Major Bob Music

Garth Brooks is the top-selling solo artist of the century according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). With sales of over 93 million albums resulting in certification of over 99 million since 1989, Garth is the fastest-selling album artist in RIAA history. He is also the only male artist in RIAA history to have 4 albums top the 10 million mark.

Garth‘s U.S. album certifications by the RIAA are as follows:-

Garth recently received the RIAA‘s newest honour, the Diamond Award, for albums selling over 10 million units in the U.S. The four titles earning this distinction are : No Fences, Ropin‘ The Wind, The Hits, and Double Live.

Garth Brooks was the biggest-selling country album of the 1980‘s.

Ropin‘ The Wind was the first album ever to debut at #1 on both Billboard Top 200 Album Chart and the Billboard Country Album Album Chart. The Chase, In Pieces, Sevens and Double Live also accomplished this feat. Garth has taken over 20 singles to the #1 position on the country charts.

Garth Brooks Double Live, when released on November, 17th, 1998, set an all-time record for the Soundscan era by selling 1,085,373 copies in its first week. It was not only a record for first-week sales, but for any one-week sales period by any artist. Featuring 25 cuts and over 100 minutes of music, including three new songs, Double Live stayed at the top of the Billboard Top 200 chart for 5 weeks.

Brooks released a boxed set, The Limited Series (so named because only 2 million units were produced), on May 5th, 1998. The set contained his first six multi-platinum studio releases -- Garth Brooks , No Fences, Ropin‘ The Wind, The Chase, In Pieces and Fresh Horses --as well as a new bonus track on each c.d., for a total of 66 cuts and over three hours of music. Due to its success, Brooks is the first artist to debut at #1 on two charts with a boxed set. It topped the Billboard Country Chart and was the first boxed set to reach #1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart since the inception of Soundscan in 1991. First week sales for the set were 372,410 units, a record for first week sales of any boxed set in the Soundscan era. (The only other artist to debut at #1 with a boxed set was Bruce Springsteen in 1986). The collection has sold 2 million units, resulting in the RIAA certifying each album contained in The Limited Series for an additional 2 million copies.

Sevens was released in November, 1997 and debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 and Country Album charts with first week sales of 896,932. This was the top-selling debut week of any album released in 1997. Sevens topped the Top 200 chart for a total of 7 weeks, and the Country chart for 13 weeks.

Garth placed three albums at the top of the Billboard Top 200 chart in 1998 - Sevens, The Limited Series and Double Live. He was the first artist to accomplish this feat since Elton John in 1975.

Garth was #1 on the 1998 Los Angeles Times Calendar Ultimate Top 10 of Music, a tally that combines album sales and concert grosses.

During Garth‘s 1996-1998 concert tour, he played 350 shows in 100 cities, selling over 5.3 million tickets. He sold over 1.8 million tickets in 1996, more than any other touring act that year. He sold out practically every show on the tour, playing multiple shows in each city and consistently breaking venue attendance records set by the likes of Elvis Presley, The Grateful Dead, Elton John and Neil Diamond. According to Amusement Business, it was easily the top country music tour of all time, and likely the biggest arena tour ever.

On August 7th, 1997, Garth drew the largest crowd ever to attend a concert in New York‘s Central Park. Garth Live From Central Park, airing on HBO was the highest rated original program on HBO in 1997, as well as the most-watched special on cable television in 1997, drawing 14.6 million television viewers. The special beat all broadcast competition in the time period as well as 3 of the 4 networks combined. It earned a 15.2 rating/25 share in HBO homes. Ratings continued to rise throughout the evening, peaking at a 19.1 rating/29 share in the last 15 minutes of the concert. (Ratings information based on Nielson). Garth Live From Central Park was nominated for six Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Music Program; and Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special.

Garth has received every accolade the recording industry can bestow on an artist, including: 2 Grammys, 16 American Music Awards, 11 Country Music Association Awards, 18 Academy of Country Music Awards, 5 World Music Awards, 10 People‘s Choice Awards (including Favourite Male Musical Performer for the past 8 years), and 24 Billboard Music Awards (more than any other artist). He was named Artist of the ’90‘s at the 1997 Blockbuster Entertainment Awards, received the Artist Achievement Award at the 1997 Billboard Music Awards and was named Artist of the Decade at the American Music Awards in 2000 and the Academy of Country Music in 1999.

