Larry Treadwell bio info:
Composer/songwriter/musician/music producer/arranger Larry Treadwell originally hails from New Haven, Connecticut. He started playing guitar at 15. He auditioned for his high school band, but was rejected because he couldn't read music. The drummer liked his playing and hooked him up with some friends of his. This was the start of Larry's first band experience, the Talismen. They played mostly local gigs, including parties and dances at Yale and Uconn. While at Fairfield University, Larry met up with Peter McCann, Jim Honeycutt, Mike Foley, Tim Holleran, and Sukie Honeycutt; this was the start of Repairs. At the age of 20, they were signed to a recording contract with Motown Records by legendary Rolling Stones producer Andrew Loog Oldham, who discovered them while they were performing a free concert on the back of a flatbed truck in Westport, Connecticut. Repairs opened for many legendary acts, including Stevie Wonder, Rare Earth, and Aerosmith. During this period, Larry was hired by Oldham to play guitar on the Metamorphosis album, which featured obscure takes from the recordings of the Rolling Stones.
Repairs moved to Los Angeles in the mid 70's, and broke up soon after. Starting from scratch in the Hollywood scene, Larry slowly found gigs he was willing to play while he tried to launch a solo career, smack in the middle of the disco era. Resisting the high heels and glitter, he fought hard to keep his rock dreams alive. He also started to explore writing songs for television, and wrote compositions for the t.v. show Fame. In 1978, Larry joined the band Sumner, featuring amazing singer/ songwriter/ guitarist Sumner Mering. Other members included Novi [Zappa, Prince] on electric viola and keyboards, drummers Andy Dworkin, Mark Sanders [Tower of Power] and Steve Drake, and bassist Bob DiChiro [ Larry's band mate in many bands]. Sumner was signed to Electra-Asylum for one album. They headlined the Hollywood club scene for about 2 years, with fans like Joni Mitchell and John Voight.
In the early '80's, after Sumner broke up, Larry traveled the country with Tom Franzak, a great musician and songwriter who was also a committed Catholic youth minister. During one show at the Superdome, Larry shook hands with Pope John Paul the 2nd, who played air guitar to Larry for a second. In 1986, Larry became a member of Thomas Dolby's Lost Toy People, playing on the albums "Aliens Ate My Buick" and "Astranauts and Heretics", as well as touring the country and abroad. When at home, Larry was developing his recording studio, recording music for himself and other artists.
In the 90's, Larry launced the Larry Show, which featured Larry performing his own music with an ever-changing guest performer line-up. His guests were often in disguises. During one of his shows, a performer collapsed in the parking lot and was taken to a local hospital. He was dressed as a pimp, and his visitors that night included two prostitutes and a cowboy. Larry also played guitar in Rich Sumner's Closet Surfers, featuring John Hernandes [ Oingo Boingo] on drums and Bobby D. on bass. Larry, Rich, Bobby, and John Magnussen formed an instrumental band called the Maykerz, which played innovative original compositions. In 1998, Larry started playing guitar at the world-famous Groundlings Theatre, which has birthed many super talents, like Will Ferrel, Jennifer Coolidge, Kristen Wiig and Phil Hartman. He still plays there today.
Larry was also a member of Tin Drum, a band created by Burleigh Drummond, a founding member of the legendary band Ambrosia, and his wife Mary Harris, who toured with
Jimmy Buffet for many years. Larry is a member of the Enzymes, a new Los Angeles based band. Other band members include actor/musician Murphy Dunne, who performed in Chicago's famous Second City company and played and acted in the movies "The Blues Brothers" and the sequal "Blues Brothers 2000"; bassist Rob Lewine, who played in the Illinois Speed Press and briefly in Little Feat, as well as with Mickey Rooney Jr. [Jimi Hendrix was a fan of ISP, and Rob got to jam with him]; and drummer Howard Greene, who also plays with Larry at the Groundlings Theatre.
Larry has composed music for: films, including Tapeheads, Car 54 Where Are You, Malibu Spring Break, Tiger Cruise[Disney], Life Inside Out;
TV shows on ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CW, Nickelodeon, A&E, Disney, MTV, TBS, Oxygen.
These shows include Victorious, iCarly, King of the Hill, Guiding Light, Joan of Arcadia, Ellen Degeneges Show, Extra Weekend Edition, General Hospital, One Life to Live, Rich Girls, My Super Sweet 16, Another World, Fame, Booker, Homicide-Life on the Streets, and others.
In 1998, Larry received a Grammy nomination for best instrumental arrangement accompanying a vocal for the Thomas Dolby song "Key to Her Ferrari".
Larry has played his guitars for these artists:
Thomas Dolby, Cindi Lauper, The Pointer Sisters, Allee Willis, Kelly Clarkson, Earth Wind and Fire, Rolling Stones, Angela Bowie and many more.
Larry has played on movie soundtracks for movies by John Hughes, Roger Corman, Cheech and Chong, and others.
At his Simple Roger Studios, artists who have been recorded there show variety. For example: Tiffany, Prodigal Sunn [Wu-Tang Clan], Leslie Nielsen [yes the actor], Ron Miller [writer of huge hits like "For Once in My Life"], Martha Davis {the Motels], and Rosemary Butler {James Taylor], to name a few.