Larry Goldings (born 1968) is an American jazz pianist, organist, and composer.
Life and career
Goldings was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His father was a classical music enthusiast, and Larry studied classical piano until the age of twelve. In high school he attended a program at the Eastman School of Music. During this period Erroll Garner, Oscar Peterson, Dave McKenna, Red Garland, and Bill Evans were prime influences. As a young teenager, Larry studied privately with Ran Blake and Keith Jarrett.
Larry moved to New York in 1986 to attend a newly formed jazz program under the leadership of Arnie Lawrence at The New School. During college he studied piano with Jaki Byard and Fred Hersch. While still a freshman, Sir Roland Hanna invited Larry to accompany him to a three-day private jazz party in Copenhagen. While there, Larry met jazz legends Sarah Vaughan, Kenny Burrell, Tommy Flanagan, and Hank Jones; and he also played piano in a band with Sarah Vaughan, Harry "Sweets" Edison, and Al Cohn. While still a college student, he embarked on a worldwide tour with Jon Hendricks and worked with him for a year. A collaboration lasting almost three years with jazz guitar legend Jim Hall followed.
In 1988, Larry began his development as an organist during a regular gig at a pianoless bar called Augie's (now Smoke) on New York's Upper West Side. He was featured with several bands, and his own trio with guitarist Peter Bernstein and drummer Bill Stewart got its start there. His own first release was Intimacy Of The Blues in 1991. He has released ten or more albums since then, and has appeared as a sideman on hundreds of recordings. Over the course of his career, his distinctive keyboard sound has been sought out more and more by pop, R&B, Brazilian, and alternative artists, including De La Soul, India.Arie, Tracy Chapman, Colin Hay, Madeleine Peyroux, Luciana Souza, Rebecca Pidgeon, Melody Gardot, Walter Becker, Robben Ford, Steve Gadd, Al Jarreau, David Sanborn, Till Bronner, Priscilla Ahn, Jesse Harris, Sia, John Mayer, and Norah Jones. He has had long term collaborations with musicians such as Maceo Parker, John Scofield, Carla Bley, Michael Brecker and Pat Metheny, John Pizzarelli, Jack DeJohnette and Charlie Haden, in genres including jazz, Brazilian, funk, and pop music as pianist (since 2001) for singer-songwriter, James Taylor.
Larry's melodic style of organ playing has often been compared to that of Larry Young. On organ, Larry cites as his first inspirations the solo piano style of Dave McKenna "who walks his own bass lines better than anyone" and Billy Preston accompanying Aretha Franklin on "Bridge Over Troubled Water." Other influences were the Wes Montgomery records featuring Mel Rhyne and Jimmy Smith; Shirley Scott; Chester Thompson; Joe Zawinul; and Jack McDuff.1 Among jazz enthusiasts, Larry's organ trio with Peter Bernstein and Bill Stewart has been recognized for charting new ground, with the musicians' synergistic playing and their hard-swinging, yet very thoughtful, music.
Larry is a composer, arranger, and producer of music. His music reflects a wide listening palette, from Beethoven and Gabriel Fauré to contemporary artists like The Beatles, Randy Newman, and Björk. His compositions have been recorded by Michael Brecker, Jack DeJohnette, Bob Dorough, Jim Hall, John Scofield, and Toots Thielemans, among others; and his songs and arrangements appear in the films Clint Eastwood's, "Space Cowboys," John Madden's "Proof," and, more recently, the Judd Apatow film, "Funny People." Larry also is a featured performer in the 2009 Clint Eastwood documentary, "The Dream's on Me," playing original arrangements of several classic Johnny Mercer tunes on piano and Hammond organ.
In addition to film, Larry's composing, arranging and producing credits include four albums with the vocalist Curtis Stigers in which one can hear their original co-writes as well as Larry's musical arrangements of a variety of contemporary songs and jazz standards. Larry's musical arrangements also can be heard on several James Taylor albums, including October Road, James Taylor at Christmas, One Man Band, and most recently, Covers.
