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- SCROLL DOWN FOR ENGLISH VERSION - Tra i chitarristi più richiesti della sua epoca, Larry Carlton ha partecipato a migliaia di sessioni di registrazione, inciso centinaia di album di vari generi, tra cui oltre 100 dischi d'oro, oltre a musiche per la televisione e il cinema. Ha fatto parte del gruppo jazz fusion The Crusaders e della smooth jazz band Fourplay, portando avanti una lunga carriera da solista. Lo abbiamo incontrato per una breve chiacchierata sui suoi ultimi progetti e su alcune delle sue collaborazioni più rappresentative del passato. A&B: Ciao Larry. Cominciamo dal tuo ultimo album in studio, "Soul Searchin' " con Paul Brown. Cosa puoi raccontarci al riguardo? Larry: L'album "Soul-Searching" con Paul Brown è nato durante quello che abbiamo chiamato il lockdown dovuto alla pandemia di Covid. Quindi non molti musicisti, compresi io e Paul, erano in tour in quel periodo. Così Paul mi ha contattato e mi ha proposto di fare un album insieme. Ha detto che avrebbe prodotto i brani, raccolto il materiale e lasciato spazio a me per inserire le melodie e completare i brani. Paul vive a Los Angeles e io vivo fuori Nashville, nel Tennessee, quindi ha prodotto i brani e poi me li ha spediti perché potessi sovrainciderli nel mio studio di casa. Essendo il meraviglioso produttore che è, Paul mi ha reso molto facile partecipare al progetto semplicemente inviandomi i brani, lasciandomi suonare le mie parti di chitarra e aggiungere alcune melodie. Mi è molto piaciuto questo processo. A&B: Sembra che la tua tendenza attuale sia quella di condividere album con altri artisti: mi riferisco, ovviamente, ai tuoi due precedenti lavori, "At Blue Note Tokyo" con Steve Lukather e "Cover of Lights" con la SWR Big Band. Vorremmo anche la tua opinione su queste esperienze... Larry: Realizzare album dal vivo è semplicemente una questione di scegliere opportunità che mi entusiasmano musicalmente. Certo, suonare con il grande Steve Lukather è stata una gioia. Steve ed io siamo amici da moltissimi anni e l'opportunità di salire sul palco e suonare con tutto il cuore è stata un'occasione gioiosa per entrambi. La vera gioia, per me, nel realizzare l’album con la SWR Big Band è stata la qualità degli arrangiamenti: erano eccezionali. È tutto suonato dal vivo, senza sovraincisioni, ed è stato fantastico per me poter suonare con una big band così e quelle fantastiche partiture. A&B: "Guitar Techniques Of Larry Carlton" è stato pubblicato solo in vinile in Giappone (etichetta: Tam; catalogo YX-6134). Come mai? Larry: Per quanto riguarda "Guitar Techniques Of Larry Carlton", non sono a conoscenza di quel progetto, quindi non posso commentare. A&B: Hai recentemente lanciato una linea di chitarre Sire, i modelli H7 richiamano la ES-335, una chitarra che ha caratterizzato parte della tua carriera. Hai introdotto modifiche o personalizzazioni rispetto alla 335? Larry: Non potrei essere più felice ed entusiasta della mia linea di chitarre con SIRE. Mi hanno contattato e mi hanno detto che avrebbero voluto realizzare una linea di modelli di chitarre Larry Carlton con un'alta qualità e un prezzo basso. Così il proprietario di SIRE è volato a Nashville, Tennessee, e mi ha portato cinque o sei chitarre per mostrarmi la qualità degli strumenti che avrebbero voluto realizzare con il mio nome. Sono rimasto sbalordito dalla qualità. Quando ho suonato ogni singola chitarra, erano semplicemente fantastiche e poi, quando mi hanno detto il prezzo, l'entusiasmo è aumentato ulteriormente. La mia linea di chitarre ha un prezzo tale che, credo, molti altri chitarristi in tutto il mondo potranno ottenere uno strumento di qualità senza dover pagare cifre esorbitanti come fanno altre aziende. La SIRE H7 è una versione di una chitarra 335. Ho inviato loro la mia Gibson ES 335 del 1969 perché la clonassero ed è venuta benissimo. La suono in tutti i miei concerti dal vivo e in studio, ora. Ripeto, non potrei essere più orgoglioso di far parte di SIRE e della mia linea di chitarre. A&B: Parlando delle tue esperienze passate, un commento sulla collaborazione con i Crusaders sarebbe gradito. Erano un ottimo gruppo fusion/jazz-rock, ad avviso di chi scrive, eredi dei Jazz Crusaders, più orientati al jazz tradizionale. Cosa puoi raccontarci della tua lunga permanenza in quel gruppo? Larry: I Crusaders: a 14 o 15 anni possedevo un disco dei Jazz Crusaders e mi sedevo in camera mia a suonare quel disco. Adoravo il loro sound e il loro feeling. Facciamo un salto in avanti all'inizio del 1971. Stavo entrando in studio a Los Angeles per un concerto e mi chiamarono per una sessione di venerdì sera. Il tastierista di quella sessione