Legendary keyboardist and bassist Larry Knechtel, 69, performed with top-selling artists for nearly half a century. His most famous piano work is his 1970 Grammy Award winning contribution to “Bridge Over Troubled Water” by Simon and Garfunkel.
Larry earned fame performing and recording with a broad range of artists, including his work as a session musician with Simon & Garfunkel, Duane Eddy, The Beach Boys (Pet Sounds, Smile), The Mamas & the Papas, The Doors, Elvis Presley (’68 NBC-TV Special), and as a member of the 1970s band, Bread. More here…
Coming from Germanic roots, Larry Knechtel was born in Bell, California in 1940 and took piano lessons as a child. He was a gifted musician, being able to sight-read and play by ear. Although he was trained classically, his interest in the black rhythm ‘n’ blues he heard on the radio steered him towards popular music, reports The Independent.
“In 1995 he bought a ranch in Washington intending to retire, but joined Bread for a reunion tour. He was involved in contemporary albums like Neil Diamond’s 12 Songs (2005) and the Dixie Chicks’ Taking the Long Way (2006). In 2007, he and other members of the Wrecking Crew were inducted into the Musicians’ Hall of Fame…”
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.