Larry Graham

Larry Graham Jr. (born August 14, 1946) is an American bassist and singer, both with the psychedelic soul/funk band Sly and the Family Stone, and as the founder and frontman of Graham Central Station.[1] He is credited with the invention of the slapping technique on the electric bass guitar, which radically expanded the tonal palette of the bass, although he himself refers to the technique as "thumpin' and pluckin' ".[2]

For the Australian politician, see Larry Graham (politician).

Larry Graham
Graham in 2011
Background information
Birth nameLarry Graham Jr.
Born (1946-08-14) August 14, 1946
Beaumont, Texas, U.S.
GenresFunk, soul, R&B
Occupation(s)Musician, songwriter, producer
InstrumentsVocals, bass, guitar, keyboards, organ, harmonica
Years active1961–present
LabelsEpic, Warner Bros., NPG, Rhino, Sphinx
Associated actsSly and the Family Stone, Prince, Graham Central Station, Drake
Websitelarrygraham.com

Life and career

Born in Beaumont, Texas, United States,[1] to successful musicians, Graham played bass in the funk band Sly and the Family Stone from 1966 to 1972. It is said that he pioneered the art of slap-pop playing on the electric bass, in part to provide percussive and rhythmic elements in addition to the notes of the bass line when his mother decided to no longer have a drummer in her band, while Graham also admits in a BBC documentary on funk music that he is unsure if it was done on economical grounds[3]; the slap of the thumb being used to emulate a bass drum and the pop of the index or middle finger as a snare drum.[2] This style has become archetypal of modern funk. Slap-pop playing couples a percussive thumb-slapping technique of the lower strings with an aggressive finger-snap of the higher strings, often in rhythmic alternation. The slap and pop technique incorporates a large ratio of muted or "dead" notes to normal notes, which adds to the rhythmic effect.

This "slap" bass style was later used by such artists as Bootsy Collins (P-Funk), Bernard Edwards (Chic), Louis Johnson,[4] Mark King, Keni Burke, Victor Wooten, Kim Clarke of Defunkt, Marcus Miller, and Stanley Clarke.

After Sly and the Family Stone, Graham formed his own band Graham Central Station. The name is a pun on Grand Central Station, the train station located in Manhattan, New York City. Graham Central Station had several hits in the 1970s, including "Hair".

In the mid-1970s, Larry Graham worked with Betty Davis, the second ex-wife of jazz legend Miles Davis. Betty Davis' band included members of the Tower of Power horns and the Pointer Sisters, and she recorded three albums to critical acclaim but limited commercial success.

In 1975, Graham became a member of Jehovah's Witnesses.[5] Eventually, he was credited with introducing Prince to the faith. In the early 1980s, Graham recorded five solo albums and had several solo hits on the R&B charts. His biggest hit was "One in a Million You", a crossover hit, which reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1980.

He reformed Graham Central Station in the early 1990s and performed with the band for several years during which they released two live albums. One was recorded in Japan in 1992, and the other, recorded in London in 1996, had only 1000 copies printed and was exclusively sold at concerts.

In 1998, he recorded a solo album under the name Graham Central Station GCS 2000. It was a collaboration between Larry Graham and Prince. While Graham wrote all the songs, except one co-written by Prince, the album was co-arranged and co-produced by Prince, and most of the instruments and vocals were recorded by both Graham and Prince. Graham also played bass on tours with Prince from 1997 to 2000. He appeared in Prince's 1998 VHS Beautiful Strange and 1999 DVD Rave Un2 the Year 2000. He has since appeared with Prince at various international venues.

Graham and Graham Central Station performed internationally with a world tour in 2010 and the "Funk Around The World" international tour in 2011. He appeared as a special guest at Jim James' "Rock N' Soul Dance Party Superjam" at the 2013 Bonnaroo Music Festival.

Graham is the father of singer-songwriter and producer Darric Graham. He is also the uncle of Canadian rapper and actor Aubrey Drake Graham, better known as Drake.[6]

Discography

With Sly and the Family Stone

With Graham Central Station

Solo albums
All Warner Bros. releases
  • 1979: Star Walk
  • 1980: One in a Million You
  • 1981: Just Be My Lady
  • 1982: Sooner or Later
  • 1983: Victory
  • 1985: Fired Up
NPG Records release
  • 1998: GCS2000 (as Graham Central Station)
Self-released
  • 2019: Chillin'

Singles
Year Title Album U.S. Hot 100 U.S. R&B UK Singles Chart[7]
1974 "Can You Handle It?" ('70s hits as Graham Central Station) Graham Central Station 49
1975 "Your Love" Ain't No 'Bout-A-Doubt It 38
1975 "It's Alright" Ain't No 'Bout-A-Doubt It 92
1976 "The Jam" Ain't No 'Bout-A-Doubt It 63
1980 "One in a Million You" One in a Million You 9 1
1980 "When We Get Married" One in a Million You 76 9
1981 "Guess Who" Just Be My Lady 69
1981 "Just Be My Lady" Just Be My Lady 67 4
1982 "Don't Stop When You're Hot"/
"Sooner or Later"		 Sooner or Later 102
110		 16
27		 54
1983 "I Never Forget Your Eyes" Victory 34
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References
  1. Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. p. 539. ISBN 1-85227-745-9.
  2. "Larry Graham: Trunk of the Funk Tree", Bass Player magazine, April 2007.
  3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KI5anltI2eA
  4. "George Johnson". Andresmusictalk.wordpress.com. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  5. Awake! magazine, February 22, 1989, p. 15.
  6. A.J. Miller (June 17, 2011). "Larry Graham Talks about his family ties to Drake with Lenny Green" – via YouTube.
  7. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 233. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
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