era Joe Sample. Quella è stata la sera in cui ci siamo conosciuti. Il lunedì mattina successivo, tre giorni dopo, ricevetti una chiamata dalla sede dei Crusaders in cui mi si diceva che erano il gruppo già in studio a preparare un nuovo album e che potevo andare a registrare per le due settimane successive. Ed è così che è iniziata la mia collaborazione con i Crusaders: fu durante quella prima settimana in cui registrammo “So Far Away” e “Put It Where You Want It”, che divennero entrambe molto conosciute e contribuirono a definire il mio sound all’interno del gruppo. Quindi sono molto orgoglioso dei 13 album che ho fatto con loro e della loro grande influenza musicale su di me. A&B: Nel 1973, hai partecipato alle registrazioni di "Court and Spark" di Joni Mitchell e, successivamente, di "Hejira" insieme a Jaco Pastorius. Che ricordi hai di quelle sessioni? Larry: Tom Scott, io, Joe Sample, Max Bennett e John Guerin, suonavamo al Baked Potato Club di North Hollywood, in California, e Joni Mitchell è arrivata, ci ha sentito e ha detto a Tom Scott che le sarebbe piaciuto andare in studio con quella band. Ed è così che è nato l'album "Court and Spark". Durante le sessioni di quest'ultimo, Joni aveva delle demo delle sue canzoni e noi scrivevamo le nostre partiture e creavamo i nostri arrangiamenti per accompagnarla. L'album "Court and Spark" è un album nella top five degli album, e sono molto orgoglioso di aver fatto parte di "Heijira": quando sono arrivato per registrare quell'album, Joni aveva già registrato le sue chitarre e una bozza vocale e mi ha semplicemente detto di reagire alla musica. Non ho scritto nessuna parte. Mi limitavo ad ascoltare la sua musica e a reagire con la mia chitarra. Abbiamo fatto due o tre take e poi siamo passati a un altro brano. Joni è tornata più tardi ed è stata brillante. Ha montato le mie parti di chitarra insieme per creare una fantastica atmosfera dietro la sua narrazione nel brano. Quando ho lasciato lo studio, Jaco stava entrando, quindi ha registrato da solo anche lui con la musica di Joni e non abbiamo mai suonato insieme in quell'album, ma è sicuramente venuto fuori benissimo grazie al meraviglioso editing di Joni. A&B: Vorremmo conoscere un tuo ricordo o un aneddoto su Jaco, se possibile. Larry: Jaco, un musicista unico nel suo genere, un uomo unico nel suo genere, che ha cambiato per sempre il modo di suonare il basso elettrico. A&B: Nel brano "Amelia", di Joni Micthell, dall'album "Hejira", sembra che tu stia suonando una chitarra slide. Come hai affrontato la registrazione di quel brano? Larry: Nel brano "Amelia" di Joni Mitchell, come ho detto prima, le ho dato due o tre tracce delle mie reazioni alla chitarra e lei si è occupata dell'editing in seguito, combinando molte delle parti che avevo suonato e il risultato è stato splendido. Ma non ho usato lo slide, era semplicemente il mio approccio a quel brano. E lei ha editato le mie parti di chitarra in modo meraviglioso. A&B: Cosa ne pensi dell'esecuzione di Pat Metheny dei brani "Amelia", "Hejira" e "Free Man in Paris" nell'album "Shadows and Light", registrati in studio da te? Larry: Per quanto riguarda l'esibizione di Pat Metheny nei live di Joni, onestamente non l'ho mai sentita, quindi non posso commentare. A&B: Vorremmo anche sapere la tua opinione su Pat Metheny (un altro chitarrista che amiamo), il cui stile e la cui tecnica sono molto diversi dai tuoi... Larry: Pat Metheny è ovviamente un virtuoso. Si è impegnato molto e noi, come ascoltatori, ne traiamo beneficio. A&B: Hai lavorato con un numero incredibile di artisti: Steely Dan, Linda Ronstadt, Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Christopher Cross, Dolly Parton e molti altri. Con quale di loro hai lavorato meglio e per quali motivi? Larry: Tra le tante sessioni che ho fatto, lavorare con gli Steely Dan è stato fantastico. La raffinatezza dei loro brani, intendo da un punto di vista armonico, mi ha permesso di creare molti licks blues e rock; in definitiva, si tratta di uno dei punti più alti della mia carriera. A&B: Hai suonato in "Theme from Hill Street Blues" di Mike Post del 1981, che vinse un Grammy per la "Miglior Composizione Strumentale" e per la "Miglior Performance Pop Strumentale". Abbiamo amato molto quella serie TV (che in Italia ebbe un successo di nicchia) e la sua meravigliosa colonna sonora. Puoi spiegarci il tuo coinvolgimento in quella colonna sonora? Larry: Mike Post era un amico e anche un produttore con cui ho lavorato molte volte negli anni '70 e '80. Giocavamo a tennis insieme. Nel 1979, quando tornai da un tour in Giappone, l'azienda di strumenti musicali Korg mi diede un piccolo filtro e con quel filtro riuscii a ottenere