Biography

Coryell was born in Galveston, Texas. He graduated from Richland High School, in Richland, Washington, where he played in local bands the Jailers, the Rumblers, the Royals, and the Flames. He also played with the Checkers from nearby Yakima, Washington. He then moved to Seattle to attend the University of Washington. He played in a number of popular Northwest bands, including the Dynamics, while living in Seattle.

In 1965, Coryell moved to New York City where he became part of Chico Hamilton's quintet, replacing Gabor Szabo. In 1967 and 1968, he recorded with Gary Burton. Also during the mid-1960s he played with the Free Spirits, his very first recorded band. His music during the late-1960s and early-1970s combined the influences of rock, jazz and eastern music. He married writer-actress Julie Nathanson prior to the release of his first solo album, Lady Coryell, which like the follow-up album Coryell, the live At The Village Gate, as well as the later record, The Lion and the Ram featured her photos on the cover . Julie's poetry was featured on the back cover of Ram. She was to be an integral part of his musical career/writing-inspiration including management, and her appearance at recording sessions was noted by several side-men. She also wrote a book based on several interviews with various jazz-rock musicians, including her husband, Chick Corea and John McLaughlin. In the early seventies, he led a group of various incarnations that all included Mike Mandel (a childhood friend of Larry's) called "Foreplay," although the albums of this period - Barefoot Boy, Offering, and The Real Great Escape were credited to just "Larry Coryell." He formed his own named-group, The Eleventh House, in 1973. The album sold well in college towns and the ensemble toured widely to support that. Several of the group's albums featured drummer Alphonse Mouzon. Following the breakup of this band, Coryell played mainly acoustic guitar, but returned to electric guitar later in the 1970s - including an album jointly credited with Mouzon and an album with the Brubeck Brothers that was recorded direct-to-disc, that being a new technique/fad at the time. He made several acoustic guitar duet records, including two with Belgian guitarist (and former Focus member) Philip Catherine, their first pairing Twin House (which contained the composition "Miss Julie") from 1977 picking up very favorable reviews. In 1979, Coryell formed The Guitar Trio with jazz fusion guitarist John McLaughlin and flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucia. The group toured Europe briefly, eventually releasing a video recorded at Royal Albert Hall in London entitled "Meeting of Spirits". In early 1980, Coryell's drug addiction led to him being replaced by Al Di Meola. Julie Coryell sang on one track of Coryell's 1984 album Comin' Home. The couple went through a messy divorce in 1985. She died in 2009. Coryell recorded an album with (and was briefly romantically involved with) Wes Montgomery-influenced guitarist Emily Remler before her death from a heroin overdose while on tour in Australia.

In 2007, Coryell published an autobiography titled Improvising: My Life in Music. Larry's two sons, Julian Coryell and Murali Coryell, are also actively involved in the music business.

Media reactions

David Miller, a jazz critic from All About Jazz, in his review of Coryell concert at the Iridium, said:

• "This was jazz at its finest—complex and virtuosic yet easily accessible, at times intense, at others fun-filled, and always with the feeling of the unknown that comes with truly spontaneous and inspired improvisation. While the music was steeped in the bop tradition, the musicians continually found new ways to utilize the idiom. Few locations other than New York could host a powerhouse gathering of musical heavyweights of this order, and one can only hope that the shows have been recorded for a future release."

When NPR radio host Billy Taylor, on one of the editions of Billy Taylor's Jazz at the Kennedy Center, introduced Coryell, he said:

• Versatile virtuoso guitarist Larry Coryell proves to be more than an outstanding musician; he’s also a particularly enlightening and affable conversationalist.

