With The Uptown Horns: “These guys are funky as 19 feet of chit’lings with onions and gravy on the side. Now that’s funky!”
–Rufus Thomas
“Man, I haven’t heard nothing like that since Duck Dunn! You’ve been my musical director. You’ve been my friend. You’ve been my brother. You’ve been all that stuff. I love you and the band.”
–Sam Moore (Sam & Dave) (Rock and Roll Hall of Famer)
“Smoking….” –Peter Wolf (J. Geils Band)
“Great playing.” –Lou Reed
“You are too funky.” –Chris Franz & Tina Weymouth (Tom Tom Club/Talking Heads)
“Ivan is one of the best bass players I’ve ever worked with. He can play my music. He has the right flavor. And there’s nothing that I’ve ever given him that he couldn’t play, even when he’s heard it for the first time or just read it for the first time. We groove. He’s one of the best. And I’ll always admire and cherish the time that we play together and hope it happens again soon.”–Martha Reeves (Rock and Roll Hall of Famer)
“Ivan Bodley, that fabulous bass player, he’s fantastic. I love him. Anytime anyone needs a good bass player, I suggest that they call Ivan because he’s the best.”
–Shirley Alston Reeves, Original Lead Singer of the World-Famous Shirelles
(Rock and Roll Hall of Famer)
“Aside from his bass playing, which is flawless (most of the time), he has a terrific disposition. Ivan is one of the most consummate musicians that I’ve ever played with. He’s a good guy, and I really love him.” –Jay Siegel (original lead singer of The Tokens {“Lion Sleeps Tonight”} and Producer)
“Ivan is the baddest. There’s nobody any better, bass player and conductor. At 6’5” you can’t miss him. There’s really no one better than I’d rather have Music Directing than Ivan Bodley. Real easy going, easy to work with, nice guy.” –Dee Dee Kenniebrew, The Crystals
“The guy is a great bass player. We’ve played all over the world together. You can’t go wrong with this cat. Ivan is also a great conductor. And I rely on him heavily for that. Ivan is also a really great acoustic bass player. Not many people know that. He’s going to be playing with me, and I with him, for a long time to come. This is the kind of guy you want on bass. You want him on stage with you. This cat is aces all the way around in his presence on the bottom end.” -Crispin Cioe, Uptown Horns
“You are so good. I truly enjoyed working with the [Uptown Horns] band. All of you in addition to being very talented are nice guys.” –Jerry Ragovoy (legendary songwriter/producer)
With The Uptown Horns and Howard Tate: “The punctilious Uptown Horns Revue…were eager and forceful.” –New York Times (Jon Pareles)
"The Uptown Horns, tried-and-true R&B professionals….So when the songs built to crescendos, as so many did, with Mr. Howard Tate's voice breaking through them like a buoy bobbing up and down through waves, the music had a grand, heaving power." –New York Times
"Howard Tate's voice is still in great shape, and he sang in a wiry drawl and punctuated phrases with birdlike falsetto trills over his band's frisky grooves and the surging roar of the Uptown Horns." –Chicago Tribune
"Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave) and his nine-piece band pulled out all the stops. In front of a crowd of 8,000, they alternated between segments that were flashy, when the band took more attention, and emotionally moving, when Moore's voice was the star. For several tunes, Moore's vocal contribution was mostly there for color and highlights while the heavy lifting was done by the band led by bassist and musical director Ivan Bodley. His band, which has been with him only since April and still had songsheets in front of them to perform, backed him as if they had been playing with him much longer." –Duluth News Tribune
With Alexander Markov’s “Rock Concerto:” “The show will remain unforgettable for the audience. The combination of both rock and symphonic music fascinated the audience. It was like a feast.” –Hakimiyet Newspaper , Bursa, Turkey
With Alexander Markov’s “Rock Concerto:” “It was a fantastic night. There was a standing ovation for Alexander Markov, Gregg Gerson and Ivan Bodley. The harmony of the symphony orchestra and the rock group was fascinating. The “Rock Concerto” was received with great interest due to it’s combination of genres. One of the most interesting parts of the show was where Bodley played the darbuka (hand drum).” –Hurriyet Newspaper, Bursa, Turkey
With Alexander Markov’s “Rock Concerto:” “It was an unforgettable night. It was totally fantastic and fascinating. Markov played his “Rock Concerto” with bass player Ivan Bodley and drummer Gregg Gerson, who have worked with world-famous stars.” –Olay Newspaper, Bursa, Turkey
With Jazz/Funk Unit: “Bassist/bandleader Ivan Bodley lives up to the description of his sound: bebop with bump. He gives backbeat to modern standards.” –Billboard
“Bassist/producer Ivan Bodley gets to make syncopated groove music out of jazz standards. It’s feisty and fun.” –Nelson George, Playboy
Jazz Jackpot! Review: “Impassioned and equally intelligent, featuring Bodley’s buzz-like bass work. Hats off to the Jazz/Funk Unit.” –CMJ
“ * * * * [four stars]. Jazz/Funk Unit tight and swinging, delightfully different.” –The Music Paper
“Ivan Bodley, producer, arranger, and bassist….I’m happy to inform you the record is at least twice as interesting as the accompanying story.” –Jazziz
“Burning, man….” Rich Appleman, Bass Department Chairman, Berklee College of Music
With The Uptown Horns: “Too bad there was no room for dancing in the crowded house because there was an awful lot of energy flying around due in no small part to the solid rhythm section playing of Ivan Bodley (bass). It was very clear that there wasn’t a single weak link in the chain. This was an evening with the cream of the crop, and if you missed it—kick yourself a little.” –True Blues, NYC
“Ruth Gerson was accompanied by a sharp rhythm section in which was especially notable the excellent bassist Ivan ‘funk boy’ Bodley.” –Buscadero, Gallarate, Italy
With Ruth Gerson: “‘Weakest Link in the Chain’ has evidence of the lively and funky bass of Ivan Bodley, who is much more than simply a sideman. Al basso del bravo e simpatico.” –Vice Versa, Sondrio, Italy
With Ruth Gerson: “Bassist Ivan Bodley is a precise and versatile instrumentalist who also adds an indisputable choreographic element with his Bermuda shorts and purple hair.” –La Prealpina, Varese, Italy
“Ruth Gerson decided to drive away the wind and rain outside with the help of the inseparable Ivan Bodley, a virtuoso bassist, who thanks to a series of solos—an exceptional one on ‘Come To Me’—outweighed the limited number of musicians and instruments.” –La Provincia, Cantú, Italy
With Willie Nile and Eric Bazilian: “Tall bassist Ivan Bodley with purple hair and a ring in his lip was really something to see.” –Piteå-Tidningen, Piteå, Sweden
