Larry Campbell

OVERVIEW:

Larry Campbell is a multi-instrumentalist who has been a studio musician, recording music with other artists on their albums, and a respected sideman, performing as a backup musician in clubs and concert venues, since the seventies. He moves freely between rock, blues, country, folk and Celtic, playing guitar, fiddle, mandolin, pedal steel, cittern, dobro and banjo. In 2005, he released his first solo acoustic guitar album called Rooftops. In 2008, Larry was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award for his instrumental work from the Americana Music Association. In 2013, The Americana Music Association named Larry Instrumentalist of the Year .

Larry has had extensive experience as a studio musician. Over the past 2 decades, Larry has recorded with Bob Dylan, Levon Helm, Judy Collins, Sheryl Crow, B. B. King, Willie Nelson and The Black Crowes just to name a few.

As a sideman, Larry is probably best known for his time spent in Bob Dylan's band. Larry was a member of Bob Dylan's "Never Ending Tour" band from March 31, 1997 until November 21, 2004. Through his association with Tony Garnier, Bob Dylan's bass player, Larry joined the band, replacing J.J. Jackson as a guitarist and expanded his role to multi-instrumentalist, playing other instruments such as cittern, violin/fiddle, pedal steel guitar,lap steel guitar, mandolin, banjo and slide guitar. He also contributed vocals. When introducing Larry and the rest of the band, Bob Dylan often referred to them as some of the finest musicians in the country. Larry's interview with Ray Padgett about his time in Bob Dylan's band appears in Padgett's book, Pledging My Time: Conversations with Bob Dylan Band Members.

When Larry was not performing with Bob Dylan, he often made guest appearances with other artists including Richard Shindell, Buddy and Julie Miller, Levon Helm and Little Feat. Prior to 1997, Larry toured with other artists, including Tracy Chapman, Cyndi Lauper, K. D. Lang,and Rosanne Cash.

Since Larry's departure from Bob Dylan's band, he has continued to make guest appearances with various artists including Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris, Phil Lesh, Rosanne Cash, Litte Feat, Hot Tuna, and Levon Helm. Beginning in 2005, Larry performed regularly with Levon Helm for seven years.
LARRY AND TERESA WILLIAMS:

In addition, Larry performs with his wife, Teresa Williams. In the early 2000s, they performed locally in New York City, on Woodsongs Old Time Radio Hour and on The Blue Plate Special, a radio show out of Knoxville, Tennessee. In 2006, Larry and Teresa performed at The Lincoln Theatre in Marion, Virginia, for Song of the Mountains, the Lincoln Theatre's award-winning bluegrass concert series, showcasing the best in bluegrass and old-time music.
For seven years, beginning in 2005, they regularly performed at Levon Helm's Midnight Rambles in Woodstock, New York. These Midnight Rambles were held several times a month at Levon Helm's studio. Levon Helm based his Ramble sessions on the southern medicine shows of his youth and invited some of the most notable blues entertainers and musicians of our time to perform at the Rambles. Levon Helm also took his Rambles on the road.
After Levon Helm's passing, Larry and Teresa continued to perform at the Rambles which featured The Dirt Farmer Band - Larry, Teresa, Amy Helm, Byron Isaacs and Justin Guip. Larry and Teresa were and still are part of the Midnight Ramble Band which have performed at the Rambles.
In addition to performing at the Rambles, Larry and Teresa have performed together on tour with Phil Lesh, Jorma Kaukonen, Hot Tuna, Little Feat, Jackson Browne and Shawn Colvin. They also perform together in various venues around the country.
There was an article in the September/October 2009 issue of Elmore Magazine called "Two Part Harmony" that featured several couples working together, including Larry and Teresa. Larry and Teresa were also on the cover of the November/December 2011 issue of Ulster Magazine and featured in an article.
Larry and Teresa released their first album together on June 23, 2015. Their self-titled album features eight original songs and three cover songs. In addition to producing the album, Larry also wrote or co-wrote the eight original songs.
Larry and Teresa released their followup album, Contraband Love on September 15, 2017. Larry also produced this album and wrote 7 original songs for the album and co-wrote one song with William Bell.
It Was The Music, a film (10 episodes) that chronicles the lives of Larry and Teresa premiered on December 13th, 2020 and was directed by filmmaker Mark Moskowitz. An album soundtrack was also released.
In 2023, they released Live At Levon's!, a live album that Larry and Teresa recorded at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock, New York on September 20 and 21, 2019.

In 2024, they released All This Time, their fourth album. Larry produced and wrote 7 original songs for the album.

PRODUCTION CREDITS:

In addition to performing and recording with other artists, Larry has been called on by numerous musicians to produce their albums. Larry is a three time Grammy Award winning producer. In 2007, he produced (along with Amy Helm) Dirt Farmer, an album for Levon Helm that contained music reminiscent of Levon's past and songs handed down from Levon's parents. Dirt Farmer won a 2007 Grammy for Best Traditional Folk Album. In June of 2009, Levon Helm released a follow up album to Dirt Farmer titled Electric Dirt . Larry, once again, produced the album, and it included Amy Helm, Teresa Williams and horn arrangements by Allen Toussaint. The album received a 2009 Grammy for Best Americana Album. The album was in the same category with Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and Asleep at the Wheel, Lucinda Williams and Wilco. Larry's received his third Grammy Award for producing Levon Helm's Ramble At The Ryman. This was a live album of a show recorded at Nashville's historic Ryman Auditorium on September 17th, 2008. Guests appearing at this ramble included Buddy Miller, John Hiatt, Sheryl Crow, George Receli, Sam Bush and Billy Bob Thornton. The album won the 2011 Grammy for Best Americana Album.

