jones. He currently releases his own music independently and supports it by playing out regularly… with his band as well as solo… in New York City and across the country.

He performs and records with many singers, songwriters and musicians in any genre of music and is always available for more.

BOOKING
info@twostrawsmusic.com
212-366-1711