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Kyle Eastwood

Kyle Eastwood grew up in Carmel California. His first memories are of jazz and of his father, Clint Eastwood, taking him to the Monterey Jazz Festival as a child. While doing his homework, Kyle remembers listening to records of jazz stars such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Miles Davis playing in the house. Like any child raised by enthusiastic jazz loving parents, an awareness and love of music soaks in quickly. There was something magnetic about watching someone play for an audience that completely captivated the young Kyle.

Kyle’s first memory of playing music was when Clint taught him how to play the left hand bass line of Boogie Woogie while he played the right hand solo over the top. By the age of eighteen, Kyle was jamming with his schoolmates in Pebble Beach and learning Led Zepplin and Motown bass lines by ear. It was only in 1986, two years into a film studies major at USC, that Kyle realized that music was his true passion. He took off what he thought would only be a year to pursue music, and has not looked back since.

Having dabbled on electric bass as a teenager, he now also plays the upright, acoustic and double bass. After years of paying his dues gigging around New York and Los Angeles, Kyle finally struck a deal with Sony who released his first album From There To Here in 1998 which features the vocal talent of Joni Mitchell. The album is an upbeat collection of jazz standards and original music and was critically well received.

At the end of August 2004, Kyle signed to one of the leading independent jazz labels in the UK, Candid Records who are also responsible for bringing Jamie Cullum and Clare Teal to the nation’s attention. It was through Candid that Kyle came in contact with Dave Koz’s label Rendezvous Entertainment. Kyle signed on with Rendezvous to release his future albums in the United States.

In 2004, Kyle released his second album entitled Paris Blue. Kyle had been working on the album while living in Paris with his own family and this album was more personal with contributions from his father and his daughter who actually wrote and recorded the introduction to the title track when she was only 9 years old. Paris Blue resonates with swing, groove, and funk overtones. Kyle says, “My roots remain in jazz but I like adding all kinds of different flavors.” The album climbed to #1 on the French Jazz charts.

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In Pictures

Linx-Faraò-Eastwood-Baker at Cremona Jazz Fest 2019

Read "Linx-Faraò-Eastwood-Baker at Cremona Jazz Fest 2019" reviewed by Danilo Codazzi


Photos from the Linx-Faraò-Eastwood-Baker concert held at Auditorium “Giovanni Arvedi" in Cremona on May 31, 2019. Featuring David Linx (vocals), Antonio Faraò (piano), Kyle Eastwood (bass) and Mike Baker (drums). ...

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Album Review

Kyle Eastwood: In Transit

Read "In Transit" reviewed by Kris Perdew


Now that he is into his late 40's and has released nine albums in his 19 years as leader, no lingering doubt can remain that bassist and composer Kyle Eastwood has stepped out of the formidable shadow of his father. The latest evidence is presented here in the form of Eastwood's latest release, In Transit. Although he gained valuable experience working on the soundtracks of films such as The Rookie and Mystic River, the greatest legacy Kyle received ...

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Album Review

Kyle Eastwood: Time Pieces

Read "Time Pieces" reviewed by Edward Blanco


Double bassist, composer and producer Kyle Eastwood unveils a timeless treasure with his seventh album as leader on the sensational Time Pieces, capturing the mood and aura of the 50s and 60s jazz scene blending two standards from the era with rich new compositions incorporating the sensitivities and flavor of that time period. It has been seventeen years since his debut album and along the way, Eastwood also enjoys working on film music where he has composed and arranged scores ...

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Album Review

Kyle Eastwood: The View From Here

Read "The View From Here" reviewed by Glenn Astarita


Bassist Kyle Eastwood frequently integrates a cinematic contour into his body of work. And true to form, he's contributed music to eight of his famous father, actor, and director Clint Eastwood's films. The bassist's output can be characterized by tuneful hooks, calmly soaring opuses, and countered by odd-metered time signatures, clement flows, and passionate soloing spots. Indeed, his meticulous composing skills create intriguing propositions. With handclaps and a prominent bass ostinato on the Flamenco-tinged “Sirocco," the band fuses ...

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Album Review

Kyle Eastwood: The View From Here

Read "The View From Here" reviewed by Bruce Lindsay


Kyle Eastwood's boyhood in Carmel, California, may have been where and when he began his love of jazz, but as an adult his love of France seems to impact more and more on his music. Eastwood's sixth album, The View From Here, doesn't always show this influence explicitly but it's there nonetheless and it's giving the bassist's music a distinctive and delightful vibe.As an album title, The View From Here doesn't share the Francophile origins of previous Eastwood ...

