The first notes of a great song can stay with you for years. A voice may draw you in, but the instruments give that voice room to shine. That is a big part of the story of Charles Larkey, a bass player who helped shape some of Carole King’s best-known early recordings.
Charles Larkey played with King before her solo career took off. He then worked on Tapestry, one of the defining albums of the 1970s. He was also her second husband. Yet his music tells a richer story than that single family link.
To hear his place in this era, start with the band The City. Then move to King’s early solo albums. Along the way, the bass becomes a thread that ties her changing sound together.
Who Was Charles Larkey?
Charles Larkey was an American bass musician linked to the late-1960s Los Angeles music scene. He played with Carole King and guitarist Danny Kortchmar in The City. The group made the 1968 album Now That Everything’s Been Said. Larkey also played bass on King’s solo work, including Writer and Tapestry.
Charles Larkey’s work sat in a style of pop and rock that made space for clear words, warm keys, acoustic guitars, and a steady beat. In that kind of music, a bass player does not need a flashy solo to be heard. Good bass lines help a song move, even when the listener is focused on the singer.
King and Larkey also married. Their marriage ended in divorce in 1976. Charles Larkey’s role in her music, though, began before the albums that made her a household name.
The City Came Before Tapestry
The City brought together three musicians with different strengths. King wrote songs, sang, and played keys. Kortchmar played guitar and sang. Larkey played bass. Drummer Jim Gordon joined them on the recording of their first album.
Their 1968 record, Now That Everything’s Been Said, gives fans a chance to hear King as part of a band rather than as the sole name on the cover. The album includes Snow Queen, Wasn’t Born to Follow, and the title track.
These songs show how her writing could work within a shared group sound. Guitar, keys, and bass often move as a team. The singing stays close to the tune. The band gives the songs a pulse without crowding the words.
The City did not become a long-running hit act. Its one album still matters because it links King’s earlier songwriting years with the solo records that soon followed. It also shows that Charles Larkey was already part of her working musical circle.
The group’s music is worth hearing on its own. It has a relaxed feel at times, but the arrangements are full of small choices. Listen to where the bass enters, when it holds a note, and when it steps forward with the guitar. Those details help the songs breathe.
The Move From a Band to a Solo Record
King released Writer in 1970. The album marked a new stage in her career as a performer under her own name. She had already spent years writing songs, but now her own voice and piano were at the center.
The players around her still mattered. Larkey is credited on Fender bass, while Kortchmar played guitar and conga. James Taylor also played acoustic guitar and sang on the record.
Songs on Writer include Child of Mine, Goin’ Back, and Up on the Roof. Those tracks gave King room to explore different moods. Some have a soft feel. Others have more drive. The band supports those shifts while keeping her singing in focus.
For Charles Larkey, the album forms a clear bridge between The City and the success that followed. Charles Larkey was not simply added to a famous record after the fact. He had already been playing with King as her solo sound took shape.
His Work on Carole King’s Tapestry
Tapestry came out in 1971. It brought together songs that have lasted for decades, from I Feel the Earth Move to It’s Too Late, So Far Away, and You’ve Got a Friend. Its sound is often close and warm, as if the musicians are playing in a room just down the hall.
Charles Larkey played electric bass and string bass on the record. Those two instruments can do related jobs, but they have different sounds. Electric bass can give a pop song a firm and clear low end. String bass can bring a softer, woodier tone.
Charles Larkey’s range helped the group serve songs with very different feelings. I Feel the Earth Move has a strong beat and a sense of motion. So Far Away needs more room for its sad, open mood. Both songs depend on players who listen to one another.
The credits for Tapestry on Carole King’s official website name Larkey alongside Kortchmar, James Taylor, drummers Joel O’Brien and Russ Kunkel, and other studio players. The lineup helps explain why the album can sound simple while still feeling full.
There is no single trick behind that sound. The rhythm section leaves room for the piano, and the instruments do not fight for attention. Bass gives the songs depth. Drums give them pace. The piano and voice carry the melody and words.
When you play the album now, try listening once just for the low notes. You may hear a part of the recording that once passed you by. It is a way to enjoy a familiar album from a new angle.
