West End Records

Larry Levan: Rememberances (pg. 2)

"Probably the most intense moment of my entire musical career was one night at Paradise Garage. It was past 4:00 AM on a Friday in '82 or '83, and I was on the stage playing drums with Konk. Into the middle of our set, with all seven of us going nuts banging on bells, congas, cymbals, timbales, and everything else in sight, Larry was up in the booth and proceeding to mix our then current song, 'Konk Party,' right in with our live groove. I looked up to the rafters and I thought, 'What is that coming from?" -- then it hit me. I closed my eyes and became locked into this incredible sense of infinity, of timelessness, a swirling centrifuge of bliss, as the entire Garage rocked to the compound effect of total unconstrained energy. Larry was a visionary and a genius, and to those that he inspired, he will always remain a most important driving force."
-- Geordie Gillespie, Chaos Recordings

"He was the godfather. He was it."
-- Mike Gusick, Easy Street Recordings

A few reasons why Larry was the greatest DJ of all time:

On a great night, I felt like he was playing for me ... I was stimulated and rejuvenated for a whole week.
He was the best at working a Richard Long crossover ... he could do it in his sleep.
His taste was much more eclectic than "fans" of the so-called "garage" music. I'll never forget the time he played Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. My buddy and I were ecstatic and we promptly took our positions in the sweet spot of the Paradise Garage's temporarily empty dancefloor."

-- John Hall

"So many memories ... I am overwhelmed with his loss, but he's in a better place."
-- Loleatta Holloway

"Larry Levan is now and will always be in the forefront of my mind. My most memorable experience with him was when I was 16, the first time I experienced the Garage. It was pure 'ecstasy.' No one can ever make me feel the way he did that night! I will always remember him as being my first."
-- Ceybil Jefferies

"Larry Levan was one of the best two DJs I've ever seen breaking new records. The other was Ron Hardy, who died earlier this year and whose death was totally unacknowledged. Both of these men had extremely similar styles: go with the feeling. Both had every DJ in a 500-mile radius and beyond asking what they played while simultaneously blasting their mixing technique. I think American DJs as a whole can learn a lot from these two, because with all the hot mixing going on now, it takes ten or more jocks to do the job of one Larry Levan."
-- In deepest appreciation, Marshall Jefferson