Album Review

Kyle Eastwood: Songs From The Chateau

Read "Songs From The Chateau" reviewed by AAJ Italy Staff


Songs from the Chateau raccoglie nove brani che riescono a tradurre il feeling e l'unione d'intenti che caratterizza il quintetto capitanato da Kyle Eastwood, bassista e compositore di livello, oltre che figlio del celeberrimo attore americano.La scaletta si apre con “Marciac," un brano dal ritmo importante, segnato da una melodia luminosa e da un groove profondo e coinvolgente, oltre che da un bel solo del trombettista Graeme Flowers. Segue “Moon Over Couronneau," pezzo caratterialmente più introspettivo, ombroso, che ...

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Interview

Kyle Eastwood: Movies, Motown & Monterey

Read "Kyle Eastwood: Movies, Motown & Monterey" reviewed by Bruce Lindsay


Bassist/composer Kyle Eastwood can whistle. It's a talent to which few musicians lay claim, but it's one which he puts to good use on his version of Bob Haggart's “Big Noise (From Winnetka)," a tune that serves as a popular encore to his live set. The fact that Eastwood whistles in concert says much about the man and his approach to jazz--slightly self-effacing, good-natured, with a quiet confidence in his own talent and an awareness of the importance of emotion ...

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Performance / Tour

Bunny Brunel, Stanley Clarke, Kyle Eastwood, & Armand Sabal-Lecco Take Center Stage For An Unforgettable Night Of Bass!

Bunny Brunel, Stanley Clarke, Kyle Eastwood, & Armand Sabal-Lecco Take Center Stage For An Unforgettable Night Of Bass!

Source: First Take PR & Consulting

On January 19, 2024, legendary bassist Bunny Brunel headlined at the Catalina Jazz Club for his Bass Ball 2 CD release concert. The sold-out event featured iconic bassists Stanley Clarke, Kyle Eastwood, and Armand Sabal-Lecco, with performances by Larry Dunn and Kaylene Peoples. The night showcased bass virtuosity, surprise collaborations, and a captivating mix of jazz, blues, and Bossa Nova. Hosted by Kevin Foster and opened by Pat Prescott, the event received high praise and was an unforgettable evening for ...

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Recording

Jazz Village [Pias] Sets October 20, 2017 Release For World-renowned Bassist Composer Kyle Eastwood’s "In Transit"

Jazz Village [Pias] Sets October 20, 2017 Release For World-renowned Bassist Composer Kyle Eastwood’s "In Transit"

Source: EastWest Media

Capping two extraordinary decades as a recording and performing artist, Kyle Eastwood’s stylistically eclectic new album In Transit reflects the whirlwind reality of the breakneck schedule that Kyle and his longtime ensemble keep as they perform three quarters of the year in Europe—with a yearly jaunt to Asian countries and occasional swings to the U.S. The jny: Los Angeles bred, jny: Paris based bassist and composer estimates that about half of the tracks were “road tested,” with a few rendered ...

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Recording

Internationally Renowned Musician/Composer Kyle Eastwood Pays Homage To Late 50’s And Early 60’s Jazz With Time Pieces Set For Release March 10, 2015 On Jazz Village

Internationally Renowned Musician/Composer Kyle Eastwood Pays Homage To Late 50’s And Early 60’s Jazz With Time Pieces Set For Release March 10, 2015 On Jazz Village

Source: Sheryl Feuerstein

Limited Vinyl Edition Released April 14/US Tour Dates March 27 – April 18 In the 17 years since the release of From There To Here, Kyle Eastwood’s first album as a leader, the multi-talented double bassist, composer and producer has forged a dynamic musical path. His artistry is eclectic, yet refined and transcends the boundaries of jazz by exploring an ever-widening range of musical influences. While continuing to develop his parallel career as a composer and arranger on his legendary ...

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Recording

Kyle Eastwood returns with new album "Timepieces" and UK Tour

Kyle Eastwood returns with new album "Timepieces" and UK Tour

Source: Michael Ricci

The son of legendary actor Clint Eastwood, star bassist and composer Kyle Eastwood unveils details of his new album, Timepieces, released 21st April, and extensive UK tour including four nights at legendary jny: London jazz club Ronnie Scott's Timepieces is Kyle Eastwood’s musical self-portrait. Centred around the bassist’s passion for the lyrical hard bop jazz of the late 50s and early 60s, the album also touches on Eastwood’s compositions for the big screen. Full of melodic elegance and a sustained ...

