Neil Larsen

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Neil Larsen
Neil Larsen (second from right) as part of the Gregg Allman Band in 1977
Background information
Born (1948-08-07) August 7, 1948 (age 77)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
OriginSarasota, Florida, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Keyboardist
  • musical arranger
  • composer
Instruments
Years active1972–present
Labels
Formerly ofSoul Survivors, Full Moon, The Larsen-Feiten Band
Websiteneillarsen.net

Neil Larsen (born August 7, 1948) is an American jazz/jazz fusion keyboardist, musical arranger and composer. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio and grew up in Sarasota, Florida before relocating to New York and then, in 1977, Los Angeles.[2]

Early life

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Larsen was born in Cleveland, Ohio and grew up in Sarasota, Florida.[2] He learned piano, drawing inspiration from jazz artists John Coltrane, Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz Quartet, and from contemporary rock acts.[3]

In 1969, he was drafted to serve in the Vietnam War. During his time in Vietnam, he worked as a band director, co-ordinating musical entertainment for US armed forces personnel. After his discharge, he moved to New York to work as a musician.[3]

Career

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While in New York in the early 1970s, Larsen wrote television jingles and played on sessions for various recording artists.[4] He formed the band Full Moon with jazz guitarist Buzz Feiten, and their self-titled debut album was released in 1972. Larsen was briefly a member of the Soul Survivors. He contributed as keyboardist, writer and arranger on their 1974 self-titled album on the TSOP label. He began touring as a member of Gregg Allman's band in 1975.[3]

In 1977, Larsen relocated to Los Angeles,[2] where he played on sessions by producers such as Tommy LiPuma, Russ Titelman and Herb Alpert.[4] These projects led to Larsen signing with Alpert's record company, A&M Records,[2] for which he recorded on the Horizon label.[5] Larsen's debut studio album, Jungle Fever, was released in September 1978.[6] Larsen toured the US in support of the release with a band that included Feiten.[3]

The title track from his second studio album, High Gear, was nominated for the 1980 Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.[7] The album peaked at number 153 on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart in the US[8] and included musical contributions from Feiten, Michael Brecker, Steve Gadd and Paulinho da Costa.[2]

Larsen collaborated further with Feiten in the jazz–rock fusion group the Larsen-Feiten Band. A self-titled album The Larsen-Feiten Band was released in 1980 on Warner Bros. Records. He has also recorded and toured with guitarist Robben Ford,[2] who contributed to Larsen's 2007 album Orbit.[9]

From 1982 to 1985, he was a member of Kenny Loggins' touring band, playing keyboards and synthesizers.

His compositions have also been recorded by George Benson and Gregg Allman, among others.[2] Larsen took part in Miles Davis's Rubberband sessions in 1985–86, which were later released in 2019. His song "Carnival" was later adapted by Davis into the piece "Carnival Time".[10]

Larsen has worked as a session musician for many rock artists, including Rickie Lee Jones, George Harrison, Kenny Loggins and Don McLean.[2][11] He was the pianist and musical arranger for the 20th Century Fox Television show Boston Legal,[2] and musical director for jazz singer Al Jarreau.[3]

From 2008, he toured and recorded as a member of Leonard Cohen's band.[12] Larsen performed on Cohen's Old Ideas (2012) album and on the singer's final world tour, in 2012–13. Cohen regularly introduced him on stage as "today's foremost exponent of the Hammond B-3 organ".[13]

Discography

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  • Full Moon, Full Moon (Douglas/Epic, 1972)
  • Jungle Fever (Horizon/A&M, 1978)
  • High Gear (Horizon/A&M, 1979)
  • Larsen-Feiten Band (Warner Bros., 1980)
  • Full Moon featuring Neil Larsen & Buzz Feiten (Warner Bros., 1982)
  • Through Any Window (MCA, 1987)
  • Smooth Talk (MCA, 1989)
  • Full Moon, Full Moon Live (Dreamsville [Japan], 2002) – live rec. 1980–83
  • Orbit (Straight Ahead, 2007)
  • Forlana (Portico, 2015)

References

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  1. ^ [1] allmusic Retrieved 27 August 2025
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "This Time Tomorrow – Neil Larsen". Jazz Lynx. September 5, 2010. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d e Paste staff. "Larsen/Feiten Band – Windsong". Paste. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
  4. ^ a b Argyrakis, Andy (September 30, 2009). "Studiophile: Neil Larsen". Illinois Entertainer. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
  5. ^ Los Angeles staff (September 1, 1979). "A&M Ponders Fate Of Defunct Horizon Acts". Billboard. p. 6. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
  6. ^ Los Angeles staff (September 30, 1978). "Horizon Issues 3". Billboard. p. 10. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
  7. ^ "Grammy Awards 1980". awardsandshows.com. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  8. ^ "Top LPs & Tape". Billboard. September 8, 1979. p. 68. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  9. ^ Heidt, John (December 2007). "Neil Larsen – Orbit". Vintage Guitar. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  10. ^ Cole, George (2005). The Last Miles: The Music of Miles Davis, 1980–1991. Ann Arbor, MC: University of Michigan Press. pp. 210, 216. ISBN 978-0-472032600.
  11. ^ "Neil Larsen: Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  12. ^ Tatangelo, Wade (March 11, 2013). "Leonard Cohen returns to Tampa with former Sarasotan". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  13. ^ Showalter, Allan (July 9, 2015). "Neil Larsen – The Impeccable & Nearly Invisible Leonard Cohen World Tour Keyboardist, Part 1". Cohencentric. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
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