Updated: Sep 16
In late 1978 we moved from northern Idaho to the Black Hills in South Dakota. It was quite a happy place for me. The possibilities were endless, in running I made the pre-Olympic trials, I had just discovered Rock & Roll and radio, and I got to paint and draw to my heart's content. In Idaho, I had played violin in the school's orchestra but my father hated when I practiced so I didn't. However, now with my new found love of Rock & Roll, I wanted to be in the school band. There was no orchestra, but the teacher, Jan Conn said, "Oh the violin is just like the bass only backwards." They had a dusty old upright bass in the back, and I must have looked pretty funny with my little hands racing to reach the notes. I was hooked, but I needed to get a bass I could take home and practice. I asked my parents and my father said, "I forbid you to play bass, girls don't play bass". I was devastated but I wouldn't give up, I saved all my babysitting money and bought a used bass that didn't have the volume or tone knobs. I made square knobs out of wood and made them look like dice. I could practice all the time because I didn't have an amp and with the door closed my parents were none the wiser. I played along to all my favorite songs on the radio. I was asked to join a band so now I needed an amp, and my parents were like no way can you join a band and we will never drive you to the gigs. I saved up and bought the amp anyway. My first concert with the new band, my dad would still not drive me. Well alright then I will just walk with my gear. We moved a lot, I went to 4 different high schools in three different states. I had nothing stable in my life except my bass and my records. While in high school I somehow got to play the UNM Jazz Festival in Albuquerque and won an outstanding soloist award normally reserved for anything but bass, I might have been their youngest winner.
I kept getting thrown out of bands because I played too many notes. Finally one band would have me, Tandem Felix in Albuquerque. We played the El Rey Theatre and recorded one album.
College became difficult for me due to all the personal challenges I faced, and I had to drop out of college and music. I hid in the radio industry which was not much better for the next 30 years. I never forgot my love of bass. I finally achieved my goal of being a Program Director in radio, but it wasn't what I thought it would be, as corporate radio was becoming more and more stale and there was less and less I could do to fix it. I didn't even really go to concerts anymore as I was so busy. I was the Program Director for 4 stations in Sacramento and later 2 in San Francisco. I had this pager they gave me and every time a station popped off the air the transmitters would automatically dial me up. I'd have to run in to fix it usually at 3am. I was getting no sleep. I had staff who would call me at all hours of the night, for important stuff or to tell me they couldn't find a pen in the control room. Maybe try the production room? Oh yeah... I was also making less than half what the previous Program Director made in San Francisco and they gave him more staff. It was all too much so I resigned, as I did fix their computer systems and accomplished increasing their ratings. I went back to Phoenix and planned to get out of radio for good, but I already had job offers upon my return. I decided to see another concert, I hadn't gone to shows for years. I went to see my favorite artist, and after the show I wrote a letter to his label. Not expecting to hear back, the next day there was his kind reply and he was willing to play on a tune! One problem, there were no tunes, and I hadn't picked up a bass in 30 years. The sheer panic monster that engulfed me led me to get my act together, write songs, practice, learn to sing and play more instruments in short order. I found the best studio around and recorded "Architect of Dreams" days after I got the email. I now have 4 albums out and have played my bass onstage at several clubs, including dozens of times at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood.
Johnny Echols, Georgie and I went to see a talk by Leland Sklar and I asked him if he would like to play on my next record. I was working on two new albums, so I had the material this time! Leland much to my surprise agreed and sent along tracks for three songs, and Johnny Echols has also played on three tunes. Their parts are so good I am beside myself! Stay tuned!
Multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Laurie Larson released her 4th studio album "Story Road" in her hometown of Phoenix, Arizona. She draws her inspiration from the desert landscapes and her many career paths in astronomy, radio, photography, art and public service. "No matter how diverse my interests are, I always find a common thread that unites them all. I never cease to be surprised by it." says Larson.
It's the high octane songwriting that drives this record up the charts and onto radio station playlists. Steve Walsh (lead singer/keyboardist/songwriter for Kansas) let Laurie cover two of his songs on the album. His engineer Jim Roberts also plays Hammond B3 on the title track. Larson wrote all the other eight tracks on "Story Road". Larson also met more of her rock idols onstage and in her own audience along the Sunset Strip when she played clubs there, like the Whisky A-Go Go. She also got to pay tribute to many artists, including being invited to play a tribute concert for singer/songwriter Scott McKenzie. "That meant a lot to me, starting the tribute off and being in the encore with Barry McGuire, John York of the Byrds, and Michelle Phillips, particularly since Scott's hit "San Francisco" was #1 in the U.K. the day I was born." Larson recalls. She bridges the best from rock's past with new music sensibility in her live performances and well as in the studio.
In fact a song on this album, "Break Your Silence" was written by Larson onstage at the Whisky just feeding off the vibe and the young audience there. "People were clapping along and being my percussion session and singing along. They were thrilled to be a part of live creating right there in the club. I just loved it!" Larson exclaims. Some of her rock heroes also play on this album. "I never could have dreamt that artists I adored as a teenager would eventually play on songs I wrote myself or let me record their tunes, it's surreal and I am still pinching myself! I am so honored!" she says. Johnny Echols of Love plays lead guitar on the title track, "Break Your Silence", "Drawn to you (Moon Stands Still)" & "Zodiac Dance".
In "Zodiac Dance" Larson used actual NASA recorded sounds of all the planets and the sun throughout the recording. Lon Rozelle of The Brats and Falcon Eddy also played drums and percussion on that track, the title track, "Break Your Silence", & "Drawn to you (Moon Stands Still)". Ralph Gilmore of the Grass Roots played drums on all the other tracks.
Jock Bartley of Firefall played lead and rhythm guitar on the Steve Walsh penned track, "The River". Over 100 terrestrial and online radio stations are playing tracks off the album "Story Road". Five tracks from the album are approaching 100,000 spins each on Spotify. The album has also landed the #2 spot on New Jersey's WLFR's chart and #18 on South Carolina's WUSC's chart. The album was officially added to over 10 CORE AAA radio stations. Larson plays bass, violin, guitar, keys and sings her way through each chapter of "Story Road". You'll want to get onboard for the road trip...hit it! https://open.spotify.com/album/6tAvGCRB4aC4CELWzHxgHH
Laurie Larson is an artist who has surprised us with her steps in different paths, and music is no exception. With the recent stories that are happening with the hostilities in Ukraine that could escalate even more, she has decided to send a message through the reissue of the Light Of Freedom, where her voice and an intense electric guitar star in a call for
la paz y la libertad, included on her album Aquila. The artist was born in Montana and lives in Arizona and previously California. Since she was a child she was interested in music through learning multiple instruments, but the bass is her preference. Until now, she has not stopped presenting music, having a long discography in which, in addition to being a singer-songwriter, she has been in charge of production and the arrangements. Her path goes through rock with country and even progressive touches, it is worth mentioning that she is the founder of the Progressive Rock Hall of Fame.
Not only has she appeared in music, but also in the visual arts such as painting and photography, she has also ventured into the radio behind the microphone and in the programming of stations. She has participated in various ways in the political arena and has been part of government educational programs, in addition to her passion for astronomy.
-Blog: bit.ly/entjhayrock
-Playlist: spoti.fi/3GUqgUW