questo suono arioso, simile a quello di un sintetizzatore di flauto, con la mia chitarra. Ero entusiasta del suono che avevo trovato, così chiamai Mike e lo invitai nel mio studio per mostrargli questo fantastico suono dopo averlo sentito. Mike disse che stavo scrivendo la sigla per una nuova serie televisiva e che dovevamo usare quel suono. Si trattava di "Hill Street Blues". Quindi, tutti i suoni di sintetizzatore che sentite in risposta alla melodia di pianoforte di Mike sono in realtà dovuti a me che suono la chitarra attraverso quel filtro. A&B: Tornando al presente, hai in programma un disco? Sarai in tour? Europa e Italia saranno tra le tue destinazioni future. Larry: Al momento, non ho intenzione di registrare un nuovo album e ho ridotto i miei tour a circa 25 giorni all'anno. Quindi non ho intenzione di venire in Europa o in Italia al momento. A&B: Ultime parole per i fan italiani e i lettori di A&B... Larry: A tutti i miei fan italiani e ai lettori di A&B, un grande grazie a tutti voi per il vostro supporto nel corso degli anni. È stato un piacere suonare la mia chitarra per voi. - ENGLISH VERSION - One of the most sought after guitarists of his era, Larry Carlton has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorded on hundreds of albums in many genres including more than 100 gold records, in addition to music for television and movies. He has been a member of the jazz fusion group the Crusaders and the smooth jazz band Fourplay maintaining a long solo career. We met him for a quick chat about his latest projects and some of his most representative collaborations from the past. A&B: Ciao Larry. Thank you for granting us this interview. Your last album in studio is "Soul Searchin' " with Paul Brown. What can you tell us about it? Larry: the soul-searching album with Paul Brown happened during what we called the lockdown from the pandemic “Covid”. So not many musicians, including myself and Paul were traveling at that time. So Paul contacted me and said let’s do an album together. He said he would produce the tracks and get the material together and leave room for me to insert melodies to complete the tunes. Paul lives in Los Angeles and I live outside of Nashville Tennessee so Paul produced the tracks and then sent the tracks to me so I could overdub in my home studio. Paul, being the wonderful Producer that he is made it very easy for me to be involved in the project by just sending me the tracks and letting me play my guitar parts and add some melodies. I enjoyed the process very much. A&B: It seems that your current trend is to share albums with other artists: I am referring, of course, to your two previous works, "At Blue Note Tokyo" with Steve Lukather and "Cover of Lights" with the SWR Big Band. We would like your opinion also about these experiences... Larry: doing live albums is just a matter of choosing opportunities that excite me musically. Of course, playing with the great Steve Lukather was a joy. Steve and I have been friends for many many many years and the chance to just go on stage and play our hearts out it was a joyous occasion for both of us. The real Joy for me doing the SWR big band album was how great the charts were. It’s all live no overdubs and it was awesome for me to play having that big band and those great charts to play too. A&B: "Guitar Techniques Of Larry Carlton" was released on vinyl only in Japan (Label: Tam; catalog YX-6134). What is it about? Larry: Regarding "Guitar techniques of Larry Carlton" I’m really not aware of that project so I have no comment on it A&B: You recently launched a line of Sire guitars, the H7 models recall the ES-335, a guitar that has characterized part of your career. Have you introduced any changes or customizations compared to the 335? Larry: I couldn’t be more happy or excited about my line of guitars with SIRE. They approached me and said they would like to do a line of Larry Carlton Guitar models and that the quality would be high and the price point would be low. So the owner of SIRE flew to Nashville, Tennessee, and brought five or six guitars to show me the quality of the instruments that they would like to make with my name on them. And I was blown away by the quality. When I played each individual guitar they were just great and then when they told me the price point, I got more excited. my guitar line is priced at a point that I think many many many more guitar players around the world can get a quality instrument and they don’t have to pay so much money like some of the other companies are charging. The SIRE H7 is there a version of a 335 guitar. I sent them my 1969 Gibson ES 335 so they could clone it and it came out great I play it