In 2007, Larry Goldings, Jack DeJohnette and John Scofield, received a Grammy nomination in the category of Best Jazz Instrumental Album Individual or Group for their performance on the album, "Trio Beyond - Saudades" (ECM). The album captures their live performance in 2004 at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London. Its title is in reference to the musicians' collaboration that began as a tribute to the music of Tony Williams Lifetime group and has now moved beyond to include original works and other music in a similar vein.
Also, in 2006, 2007 and 2008, Larry toured the United States and Europe with James Taylor, as his One Man Band, a collaborative project that culminated in the joint CD/DVD release by the same name (Hear Music). The album, which was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), features an original composition by Larry entitled "School Song."
He is the perpetrator of the hoax Hans Groiner Plays Monk, which purports to be the MySpace page of an Austrian pianist "from Braunau, also the birthplace of Hitler, but please don't hold that against me," who plays easy listening versions of Thelonious Monk tunes.
Selected discography
- Trio Beyond - Saudades, 2006, ECM
- Quartet, 2006, Palmetto
- Sweet Science, 2002, Palmetto
- As One 2001, Palmetto
- Voodoo Dogs, 2000, Palmetto
- Moonbird, 1999, Palmetto
- Awareness, 1997, Warner Bros.
- Big Stuff, 1996, Warner Bros.
- Whatever It Takes, 1995, Warner Bros.
- Caminhos Cruzados, 1994, Novus/BMG
- Light Blue 1992, Minor Music
- Intimacy of the Blues, 1991, Verve
Selected sideman discography
- Other Covers, 2009 James Taylor (piano, organ, pump organ, accordion)
- Bare Bones, 2009, Madeleine Peyroux (Hammond organ, pump organ)
- Last Kiss, 2009, Zachary Richard (piano, Hammond organ)
- Tide, 2009, Luciana Souza (organ, piano, accordion, pump organ, Fender Rhodes piano)
- My One and Only Thrill, 2009, Melody Gardot (Hammond organ)
- Our Bright Future, 2008, Tracy Chapman (piano, Hammond organ, Wurlitzer)
- Some People Have Real Problems, 2008, Sia (keyboards)
- Incandescence, 2008, Bill Stewart (Hammond organ, accordion)
- Covers, 2008, James Taylor (piano, organ, cello arrangement)
- Stones World: The Rolling Stones Project, 2008, Tim Ries (organ)
- Thirteens, 2008, Leona Naess (keyboards)
- Like a Fire, 2008, Solomon Burke (piano)
- Circus Money, 2008, Walter Becker (organ)
- Christmas, 2008, Al Jarreau (organ)
- Good Day, 2008, Priscilla Ahn (piano, organ)
- Cannon Reloaded: An All-Star Celebration of Cannonball Adderly, 2008, Tom Scott (organ)
- Behind the Velvet Curtain, 2008, Rebecca Pidgeon (Wurlitzer)
- One Man Band, 2007, James Taylor (piano, organ, harmonium, synthesizer, keyboards)
- Real Emotional, 2007, Curtis Stigers (producer, composer, arranger, piano, organ, keyboards)
- Are You Lookin' At Me?, 2007, Colin Hay (piano, organ)
- Sitting in Limbo, 2007, Jessica Molaskey (piano, organ, arranger)
- Not Too Late, 2007, Norah Jones, (organ, Hammond organ)
- Truth, 2007, Robben Ford, (Hammond organ, Wurlitzer)
- Continuum, 2006, John Mayer (organ, keyboards)
- James Taylor at Christmas, 2006, (arranger, piano, organ, melodica, harmonium)
- Oceana, 2006, Till Bronner (composer, piano, Hammond organ, electric piano, Wurlitzer)
