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Original article written by
Artist Spot writer William Hodgson
 Ira
Levin was born and raised in Miami, Florida. His parents were both in the
entertainment business: his mother a stage actress, and his dad a radioman. At
an early age, Ira was nurtured by both parents, as mom taught him to
appreciate the music of Broadway, while dad exposed him to classical music.
Attended Florida State University where he studied Theater and Music, Ira
gradually migrated from the Florida panhandle and headed west to Los Angeles,
California in the hopes of becoming an actor. Ira made several stops along
the way, including Boulder, Colorado where he began to concentrate on writing his
music and performing with the group, The Ceiling People. From there Ira came
to California, but stopped and settled in the city of Berkeley, California (east
of San Francisco) instead of Los Angeles. Being in Berkeley, Ira felt he had free reign to expand
organically.
While in Berkeley, Ira formed a band with musician Greg Minter. They named their
band 52nd Cousin, referring to it as "your most distant
relative, which would be your 52nd cousin, thus making us family."
Bassist Greg and Ira played in the band for eleven years and saw the eventual
transformation of 52nd Cousin into Comfy Chair.
 In 1997, Comfy Chair, a
name originating from a Monty Python skit entitled "the Spanish
Inquisition," released its first CD, "Party On the
Titanic," which was followed by "Jump Up & Boogie"
(1998).
Ira is still creating and recording music. Besides performing with Comfy
Chair, Ira has created his own solo effort under the name of Uncle Eye, a
singing storyteller.
Calling his songs "The Willy Wonka of Children’s
Music," Ira says that Uncle Eye came from his work with children. Working
at a summer camp and drawing from the vivid imaginations of those children in
the camp, Ira collaborated with the kids to develop some of the melodies that
Ira has recorded on the CD, "Hippo on My Head And Other Madcap Adventures"
The "Hippo" CD was recently showcased in Scotland at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
 In 2000, Ira released
"The Sultan of Time," a CD for the grown-ups (not the grown-olds). The
CD reveals more of Ira's spiritual and whimsical nature through the vehicle of
Soulfolk (music for your atoms to dance to; music for children). The Sultan’s leading track,
"Part of the Divine," has been given honorable mention by the Northern California Songwriter’s Association.
When asked what career advice does he have for those trying to make a start in
the music business, Ira offered the following suggestions, "My advice to
those trying to start in the business is to have fun. Ask yourself if you need
to create, there's too many mediocre bands. Let what's truly inside you spill
over, just let go and go for it."
 Ira says that it has
always been about being focused. He feels that you have to put your sights on
something you really want and just go for it. The only failure is not to try, if
you don’t try you will never know if you could have reached your goal. Ira
offers this last comment, "it's really about being of service, any talents
we have are a gift". And for Ira Levin it's not about the competition but
instead it's about sharing what he has to give with others.
Ira inspires to create music that as he puts it,
"I would like to see the music evolve into a combination of theatrical and
the musical. A dynamic range that will encompass the comedic with the poignant,
the spiritual with the absurd, all the while maintaining a strong sense of self
and the need to be up lifting. My main desire is to bring joy to the
listener."
Ira Levin's unique blend of music touches deep
into the soul of the listener and takes them on a magical journey through time
and space. His music awakens the inner child and lets it have a little time to
play. Ira brings a fresh new sound to the realm of Rock n' Roll, this
is definitely a local artist to keep an Eye on in the future.
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