Nicolette Larson
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Nicolette Larson (July 17, 1952 – December 16, 1997) was an American singer. She is best known for her work in the late 1970s with
Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the begi ...
and her 1978 hit single of Young's " Lotta Love", which hit No. 1 on the
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chart and No. 8 on the pop singles chart. It was followed by four more
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hits, two of which were also minor pop hits. By 1985, she shifted her focus to
country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...
, charting six times on the US country singles chart. Her only top-40 country hit was "That's How You Know When Love's Right", a duet with Steve Wariner. She died in 1997 of cerebral edema and liver failure.


Early life and career

Nicolette Larson was born in
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. Her father's employment with the U.S. Treasury Department necessitated frequent relocation for the family. She graduated from high school in
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, where she attended the
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for three semesters and worked at waitressing and office jobs before beginning to pursue the musical career she had dreamed of since singing along to the radio as a child. In the early 1970s, Larson eventually settled in
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, where she worked in a record store (Discount Records, on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, which also sold tickets for shows at the Fillmore West and Winterland) and for the Golden Gate Country Bluegrass Festival. Turning to singing, her performance career began with a booking as the opening act for Eric Andersen at The Egress, a club in
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. In 1975, Larson auditioned for Hoyt Axton, who was producing Commander Cody. This led to Larson singing with Hoyt Axton and The Banana Band, who were opening for
Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (, ; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing mo ...
on the "Diamonds and Rust" tour in 1975. She earned her first recording credit on Commander Cody's 1975 album ''Tales From the Ozone'', toured with his band and also provided background vocals on subsequent Commander Cody albums in 1977 and 1978. Other early career singing credits were for Axton and
Guy Clark Guy Charles Clark (November 6, 1941 – May 17, 2016) was an American folk and country singer-songwriter and luthier. He released more than 20 albums, and his songs have been recorded by other artists, including Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff ...
, both in 1976; the following year her resume included further credits with Mary Kay Place, Rodney Crowell, Billy Joe Shaver, Jesse Colin Young, Jesse Winchester, and Gary Stewart. Larson and Guthrie Thomas both had their first professional recording session on Axton's ''Southbound'' album for A&M Records. As newcomers to the recording industry, they were listed on the back cover of the album as "Street Singers", entirely separate from the highly paid, more established artists also appearing on the album. Larson's work with
Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana (music), Americana genre ...
– whose 1977 album '' Luxury Liner'' prominently showcased Larson on the song "Hello Stranger" – led to her meeting and then befriending Harris's associate and friend Linda Ronstadt. In 1977, Larson was at Ronstadt's Malibu home when neighbor
Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the begi ...
phoned to ask Ronstadt if she could recommend a female vocal accompanist. Ronstadt suggested Larson; she was the third person that day to mention Larson to Young. He came over to meet Larson, who recalled, "Neil ran down all the songs he had just written, about twenty of them. We sang harmonies with him and he was jazzed." The following week Ronstadt and Larson cut their vocals for Young's '' American Stars 'n Bars'' album at Young's La Honda ranch – the two women were billed on the album as the Bullets – and, in November 1977, Young invited Larson to
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to sing on his '' Comes a Time'' album. This led to Larson's being signed to Warner Bros. Records. Larson continued her background singing career into 1978, accruing credit on recordings by Marcia Ball, Rodney Crowell, Emmylou Harris (''
Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town ''Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town'' is the fifth studio album by American country music artist Emmylou Harris, released in 1978. The album reached No. 3 on the ''Billboard'' charts, with three charting singles: "To Daddy" (written by Dolly Part ...
''), and
Norton Buffalo Phillip Jackson (September 28, 1951 – October 30, 2009), best known as Norton Buffalo, was an American singer-songwriter, country music, country and blues harmonica player, record producer, bandleader and recording artist who was a versatile ...
. She also sang on the Doobie Brothers' '' Minute by Minute''. That album's producer, Ted Templeman, then produced Larson's debut album, '' Nicolette''.