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Event

Jazz Arts Group Presents Virtuoso Bassist Kyle Eastwood During Jazz Appreciation Month

Jazz Arts Group Presents Virtuoso Bassist Kyle Eastwood During Jazz Appreciation Month

Source: Scott Vezdos

Columbus, OH – As part of national Jazz Appreciation Month, the Jazz Arts Group of Columbus (JAG) will host its Inside Track season finale on Saturday, April 6 at both a familiar and not-so-familiar venue, the historic Garden Theatre (now managed by Short North Stage). First opened in 1920 as a vaudeville and silent movie theatre, the Garden Theatre's Green Room will be transformed into an intimate jazz cabaret for virtuoso bassist and composer Kyle Eastwood. Today, Kyle Eastwood is ...

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Recording

Prolific Bassist/Composer Kyle Eastwood Channels His Earliest Jazz Influences on the View from Here, Available March 12 on JazzVillage

Prolific Bassist/Composer Kyle Eastwood Channels His Earliest Jazz Influences on the View from Here, Available March 12 on JazzVillage

Source: DL Media

Eastwood Joined by Long-Time Band Featuring Pianist Andrew McCormack, Saxophonist Graeme Blevins, Trumpeter Quentin Collins, and Drummer Martyn Kaine It has been 15 years since bassist Kyle Eastwood burst onto the jazz scene with his 1998 debut, From There To Here. At that moment in his budding career, the press seemed more preoccupied with his paternal lineage (he’s the son of famed actor-director Clint Eastwood) than his music. Over the course of the four subsequent releases – 2004′s Paris Blue, ...

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Recording

Kyle Eastwood - Songs from the Chateau (2011)

Kyle Eastwood - Songs from the Chateau (2011)

Source: Something Else!

I'm no movie buff but I still vividly recall the Charlie Parker biopic Bird, with the central character portrayed so convincingly by actor Forest Whitaker and the film well directed by Clint Eastwood. It was one of Eastwood's earliest forays into directing if I recall correctly and one thing about the flick that I felt certain of was that he chose this project because he has a deep love for jazz and rightly thought Parker's triumphant but ultimately tragic story ...

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Radio

Celebrating Mingus Ah Um with Kyle Eastwood

Celebrating Mingus Ah Um with Kyle Eastwood

Source: Jazz Online By Joseph Vella

As with the classic Dave Brubeck Quartet album Time Out and Miles' Sketches of Spain, Legacy Recordings put me on assignment to produce a couple of podcast episodes celebrating Charles Mingus' masterpiece Mingus Ah Um in 2009. And like the previous two classic albums from 1959, these episodes got lost in the shuffle at Legacy and were never released. Finally, with the help of a few colleagues over there, we proudly present our celebration of Mingus Ah Um beginning with ...

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Performance / Tour

Bassist-Composer Kyle Eastwood To Tour Select U.S. Cities in November

Bassist-Composer Kyle Eastwood  To Tour Select U.S. Cities in November

Source: DL Media

"Kyle Eastwood's Metropolitain achieves an original jazz sound that combines the tradition of his father, Clint's record collection with a new generation of influences. [His] music allows impressions to exist clearly, with a full-body experience that lives on through his jazz ideas." - All About Jazz “Eastwood has put together an intriguing collection of modern jazz that borrows a little from contemporary, funk, and even Latin jazz." - Blogcritics Music “Thoughtful, contemplative, admirably understated and highly listenable." - Evening Standard ...

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Recording

In Studio with Kyle Eastwood

In Studio with Kyle Eastwood

Source: Groove Notes

As the son of actor/director/jazz fan, Clint Eastwood, Kyle Eastwood grew up listening to jazz. In this performance-interview hosted by Abe Beeson, Kyle talks a childhood trip to The Monterey Jazz Festival and how hearing the Count Basie Big Band that day inspired him to become a bassist. For the past few years, Eastwood's home base has been in France. He and Abe discuss the differences between European and America music listeners...and how living in Europe has influenced Kyle's music ...

Photos

Concerts

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

In Transit

Jazz Village
2017

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Time Pieces

Harmonia Mundi Jazz Village Music
2015

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The View From Here

Jazz Village
2013

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Songs From The Chateau

Candid Records
2011

buy

Metropolitain

Candid Records
2009

buy

Paris Blue

Rendezvous
2006

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Videos

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