About
STEVE NIEVE CV
Born in 1958 in Hertfordshire, studied composition and piano at the Royal College of Music, the composer and performer Steve Nieve became famous in the late seventies as keyboard player of Elvis Costello and the Attractions. The distinctive sound of the group is widely recognised as the work of Steve’s highly distinctive keyboard styling. The group recorded more than a dozen albums including ThisYear's Model (1978), Armed Forces(1979), Imperial Bedroom (1982) with orchestrations by Steve Nieve, Blood and Chocolate (1986) finally All This Useless Beauty (1996). The group was inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.
Steve Nieve is an integral feature of Costello’s career, sharing the collaboration with artists of many different styles :The Brodsky Quartet, Paul McCartney, la mezzo soprano Anne-Sofie von Otter, Chet Baker, Robert Wyatt,Alain Toussaint, Yoko Ono Burt Bacharach and many others. In 2005 when Costello presented his unfinished work « The Secret Songs » Steve was responsible of much of the orchestration of Costello’s music.
In 2002 and 2004 at the occasion of the 45th and 47th Grammy Awards Ceremony, Steve Nieve as a member of Elvis Costello and the Imposters was nominated for a total of three Grammy awards, Best Alternative Music Album “Cruel Smile”, Best Rock Album “Delivery Man” and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal “Monkey to a Man”
In 2019 at the occasion of the 62nd Grammy Awards Ceremony, Steve Nieve was awarded a Grammy for his participation to Elvis Costello and the Imposter’s album Look Now
STEVE APPEARS WITH (ON STAGE AND ON RECORDINGS)
Steve Nieve - Sting, Paul McCartney, David Bowie, Madness, Squeeze, Burt Bacharach, Bono, Bruce Springsteen, Morrissey, Lou Reed, Annie Clark (St. Vincent), Vanessa Paradis, Robert Wyatt, Francois Hardy, Jane Birkin, Sandy Shaw, Allen Toussaint, Paul Weller, Kirsty Maccoll, Mick Jagger, Smokey Robinson, Barbara Bonney, Laurie Anderson, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and others.....
In addition to this activity, Nieve has several of his own compositions. “Welcome to the Voice” an opera in one act, libretto by Muriel Teodori, began life at the Bell Atlantic Jazz festival in 2000. A recording featuring Barbara Bonney, Sting, Amanda Roocroft, Elvis Costello released 2007 on the Deutsche Gramophone label and premiered at the Theatre du Chatelet in 2008 with Sting, and Sylvia Schwartz in the lead roles. The recording of this work marked the beginning of the collaboration between Steve Nieve and Antoine Quessada professionally known as Tall Ulyss and as AJUQ.
Steve Nieve has also worked extensively as a film composer. Notably Don’t Forget Me (Ram Nehari), Desaccord Parfait (Antoine de Caunes) Le Passager (Eric Caravaca) Sans Plomb (Muriel Téodori) Arrivederci Millwall (Charles McDougall) L’Epervier (Stephan Clavier) The Incredibly Strange Film Show (Andy Harries) Climate and Man (Mark Redhead)
Other compositions and solo recordings include: Keyboard Jungle (1983) , Mumu (2000), Raining Somewhere(2003), Windows (2004), Welcome to the Voice (2007), Lazy Point (2110) ToGetHer (2014) and Fuji~Rama (2019)
Nieve’s work ToGetHer (2014) is a modern song cycle, performed in duet with artists like Sting, Elvis Costello, Laurie Anderson, Tall Ulysse, Joe Sumner, Robert Wyatt, Vanessa Paradis, Cali, Ron Sexsmith, Harper Simon, Muriel Teodori, Glenn Tilbrook, Alain Chamfort.
The Steve Nieve Band comprised of Ajuq (Vocals, Drums and Percusion) Steve Nieve (Vocals, Keyboards) and rotating guests (including Glen Tilbrook, Joe Sumner and others). Steve Nieve Band have performed in a variety of situations including two performances at the Fuji Rock Festival 2009 and 2014.
Steve Nieve has toured a concert of stories and piano music “Steve Nieve Pays Elvis Costello”, sometimes solo and other times with Ajuq as vocalist and drummer. Last concert was a sell out at Largo at the Coronet in Los Angeles.
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