About The Larry Coryell Organ Trio
This week’s Featured Artist from our Wake Up Your Ears sampler is The Larry Coryell Organ Trio. Larry Coryell was born April 2, 1943 in Galveston, Texas. As a child he studied and played piano, switching to guitar (acoustic and then electric) in his teens. After studying journalism at the University of Washington, he moved to New York City in 1965, where he played behind guitarist Gabor Szabo in drummer Chico Hamilton’s jazz quintet. However, by 1966, he had replaced Szabo and later that same year went on to record his vinyl debut with Hamilton’s band. Also in 1966, he co-founded an early jazz-rock band, the Free Spirits, with whom he recorded one album, 1966’s rare, Free Spirit: Out Of Sight And Sound.
Soon after his stint with the Free Spirits, he joined vibra-harpist Gary Burton’s band, recording with him three seminal albums, all of which are now long out of print. In 1969, he recorded Memphis Underground with flautist Herbie Mann whose band, at that time, included Roy Ayers and the influential free-jazz guitarist Sonny Sharrock. Also in 1969, before recording his first solo LP, he toured Europe and the U.S. with ex-Cream bassist Jack Bruce, ex-Jimi Hendrix Experience drummer Mitch Mitchell, as well as keyboardist and future Coryell side-man Mike Mandel.
Throughout the seventies, he released album after album, often playing alongside the very best jazz had to offer. Some of the heavy-weights include: guitarists John McLaughlin, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Paco De Lucia, Pat Metheny, Al Di Meola, John Abercrombie, Larry Carlton, John Scofield, Kazumi Watanabe, Ralph Towner, and Steve Kahn; drummers Billy Cobham, Elvin Jones, Steve Gadd, Lenny White, Mitch Mitchell and Tony Williams; alto sax player David Sanborn, tenor sax players Pharoah Sanders and Michael Brecker; soprano sax players Sonny Rollins and Steve Lacy, cornet player Don Cherry, trumpet players Maynard Ferguson and Randy Brecker; violinist Stephane Grappelli, keyboardists Chick Corea, Larry Young, David Sancious and Lyle Mays; and bassists Charles Mingus, Miroslav Vitous, Ron Carter, Eddie Gomez, Jack Bruce, Jimmy Garrison, Charlie Haden, Steve Swallow and Tony Levin.
Featured Track on Wake Up Your Ears
Listen to the exquisite textures of Paul Wertico’s high-speed brushes flying over his drum kit, the silky glide of Sam Yahel’s Hammond B-3 organ, and guitarist extraordinaire Coryell’s gentle fretwork on “Full Moon Over Istanbul.” The atmosphere is so quiet, but the pulsing groove should get your feet tapping. More than 40 years after moving to New York City from Seattle, Coryell comes full circle back to his roots with this inspired organ trio outing. And in the stellar company of Yahel and Wertico, he is pushed to some exhilarating heights.
To purchase the exclusive Wake Up Your Ears sampler, featuring The Larry Coryell Organ Trio, available to Audiogon members only, click here.
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