- Mineral, 2006, Jesse Harris (piano, organ, Wurlitzer, accordion, vibraphone, Kalimba)
- Half the Perfect World, 2006, Madeleine Peyroux (celeste, Wurlitzer, soloist)
- That's What I Say: John Scofield Plays the Music of Ray Charles, 2005, (arranger, Hammond organ, vibraphone, Wurlitzer)
- Knowing You, 2005, John Pizzarelli (arranger, piano, organ)
- Closer, 2005, David Sanborn (piano, organ)
- Way It Really Is, 2004, Lisa Loeb (piano)
- Chiara Civello, 2004, Chiara Civello (Hammond organ)
- Careless Love, 2004, Madeleine Peyroux (piano, celeste, Hammond organ, pump organ, Wurlitzer)
- Colour the Small One, 2004, Sia (piano, composer)
- You Inspire Me, 2003, Curtis Stigers (producer, arranger, piano, organ)
- October Road, 2002, James Taylor (piano)
- Pentimento, 2002, Jessica Molaskey (piano, arranger)
- Four Songs, 2002, Alexi Murdoch (piano, organ)
- Play It Cool, 2001, Lea DeLaria (bass, piano, arranger)
- Acoustic Soul, 2001, India.Arie (organ, Wurlitzer, string contractor)
- AOI: Bionix. 2001, DeLaSoul (organ)
- Arts and Crafts, 2001, Matt Wilson (piano)
- Christmas in Swingtime, 2001, Harry Allen (organ)
- Buttermilk Channel, 2001, Adam Levy (organ)
- Four by Four, 2000, Carla Bley (organ)
- The Still of the Night, 2000, Tom Wopat (arranger, piano)
- Time is of the Essence, 1999, Michael Brecker (composer, piano, organ)
- Minh, 1998, Chris Minh Doky (piano)
- Earth Tones, 1998, Peter Bernstein (organ)
- Warner Jazz Christmas Party, 1997, compilation featuring the Warner Jazz Artists (Joshua Redman, Al Jarreau, Kirk Whalum, Michael Franks,
Gabriela Anders, Larry Goldings, Boney James, Kevin Mahogany, Mark Turner, Brad Mehldau, Bob James)(Hammond organ)
- Warner Jams 2: The Two Tenors with Larry Goldings, 1997, James Moody and Mark Turner (piano, arranger)
- Kevin Mahogany, 1996, Kevin Mahogany (arranger, piano, organ)
- Young At Heart, 1996, James Moody (piano)
- Groove Elation, 1995, John Scofield (piano, organ)
- Pure (Concord Records), 1994, Chris Potter (piano, organ)
- Hand Jive, 1993, John Scofield (piano, organ)
- Something Special, 1993, Jim Hall (piano)
- Six Pack, 1992, Gary Burton & Friends (organ, keyboards)
- Life on Planet Groove, 1992, Maceo Parker (organ)
- Mo' Roots, 1991, Maceo Parker (organ)
- Subsequently, 1991, Jim Hall (piano)
- Freddie Freeloader, 1990, Jon Hendricks & Friends (piano)
- Best of John Scofield, 1989, John Scofield (organ)
Selected Film and TV Credits
- 2009 "The Dream's on Me" (featured in film and on soundtrack)
- 2009 "Funny People" (featuring "Tuscany" (originally titled "Dario and Bario"), an original composition)
- 2008 "Bernard and Doris" (HBO) (performs on soundtrack)
- 2008 "The Office" (NBC)
- 2005 "Proof"(featuring "Uganda," an original composition)
- 2000 "Space Cowboys" (performing several arrangements of jazz standards)
Awards and Recognition
- 2007 Grammy Nomination Best Jazz Album of the Year
- 2001 Jazz Journalists Association Winner Best Organist/Keyboardist of the Year
- 2000 Jazz Journalists Association Winner Best Organist/Keyboardist of the Year
- 1997 The New Yorker Magazine Best Jazz Albums of 1997 ("Awareness")
- 1996 The New Yorker Magazine Best Jazz Albums of 1996 ("Big Stuff")
References
1 http://www.allaboutjazz.com/iviews/lgoldings.htm
External links