on all of my live gigs and in the studio now. Once again, I say, I could not be more proud to be part of SIRE and my guitar line. A&B: Talking about your past experiences, a comment about the collaboration with The Crusaders will be appreciated. They were a great fusion/jazz-rock group, in our opinion, heirs of the Jazz Crusaders, more oriented towards traditional jazz. What can you tell us about your long stay in that group? Larry: The Crusaders at age 14 or 15 I owned a jazz Crusaders record and I used to sit in my bedroom and jam along with that record. I’d loved their sound and feel. Jump forward to early 1971. I was just breaking into the studio seeing in Los Angeles and I got a call for a session on a Friday night And the keyboard player for that session happen to be Joe Sample. That’s the night we met. That next Monday morning three days later I got a call from the Crusaders office saying that they were already in the studio setting up for a new album and could I come in and record for the next two weeks. And that’s how my association with the Crusaders started during that first week we recorded so far away and put it where you want it, which both became very well known and that kind of established my sound with the Crusaders. So I’m very proud of the 13 albums I did with the guys and their major musical influence on me. A&B: In 1973, you took part in the recordings of Joni Mitchell's "Court and Spark" and later of "Hejira" together with Jaco Pastorius. What memories do you have of those sessions? Larry: Joni Mitchell-for fun, Tom Scott, myself Joe Sample, Max Bennett, and John Guerin we’re playing at the Baked Potato club in North Hollywood, California and Joni Mitchell came in and she heard us and she told Tom Scott that she would like to go in the studio with that band. And that’s how they Court and Spark album came to be. On the Court and Spark sessions Joni had demo tapes of her songs and we wrote up our own charts and made up our own arrangements for backing her. The court and spark album is an album in the top five of albums, I’m most proud to have been a part of Heijira-when I came in to record for that album Joni had her guitars already recorded and a rough vocal and she just told me to go out and react to the music. I didn’t write up any charts. I was just listening to her music and reacting with my guitar. We did two or three takes and then moved onto another song. Joni later, went back and brilliantly. Edited my guitar parts together to create a great atmosphere behind her storytelling in the song. When I left the studio, Jaco was just walking in so he recorded by himself to Joni’s music also and we never played together on that album but it sure came out great due to Joni’s wonderful editing. A&B: we would like to know your memory or anecdote of Jaco, if possible. Larry: Jaco-one of a kind musician, one of a kind man and changed forever the way the electric Bass could be played. A&B: On the track "Amelia", by Joni Micthell from the album "Hejira", it sounds like you're playing a slide guitar, how did you approach the recording of that song? Larry: On the song, Amelia by Joni Mitchell as I said earlier, I gave her two or three tracks of my guitar reactions and she did the editing later and combined many of the parts that I had played and it came out sounding beautiful. But I did not use a slide for any of that that was just my approach to that song And she edited my guitar parts wonderfully. A&B: What do you think of Pat Metheny's execution of the songs "Amelia", "Hejira", "Free Man in Paris" in the album "Shadows and Light", recorded in studio by you? Larry: Regarding Pat Methenys performance on Joni’s Live performances I honestly have not heard those so I cannot comment. A&B: We would also like your opinion of Pat Metheny (another guitarist we love), whose style and technique is very different from yours... Larry: Pat Metheny is a Virtuoso obviously. He put in hard work and we as the listeners get the benefit of it. A&B: You worked with an incredible number of artists: Steely Dan, Linda Ronstadt, Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Christopher Cross, Dolly Parton and many others. Which of them did you work best with and for what reasons? Larry: Of the many sessions I did working with Steely Dan was great. The sophistication of their songs “harmonically”allowed me to create more than just blues, licks, and rock licks. definitely one of the highlights of my career. A&B: You performed on Mike Post's 1981 "Theme from Hill Street Blues", which won Grammys for 'Best Instrumental Composition' and for 'Best Pop Instrumental Performance'. We really loved that TV series (which in Italy had a