Larry Packer
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Larry Packer is an American stringed instrument musician either in or supporting well-known bands.
Musical Career[edit]
Cat Mother and the All-Night Newsboys[edit]
Packer began his career as teenager accompanying country blues great Paul Geremia. At a performance at Greenwich Village’s Bitter End, he was approached about replacing two members of a band based in the Bowery called Cat Mother and The All-Night Newsboys.[1][2] The band relocated to Woodstock, where they were heard by Jimi Hendrix’s manager.[3][4] This led to going on the road with Hendrix for 1968-9, recording their first album with Jimi producing; “Good Old Rock n’ Roll” was a top-20 hit in 1969.[5][6] Cat Mother opened for The Band during their first NYC appearance at the Fillmore East on the “Music from Big Pink” tour. They recorded their next record in Haight-Ashbury, sharing the studio with the Grateful Dead, and eventually relocated to Mendocino.[7]
Sha Na Na - The Band - Sessions[edit]
Packer left Cat Mother and became lead guitarist with Sha-Na-Na for 1970-71, including appearances in “The Festival Express” and WNET-TV’s “Live at the Fillmore East”, and Flip Wilson’s 1970 X-mas Eve Special. He had road gigs with Harry Belafonte, David Bromberg, Steve Goodman, Jerry Jeff Walker, Peter Rowan, Billy Vera, Johnny Maestro, Bill Keith and Jim Rooney, Lou Reed, Kate and Anna McGarrigle’s first U.S. and European tours, Maria Muldaur, Garland Jeffries, Happy and Artie Traum. Larry played with the horns in The Band’s 1975 appearances at NYC’s Palladium and Philly’s Tower Theatre, and joined them again in 1976 for “The Last Waltz” concert and film.[8][9] He later played with Levon Helm’s Woodstock All-Stars in the mid 80’s along with bandmates Jimmy Weider, Randy Ciarlante, Cindy Cashdollar, Stan Szylest and Frank Campbell.[10][11] Recordings with all of the above, and many, many others including Phoebe Snow, Jonathan Edwards, David Lasley, John Herald, Sunny Day Real Estate, Space Hog, Tim Hardin, Rosalie Sorrels, Jean Ritchie’s Grammy-nominated “Christmas in Kentucky”, Jay Black, Rick Danko, Garth Hudson,The Band’s “Islands” and “High on The Hog” albums, Hall and Oates’ “Abandoned Luncheonette” album.
2000 to Present[edit]
He was 2000 Artist-in-Residence at SUNY-Ulster[12] and twice at St. Lawrence University, once with composer David Amram, whose quintet he played with for several years at venues like BAM, Madison Square Garden and Town Hall. As a member of Ed Summerlin’s Contemporary Jazz Ensemble, he was featured in concerts with Ron Carter and Lee Konitz. In 2016, he was inducted into the New York State Blues Hall of Fame along with Rory Block and John Platania. He founded the Woodstock String Quartet, played in the Broadway production of “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas”, road shows of “The Robber Bridegroom”, including the summer of 1976 at Ford’s Theatre in D.C.. In 1975 Larry can be seen on the 3rd show of the first “Saturday Night Live” season playing a square dance with Dan Ackroyd as caller and John Belushi hurling himself around the stage; years later he played SNL behind Johnny Cash.
For 23 years, Larry has performed and toured with the internationally popular Albany-based Celtic-rock band “Hair of the Dog”, including 9 Ireland tours and appearances at festivals all over the U.S.. He released a solo cd “Eye Of The Sun” on Woodstock Records, assisted by friends like Garth Hudson, Tom “Bones” Malone, the great guitarists Ed Diehl and Steve Burgh, and bassist “Big Mike” Dunn.[13] He continues to remain active as sideman and session musician in a wide variety of genres.
Personal life[edit]
Larry lives in the Mid Hudson Valley in New York State. He and Cheri Gerstung have one son, Jesse David Packer.
References[edit]
- ↑ Lillian Roxon’s Rock Encyclopedia By Lillian Roxon; Grosset & Dunlap, 1969 and 1971
- ↑ The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock By Nick Logan and Bob Woffinden of NME; Salamander Books, 1977
- ↑ Road to Woodstock, The – From The Man Behind The Legendary Festival By Michael Lang with Holly George-Warren; Ecco Paperback, 2010
- ↑ Roots Of 1969 Woodstock Festival, The – The Backstory to “Woodstock” Edited by Weston Blelock and Julia Blelock; Woodstock Arts, 2009
- ↑ List of Top 50 Songs From The Summer of 1969 Archived 2009-12-19 at the Wayback Machine; www.forgottenhits.com
- ↑ The Da Capo Book of Rock & Roll Writing originally The Penguin Book Of Rock & Roll Writing Edited By Clinton Heylin; Da Capo Press, 1992/2000
- ↑ Jason Ankeny, Profile of Cat Mother and The All Night Newsboys; www.allmusic.com
- ↑ Robbie Robertson, Testimony; ISBN 978-0-307-88978-2,Crown Archetype 2016 (pg. 473)
- ↑ Across the Great Divide – The Band and America By Barney Hoskyns; Hyperion, 1993
- ↑ Across the Great Divide – The Band and America By Barney Hoskyns; Hyperion, 1993
- ↑ Levon – From Down in the Delta to the Birth of The Band and Beyond By Sandra B. Tooze; Diversion Books, 2020
- ↑ https://www.sunyulster.edu/artstimeline.html
- ↑ https://woodstockrecords.com/cart_payPal.shtml
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