Larry Graham Jr. (born August 14, 1946) is an American bassist and baritone singer, with the psychedelic soul/funk band Sly and the Family Stone and as the founder and frontman of Graham Central Station. In 1980, he released the single "One in a Million You", which reached the top ten on the US Billboard Hot 100. He is credited with the invention of the slapping technique on the electric bass guitar, which radically expanded the tonal palette of the bass, although he himself refers to the technique as "thumpin' and pluckin'".
In 1993, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Sly and the Family Stone. He is also the uncle of rapper Drake.
Early life
Graham was born August 14, 1946, in Beaumont, Texas, U.S., to parents who were successful musicians.
Career
Sly and the Family Stone
Graham played bass in the funk band Sly and the Family Stone from 1967 to 1972. They had a series of influential tracks during the 1960s that entered the Billboard Hot 100 such as "Dance to the Music" (1968), "Everyday People" (1968), and "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)" (1969), as well as critically acclaimed albums such as Stand! (1969), which combined pop sensibility with social commentary.
After many years of tension between Graham and frontman Sly Stone, Larry Graham left Sly and the Family Stone in 1972, after a post-concert brawl broke out between Graham and Sly, and rumors also spread that Larry had hired a hit man to kill Sly. Graham and his wife climbed out of a hotel window to escape, and Pat Rizzo gave them a ride to safety.
In the mid-1970s, Larry Graham worked with Betty Davis, the second ex-wife of jazz musician Miles Davis. Betty Davis' band included members of the Tower of Power horns and the Pointer Sisters, and she recorded three albums to critical acclaim but limited commercial success.
In 1975, Graham became one of Jehovah's Witnesses. Eventually, he was credited with introducing Prince to the faith. In the early 1980s, Graham recorded five solo albums and had several solo hits on the R&B chart.
In 2020, he was ranked number 7 on Rolling Stone's list of "50 Greatest Bassists of All Time."
Personal life
Graham is the half-brother of Dennis Graham, and the uncle of Canadian rapper and actor Drake.
Slap bass technique
Graham pioneered the slapping and popping technique on the electric bass (though he refers to it as "thumpin' and pluckin'" Mark King, Keni Burke, Victor Wooten, Kim Clarke of Defunkt, Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers), Fieldy (Korn), Marcus Miller, and Stanley Clarke.
Discography
Solo albums
{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Year
! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Album
! scope="col" colspan="2"| Peak chart positions
|-
! style="width:35px;"|<small>US</small><br>
! style="width:35px;"|<small>US R&B</small><br>
|-
| 1980
| One in a Million You
| align=center | 26
| align=center | 2
|-
| 1981
| Just Be My Lady
| align=center | 46
| align=center | 8
|-
| 1982
| Sooner or Later
| align=center | 142
| align=center | 15
|-
| 1983
| Victory
| align=center | 173
| align=center | 52
|-
| 1985
| Fired Up
| align=center | —
| align=center | —
|-
|2019
|Chillin
| align=center | —
| align=center | —
|-
| colspan="4" style="text-align:center; font-size:9pt;" | "—" denotes releases that did not chart.
|}
Singles
{|class="wikitable"
! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Year
! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Single
! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Album
! scope="col" colspan="5"| Peak chart positions
|-
!width=35|<small>US</small><br>
!width=35|<small>US R&B</small><br>
!width=35|<small>US Dance</small><br>
!width=35|<small>US A/C</small><br>
!width=35|<small>UK</small><br>
|-
|rowspan=2|1980
|"One in a Million You"
|rowspan=2|One in a Million You
|align="center"|9
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|37
|align="center"|—
|-
|"When We Get Married"
|align="center"|76
|align="center"|9
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|—
|-
|rowspan=2|1981
|"Guess Who"
|rowspan=2|Just Be My Lady
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|69
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|—
|-
|"Just Be My Lady"
|align="center"|67
|align="center"|4
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|—
|-
|1982
|"Don't Stop When You're Hot"/ <br />"Sooner or Later"
|Sooner or Later
|align="center"|102<br>110
|align="center"|16<br/>27
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|54
|-
|1983
|"I Never Forget Your Eyes"
|Victory
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|34
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|—
|-
| colspan="8" style="text-align:center; font-size:9pt;"| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.
|}
With Sly and the Family Stone
- A Whole New Thing (1967)
- Dance to the Music (1968)
- Life (1968)
- Stand! (1969)
- There's a Riot Goin' On (1971)
With Graham Central Station
Albums
Studio
- Graham Central Station (Warner Bros., 1974)
- Release Yourself (Warner Bros., 1974)
- Ain't No 'Bout-A-Doubt It (Warner Bros., 1975)
- Mirror (Warner Bros., 1976)
- Now Do U Wanta Dance (Warner Bros., 1977)
- My Radio Sure Sounds Good to Me (Warner Bros., 1978)
- Star Walk (Warner Bros., 1979)
- Back by Popular Demand (1997)
- GCS 2000 (1998)
- Raise Up (2012)
Live
- Live in Japan (1992)
- Live in London (1996)
Compilation
- The Best of Larry Graham and Graham Central Station, Vol. 1 (Warner Bros., 1996)
Singles
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Year
! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Single
! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Album
! scope="col" | Peak chart positions
|-
! width="35" |<small>US</small><br>