niche response) and its wonderful soundtrack. Can you clarify what your involvement was in that soundtrack? Larry: Mike Post was a friend and also a producer that I worked for many times in the 70s and 80s. We used to play tennis together. In 1979 when I returned from A Japanese tour the musical instrument company Korg had given me a small filter box and with that box I could get this kind of airy Flute synthesizer kind of sound with my guitar. I was excited about the sound that I found so I called Mike and had him come to my studio so I could show him this cool sound after hearing the sound. Mike said I’m writing the theme to a new TV show and we have to use that sound. The TV show was Hill Street blues. So, all of the synthesizer type sounds that you hear answering Mike’s piano melody are actually me playing the guitar through that box. A&B: Back to the present, is there a record planned? Will you be on tour? Europe and Italy will be included among your future destinations Larry: As of now, I have no plans to record a new album and I’ve cut my touring down to about 25 days a year. So there are no plans to come to Europe or Italy at this time A&B: Last words for italian fans and A&B readers Larry: To all of my Italian fans and A&B readers big thanks to all of you for your support over the years. It’s been my pleasure to play my guitar for you. |
Larry Carlton Bio (from https://www.larrycarlton335.com/)Larry Carlton’s own musical story began in Southern California. He picked up his first guitar when he was only six years old. He was introduced to jazz in junior high school after hearing The Gerald Wilson Big Band album, Moment of Truth, with guitarist Joe Pass. Larry then became interested in Barney Kessel, Wes Montgornery and the legendary blues guitarist B.B. King. Saxophonist John Coltrane was also a major influence on Carlton, beginning with Coltrane’s 1962 classic Ballads. In 1968 he recorded his first LP, With A Little Help From My Friends (Uni). The enthusiastic industry response garnered him a place among jingle singers The Going Thing, recording on camera and radio commercials for Ford. Mid-season in his second year, he segued to Musical Director for Mrs. Alphabet, an Emmy-nominated children’s show on the same network. It was here that Carlton showcased his acting skills, performing as the show’s co-star, "Larry Guitar." Calls began to increase significantly as Carlton gained distinction for the unmistakable and often imitated "sweet" sound he delivered with his Gibson ES-335. He also broke new ground with his new trademark volume pedal technique, eloquently displayed in his featured performance on Crusader One with legendary jazz/rock group The Crusaders in 1971. Joni Mitchell’s Court and Spark album, the first record she made with a rhythm section, displays his distinctive Technique – a style Mitchell referred to as "fly fishing." During his tenure with The Crusaders (through 1976), Carlton performed on 13 of their albums, often contributing material. In 1973, Carlton released his second solo project, SinginglPlaying, on Blue Thumb Records aptly titled, as he not only played guitar, but also performed vocals on eight tracks. Carlton’s demand as a session player was now at its zenith, he was constantly featured with stars from every imaginable genre, ranging from Sammy Davis, Jr., and Herb Alpert to Quincy Jones, Paul Anka, Michael Jackson, John Lennon, Jerry Garcia and Dolly Parton. At the same time, he was still performing more than 50 dates a year with The Crusaders. Before he transitioned completely to a solo career, Carlton became one of the most in-demand studio musicians of the past three decades. Carlton’s catalog of work includes film soundtracks, television themes and work on more than 100 gold albums. Ultimately, Carlton began scaling back his session work substantially, while continuing to perform and record with the Crusaders. He shifted his emphasis to the challenges of arranging and producing, and built his own studio-Room 335-in his home. During this period he arranged and produced projects for Barbra Streisand, Joan Baez and Larry Gatlin, as well as producing and co-writing the theme for the hit sitcom Who’s The Boss and co-writing (with Michel Columbier) and arranging the acclaimed movie soundtrack for Against All Odds. As his association with the Crusaders began to draw to a close, Carlton signed with Warner Bros. Records in 1977. Between ’78 and ’84, Larry recorded six solo albums for Warner Bros. Records: Mr. 335: Live In Japan, Friends; Eight Times Up; Sleep Walk; Strikes Twice; Larry Carlton. The latter self-titled album was released hot on the heels of his debut session with rock supergroup