In 2010, Larry produced Levon Helm's cover of Bob Dylan's "It Takes Alot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry" for The Imus Ranch Record II. The album was a follow-up to the 2008 The Imus Ranch Record that raised money for Don Imus' Ranch for kids with cancer.

In 2011, Larry produced Hot Tuna's album, Steady As She Goes, Tara Nevin's album, Wood and Stone, The Gourds' album, Old Mad Joy, and co-produced , Garland Jeffreys' album, The King Of In Between . He also produced 2 songs for David Bromberg's album, Use Me , 4 songs for Carolyn Wonderland's album, Peace Meal and a few songs for Corky Laing and The Memory Thieves. In addition, Larry and Levon Helm completed the lyrics and wrote the music for "You'll Never Again Be Mine", a song half finished by Hank Williams, included on The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams, a new collection of previously unheard songs by the country great.

In 2013, Larry produced Tell The Ones I Love for Steep Canyon Rangers who had recently won a grammy for Best Bluegrass Album for Nobody Knows You . He also produced David Bromberg's album, Only Slightly Mad.

In 2014, along with Brendan McDonough, Larry produced The Midnight Ramble Sessions Volume 3 .

In 2015, Larry produced Jorma Kaukonen's album, Ain't In No Hurry and he co-produced and played on Happy Traum's album, Just For The Love Of It . He also produced a duet album for Richard Shindell and Lucy Kaplansky. In addition, he produced his self-titled album with Teresa Williams.

In 2016, Larry produced Charismo , an album by The Hackensaw Boys. Larry also co-wrote a song with them on the album. In addition, he produced 3 other albums: The Woodstock Sessions by Marley's Ghost, Magic Fire by The Stray Birds and The Blues, The Whole Blues and Nothing But The Blues by The David Bromberg Band.

In 2017, Larry produced his followup album with Teresa Williams, Contraband Love

In 2019, Larry produced and played on Travelin' Shoes, a gospel album by Marley's Ghost. In addition, he produced Resurrection for Kinky Friedman, Pracina Stomp, an album by Italian artists Paolo Bonfanti and Martino Coppo and The Peppermint Experiment by German rock artist Marius Müller-Westernhagen.

In 2020, Larry produced two albums. One was for Robert Street Friedman titled Rise, and the other was for David Bromberg titled Big Road.

In 2022, Larry produced Carry Me Home , a document of a live performance recorded in 2011 at Levon Helm Studios featuring Levon Helm and Mavis Staples. In addition, he produced an album for Mike Mangione (Blood and Water ) and Roger Street Friedman (Love Hope Trust) .

In 2023, Larry produced Live At Levon's!, a live album that Larry and Teresa Williams recorded at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock, New York on September 20 and 21, 2019. He also produced Rusty Truck's self titled album.

In 2024, Larry produced All This Time, his fourth album with Teresa Williams.

OTHER ENDEAVORS:

As if performing, recording, writing and producing music were not enough, in 2008, Larry served as the Musical Director for Lomax: The Hound of Music . This was a PBS Children's series featuring a good-natured, melody-obsessed puppet pooch named Lomax, his fluffy feline sidekick Delta, and their human companion, Amy, on a tune-filled train ride crisscrossing the musical landscape of America. With the help - and full participation - of real kids on the train, on location, and the viewers at home, Lomax and his friends doggedly pursued their mutual passion: tracking down the wonderful songs that form the heart of our nation's diverse musical heritage. As Lomax the dog tracks down the folk songs of America (much like his namesake, legendary musicologist Alan Lomax), he and his friends also discovered that America is a land of fascinatingly diverse places and people. The series was designed to increase the musical intelligence of children ages 3 - 7.

In 2009, Larry was selected to conduct a workshop at Jorma Kaukonen's Fur Peace Ranch on the fingerstyle playing of Reverend Gary Davis. He conducted another workshop in 2011 on Blind Blake's complex and intricate finger picking. Each year since 2011, he has conducted additional workshops on acoustic fingerstyle guitar playing. Peace Ranch is a guitar players oasis within an award winning music community with instruction in various guitar styles, bass guitar, songwriting, mandolin, vocals and more. The Ranch is nestled in the tranquil setting of the rolling foothills of Southeast Ohio.

In 2011, Larry wrote the score to Hick, starring Blake Lively & Chloe Moretz. Directed by Derick Martini, Hick is a movie about a Nebraska teen that gets more than she bargained for when she sets out for the bright lights of Las Vegas. The film was featured at the Toronto International Film Festival in September, 2011.

In 2016, Larry produced the music for a new TV series titled, The Outsiders. The TV series premiered on January 26, 2016.