More Than One Famous Album
Tapestry is the record most readers know, but the music story did not end there. Charles Larkey also appears in the credits for Rhymes & Reasons, released in 1972, and Fantasy, released in 1973.
On Rhymes & Reasons, he is credited on electric and string bass. The record includes Been to Canaan, Bitter With the Sweet, and Peace in the Valley. Its songs have a calm, thoughtful tone that lets the writing stand at the front.
Fantasy opens the music up in a new way. It uses a larger group of players, with horns, strings, and percussion. Its tracks include Being at War With Each Other, Corazon, and Believe in Humanity.
In that setting, a bass player has to fit with more parts. A line that works with a small group may need a different touch when brass and strings join the mix. The bass still holds the music together while the colors around it change.
You can hear how the albums grow from a tight band feel to wider studio sounds. Looking across these credits also makes one point clear: Larkey’s work with King covered a stretch of her creative growth, not just a single day in a studio.
Why the Bass Matters in These Songs
A bass guitar often sits between the drums and the main tune. It can follow a kick drum to make the beat feel solid. It can also move between notes to lead the ear toward a new chord. A few well-chosen notes can make a chorus feel stronger.
Much of King’s music puts the words first. That makes restraint a skill. Too much playing could pull attention from a line that needs a quiet moment. Too little could leave the song flat. The best parts find a balance.
Charles Larkey’s credits help tell the story of musicians who built that balance together. The songs may carry King’s name, but a recording is also a team effort. Each player shapes what comes out of the speakers.
For a new listener, this is an easy idea to test. Play I Feel the Earth Move and pay attention to the beat. Then play So Far Away and listen to the space around the notes. The contrast helps show how a rhythm player can serve the song instead of playing the same way every time.
Marriage to Carole King and Their Years Together
The pair’s connection was personal as well as musical. Charles Larkey became King’s second husband after her first marriage to songwriter Gerry Goffin. Their years together fell during her rise as a major solo artist.
The couple divorced in 1976. That date is part of the larger story of King’s life, but it should not hide the work they shared. The records remain a clear way to understand their years in the same creative circle.
King’s early solo era was shaped by more than one person. Kortchmar, Taylor, producers, engineers, and session players all made key contributions. Larkey belongs in that group because he played on the records that marked her move into a new part of her career.
For fans who first find his name through King’s marriage history, the albums give a fuller view. They show him at work as a musician, part of a sound that people still return to.
The Songs That Best Introduce His Playing
A good place to begin is The City’s Now That Everything’s Been Said. It places Larkey in a small band with King and Kortchmar, so you can hear the early mix of their styles. The title song and Snow Queen offer two ways into that record.
Next, listen to Writer. Child of Mine and Up on the Roof show King moving toward the voice and sound that made her solo career famous. The bass is one part of an easy, close band feel.
Then spend time with Tapestry. I Feel the Earth Move brings energy right away. So Far Away changes the pace. It’s Too Late adds a cool, steady mood. As the tracks change, think about how the players give each one its own shape.
After that, move on to Rhymes & Reasons and Fantasy. You will hear the group sound shift as King’s writing and studio work grow. That longer path is more rewarding than looking at just one album cover.
A Lasting Part of the Singer-Songwriter Era
The late 1960s and early 1970s brought a wave of records in which songwriting, voice, and live-sounding bands carried the music. King was one of the artists who helped define that shift. Larkey worked within the group of players who brought her songs to life.
The influence of that era is still easy to hear. Many modern songs use the same core idea: let the words feel close, keep the beat steady, and give the tune enough space to stay with the listener.
The PBS American Masters look at King’s landmark album also places The City within the path to Tapestry. It describes the band’s early recordings as part of the musical ground from which her later sound grew.
That is why Charles Larkey matters to this story. His name may not be on the front of the sleeve, but it appears in the record credits for music that has crossed generations. He helped support the songs at the point when King’s work was reaching a much wider audience.
If you enjoy stories about the families and creative work behind famous rock musicians, you can also read our profile of Logan Romero Plant and his path beyond the Led Zeppelin name.
