More Larry
Reviews
Photo by Marzena Manganaro
London Jazz News, May 2019
On Larry Fuller’s album “OVERJOYED”: “American pianist Larry Fuller…has quite a pedigree. This is his current trio, with fast-moving Lewis Nash on drums and bassist Hassan Shakur who is, incidentally, the son of Gerry Wiggins, another fine pianist. Deploying an eclectic mix of material, everything from Got My Mojo Workin’ to Wes Montgomery’s Fried Pies…Fuller is clearly a man with an open mind and a desire to offer something for everybody.”
All About Jazz, May 2019
On Larry Fuller’s album “OVERJOYED”: “Pianist Larry Fuller isn’t exactly coy about the substance of this record. Exuberance is an obvious through-line as he works his way across a dozen charmers that frequently live up to the promise of the title in different ways.”
JazzPolice, Aug 2016
On Larry Fuller Trio’s main-stage performance at Iowa City Jazz Festival: “Piano jazz titans Larry Fuller (Trio) presented a master class in swinging improvisation.”
The Vancouver Sun, July 2016
On Larry Fuller Trio’s appearance at the 2016 TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival: “Recap: Top 10 highlights at the 2016 TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival. The festival has blown its last note, plucked its last string and struck its last key. It’s time to recap the 10 concert moments that took our breaths away and made us gaze in wonder.
Larry Fuller Trio:
Sometimes you can’t beat old-school jazz. Pianist Fuller, in the company of American drummer Lewis Nash and Vancouver bassist Russ Botten, performed parallel lines and ringing chords in a set that ranged from Clifford Brown to Joni Mitchell, closing with a New Orleans second-line rhythm.”
All About Jazz, November 2015
On Larry Fuller Trio at Jazz at Kitano NYC: “While jazz is a music founded and fed on innovation, it’s also an art form steeped in tradition, forwarded through the passing of the torch to the next generation(s) in order to keep the life force of the music in good and capable hands. That fact was never as obvious as it was during Larry Fuller’s appearance at Jazz at Kitano on a crisp autumn evening. The fifty-year-old pianist—the last person to man the eighty-eights in bassist Ray Brown’s trio—showed that he’s upholding his former employer’s vision, swinging with gusto and seducing with heartfelt balladry. He also made clear that he’s following Brown’s lead via his adoption of bandstand mentorship tactics, sharing his hard-earned knowledge with two rising star rhythm players—bassist-vocalist Katie Thiroux and drummer Matt Witek.”
JazzTimes, November 2014
On Larry Fuller’s new album released on Capri Records: “Whether playing rapid-fire, intricate passages or subtly interpreting a tender ballad, Fuller is always totally in command and engaging.”
Jazz Weekly, November 2014
On Larry Fuller’s new album released on Capri Records: “Here’s a winning trio disc from pianist Larry Fuller along with Hassan Shakur/b and Greg Hutchinson/dr…he’s got a nice touch that is able to drive like a pack of Alaskan Huskies on boppers like “Daahoud” and “Celia” and get earthy on “C Jam Blues.” His buoyancy on the ivories is infectious during pieces such as “At Long Last Love” where each touch sounds like a cheerful sonnet, while the more thoughtful tunes along the lines of “Close Enough For Love” come off like an aria. A smart call was a warm reading of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” and the blues comes out of his fingertips along with the empathetic teammates on a bluesy “Django.” A blue plate special!”
NBC San Diego, October 2014
On Larry Fuller Trio’s October performance in San Diego: “Years of experience in the bebop ethos (the 49-year-old Fuller was the last pianist in bass-legend Ray Brown’s band) and a repertoire heavy on standards and jazz classics led to a night of heavy, ebullient swing.”
All About Jazz, August 2014
On Larry Fuller’s new album released on Capri Records: “Ray Brown may be gone, but the legacy of his trio is safe in the hands of people like Larry Fuller.”
Audiophile Audition, August 2014
On Larry Fuller’s new album released on Capri Records: “His effortless command of swing and stride piano stylings on his latest CD is striking.”
Post-Gazette, January 2013
From Manchester Craftsman’s Guild: “Mr. Fuller…generates his own incandescence with riveting solos that summarize the history of jazz piano, from Count Basie and Fats Waller to George Shearing, Erroll Garner, Bill Evans and Oscar Peterson.”
Pioneer Press Twin Cities, December 2012
“Fuller is the [John Pizzarelli] quartet’s “secret weapon,” the masterful pianist was formerly part of the great bassist Ray Brown’s fabled trio.”
RVA News, AUbuntu 2012
Richmond Jazz Festival Review: “Pianist Larry Fuller put serious muscle into the keys, with a vocabulary gleaned from one of the most iconic jazz pianists of all time, the legendary Oscar Peterson. Fuller, having apprenticed under bassist Ray Brown for years, has an immediate connection to that hard driving, swinging piano tradition Peterson created. Brown was Peterson’s longest-running collaborator in the pianist’s trio. In Fuller, one can hear that tradition reverently on display, and the feeling left me (a fellow piano player) mesmerized.”
International Review of Music, on the “Rockin in Rhythm” album, 2010
“…and pianist Larry Fuller’s brilliant work throughout – especially the buoyant stride solo on “Rockin’ In Rhythm” that nearly steals the record.”
New York Times 2010, Stephen Holden
“A word about Mr. Fuller: In his amazing gossamer piano solos, he sprinkles stardust on whatever song he plays; you hold your breath in wonder.”
New York Times, 2009, Stephen Holden
“Larry Fuller, the quartet’s pianist, merits special attention. If you closed your eyes and concentrated on piano solos that flowed as lightly and sweetly as a mountain brook, you could swear he was channeling the musical spirit of one of Billie Holiday’s greatest accompanists, Teddy Wilson.”
From The Regina Leader-Post:
Those Unsung Artists
Larry Fuller: Please forgive the piano tangent, but you have to hear this man play. Fuller is a member of the John Pizzarelli Quartet. Pizzarelli is well-known, but the same does not apply to his pianist. With any justice, that will soon change. Fuller’s two-handed runs are awe-inspiring.
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