Featured Artist Number 54: Larry Graham

[Bass+Fingers+Amp=Groove]

Larry Graham: The Inventor Of Slap Bass

Originally Posted by Bootsy Collins

"I first saw Larry around the time I was with James Brown, I thought, How is this cat playing with his thumb? He was doing amazingly unheard-of things."

Larry Graham was born on August 14th 1946 in the fair city of Beaumont, Texas, U.S.A. two years later his family relocated to Oakland, California, where Larry Graham grew up. Music was always apart of his up bringing, his mother played the piano, his father the guitar. Larry First picked up the drums, he moved onto to clarinet, guitar, and saxophone. He was soon accompanying his mother on stage at the age of 15, playing guitar and organ simultaneously, he would use the organ foot pedals to cover bass. One day the organ broke. Larry decided to pick up bass to cover the low end until the organ was fixed. The organ was never fixed. He began to play bass, and to make matter worse the drummer left the group, essentially making Larry the sole component of the rhythm section, this is when he came up with the infamous slap technique, he wanted to get some percussive sound the band was lacking. "That's when I started thumping with my thumb. It was the only way I could get that rhythmic sound." He started to play the bass like drums, try to simulate the kick bass sound with his thumb ands use the rest of his fingers to make snare sounds. He would “slap� the E and A with his thumb and “pop� the D and G. He began to view his playing as extension of drums, later when he worked with a drummer, he would fit right in to the percussive sounds, while still covering the low end. He was able to play the melody and the rhythm at the same time. Larry played a few shows with his mother at a place called Relax With Yvonne, and in 1968, Larry was discovered by a local Radio DJ named Sylvester Stewart--also known as Sly Stone. Sly was looking to put together his own band. Sly was referred to Larry by a listener, who frequented the club often. Teaming up with drummer Greg Errico the rhythm section was complete and Sly and the Family Stone was born. Larry Contributes a lot of his sound to Greg, "Greg knew how to play around me instead of colliding with me. He wasn't busy to the point where there wasn't any room to do anything. He was a solid foundation man--and that's where all the good funk starts, at the bottom. It's just like building a house."

As sly became more popular and nationally know, grahams thumb style became popular, people tried to emulate it, and slap quickly grew and spread. a lot of famous slappers were inspired by Graham. "I first saw Larry around the time I was with James Brown, I thought, How is this cat playing with his thumb? He was doing amazingly unheard-of things." -Bootsy Collins.

Sly became one the top R and B acts, but fame took a toll on Graham. He missed session appointments, failed to show up on stage, even re mixed old lines for new songs, which was viewed as lazy ness, by some. Sly and The Family Stone was falling apart, due to internal conflicts, Graham was the Second to Leave the band, departing in 1972. He created his own group, named Hot Chocolate, he never intended to play bass, only to compose and direct, but he hit it off with his new band mates, and became the dedicated bassist, the band was renamed Graham Central Station.

Graham took advantage of his new position to change his style, putting more emphasis on funky grooves and ballads, moving away from the simpler percussive beats he pioneered in Sly and the Family Stone. Their first hit single “The Jam� was a all out funk jam session, starting out as slow groove and building into no holds barred funk explosion. Larry Wrote most of the tunes that Central Station turned out, letting the band mates compose around his bass lines. Despite Grahams success and skill, he was left out of the national scene, with most of the attention going to the new wave of slappers and solo bassists who had taken. their style and inspiration from graham. Larry’s biggest hit, "One in a Million You" released in 1980, made him famous, more for his singing than his playing. The song became number 1 on the R and B charts and in the top ten on the pop charts. Larry was gaining new fans. "One group of fans would come to shows all dressed up for ballads, and the other would be in jeans, wanting to hear the funky stuff. But when I went onstage, people found out the `One in a Million' guy was the same person behind the funk."

Graham Centrals popularity wavered through out the 80’s and new version came into existence in 1992, they still groove till today.

Discography:

Graham Central Station 1974
Release Yourself 1974
Ain't No 'Bout-A-Doubt It 1975
Mirror 1976
Now Do U Wanta Dance 1977
Star Walk 1978
My Radio Sure Sounds Good To Me 1979
One In A Million You 1980
Sooner Or Later 1982
Victory 1983
Live In Japan '92 1992
By Popular Demand 1997

Gear:

During His time in Sly and the Family stone he Primarily used a Fender Precision, he also occasionally used a Vox Bass. During Graham Central he used a Fender Jazz. In 1982 he had a custom bass made for him based on a jazz bass in was Japanese Moon Bass. It had a mic built in so he could sing, with out having to stand in front of a mic. He used Bartolini Active pickups quite advanced electronics for the time. For Effects he uses a Morley Volume pedal with an A/B switcher, a Roland Jet Phaser, a Mu-Tron Octave Divider, and an old Morley Fuzz Phaser. He likes to get gear from vintage .Graham used Sunn amps when he was with Sly Stone. In Central he used Fenders and then finally an Acoustic 360, Today, Larry's Hughes & Kettner rig includes a 650-watt BassBase 600 hybrid head, which drives BC 410 and BC 215 cabinets. He uses light guage GHS strings.

"A lot of people are fussy about the specifics of their sound, but Larry's thing is just to turn it up until the stage rumbles. When it starts shaking, he knows he's got it right. It may sound simple, but that's his way of doing it--and there is only one Larry Graham."

[Left Shoe]

very nice fa , didnt know alot of that stuff

[AfroMan]

Great FA

A pleasure to read although there wasn't much that I didn't already know about him(not a bad thing).

Keep up the good work

[InMyPlace]

Nice FA there, well done

[Wintermute]

Good job - I can't believe he hadn't been done, well spotted!

[Bass+Fingers+Amp=Groove]

thanx, i hope to more FA of great bassits from the past and present, i just wish i could have done my hero, James Jamerson.

[Bass+Fingers+Amp=Groove]

how about a sticky?

thumbbumb*

[Crapdragoon]

I must say, thats is a very nice FA!

[YDload]

Good job... say, can I do the next one?

[Jaco]

Great Job! Nice FA!



Regards



Jaco

[Jim Hull]

Yep nice FA

[Bass+Fingers+Amp=Groove]

i think LEC or Eddie have dibs on the next one,

please stickie

bump

[Soulfly666]

Finally!!! Great Job!!!

[madthumbs]

*stickies*, wintermute you should have caught this one

Great FA man

[Bass+Fingers+Amp=Groove]

thank you my aussie friend, living the hardcore aussie life lately?

[madthumbs]

^ yeah man everyday!

[Bass+Fingers+Amp=Groove]

heh, if only i was australian, i could be as hard core as you madthumb

*moves to australia overnight.

[Sayaprayerforme]

What about GCS2000? You know, produced by Prince?

[madthumbs]

Originally Posted by Bass+Fingers+Amp=Groove

heh, if only i was australian, i could be as hard core as you madthumb

*moves to australia overnight.

Being here is only the first step, you have a long way to go young grasshopper

[Bass+Fingers+Amp=Groove]

Originally Posted by madthumbs

Being here is only the first step, you have a long way to go young grasshopper

yeah i bet the descendants of criminals have alot to teach me