| Larry Grenadier (2010) | |
|---|---|
| "Local Boy Makes Good!" would be a fitting headline for bassist Larry Grenadier, born right here in San Francisco and now a world-wide jazz star resident in New York.
Larry's first instrument was the trumpet, introduced to him by his trumpet-playing father when Larry was aged ten. Moving on to electric bass the following year, he played with brothers Steve and Phil in a rock band called "The Juveniles" at events such the San Mateo County Fair. (An indication of how young Larry was at the time is that they played at the now long-defunct "Frontier Village" in San Jose, which closed in the year Larry turned 14.) Not long afterwards, Larry discovered jazz via brother Phil and their father. While still at high school and barely old enough to drive, Larry was gigging around San Francisco with the likes of Bobby Hutcherson, Eddie Henderson, Bruce Forman, and Joe Henderson—not to mention George Cables (with whose name Larry's shared for months the "now playing" board above the Keystone Korner after it closed unexpectedly in 1983). While studying at Stanford University for his undergraduate degree in English Literature, Larry met Stan Getz, then Artist-in-Residence at the Stanford Jazz Workshop. As a result, Larry played locally with Stan and also toured with his band. Following graduation, Larry moved to Boston in 1990 to work with Gary Burton. Although his highest-profile association since then has been almost 15 years as part of Brad Mehldau's trio, Larry, in common with all good bassists and drummers, has never been short of a gig, and has played with just about everyone: Pat Metheny, Chris Potter, Kurt Rosenwinkel and Joshua Redman are only a few of the names that come to mind. In fact, so in demand is Larry that he went straight from KCSM's desert island to San Francisco International Airport for a flight to the Newport Jazz Festival to appear with Fly, the co-operative trio he co-leads with Mark Turner and Jeff Ballard. |
| Pick | Artist | Album | Song | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| # 1 | Miles Davis with Gil Evans | Porgy and Bess | My Man's Gone Now | Columbia |
| # 2 | Oscar Pettiford | Another One | Stardust | Bethlehem |
| # 3 | Pat Metheny and Ornette Coleman | Song X: 20th Anniversary | Kathelin Gray | Metheny Group Productions |
| # 4 | Duke Ellington and His Orchestra | Such Sweet Thunder | Such Sweet Thunder | Columbia |
| # 5 | Charles Mingus | Let My Children Hear Music | The Eye of Hurricane Sue | Columbia |
| # 6 | Rebecca Martin | The Growing Season | Just a Boy | Sunnyside |
| # 7 | Charlie Parker | The Washington Concerts | These Foolish Things | Blue Note |
| # 8 | The Miles Davis Sextet | Milestones | Straight, No Chaser | Columbia |
| Book | An Oxford English Dictionary | |||
| Luxury Item | "My bass" | |||