Joel Larson
| Joel Larson | |
|---|---|
| Born |
April 29, 1947 San Francisco, California, USA |
| Genres | Folk, rock, pop |
| Instruments | Drums, percussion |
| Years active | 1965–present |
| Labels | Dunhill, ABC, Columbia, A&M, Haven |
| Associated acts |
The Grass Roots The Mamas & the Papas Johnny Rivers Barry McGuire Gene Clark Group The Turtles The Merry-Go-Round Lee Michaels The Buckinghams Paul Revere & The Raiders |
| Website | Joel-Larson.com |
Joel Larson is a rock drummer and percussionist from California. He was born on April 29, 1947, at St. Francis Hospital in San Francisco. He lived near Lincoln Park until he was 12 years old. He took up drumming at the age of 12 and moved near Avalon Park until he was 17. During these five years he honed his skills in the rock music scene of the early sixties. His destiny was to become one of The Grass Roots.
In 1965, Larson joined a band called The Bedouins and helped them win a Battle of the Bands in San Mateo. Word began to spread about the band. In late 1965, they were asked to come to an audition at the San Francisco Whisky A Go Go. They performed for nightclub owner Elmer Valentine and Lou Adler who was the head of the new label Dunhill Records in Los Angeles. They were selected to become The Grass Roots, a new folk rock group created by Adler and producer/songwriters P. F. Sloan and Steve Barri.
The original Grass Roots were Denny Ellis on rhythm guitar, Willie Fulton on vocals and lead guitar, Larson on drums and Dave Stensen on bass. They moved to Los Angeles and took part in recording sessions and played live performances in the exploding LA music scene. They were one of the first house bands for The Trip on the Sunset Strip. All of The Grass Roots were under the age of 18 so their parents had to sign their contracts with Dunhill Records. They performed as back up band for The Mamas & the Papas and Johnny Rivers. They appeared on the first color broadcast of The Ed Sullivan Show. They performed with Barry McGuire in support of his number one hit "Eve of Destruction". After about a year of live performances and networking in the Los Angeles rock music scene, the group wanted to have more creative control and input on the selection of songs to perform and record. Dunhill Records had a formula for the group already in mind and did not want to vary from it. The group minus Larson returned to San Francisco and continued to perform until Dunhill Records decided to replace them. Larson was offered to continue with new group members but decided to take an opportunity to play with Gene Clark of The Byrds fame. In an interview with Gene Clark biographer John Enerson, Larson revealed that Allen Stanton, producer of the Byrds third album, '5D', brought him into the Columbia studio after-hours to re-dub some of Michael Clarke's drumming. Larson was not specific as to which cuts he replaced Clarke on. In an interview with Beverly Patterson of 'Something Else', Larson noted that he and Michael Clarke were roommates during this 1966 period, but it is not clear as to whether Clarke was aware of, or agreeable to, the substitutions, or whether any of the other Byrd members were aware of Larson's appearance on '5D'.
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