Steely Dan. Rolling Stone magazine lists Carlton’s tasty ascent on Steely Dan’s Kid Charlemagne as one of the three best guitar licks in rock music. With more than 3000 studio sessions under his belt by the early 1980s, Carlton had picked up four Grammy nominations. In addition to winning a Grammy (`81) for the theme to "Hill Street Blues" (a collaboration with Mike Post), he also was voted NARAS’s "Most Valuable Player" for three consecutive years. NARAS then named him "Player Emeritus" and retired him from eligibility. In 1985 he was approached by the newly formed MCA Master Series to consider doing an acoustic jazz album. His first release for the new label was Alone, But Never Alone, a consensus No. 1 album on the Radio & Records and Billboard Jazz charts. The twelve months of 1987 brought some of the biggest highlights in Carlton’s solo career. In addition to winning the Grammy for "Minute by Minute," Carlton received a Grammy nomination for "Best Jazz Fusion Performance" for his live album Last Nite. Coming off of the success of two acoustic albums and one live album, Carlton was on a hot streak and entered the studio to work on his next project, On Solid Ground. The all-electric project was nominated for a Grammy in 1989. The release of On Solid Ground came almost one year after Carlton was brutally shot in a random act of violence outside his Los Angeles studio. In 1990, MCA acquired GRP Records and placed their jazz artists under the GRP moniker. Immediately, GRP issued a greatest hits package of Carlton’s work on MCA, called Collection. In 1991, Carlton entered the studio to record a blues-based album with John Ferraro, keyboard man Matt Rollings, bassist Michael Rhodes and harmonica player Terry McMillan. Interrupted by label and consumer demands for another jazz offering, Carlton temporarily shelved what would become Renegade Gentlemen and recorded and released Kid Gloves in ’92. A pop-oriented Jazz collection of lilting acoustic ballads and biting electric workouts, the album marked the first time Carlton had included both acoustic and electric tracks on a single solo project. In between touring, Carlton resumed work on the bluesy Renegade Gentlemen. Taking the original six tracks to Nashville (his first time to record in that city), and joining up once again with Michael Rhodes and Terry McMillan, plus drummer Chris Layton (from Stevie Vaughan’s band Double Trouble) and keyboard wizard Chuck Leavell, he recorded four tracks, plus did additional production and mixing on the blues rocker in time for a ’93 release. Carlton toured extensively that year and the next with jazz superband Stanley Clark And Friends (Stanley Clark, Larry Carlton, Billy Cobham, Deron Johnson and Najee). The quintet released Stanley Clark and Friends Live A t The Greek in ’94. Larry & Lee, Carlton’s 1995 collaboration with guitar great Lee Ritenour, garnered him his eighth Grammy nomination. This was followed by The Gift in ’96 and Larry Carlton Collection Volume 2 in ’97. That same year, his virtuosity and reputation secured him a place in the crumtopping award-winning Warner Bros. Records’ group Fourplay, when member Lee Ritenour left to head his own label. Carlton doubled the fun by signing to Wamer Jazz as a solo artist at the same time. Since then he has released two albums with Fourplay: 4 in ’98 and a refreshingly different Christmas album, Snowbound, in October ’99. 1999 also brought Larry Carlton his very own spot on Hollywood’s prestigious Rockwalk. On June 3, he was inducted along with Joe Satriani, Steve Vai and Jimmie Vaughn. The year 2000 starts with Carlton putting his singularly superb fingerprints on the new millennium with his star-studded solo release on Wamer Bros. Records, Fingerprints. Utterly unique, Larry Carlton has set a standard for artistry that spans three decades (and two centuries) and he is undoubtedly destined to leave his mark on jazz, blues, pop and rock for the foreseeable future… Another great bio written by Richard Skelly, All-Music Guide: Larry was born on 2nd of march in 1948 in Torance/California! He moved from LA to Franklin/Tennessee a few years ago and enjoys living in the countryside. Like so many other Los Angeles studio musicians, guitarist and composer Larry Carlton was faced with a choice a number of years back: whether to go solo and develop a name for himself under his own name or to continue the less risky, more lucrative existence as a session guitarist, making good money and recording with prominent musicians. Fortunately for fans of this eclectic guitarist, he chose the former, and has recorded under his own name for Warner Bros., MCA Records and GRP Records since 1978. Carlton’s