Percy Hill

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Percy Hill was a band, based in the New England area, that enjoyed more than a decade of respect and praise for its high-energy live performances, polished songwriting and, as time progressed, remarkably professional and passionate studio recordings.

Founded at the University of New Hampshire in Durham in 1993, it originally consisted of guitarists Tom Powley and Joe Farrell, keyboardist Nate Wilson, drummer Tim Leavey, percussionist Zack Wilson and bassist Jeremy Hill. Powley and Farrell tackled most of the lead vocals (except for the whimsical Mississippi Missy, which showcased Zack Wilson's antics) with Powley and Nate Wilson writing the vast majority of the original material. The young group quickly recorded Setting The Boat Adrift (1993) and began gigging steadily in New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts. Leavey was soon replaced by Dylan Halacy. In 1996, not long after the release of Straight On 'Til Morning (1995), Hill left the group to become a father and was replaced for one year by Moon Boot Lover bassist John Hawes whose hyperactive, popping funk style was an ample complement to Halacy's robust drumming. This lineup is featured on the live Double Feature (1997), more than half of which was recorded at a legendary performance at Boston's celebrated Paradise Rock Club on December 27, 1996. In 1997, Hawes was succeeded by road manager Andy Lanoie. In the autumn of 1997, after a show at New York's much missed Wetlands which included a collaboration with bass virtuoso Victor Wooten, frontman Powley left and the group continued through the end of the year as a quintet.

The band underwent a major lineup change in 1998 when Halacy, Lanoie and Zack Wilson followed Powley. Drummer and lead vocalist Aaron Katz and bassist John Leccese were added. Only Nate Wilson and Farrell remained from the original band. This change may be ascribed in part to Nate Wilson and Farrell's desire to move the group in a different musical direction. The reconstituted group had a new sound that was looser, more wholly groove-oriented and built on Katz's impeccable sense of rhythm. The quartet toured heavily across the U.S. for about two years, released the critically acclaimed Color In Bloom, and then moved into what amounted to phased retirement, punctuated by the occasional New England performance which would consist of progressively less material predating the group's 1998 reformation. In 2002, the group played a weekend's worth of well-received and well-attended shows in Massachusetts and New Hampshire with a 13-piece ensemble complete featuring an expanded troop of percussionists, a horn section, two backup vocalists and frequent collaborator Adam Terrell, whose gritty guitar leads counterbalanced Farrell's more reserved, jazz-inflected solos. These performances created a momentum that ultimately led to the recording and release of 2003's Live and 2005's After All.

Despite this surge in activity, Leccese and Wilson left the band in 2005. It was originally thought that Wilson would return for shows over the summer, as he was attending graduate school, however it appears that both musicians have left Percy Hill for good. Katz and Farrell played a handful of small gigs with a changing cast of supporting players, including Pat Dole on bass and Craig Struble on harmonica, as the Percy Hill Trio in 2005 and 2006.

Percy Hill has been compared favorably to Steely Dan for several reasons: they often claimed they were most comfortable in the studio, a rarity for today's jam bands, and their music was complex and focused. Other comparisons have been drawn to Paul Simon, and, in the band's earlier manifestations, to Santana and jamband mainstays Phish and The Allman Brothers Band.

Color in Bloom received the 2000 Jammy award for studio album of the year. It contains songs including "Ammonium Maze" and "Beneath the Cover".

Katz and Nate Wilson have each embarked on solo careers.