EARLY YEARS:

In earlier years, Larry contributed his talents to several musicals. In 1982, Larry performed in the orchestra for Alaska The Musical playing fiddle, acoustic and electric guitar, pedal steel and banjo. Larry also performed in the orchestra for Big River in 1985 and Rhythm Ranch in 1989. In addition, he played pedal steel guitar, banjo, fiddle and guitar for the entire several year run of The Will Rogers Follies which opened on broadway in New York City on May 1, 1991.
In the 1980s, Larry worked with Pat Cannon's Foot and Fiddle Dance Company playing guitar and fiddle.

Larry made several appearances on the Imus in the Morning radio show over the years. He performed alongside Kinky Friedman, Levon Helm and Teresa Williams. He also appeared on Howard Stern's radio show in 1995 with Cyndi Lauper.
Larry was born and raised in New York City. He is a self taught musician, never having had a formal lesson on any instrument. Early on, Larry became enamored with country and bluegrass music. His parents had an eclectic record collection which influenced him. He became interested in Hank Williams, George Jones, Jimmy Rodgers and country music from the 1920s and 1930s. Eventually, this lead him to learn to play fiddle, mandolin, banjo and pedal steel. When the Beatles first appeared on Ed Sullivan in 1964, Larry knew he wanted to be a guitar player. According to Larry's mom, Maggie, Larry's first guitar was a $12.95 Sears and Roebucks guitar. She has been quoted as saying, "When Larry was around 10 years old, we lived in a small apartment in New York City. Larry would listen to the Beatles on the turntable, teach himself to play along, and then call me into the room and say, 'Hey...ma...come and listen to this.'" While growing up, Maggie said of her son, "He never took himself (his natural talent) seriously." Maggie, while supporting Larry's talent and career choice, met some of his friends along the way. One friend, Julie Miller, wrote a song for Larry's mom, appropriately titled "Maggie", which can be found on Julie's album Broken Things. Maggie met Julie back in the early 80s when they gathered at a country/western club called City Limits located at Sheridan Square in New York City. Maggie was a passionate and enthusiast supporter of live music. Sadly, due to an accident, Larry lost his mother on April 9, 2010. Just a month earlier, Larry had lost his only brother due to a 5 year battle with colon cancer.

After Larry graduated from high school in 1971, one of his first bands was called Cottonmouth. Their music was described as bluegrass-county-rock, as they experimented with American roots music. By this time, in addition to playing guitar, Larry was playing banjo, fiddle, mandolin and pedal steel. Cottonmouth performed at York College in New York City in 1972 where they were the previous year's talent contest winners and where it only cost 50 cents to see the performance! During the summer of '72, Cottonmouth gigged at the Long Island Potato in Westhampton Beach.
Although Larry spent some time in the seventies in Mississippi and California playing gigs in his early career and also traveling around the country in country cover bands, he eventually returned to New York City. In the late 70s, he regularly played steel guitar with Kinky Friedman at The Lone Star Cafe. (Kinky mentions Larry in 3 of his books: A Case of Lone Star, Musical Chairs and Blast From The Past.) He played with many other artists at The Lone Star Cafe, including Willie Nelson and The Band. Larry would also play steel or fiddle with local bands at City Limits. In the late 70s, Larry joined an electric country bluegrass band fronted by John Herald. In addition, Larry played in a band with Dennis Blair in the late 70s called Nightlife along with Billy and Bruce Lang. Larry would regularly sub for the steel guitarist in another band Billy and Bruce Lang had called The Dixie Doughboys, a Western Swing band formed around 1980. It was during this time that he met and worked with Jim Lauderdale, Buddy and Julie Miller, Lincoln Schleifer, John Leventhal, Soozie Tyrell, Tony Garnier and Shawn Colvin in various clubs (in various bands) in New York City. He joined The Buddy Miller Band in 1980 (along with Julie Griffin Miller). They had regular gigs at The Lone Star Cafe and City Limits. Later, when Buddy left, this band emerged into The Shawn Colvin Band. (An article by Barry Mazor on the Buddy Miller/Shawn Colvin bands working in New York City circa 1978-80 came out in The Journal of Country Music Volume 24.1, published by the Country Music Foundation.) Later on in the early 80s, Larry played with a musician named Tommie Joe White, and he also played in Doug Sahm's band (The Sir Douglas Quintet). He has also performed with many others including David Johansen, Marc Cohn, Bob Belden and Tanya Tucker, and he's played with many other bands, including The Greg Trooper Band, Floyd Domingo's Western Swing Band, (with Tony Garnier), and The Happy Traum Band.
Beginning in the late 70s, Larry was also a member of Woodstock Mountains Revue, a unique folk group that featured Artie & Happy Traum, Pat Alger, Jim Rooney, Bill Keith, John Herald and John Sebastian. Guest artists like Maria Muldaur, Rory Block, Eric Andersen, Paul Butterfield and Paul Siebel joined the group for recordings. The Revue recorded 5 classic albums for Rounder Records, and although Rounder allowed over 50 of their tracks to go out-of-print, the band is widely considered one of the premier folk groups of the time.