Born in Texas in 1943, Larry Coryell moved to New York in 1965 and quickly established himself as the new hot voice on the guitar, working first with Chico Hamilton and then Gary Burton, as well as The Free Spirits, sometimes credited as the first ever jazz-rock group. He carried the Hendrix-influenced rock approach into his own 1970s band Eleventh House.

From the '80s onwards he reverted to a more acoustic guitar approach, and also became increasingly involved with other musical traditions, including flamenco and Indian classical music - the latter leading to his formation in 2003 of the quartet Bombay Jazz (now Mumbai Jazz). He also continues to perform in a range of other contexts, from straightahead bop to occasional re-investigations of his jazz-rock past.