Zach Gill

Zach Gill distinguishes himself through his wide-ranging abilities as a vocalist, composer, pianist, and player of numerous additional instruments, amassing an impressive roster of contributions throughout the industry. Recognition has come chiefly from his position as a co-founder of the California rock ensemble Animal Liberation Orchestra, known as ALO, and from repeated partnerships with singer/songwriter Jack Johnson. Born in Saratoga, California, Gill launched his musical path early by assembling a group with middle-school peers Steve Adams and Dan Lebowitz. After successive line-up changes, stretches of college attendance, and a southern tour that brought career guidance from James Brown, the three formally launched ALO in 1998 and steadily developed an audience through live dates and recordings in San Francisco and the greater Bay Area.

A tireless professional whose schedule rarely slowed, Gill balanced multiple roles in the first half of the 2000s, among them teaching music at a private academy, directing scores for area theater productions, and maintaining both solo performances and commitments with ALO. In 2005 the band secured a contract with Brushfire Records, the label belonging to his college acquaintance Johnson, soon leading Gill to appear on tour and in the studio with the singer.

After ALO delivered Roses & Clover in 2007 and Johnson issued Sleep Through the Static the following year, Gill introduced his first solo album, Stuff. The warmly textured singer/songwriter collection drew on an assortment of styles and instrumental textures while featuring contributions from members of both of his primary groups. Entering the new decade he stayed active with Johnson, for whom he recorded two albums, and with ALO, for which he completed three, all while also writing and tracking material with Aimee Mann and Jerry Harrison. Their collaboration produced the song “At the Edge of the World,” included in the documentary An Arctic Tale, and additional tracks of his appeared on the soundtrack to the Curious George film. The holiday release Roastin’ Chestnuts with Zach Gill arrived in 2013, followed in 2015 by ALO’s eighth studio album, Tangle of Time. Gill’s second proper solo effort, Life in the Multiverse, reached listeners in summer 2017.