studio credits from the 1970s and early ’80s include musicians and groups like Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell, Michael Jackson, Sammy Davis Jr., Herb Alpert, Quincy Jones, Bobby Bland, Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and literally dozens of others. Among his more notable projects as a session guitarist were Joni Mitchell’s critically acclaimed Court and Spark album and Donald Fagen’s Nightfly album. For much of the 1970s, Carlton was active as a session guitarist, recording on up to 500 albums a year. Although he recorded a number of LPs under his own name as early as 1968’s With a Little Help from My Friends (Uni), and 1973’s Singing/Playing, he didn’t land a major-label contract until 1978, when he signed with Warner Bros. Carlton began taking guitar lessons when he was six. His first professional gig was at a supper club in 1962. After hearing Joe Pass on the radio, he was inspired to play jazz and blues. Wes Montgomery and Barney Kessel became important influences soon after he discovered the jazz guitar stylings of Pass. B.B. King and other blues guitarists had an impact on Carlton’s style as well. He honed his guitar-playing skills in the clubs and studios of greater Los Angeles. He attended a local junior college and Long Beach State College for a year until the Vietnam War ended. Carlton toured with the Fifth Dimension in 1968 and began doing studio sessions in 1970. His early session work included studio dates with pop musicians like Vicki Carr, Andy Williams and the Partridge Family. In 1971, he was asked to join the Crusaders shortly after they’d decided to drop the word "Jazz” from their name, and he remained with the group until 1976. In between tours with the Crusaders, he also did studio session work for hundreds of recordings in every genre. But it was while he with the Crusaders that he developed the highly rhythmic, often bluesy style he has now. His credits include performing on more than 100 gold albums. His theme music credits for TV and films include Against All Odds, Who’s the Boss, and the theme for Hill Street Blues. The latter won a Grammy award in 1981 for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. Carlton delivered his self-titled debut for Warner Bros. in 1978, shortly after he was recognized for his ground-breaking guitar playing on Steely Dan’s Royal Scam album. (Carlton contributed the memorable guitar solo on "Kid Charlemagne.”) He released four more albums for Warner Bros., Strikes Twice (1980), Sleepwalk (1981), Eight Times Up (1982), and the Grammy-nominated Friends (1983), before being dropped from the label. He continued studio session work and touring in between, emerging again in 1986 on MCA Records with an all-acoustic album, Discovery, which contained an instrumental remake of Michael McDonald’s hit, "Minute by Minute." The single won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance in 1987. Carlton’s live album, Last Nite, released in 1987, got him a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance. While working on his next album for MCA, On Solid Ground, Carlton was the victim of random gun violence, and was shot in the throat by gun-wielding juveniles outside Room 335, his private studio near Burbank, California. The bullet shattered his vocal cord and caused significant nerve trauma, but through intensive therapy and a positive frame of mind, Carlton completed work on On Solid Ground in 1989. Carlton formed Helping Innnocent People (HIP), a non-profit group to aid victims of random gun violence. Carlton’s most recent albums include two releases in 1996 for GRP Records, Gift and With a Little Help from My Friends. His other recordings include 1990’s Collection and 1992’s Kid Gloves for the same label, Playing/Singing (1995, Edsel), and Renegade Gentleman, a 1993 release for GRP. Despite the tragedy that was foisted on him in the late ’80s after he was shot by gun-wielding infidels, dragging him through a long and dark period of hospitalization and rehabilitation, Carlton’s output over the years has been steady through the 1980s and 1990s. Carlton seems to have slowed down his touring schedule a bit, but certainly not his recording schedule. Always happy to meet with the press, Carlton has a sweet, peaceful personality, and one can hear it in his unique, rhythmic, warm guitar chords and ringing guitar tones. — Richard Skelly, All-Music Guide Discografia |
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Interviste Larry Carlton
Interviste Larry Carlton
Larry Carlton
Scritto da Gianluca Livi e Alex Marenga Sabato 31 Maggio 2025 07:16 Letto : 172 volte
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