Neil Larsen

Neil Larsen (born August 7, 1948) is an American jazz/jazz fusion keyboardist, musical arranger and composer. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio and grew up in Sarasota, Florida before relocating to New York and then, in 1977, Los Angeles.

Early life Larsen was born in Cleveland, Ohio and grew up in Sarasota, Florida. He learned piano, drawing inspiration from jazz artists John Coltrane, Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz Quartet, and from contemporary rock acts. He formed the band Full Moon with jazz guitarist Buzz Feiten, and their self-titled debut album was released in 1972. Larsen was briefly a member of the Soul Survivors. He contributed as keyboardist, writer and arranger on their 1974 self-titled album on the TSOP label. He began touring as a member of Gregg Allman's band in 1975. Larsen's debut studio album, Jungle Fever, was released in September 1978. Larsen toured the US in support of the release with a band that included Feiten.

The title track from his second studio album, High Gear, was nominated for the 1980 Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. The album peaked at number 139 on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart in the US and included musical contributions from Feiten, Michael Brecker, Steve Gadd and Paulinho da Costa.

From 1982 to 1985, he was a member of Kenny Loggins' touring band, playing keyboards and synthesizers.

His compositions have also been recorded by George Benson and Gregg Allman, among others.

Larsen has worked as a session musician for many rock artists, including Rickie Lee Jones, George Harrison, Kenny Loggins and Don McLean. He was the pianist and musical arranger for the 20th Century Fox Television show Boston Legal, Larsen performed on Cohen's Old Ideas (2012) album and on the singer's final world tour, in 2012–13. Cohen regularly introduced him on stage as "today's foremost exponent of the Hammond B-3 organ".

Discography Full Moon: Full Moon (Douglas/Epic, 1972) Soul Survivors: Soul Survivors (TSOP, 1974) Jungle Fever (Horizon/A&M, 1978) High Gear (Horizon/A&M, 1979) Larsen-Feiten Band (Warner Bros., 1980) Full Moon featuring Neil Larsen & Buzz Feiten (Warner Bros., 1982) Through Any Window (MCA, 1987) Smooth Talk (MCA, 1989) Full Moon: Full Moon Live (Dreamsville [Japan], 2002) – live rec. 1980–83 Orbit (Straight Ahead, 2007) Forlana (Portico, 2015)