Larry Simon
Here are some audio files of NYC bands I was in from the late 70's through the 1990's. At the time some of these bands where called "punk/funk" and featured great progressive jazz players such as; John Zorn, Phillip Wilson, Henry Threadgill, Julius Hemphill, Lester Bowie, Wayne Horowitz and the great alto sax player David Sanborn. Also included below is a very brief excerpt from a rehearsal of experimental composer La Monte Young's Ensemble.
MAGIC
The first band I was in, right out of college (1979) was a very special group, thus I'll take a bit of time to talk about this particular group. It was called "Magic" and was led by the great drummer Phillip Wilson. Phillip worked in all sorts of situations. He was with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and wrote (along with Gene Dinwiddie) their well know song "Love March"-heard on the "Woodstock" album. Phillip was a founding member of "The Art Ensemble of Chicago" and worked with Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and countless jazz players, including David Sanborn (whose career he started), Julius Hemphill, Henry Threadgill, Lester Bowie, Carla Bley, Anthony Braxton and many others. Phillip and I met in the summer of 1979. He was living in Brooklyn Heights and I was living in nearby DUMBO. We'd run into each other a lot and got to talking about getting together to play. Eventually Phillip came over to my loft on Jay St. and just the two of us jammed. It went very well and Phillp got the idea that we should form a band. At the time, 1979/80, there was a new style in NYC called "punk/funk", a kind of mix of avant-garde jazz and funk with some punk overtones. The most well know band of this ilk was "Defunkt". Within a few days of jamming together, Phillip called the first rehearsal at my DUMBO loft. I couldn't believe the players he brought over- Stanley Banks, on bass (from George Benson's band (the guy who came up with the famous lick on their hit "On Broadway"), Jehri Riley on guitar (from Chico Hamilton and Albert Kings' band), Richard Martin on guitar (brilliant St. Louis musician-he came later for just for a few gigs towards the end) and an unbelievable rotating horn section (we always had three horn players). The horn players were: David Sanborn, Juilus Hemphill, Henry Threadgill, Gene Dinwiddie (who worked with Butterfield, B.B. King, Gregg Allman, Etta James and many more), Frank Lowe, and Jimmy Heywood (who arranged the horn charts). I remember one night Sanborn came right over to our gig at CBGB's from playing with the Eagle's at Radio City Music Hall. He got paid thousands for that gig. We got about $40 apiece for our gig. But Sanborn would do whatever gigs he possibly could when Phillip called him. They were childhood friends and Phillip gave him his first break as a professional musician.
"Magic" was coming along really well. We had interest from Warner Bros. records and recorded some sessions for them and we also got some support to do recording from some actor friends of our manager, who became fans of the band and showed up at our gigs now and then- Susan Sarandon, Brooke Adams, and William Hurt. What happened, you may wonder? Well, there were a lot of drugs around at this time and that caused some internal problems in the band. So with all this going on "Magic" fell apart. That was a real shame- to say the least.
Tragically, Phillip Wilson was murdered in 1992.
"Magic" was coming along really well. We had interest from Warner Bros. records and recorded some sessions for them and we also got some support to do recording from some actor friends of our manager, who became fans of the band and showed up at our gigs now and then- Susan Sarandon, Brooke Adams, and William Hurt. What happened, you may wonder? Well, there were a lot of drugs around at this time and that caused some internal problems in the band. So with all this going on "Magic" fell apart. That was a real shame- to say the least.
Tragically, Phillip Wilson was murdered in 1992.
I have a number of "Magic" tapes in my archives. If anyone reading this is connected with a label- please contact me- This is material that really should finally be released.
Here is a "Magic" track recorded live at CBGB's, NYC, circa 1979/80. This tune "Magic" was probably my favorite. Unfortunatly it was recorded on cassette tape and ran out before the tune ended- thus it fades during Phillip's solo. I believe the horn line up on this gig was David Sanborn (heard playing the melody), Frank Lowe, and, I think, Julius Hemphill. You can here me do a short guitar solo from 8:40 -9:08. The other guitarist is Richard Martin.
"Lowe and Behold"
This track is from an a complete album recorded in my loft in DUMBO, Brooklyn sometime in the mid to late 1980's. It is Frank Lowe's band he called "Lowe and Behold". It was a fantastic band that I played guitar in and also had John Zorn on sax, Wayne Horowitz on keys, Perkin Barnes (from Konk) on bass and Tim Pleasants on Drums.
(Any label interested in releasing this album- please reach me through the contact page).
(Any label interested in releasing this album- please reach me through the contact page).
RealPolitik
w/ Richard Edson (Sonic Youth) and Julius Hemphill
w/ Richard Edson (Sonic Youth) and Julius Hemphill
The tune is Realpolitik was one of my earlier bands. I formed it very soon after "Magic" disbanded. It is notable because we had Julius Hemphill on Sax and Richard Edson on drums. Richard was the first drummer with Sonic Youth and was playing with them at the same time he was in my band. The band also had Lasoj Toth on keys and vocals and Perkin Barnes (of Konk) on bass.