1978–1983

Larson's work with Commander Cody had led to her being signed to the C&W division of Warner Bros. Records. However her debut album '' Nicolette'', released September 29, 1978, was an eclectic mix of rock, C&W and R&B. Despite the release of her album so late in the year, Larson was acclaimed Female Vocalist of 1978 by ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'', which wrote no one else could sound as if she were having so much fun on an album. ''Nicolette'' reached No. 15 on Billboard's album chart aided by the hit single " Lotta Love", a
Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the begi ...
composition. Larson's "Lotta Love" hit #1 on the Easy Listening/Adult Contemporary chart and went Top 10 Pop in February 1979. Linda Ronstadt, Valerie Carter, Bill Payne, James Burton, and Patrick Simmons performed on the '' Nicolette'' album. In 1979 the Warner Brothers Music Show label issued 500 promotional copies of the 12" vinyl record albu
WBMS 103
titled "Nicolette Live at the Roxy" comprising a December 20, 1978, concert that given by Larson at the Sunset Boulevard nightclub. Larson was also featured on the '' No Nukes'' album recorded in September 1979 at
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, backed by the Doobie Brothers in her performance of "Lotta Love". Larson would be unable to consolidate the commercial success augured by her debut: the second single off ''Nicolette'', "Rhumba Girl" just missed becoming a major hit for Larson at No. 48. Her second album, ''In the Nick of Time,'' released November 1979, failed to showcase Larson's voice attractively. Don Shewey in ''Rolling Stone'' wrote:
Larson's rough-edged, down-home tone is definitely appealing – especially when she backs up the likes of Neil Young and
Steve Goodman Steven Benjamin Goodman (July 25, 1948 – September 20, 1984) was an American folk and country singer-songwriter from Chicago. He wrote the song " City of New Orleans", which was recorded by artists including Arlo Guthrie, John Denver, The ...
hose ''High and Outside'' album featured a duet with Larson: "The One That Got Away"– but as a soloist, her limited vocal resources are "severely taxed" – "It's symptomatic of Nicolette Larson's problems as a performer that the finest singing on ''In the Nick of Time'' is by Michael McDonald. 'Let Me Go, Love' ... McDonald's entrancing vocal presence ... so overshadows Larson's that she seems to be playing second fiddle rather than sharing the lead. Elsewhere, Larson is dwarfed by Ted Templeman's typically luxurious production".
Released as the album's lead single, "Let Me Go Love" reached only No. 35 in February 1980. That year Larson was heard on the airwaves via guest appearances on "Say You'll Be Mine" by Christopher Cross and the Dirt Band's "Make a Little Magic". Larson had enough residual popularity from her debut for ''In the Nick of Time'' to become a moderate success. Because she had no major hit, Larson's 1981 and 1982 album releases, '' Radioland'' (her last album produced by Templeman) and '' All Dressed Up and No Place to Go'', were unsuccessful, even though both releases showed Larson back in strong vocal form. In 1982 Larson received some adult-contemporary radio airplay with her remake of " I Only Want to Be With You" (No. 53). Larson had continued her background singing career accruing credits on releases by Tom Johnston, Linda Ronstadt ('' Mad Love''),
Graham Nash Graham William Nash (born 2 February 1942) is a British and American musician, singer and songwriter. He is known for his light tenor voice and for his contributions as a member of the Hollies and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Crosby, Stills ...
, John Stewart, Albert Hammond, and Rita Coolidge. Larson again backed the Doobie Brothers on their '' One Step Closer'' album; she can be heard on the hit "Real Love." A song Larson co-wrote with John McFee and Patrick Simmons titled "Can't Let It Get Away" was a 1981 single release for the Doobie Brothers in
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. Larson's recording of the Burt Bacharach/ Carole Bayer Sager song "Fool Me Again" was featured on the bestselling soundtrack album for the 1981 film ''
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,'' despite not being heard in the film. Larson was also featured on the soundtrack album for '' National Lampoon's Vacation'' (1983) with the track "Summer Hearts". Larson's appearance in a touring production of the C&W musical '' Pump Boys and Dinettes'' garnered enough positive reaction for MCA Nashville to sign her in 1983.


