Biography
Check out Larry's newest release, "Point Of Entry" at CDBABY.com
Awards in 2009:
2009 Grand Prize Winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest
2009 Grassy Hill Kerrville Newfolk Competition- Finalist
Tucson Folk Festival Songwriting Competition- Finalist
Unisong International Songwriting Competition- Honorable Mention
Peacedriven.com Songwriting Contest- Honorable Mention
It's no surprise that Seattle-based Larry Murante is gaining a reputation as one of the finest contemporary singer songwriters to emerge from the Northwest in recent years.
Larry’s three CD releases, Kiss Me One More Time (1994) and Water’s Edge (2000) and Point Of Entry (2009) have garnered critical acclaim from all over the country and parts of Europe. In the past few years he’s racked up a string of national and regional songwriting awards and honors including first place winner of the 1999 Wildflower Songwriting Contest in Richardson, Texas, a showcase finalist at the 1999 Falcon Ridge Festival in Hillsdale, NY, as well as first place in the 2002 and 1998 Tumbleweed Festival Songwriting Contest in Richland, WA (Larry took second place in ‘99) and a top five winner at Lakewood, WA’s 1998 Lakefolkfest Songwriting Contest.
Larry grew up in the small rural town of Nazareth, Pennsylvania (also the home of Martin Guitars). In high school, Larry began singing in working bands of every kind. “In my late teens I was singing in a wedding band that performed a variety of styles including jazz, pop, swing, R&B and top-40,” he recalls. “In those early years I was also singing in rock cover bands and playing in top 40 groups in town on the weekends. And when I wasn’t doing that, I was listening to and playing acoustic folkrock music. My biggest influence from that period (and even today) were the early 70’s singer/songwriters like Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, CSNY, the Eagles and Jackson Browne.”
Larry’s voice today is a testament not only to good pipes but to years of training — which he’s done, logging over a decade of study with opera, jazz, and musical theater stylists among which was Metropolitan Opera veteran baritone, Frank Guarerra (Larry continues to lead a double life as a jazz/rock/R&B singer in his ten piece variety band, Second Wind, which has been together for over 15 years).
His songs are full of the sense of how lucky and fragile our lives are (most of us): to have music, companionship, family, a roof overhead, a semblance of mental health, food on the table and the opportunity to grow — these are gifts that in Larry’s songs seem tenuous, revokable, and tender.
Though his songs are cleanly structured, he rarely writes himself into a tight formal box, and you can feel his narrator’s eye moving across the landscape like a great, kindhearted novelist who stops to probe gently into each of his characters and their desires (sometimes his own) before moving on to the next scene.
Larry tours nationally, performing a mix of folk concerts, festivals, radio interviews and house concerts and has shared the stage with such artists as Peter Mulvey, Greg Greenway, Pierce Pettis, David Broza, Cosy Sheridan, Laura Love, Michael McNevin, TR Ritchie, Joanne Rand, Jane Gillman, Darcie Deaville, Jim Page, Orville Johnson, Lisa Koch, David Maloney, Annie Gallup, Johnathan Kingham, Caren Armstrong and I once shared an elevator with Pete Seeger. He looked right at me and said, “Hi.”
Larry Murante: Point of Entry
Independent Release; Weeping Wood Music
Review:
Victory Music Magazine
By Nancy Vivolo
At long last, Point of Entry is ready to take home, so pour yourself a glass of wine and get comfortable because you're going to want to enjoy this in one sitting. Engaging and direct in live performance, Larry Murante's soaring vocals bring a decor to every song that when combined with his panache for storytelling grabs and holds your complete attention. I have longed to tuck his words in my pocket for further examination somewhere down the road, so this fresh third release from this sterling Seattle singer/song writer is as welcome as the long-awaited spring. Murante is the kind of word crafter that doesn't come along every day. His clever turns of phrase, colorfully painted descriptions and surprising plot twists create compelling story lines that are supported by a smooth, balanced melodic delivery. There is strength, power and definition in each musical arrangement. Murante also draws upon the musical talent of some of Seattle's finest musicians; TJ Morris is exquisite on drums/percussion in "More Than He Knows" and "I Still Think of You.” Alicia Healey adds beautiful depth and a measure of heartache with her sensitively delivered background vocals in "Dry Rain, Calm Wind.” It could be timing or a bit of just what the doctor ordered, but Point of Entry touches a chord with me every time I hear it and each musician had to have been at the absolute top of their game while recording this one. A strong partner in this production, multi-instrumentalist Hans York adds a rich fullness to every thing he touches. A beautiful told story drawn from a historic account, "Mrs. Crouch" has a fascinating personal connection and Murante tells it with loving sweetness. The added backup of Greg Fulton on mandolin and wailing slide guitar make this story come to life. "The Big D" is in some ways painfully honest and revealing, regretful yet comfortable and ironically, filled with universal acceptance and familiarity. Murante has the uncanny ability to not only recognize certain elements of human nature but is also able to articulate the actions, emotions and hidden meanings that became so entangled as a result. His language is his music and his music will touch your mind, heart and soul when you give him a "point of entry.” Make a point to attend one of his CD release concerts and pick up a copy. (Nancy Vivolo, Victory Music Magazine)
Larry Murante: Point of Entry
Independent Release; Weeping Wood Music
Review:
Folk & Acoustic Music
Exchange by Mark S. Tucker
This well-developed collection of songs is a potpourri of protestation, quiet observation, passionate gusto, pleasantly eerie urbanism, and around-the-corner topicality. Larry Murante possesses a mellifluous voice that can nonetheless yip and yelp when needed or rise in indignation. He writes, though, in small and large surprises, as in Paul's Song, chronicling a case of mistaken assumption that leads to the narrator deepening his appreciation of the subtleties of the human mind.
Mrs. Crouch introduces a ghostly tale of yet another false preacher, this time one who engenders a string of tragedies that lead to a haunting in the singer's boyhood house, the spectre of a woman deeply wronged and still trying to live life as it should have been. Rather than try for the stereotypical quality of 'touching', Murante chose instead to show an unusual acceptance of the paranormal in a young boy.
Murante has a quality that calls to mind Marc Cohn, Cliff Eberhardt, Iain Matthews, David Wilcox, and the kind of musician that you just can't get enough of, as every aspect of each song is perfection with gentle hooks, mellow instrumentation, a very polished voice, and top-notch production. Had Terence Boylan, Eric Anderson, and a few other folk mainstreamers been as consistent as Larry is here, they would've enjoyed a much better heyday. Point of Entry, in contrast, has staying power and should be finding easy egress into any and all airwaves intelligent enough to know quality when they hear it.
Paul's Song (Murante / Landis)
Dry Rain, Calm Wind (Murante / Landis)
Point of Entry
More than He Knows
Mrs. Crouch
I Still Think of You
The Big D
You're so Smart
Quiet, Cold and Deep
Yes We Can (Murante / York)
Instrumentation
voice, guitar, harmonica, percussion
Discography
Kiss Me One More Time (1994)
Water's Edge (2000)
Point Of Entry (2009)
Links
| http://www.larrymurante.com |