The recording below is from a cassette tape and is almost entirely deteriorated, pretty much the worst possible sound quality, but, at this time, it is the only tape I can locate of this group. I have another tape of a concert we did at Arleen Schloss's performance loft "A's" and will post tracks from that when I locate it. So this recording is more or less a place holder, there for historical purposes. The tune "heard" below is our version of Dyke & the Blazers "So Sharp"
The recording below is from a cassette tape and is almost entirely deteriorated, pretty much the worst possible sound quality, but, at this time, it is the only tape I can locate of this group. I have another tape of a concert we did at Arleen Schloss's performance loft "A's" and will post tracks from that when I locate it. So this recording is more or less a place holder, there for historical purposes. The tune "heard" below is our version of Dyke & the Blazers "So Sharp"
Realpolitik with Richard Edson & Julius Hemphill. "So Sharp" by Dyke and the Blazers
PROFESSOR X
This is my band "Professor X" with Frank Lowe on Sax, Larry Simon-guitar, Melvin Gibbs on bass (worked with Henry Rollins band, Sonny Sharrock, Arto Lindsay, etc), Lasoj Toth-vocals/keys A.J. Johnson-Drums. The song is "Directly From My Heart to you", by Little Richard. . We recorded these tunes sometime around 1980.
Here is another one from "Professor X". This is an original I wrote called "Water Fingers" © L. SimonSimon
Larry Simon and Jody Harris
This recording was from at a concert done at Inroads Theater (150 Mercer St., Soho, NYC.), around 1982. I was actually the music director here for a brief period of time. Jody was the guitarist for The Contortions, The Raybeats, Lizzy Mercier Descloux, and others. He is a fantastic, super creative musician. I can't recall who is on tablas or who is providing the keyboard drone. The quality of this recording is not great but I feel is worth sharing. I wrote the piece. It is called "Theka" and is based on an Indian music concept.
La Monte Young
Theatre of Eternal Music Big band
Theatre of Eternal Music Big band
I was a member of La Monte Young's ensemble for about a year from 1989-90. I consider La Monte to be pretty much the most important composer of modern times. His influence extends far beyond music into into all other arts, and post 1950's culture, in many ways, as well. The particular ensemble I was in was a large one that La Monte called "The Theatre of Eternal Music Big Band". I was one of two guitarists in the group. The other was the microtonal virtuoso John Catler. I dedicated one of my guitars solely to this piece, leaving it in La Monte's loft so it would not be subject to temperature changes that would effect the extremely precise tuning required in Lamont's just intoned compositions. I also restrung my guitar with very unusual guage strings to be able to play the range of notes required. The details of my part can't be revealed, We all signed a non-disclosure agreement with LaMonte regards the details of the score. Although the title reveals a lot. It refers to the overtones we were presenting. We rehearsed the piece "The Lower Map of the Eleven's Division in the Romantic Symmetry (over a 60 cycle base) in Prime Time from 112 to 144 with 144". It is a two and a half hour long piece of continuous sound and was, as always, performed in a light environment created by La Monte's wife Marion Zazeela. We rehearsed for months at La Monte's loft on Church St, NYC and performed a series of concerts at the DIA Art Foundation space on 155 Mercer St. The concerts took place in March of 1990.
Below is a very brief excerpt from the piece (you can hear La Monte at the beginning of the track).
La Monte is a bit of a recluse but made an extremely rare radio appearance on the Columbia University radio station, WKCR, and even allowed his music to be played on the air. La Monte is notorious regards protecting his music and only presenting it under the most controlled circumstances. Considering
La Monte's desire to protect his music and only present it under his very strict conditions, the track below is very brief and should not be copied.
La Monte is a bit of a recluse but made an extremely rare radio appearance on the Columbia University radio station, WKCR, and even allowed his music to be played on the air. La Monte is notorious regards protecting his music and only presenting it under the most controlled circumstances. Considering
La Monte's desire to protect his music and only present it under his very strict conditions, the track below is very brief and should not be copied.
Killing Floor, NYC
Killing Floor, NYC was my trio that backed up the blues musicians you'll see and hear in the section of this site "Portraits in Blues,NYC" The original name of this band was "Fester's Farm." We started off playing mostly originals in venues such as CBGB's and other clubs, mostly in downtown Manhattan. As we became more involved backing up blues musicians we came up with the more appropriate name "Killing Floor, NYC". Aside from myself, there was Brian Jost on bass and A.J. Johnson on drums. The track below is from our album "A Lot of Lovin". It was supposed to be released on the label owned by the club, "The Knitting Factory." We used to play there when they were on East Houston Street. The owner, Michael Dorf liked us and said, if we paid to record the record, they would put it on "Knitting Factory Records", release it and distribute it. After we recorded it, Dorf felt it was too mainstream and backed out of the deal. So we released it ourselves. The record features, as guests, lots of friends and musicians we collaborated with, such as Juilus Hemphill, Frank Lowe, Rosco Gordon, Phil Kaplan (Men in Volts), Frank Lacy, Melvin Gibbs (Rollins Band) and others. Below are two tracks from the album.