1984–1997

The Nashville music community was so enthused about Larson's C&W cross-over that in 1984 the Academy of Country Music named her the Best New Female Vocalist before she had any MCA Nashville releases. Larson's MCA debut '' ...Say When'' was not released until 1985 (by which point country pop was no longer in style and neotraditionalists had taken over the country scene). The C&W career it ushered in for Larson proved anticlimactic with only one of her six MCA single releases becoming a significant hit: her duet with Steve Wariner titled "That's How You Know When Love's Right," taken from the April 1986 album release '' Rose of My Heart.'' The record reached No. 9 C&W. Larson's MCA albums, produced by Emory Gordy Jr. and Tony Brown, attracted little critical attention. Her final mainstream album release was '' Shadows of Love'', a 1988 recording made for the Italian CGD label and produced by Carlo Stretti and Ernesto Taberelli. It was her only album for a non-US label. In the winter of 1988, Nicolette appeared as a nightclub singer in the
Ivan Reitman Ivan Reitman (; October 27, 1946 – February 12, 2022) was a Canadian film director and producer. He was known for his comedy films, especially in the 1980s and 1990s. Reitman was the owner of The Montecito Picture Company, founded in 1998. ...
-directed comedy ''
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'', performing the song "I'd Die For This Dance", backed up by
Jeff Beck Geoffrey Arnold Beck (24 June 1944 – 10 January 2023) was an English musician. He rose to prominence as the guitarist of the rock band the Yardbirds, and afterwards founded and fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, ...
on guitar. The song is only available on the film's soundtrack. In 1992 Larson reunited professionally with
Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the begi ...
to sing on his '' Harvest Moon'' album. In 1993 she was featured on Young's '' Unplugged''. Larson's final album was the self-produced ''Sleep, Baby, Sleep'', consisting of music for children, released by Sony Wonder in 1994. Larson also contributed to the seasonal albums ''Tennessee Christmas '' (1987) with "One Bright Star", ''Acoustic Christmas'' (1988) with "Christmas Is a Time for Giving," and ''Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'' (1989) with "Nothing But a Child" and "One Bright Star". In 1988, Larson contributed to the soundtracks of the film '' They Call Me Renegade'' with the tracks "Let Me Be the One" from her 1988 album '' Shadows of Love''. While it was recorded in 1978, ''Live at the Roxy'' was given its first full release in 2006, nine years after Larson's death. It was released by Rhino. Also in 2006, Rhino Entertainment released the album ''A Tribute to Nicolette Larson: Lotta Love Concert''. Two "Lotta Love" concerts were held on February 20 and 21, 1998, in Santa Monica, CA, to benefit the UCLA Children's Hospital.


Personal life

Through her early work in the 1970s with
Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana (music), Americana genre ...
, Larson met guitarist and songwriter Hank DeVito. Larson and DeVito later married and divorced. She also dated Neil Young during the ''Comes a Time'' sessions. In the early 1980s, Larson was engaged to Andrew Gold, but their relationship ended shortly after the completion of Larson's 1982 album ''All Dressed Up and No Place to Go,'' which Gold had produced. In the late 1980s, she briefly dated
"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American comedy musician, writer, and actor. He is best known for writing and performing Comedy music, comedy songs that often Parody music, parody specific songs by contempo ...
. Yankovic would later compose "You Don't Love Me Anymore", a style parody of Larson's work, for his 1992 album '' Off the Deep End''. In 1990, Larson married drummer Russ Kunkel, and the two remained married until her death in 1997. The couple's daughter, Elsie May Larson-Kunkel, was born in 1990.


Death

Larson died on December 16, 1997, in Los Angeles, California, as a result of complications arising from cerebral edema triggered by liver failure. She was 45 years old. According to her friend
Astrid Young Vendela Astrid Young (born August 16, 1962) is a Canadian musician, artist, author and sommelier. She is the daughter of journalist, sportswriter, and novelist Scott Young (writer), Scott Young and his second wife Astrid Carlson, and the half-sis ...
, Neil Young's half-sister, Larson had been showing symptoms of depression, and her fatal seizure "was in no small way related to her chronic use of Valium and Tylenol PM." Two benefit concerts were held in Larson's honor in February 1998. A tribute album was released in 2006 and Carole King and other famous musicians joined the album.Carole King appears Nicolette・・・
caroleking.com Retrieved 21 August 2024


Discography


Singles


Awards and nominations


See also

* Valerie Carter


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Larson, Nicolette 1952 births 1997 deaths American people of Swedish descent American country musicians American country singer-songwriters American women country singers Deaths from cerebral edema Deaths from liver failure Neurological disease deaths in California Singers from Montana People from Helena, Montana Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) 20th-century American singer-songwriters Warner Records artists MCA Records artists Songwriters from Montana 20th-century American women singers