Guitarist Spreads Wings at Throckmorton

For Laurence Juber, the mediums they are a-changin’.

The British guitarist’s licks once provided the sonic backdrop for TV shows like Happy Days and Family Ties and films like James Bond’s The Spy Who Loved Me.

Now his compositions serve as the soundtrack to video games like Blizzard Entertainment’s Diablo III, one of the industry’s iconic role-playing series.

But while the medium for his music has changed over the years, one thing hasn’t: while Laurence Juber might not be a household name, his music has reached millions of ears, from his own 19 solo guitar albums, including two instrumental guitar LJ Plays the Beatles albums, to his two-year stint as the lead guitarist for Paul McCartney’s Wings and loads of studio, TV and film work before and since then.

Juber brings his loaded catalogue to 142 Throckmorton Theatre Thursday night, one of about 90 live dates the 59-year-old guitarist does a year.  Juber has lived in Southern California for 30 years, since soon after he left Wings. He spoke to Mill Valley Patch about his career evolution 

Mill Valley Patch: Where am I catching you?

Laurence Juber: I’m on my way to Mammoth tonight for a show, and then off to Shingle Springs before I come to Mill Valley.

MVP: How often are you on the road these days?

LJ: I’m doing less of the scoring and studio work currently and more live performance. I certainly enjoy live performance but it’s what feeds back into the creative part in terms of the writing and recording. I try to keep it all in balance so as not to be a full-on road rat.

MVP: You were born and raised in London and lived there for nearly 30 years, but California has been your home for almost just as long. I know that meeting your wife is what brought you here. Are you here to stay?

LJ: I do love California. It’s a combination of things. Being near Los Angeles holds appeal because of its places as a music and entertainment center. But I love being able to travel up and down the coast and perform. It’s just a great place to be.

MVP: I imagine you’ve played here in Mill Valley before.

I have. A few years ago, I played at the Throckmorton as part of a multi-artist bill including Jorma Kaukonen that was a celebration of Eric Schoenberg. I love the venue. It’s a fantastic venue to perform in. And I’m really looking forward to doing a solo show.

MVP: Speaking of playing here, you played a bit on Dan Hicks’ Christmas album. How did that come together?

LJ: That’s right – I was a Hot Lick for a day. That came through the recording engineer on the project. Subsequently I was at Fur Peace Ranch with Jorma and Dan was performing live there. He’s a wonderfully eccentric artist. What I did with him was more of the lead guitar stuff with jazzy lines.

MVP: For your solo shows, you’re, well, solo – playing the whole thing yourself.

LJ: Yes, playing the melody, the bass and the rhythm. It’s the complete performance that’s always been the appeal to me of solo guitar. It’s the self sufficiency of it. It keeps the audience engaged. It’s all coming from one instrument. They wonder where the other musicians are hiding.