Alan Pasqua

b. 1952 in New Jersey

Alan Pasqua (born June 28, 1952) is an American rock and jazz pianist. He studied at Indiana University and the New England Conservatory of Music. His album Standards with drummer Peter Erskine was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2008. As a session musician, he has toured and recorded with Bob Dylan, Santana, Cher, Michael Bublé, Eddie Money, Allan Holdsworth, Joe Walsh, Pat Benatar, Rick Springfield, and John Fogerty. He co-composed the original CBS Evening News theme. He has also had an extensive career in pop and rock music, most notably as a founding member, keyboardist, and songwriter of the 1980s hard rock band Giant.

Early life

Pasqua grew up in Roselle Park, New Jersey. He joined The New Tony Williams Lifetime and appeared on the albums Believe It and Million Dollar Legs. He then went on to perform with Eddie Money's band, after which he then joined Bob Dylan's band. Pasqua recorded two albums with Dylan (Bob Dylan at Budokan and Street-Legal). In the 1980s he performed with John Fogerty on the album Eye of the Zombie, with Starship on the album No Protection, with Allan Holdsworth on the album Sand, and joined Carlos Santana as keyboardist on Marathon, Zebop! and Havana Moon. Pasqua was married to actress Heather Langenkamp from 1984 until 1987. He was a founding member of the late-1980s rock band Giant, and he co-wrote the band's biggest hit, "I'll See You in My Dreams." In 2017 Pasqua provided the uncredited "background-y" piano accompaniment for Dylan's Nobel Prize for Literature recorded speech. He and Fiona Apple also played piano on Dylan's song Murder Most Foul, on his 2020 album Rough and Rowdy Ways.