Gene Perla is an American jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 bassist.

Perla studied piano at the Berklee School of Music and the Boston Conservatory

Boston Conservatory

The Boston Conservatory is a performing arts conservatory located in the Fenway-Kenmore region of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in music, dance and musical theater...

 before switching to bass. He played with Woody Herman

Woody Herman

Woodrow Charles Herman , known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading various groups called "The Herd," Herman was one of the most popular of the 1930s and '40s bandleaders...

 in 1969-70, as well as Thad Jones

Thad Jones

Thaddeus Joseph Jones was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader.-Biography:Thad Jones was born in Pontiac, Michigan to a musical family of ten . Thad Jones was a self taught musician, performing professionally by the age of sixteen...

/Mel Lewis

Mel Lewis

Mel Lewis was an American drummer, jazz musician and band leader. He was born Melvin Sokoloff in Buffalo, New York to Russian immigrant parents....

, Sarah Vaughan

Sarah Vaughan

Sarah Lois Vaughan was an American jazz singer, described by Scott Yanow as having "one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century."...

, Miles Davis

Miles Davis

Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...

, Nina Simone

Nina Simone

Eunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...

, Jeremy Steig

Jeremy Steig

-Biography:Steig is the son of New Yorker cartoonist William Steig,At age 19 Steig was involved in a motorcycle accident which left him paralyzed on one side...

, Elvin Jones

Elvin Jones

Elvin Ray Jones was a jazz drummer of the post-bop era. He showed interest in drums at a young age, watching the circus bands march by his family's home in Pontiac, Michigan....

 (1971-73), and Sonny Rollins

Sonny Rollins

Theodore Walter "Sonny" Rollins is a Grammy-winning American jazz tenor saxophonist. Rollins is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. A number of his compositions, including "St...

.

In the 1970s Perla founded the PM jazz record label. He also later headed Plug Records. Under his leadership the labels recorded Dave Liebman

Dave Liebman

Dave Liebman is an American saxophonist and flautist. In June 2010, he received a NEA Jazz Masters lifetime achievement award from the National Endowment for the Arts.-Biography:...

, Elvin Jones

Elvin Jones

Elvin Ray Jones was a jazz drummer of the post-bop era. He showed interest in drums at a young age, watching the circus bands march by his family's home in Pontiac, Michigan....

, Steve Grossman, Pat LaBarbera

Pat LaBarbera

Pat LaBarbera is an American-born Canadian jazz tenor, alto and soprano saxophonist, clarinetist, and flautist born in Mt. Morris, New York, most notable for his work as a soloist in Buddy Rich bands from 1967–1973....

, and Jerry Bergonzi

Jerry Bergonzi

Jerry Bergonzi is a jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and educator. Bergonzi received a B.A. Degree in Music Education from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and is the founder of Not Fat Records....

. He formed Stone Alliance with Grossman and Don Alias

Don Alias

Charles 'Don' Alias was an American jazz percussionist.Alias was best known for playing congas and other hand drums...

 in 1975, and continues to perform and teach at Lehigh University and the New School of Jazz & Contemporary Music. Current groups include the Fine Wine Trio, Go Trio, and Easton Jazz Express.

Other activities include running an A/V studio featuring ProTools & Final Cut Pro, and CyberNet Communications, a Web design and hosting organization.

As Sideman

With Elvin Jones

Elvin Jones

Elvin Ray Jones was a jazz drummer of the post-bop era. He showed interest in drums at a young age, watching the circus bands march by his family's home in Pontiac, Michigan....

• Genesis
  Genesis (Elvin Jones album)
  Genesis is an album by American jazz drummer Elvin Jones recorded in 1971 and released on the Blue Note label.-Reception:The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 4 stars stating "Elvin Jones' band had expanded during 1969-71 from a pianoless trio to a three-horn quintet... it would not...
  
  (Blue Note, 1971)
• Merry-Go-Round
  Merry-Go-Round (album)
  Merry-Go-Round is an album by American jazz drummer Elvin Jones recorded in 1971 and released on the Blue Note label.-Reception:The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 3 stars stating "the music is generally quite worthwhile, if a bit eclectic.....
  
  (Blue Note, 1971)
• Mr. Jones
  Mr. Jones (Elvin Jones album)
  Mr. Jones is an album by American jazz drummer Elvin Jones recorded in 1972 and released on the Blue Note label.-Reception:The Allmusic review awarded the album 4½ stars.-Track listing:# "One's Native Place" - 6:14# "Gee Gee" - 5:45# "Mr...
  
  (Blue Note, 1972)
• Live at the Lighthouse
  Live at the Lighthouse (Elvin Jones album)
  Live at the Lighthouse is a live album by jazz drummer Elvin Jones featuring performances recorded in 1972 at the Lighthouse Club in California and released on the Blue Note label...
  
  (Blue Note, 1972)
• At This Point in Time
  At This Point in Time
  At This Point In Time is a 1973 jazz album by an eleven-piece ensemble led by Elvin Jones. Tracks 1 to 4 were first issued on the double album The Prime Element , while tracks 5 to 7 were previously unreleased...
  
  (Blue Note, 1973)