The Killing Floor album, "It Takes a Lot of Lovin'"
"Spuds" by Larry Simon, with guest Julius Hemphill
"A Lot of Lovin" by © Rosco Gordon. With Rosco on vocals and Keyboard
Leon Thomas
Leon Thomas was a great and very original jazz/blues singer. He would often employ his trademark yodeling technique almost like a way of improvising on a sax. He is probably most well know for his work with Pharoah Sanders ("The Creator has a Master Plan" and "Jewels of Thought" and his time with Carlos Santana. Leon is the vocalist on my favorite Santana album, "Lotus".
I was a member of Leon Thomas's band for a bit over a year, from around late 1989-1991 The group was organized by Ken Vangel. Ken, a kind of gruff, impatient fellow, was a booking agent and a fantastic pianist who worked with, among others, Chuck Berry. Ken booked our gigs, in New York and Europe, as well as playing piano in the band. We were called "The Leon Thomas Blues Band", but also played a few jazz tunes each set. Except for myself and Ken, we used different musicians in Europe then we used for our NY gigs.
Leon was a fantastic person. He liked to play with words and rhymes and came up with a nickname for me, "Laurence of A-phrase-ia", as in a musical phrase. In Europe he and I became traveling companions. Ken, perhaps due to his less friendly demeanor, didn't always mingle with the other players easily, and the bass and drummer, in Europe were buddies, so Leon and I stuck together. Another bond Leon and I had, Leon believed, when you are in a particular country, you should enjoy their culinary specialities. So in Austria, despite Leon's usual preference for a vegetarian diet, we'd have meals of Weiner Schnitzel and often had sausages for lunch. The other guys (and I've seen this on other trips) would search out McDonald's or Chinese restaurants, not wanting to risk anything unfamiliar, even in Italy!!! Leon also introduced me to the confection Tiramisu. We were in the dining car on a train, I believe in Germany, and they had Tiramisu. Leon became ecstatic, said it was the best desert and I had to try it.
Before Leon came onstage we would usually play 2 or 3 instrumental numbers. Below is one of them, recorded at the Zanzibar Bar and Grill, 9th Ave and 45th St.,NYC, 12/1/90. It is the Freddie King tune "Side Tracked", with myself on guitar, Ken Vangel on piano, and Mike Warner on drums. I can't recall the name of the bass player (you can hear his name announced but I can't make it out). The other track was recorded in Linz, Austria on 11/16/1991. Again with myself on guitar and Ken Vangel on piano. The bass player and drummer were two American musicians who had been in Barcelona and met us for the gigs. I can't recall their names. The tune is "Chains of Love".
I was a member of Leon Thomas's band for a bit over a year, from around late 1989-1991 The group was organized by Ken Vangel. Ken, a kind of gruff, impatient fellow, was a booking agent and a fantastic pianist who worked with, among others, Chuck Berry. Ken booked our gigs, in New York and Europe, as well as playing piano in the band. We were called "The Leon Thomas Blues Band", but also played a few jazz tunes each set. Except for myself and Ken, we used different musicians in Europe then we used for our NY gigs.
Leon was a fantastic person. He liked to play with words and rhymes and came up with a nickname for me, "Laurence of A-phrase-ia", as in a musical phrase. In Europe he and I became traveling companions. Ken, perhaps due to his less friendly demeanor, didn't always mingle with the other players easily, and the bass and drummer, in Europe were buddies, so Leon and I stuck together. Another bond Leon and I had, Leon believed, when you are in a particular country, you should enjoy their culinary specialities. So in Austria, despite Leon's usual preference for a vegetarian diet, we'd have meals of Weiner Schnitzel and often had sausages for lunch. The other guys (and I've seen this on other trips) would search out McDonald's or Chinese restaurants, not wanting to risk anything unfamiliar, even in Italy!!! Leon also introduced me to the confection Tiramisu. We were in the dining car on a train, I believe in Germany, and they had Tiramisu. Leon became ecstatic, said it was the best desert and I had to try it.
Before Leon came onstage we would usually play 2 or 3 instrumental numbers. Below is one of them, recorded at the Zanzibar Bar and Grill, 9th Ave and 45th St.,NYC, 12/1/90. It is the Freddie King tune "Side Tracked", with myself on guitar, Ken Vangel on piano, and Mike Warner on drums. I can't recall the name of the bass player (you can hear his name announced but I can't make it out). The other track was recorded in Linz, Austria on 11/16/1991. Again with myself on guitar and Ken Vangel on piano. The bass player and drummer were two American musicians who had been in Barcelona and met us for the gigs. I can't recall their names. The tune is "Chains of Love".
Side Tracked " Performed by The Leon Thomas Blues band. NYC 1990. © Freddie King
"Chains of Love" Performed by The Leon Thomas Blues band. Linz Austria, 11/16/91