Larry Garner(born July 8, 1952 inNew Orleans, Louisiana,United States)[1]is aLouisiana bluesmusician best known for his 1994 albumToo Blues.[2]
Larry Garner | |
|---|---|
 Garner in 2013 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Larry Garner |
| Born | July 8, 1952 New Orleans,Louisiana,United States |
| Genres | Louisiana blues,swamp blues |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, vocals |
| Years active | Early 1980s–present |
| Labels | Several includingJSPandRuf |
Biography
editGarner grew up inBaton Rouge, Louisiana.His first inspiration was the guitar-playing preacher Reverend Utah Smith. Garner made acquaintance with local musicians such asLonesome Sundown,Silas Hogan,Guitar Kelley andTabby Thomas.[3]His musical influences include Hogan,Clarence Edwards,Jimi Hendrix,andHenry Gray.[1][4]He was taught to play guitar by his uncle and two other elders. Garner completed military service in Korea and returned to Baton Rouge, working part-time in music and full-time at aDow Chemicalplant.[1]
Garner won theInternational Blues Challengein 1988.[4]His first two albums,Double DuesandToo Blues,were released by the BritishJSPlabel. The latter album's title was in reply to a label executive who judged Garner's original demo to be "too blues".[1]Thomas's nightclub, Tabby's Blues Box, provided Garner with a playing base in the 1980s and gave him the subject matter for the song "No Free Rides" onDouble Dues.[3]
He recorded the albumsYou Need to Live a Little(1995),Standing Room Only(1998),Baton Rouge(1995) andOnce Upon the Blues(2000).[1]The song "Go to Baton Rouge", from the albumBaton Rouge,offered a tourist's guide to Louisiana music spots.[3]
In 2008, Garner was treated for a serious illness that was the inspiration for his 2008 album,Here Today Gone Tomorrow.[4][5]
Discography
editAll eight of Garner's CDs have been released by labels in Europe or Britain:[4]
- Too Blues(1994),JSP
- Double Dues(1995), JSP
- You Need to Live a Little(1995),Polygram
- Standing Room Only(1998),Ruf
- Baton Rouge(1995), Evidence
- Once Upon the Blues(2000), Ruf
- Embarrassment to the Blues?,live album (2002), Ruf
- Here Today Gone Tomorrow(2008), Dixiefrog
- Larry Garner, Norman Beaker and Friends: Live at the Tivoli,recorded at theTivoli Theatre,Wimborne Minster,8 October 2009 (2010)
- Blues for Sale(2012), Dixiefrog[6]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^abcdeDahl, Bill."Larry Garner: Artist Biography".AllMusic.com.RetrievedDecember 15,2009.
- ^Russell, Tony (1997).The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray(1st ed.). Dubai: Carlton Books Limited. p. 4.ISBN1-85868-255-X.,quote: " One music journalist noted" If you define 'blues' by the rigid categories of structure rather than the flexible language of feeling allusion, Robert Cray... Larry Garner, Joe Louis Walker and James Armstrong are a new and uncategorizable breed, their music blues-like rather than blues, each of them blending ideas and devices from a variety of sources – soul, rock, jazz, gospel – with a sophistication beyond the reach of their forerunners ".
- ^abcRussell, Tony (1997).The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray.Dubai: Carlton Books Limited. p. 113.ISBN1-85868-255-X.
- ^abcdWirt, John (2008-08-15). "BR's Larry Garner Grateful to Be Here Today".The Advocate.p. 18FUN.
- ^"Larry Garner,Here Today Gone Tomorrow".Bluesweb.com.RetrievedDecember 15,2009.
- ^"Larry Garner: Album Discography".AllMusic.com. 1952-07-08.Retrieved2015-10-06.