Discography

As leader

• Lady Coryell (Vanguard, 1968)
• Coryell (Vanguard, 1969)
• Spaces (Vanguard, 1970) with John McLaughlin, Billy Cobham, Miroslav Vitouš, Chick Corea
• Larry Coryell at the Village Gate (Vanguard, 1971) with Melvyn Bronson (bass), Harry Wilkinson (drums)
• Barefoot Boy (Flying Dutchman, 1971)
• Fairyland (1971) rec. live at Montreux Jazz Festival
• Offering (1972) with Harry Wilkinson (composer of title track), Melvyn Bronson, Steve Marcus, Mike Mandel
• The Real Great Escape (1973)
• The Restful Mind (1975) with Ralph Towner, Glen Moore, Collin Walcott
• Planet End (1976) with Billy Cobham
• The Lion and the Ram (1977)
• Two for the Road (1977) with Steve Khan
• Twin House (1977) with Philip Catherine
• Back Together Again (1977) with Alphonse Mouzon
• Difference (1978)
• Splendid (1978) with Philip Catherine
• Standing Ovation (1978)
• European Impressions (1978)
• Tributaries (1979) with John Scofield and Joe Beck
• Young Django (1979) with Stephane Grappelli
• Tender Variations (1979) with Chet Baker, Billy Cobham, Ron Carter, Hubert Laws
• Boléro (1981)
• The Larry Coryell and Michael Urbaniak Duo (1982) with Michael Urbaniak
• Scheherazade (1982)
• L'Oiseau de Feu, Petrouchka (1983)
• Le Sacre Du Printemps (The Rite of Spring) (1983)
• Round Midnight (1983) with Fumio Karashima
• Comin' Home (1984)
• A Quiet Day in Spring (1984) with Michael Urbaniak
• The Four Seasons (1984) with Kazuhito Yamashita
• Together (1985) with Emily Remler
• The 11th House (1985) with Alphonse Mouzon
• Equipoise (1986) with Buster Williams
• Dedicated to Bill Evans and Scott LaFaro (1987) with Miroslav Vitous
• Toku Do (1987) with Buster Williams
• Air Dancing (1988) with Buster Williams
• Shining Hour (1989) with Buster Williams
• Dragon Gate (1989)
• American Odyssey (1990) With Wayne Shorter
• Twelve Frets To One Octave (1991)
• Fallen Angel (1993)
• I'll Be Over You (1995)
• Sketches of Coryell (1996)
• Spaces Revisited (1997) with Billy Cobham
• Cause and Effect (1998) with Steve Smith, Tom Coster, Victor Wooten
• The Coryells (1999) with Alphonse Mouzon
• Private Concert (Live) (1999)
• Monk, Trane, Miles & Me (1999) with John Hicks, Willie Williams, Santi Debriano, Yoron Israel
• New High (2000) with Buster Williams
• Count's Jam Band Reunion (2001) with Steve Smith, Steve Marcus
• Cedars of Avalon (2002) with Buster Williams
• Gypsy Blood and Voodoo Crossing (2002) - Jimi Hendrix tributes with Paul Santa Maria
• Three Guitars (2003) with Badi Assad, John Abercrombie
• The Power Trio: Live in Chicago (2003) with Larry Gray and Paul Wertico
• Tricycles (2004)
• Electric (2005) with Lenny White, Victor Bailey
• Traffic (2006) with Lenny White, Victor Bailey
• Laid Back & Blues: Live at the Sky Church in Seattle (2006)
• Impressions: The New York Sessions (2008)
• Earthquake at the Avalon (2009)
• Larry Coryell with the Wide Hive Players (2011)
• Montgomery (2011) Patuxent Records with John Colianni piano and James Cammack bass
• Duality (2011) Random Acts Records duet with Kenny Drew Jr. on piano
• The Lift (2013)
• Heavy Feel (2015)

With The Eleventh House

• Introducing Eleventh House with Larry Coryell (1974)
• Larry Coryell and the Eleventh House at Montreux (1978)
• Level One (1975)
• Aspects (1976)

As sideman

• With The Appletree Theatre (John & Terry Boylan) Playback (Verve, 1967)
• With Jim Pepper "Pepper's Pow Wow" (Embryo Records, 1971)

With Gary Burton

• Duster (RCA, 1967)
• Lofty Fake Anagram (RCA, 1967)
• A Genuine Tong Funeral (RCA, 1968)
• Gary Burton Quartet in Concert (RCA, 1968)

With Randy Brecker

• Score (1969)

With the Jazz Composer's Orchestra

• The Jazz Composer's Orchestra (1968)

With Wolfgang Dauner

• Knirsch (1972)

With The 5th Dimension

• Earthbound (1975)

With The Free Spirits

• Out of Sight and Sound (1967)

With Chico Hamilton

• The Dealer (Impulse!, 1966)

With Arnie Lawrence

• Look Toward a Dream (1969)

With Herbie Mann

• Memphis Underground (1969)

With Michael Mantler

• Movies (1977)

With Steve Marcus

• Tomorrow Never Knows (1968)
• Count's Rock Band (1968)
• The Lord's Prayer (1969)

With Charles Mingus

• Three or Four Shades of Blues (Atlantic, 1977)
• Me Myself An Eye (Atlantic, 1978)
• Something Like A Bird (Atlantic, 1980)

With Bob Moses

• Love Animal (1967-68)

With Chico O'Farrill

• Nine Flags (Impulse!, 1966)

With The Arista All Stars

• Blue Montreux (1978)

With Simon & Bard Group

• The Enormous Radio with Paul Wertico (1984)

With Joey DeFrancesco

• Wonderful, Wonderful (2012)

With Dennis Haklar

• Lizard's Tale (2012)

With Michael Mantler

• Movies (1977)

With The Fusion Syndicate

• The Fusion Syndicate (2012)

With The Wide Hive Players

• Players II Guitar (2010)
• Larry Coryell with The Wide Hive Players (2011)

Filmography

• L. Subramaniam: Violin From the Heart (1999) - directed by Jean Henri Meunier. (Includes a scene of Coryell performing with L. Subramaniam.)
• Meeting of the Spirits /1979 (2003) - live performance in London with Coryell, John McLaughlin, and Paco de Lucia.
• Super Guitar Trio and Friends in Concert /1990 (2005) - live performance featuring Coryell, Al Di Meola, and Biréli Lagrène.
• Super Guitar Trio: Live in Montreux /1989 (2007) - Live performance featuring Coryell, Al Di Meola, and Biréli Lagrène.
• Three Guitars: Paris Concert /2004 (2012) - live performance featuring Coryell, Badi Assad, and John Abercrombie.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]