Biography
Alison Faith Levy has built a multifaceted career as a vocalist, keyboardist, composer, and educator, creating intelligent and captivating pop that appeals across generations. Working both independently and alongside figures like Scott Miller and Victor Krummenacher, she has earned recognition for inventive indie recordings, while also gaining notice through her contributions to family-oriented music first with the Sippy Cups and subsequently via her own Big Time Tot Rock ensemble. Across these projects, her distinctive keyboard playing, her melodies that balance direct melodic appeal with currents of indie rock and psychedelia, and her poised, expressive singing remain consistent signatures.
Born in New York City, Levy pursued philosophy at New York University, though her path in music took shape only after relocating to San Francisco during the 1990s. She issued a 1995 vinyl single pairing “The Scientist” with “Execution Day,” and that year supplied backing vocals on Out in the Heat, the debut from Victor Krummenacher’s Great Laugh project tied to the Camper van Beethoven bassist. Their partnership extended across multiple Krummenacher releases and included duo performances as McCabe & Mrs. Miller, whose 2009 album Time for Leaving documented their work. Additional early credits include backing vocals on John Wesley Harding’s 1998 release Awake and membership in the Loud Family, the acclaimed pop outfit led by Scott Miller, previously of Game Theory; with that group she appeared on 1998’s Days for Days, helped shape songs and delivered two lead vocals on 2000’s Attractive Nuisance, featured on the 2002 live set From Ritual to Romance, and rejoined for the 2006 reunion album with Anton Barbeau, What If It Works?
Her first solo effort, the atmospheric, piano-centered The Fog Show, arrived in 1998, followed by the stylistically broader My World View in 2000 and the 2002 collaboration Stars Fell with guitarist Dale Miller, which interpreted blues and pop standards. The arrival of her son prompted a turn toward children’s music; she joined the San Francisco collective the Sippy Cups, known for participatory, psychedelic-tinged family pop, and recorded three albums with them—2005’s Kids Rock for Peas, 2006’s Electric Storyland, and 2009’s The Time Machine—while the band built a national touring reputation. In intervening periods she contributed to two Mushroom releases, 2004’s Glazed Popems and 2007’s Yesterday I Saw You Kissing Tiny Flowers.
Once the Sippy Cups paused activities, Levy resumed independent children’s recordings with the melodic World of Wonder in 2012 and The Start of Things in 2015, then formed Big Time Tot Rock to support live performances, establishing herself among leading West Coast voices in the field. Long interested in education, she completed studies in Jewish education and later earned a master’s degree from Boston’s Hebrew College. She currently serves as family education coordinator at Peninsula Temple Beth El in San Mateo, California, and as Cantorial Soloist at San Francisco’s Or Shalom Jewish Community. That spiritual perspective shaped her 2021 album You Are Magic, whose songs encourage conversations between children and adults about the sources of personal values and their potential to improve the world.
Born in New York City, Levy pursued philosophy at New York University, though her path in music took shape only after relocating to San Francisco during the 1990s. She issued a 1995 vinyl single pairing “The Scientist” with “Execution Day,” and that year supplied backing vocals on Out in the Heat, the debut from Victor Krummenacher’s Great Laugh project tied to the Camper van Beethoven bassist. Their partnership extended across multiple Krummenacher releases and included duo performances as McCabe & Mrs. Miller, whose 2009 album Time for Leaving documented their work. Additional early credits include backing vocals on John Wesley Harding’s 1998 release Awake and membership in the Loud Family, the acclaimed pop outfit led by Scott Miller, previously of Game Theory; with that group she appeared on 1998’s Days for Days, helped shape songs and delivered two lead vocals on 2000’s Attractive Nuisance, featured on the 2002 live set From Ritual to Romance, and rejoined for the 2006 reunion album with Anton Barbeau, What If It Works?
Her first solo effort, the atmospheric, piano-centered The Fog Show, arrived in 1998, followed by the stylistically broader My World View in 2000 and the 2002 collaboration Stars Fell with guitarist Dale Miller, which interpreted blues and pop standards. The arrival of her son prompted a turn toward children’s music; she joined the San Francisco collective the Sippy Cups, known for participatory, psychedelic-tinged family pop, and recorded three albums with them—2005’s Kids Rock for Peas, 2006’s Electric Storyland, and 2009’s The Time Machine—while the band built a national touring reputation. In intervening periods she contributed to two Mushroom releases, 2004’s Glazed Popems and 2007’s Yesterday I Saw You Kissing Tiny Flowers.
Once the Sippy Cups paused activities, Levy resumed independent children’s recordings with the melodic World of Wonder in 2012 and The Start of Things in 2015, then formed Big Time Tot Rock to support live performances, establishing herself among leading West Coast voices in the field. Long interested in education, she completed studies in Jewish education and later earned a master’s degree from Boston’s Hebrew College. She currently serves as family education coordinator at Peninsula Temple Beth El in San Mateo, California, and as Cantorial Soloist at San Francisco’s Or Shalom Jewish Community. That spiritual perspective shaped her 2021 album You Are Magic, whose songs encourage conversations between children and adults about the sources of personal values and their potential to improve the world.
Albums