Garth‘s past television credits include 8 NBC specials -- This is Garth Brooks (first airing January, 1992), This is Garth Brooks, Too! (first airing May, 1994) Garth Brooks --The Hits (January, 1995), Tryin‘ to Rope the World (first airing December, 1995) Garth Brooks: Ireland & Back (first airing March, 1998) Garth Brooks Double Live (November, 1998), Garth Brooks In... The Life Of Chris Gaines (September, 1999) and Garth Brooks & the magic of Christmas (December, 1999.)

This Is Garth Brooks was filmed at Dallas‘ Reunion Arena in September 1991. At the time it aired, it gave NBC its highest-rated Friday night in more than 2 years and was the #9 show for the week.

This is Garth Brooks, Too! was filmed over the course of three sold-out shows at Texas Stadium in Dallas in 1993. When it aired it gave NBC its first time period win among adults 18-49 since August, 1992.

Garth Brooks -- The Hits aired live, with Garth showing clips from the previous two specials and taking phone calls from fans. It won its time slot for NBC and gave NBC its best adult (18-49) rating in that time slot since January, 1994.

Tryin‘ to Rope the World was a behind-the-scenes documentary of Brooks‘ first European/Australian tour in 1994, featuring both concert highlights and introspective interview footage.

Ireland & Back was a two hour special that won the night in ratings and was tied with "Law and Order" as the #20 show for the week. Over 15.7 million people watched this special which featured Garth‘s outdoor concerts in Dublin, Ireland, as well as footage shot in Los Angeles featuring the music of his album Sevens.

Garth Brooks Double Live was performed live in front of a studio audience in L.A. for three separate time zones (eastern/central, mountain and pacific). The special spotlighted exclusive, never-before-seen concert footage of Garth performing songs from Double Live. Garth interacted with viewers via satellite, showed clips of his favourite performances from previous specials, and performed live. The show drew a time-period winning average of 14.3 million viewers and contributed to NBC‘s winning the night in total viewers.

Garth Brooks In...the Life of Chris Gaines featured Garth performing the music and introducing the fictitious character of Chris Gaines. Gaines is the central character in the upcoming film "The Lamb".

Garth Brooks & the magic of Christmas, taped in New York City at the Rainbow Room and other famous Manhattan locales, featured Garth performing holiday classics backed by a 32-piece big band. His guests were Tony Bennett, Natalie Cole, Dorothy Hamill and Trisha Yearwood. The special drew nearly 16 million viewers, the largest audience for a Garth Brooks NBC special since 1995.

Garth participated with Ray Charles, Isaac Hayes, Faith Hill, Queen Latifah and Dionne Warwick in a medley of Oscar-nominated songs at this year‘s Academy Awards.

In December 1996 VH1 premiered Garth Brooks: Storytellers, part of its acclaimed singer/songwriter series. This intimate look into Brooks‘ music and persona gave the channel its highest-rated show of the week and doubled the ratings of previous Storytellers episodes featuring Sting, Jackson Browne, Elvis Costello and Melissa Etheridge.

Garth‘s acting credits include guest performances on NBC‘s Empty Nest and ABC‘s Muppets Tonight! and a cameo appearance on NBC‘s Mad About You.

He also drew widespread acclaim for the skits he performed as host on Saturday Night Live in February, 1998.

Garth‘s film production company, Red Strokes Entertainment, is based in Los Angeles.

On June, 30th, 1995 Garth received a star on the legendary Hollywood Walk of Fame.

In 1993, Garth performed The National Anthem during pre-game festivities at the Super Bowl to a television audience of over 1 billion people in over 87 countries. "We Shall Be Free", his award-winning music video, premiered during the telecast. Combining news footage with cameo appearances by Elizabeth Taylor, Lily Tomlin, General Colin Powell, Eddie Murphy, Whoopi Goldberg, Michael Bolton and Amy Grant, among other luminaries, the song and video were a testament to tolerance and brotherhood.

In July, 1994 Garth performed a sold-out show at the Hollywood Bowl with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. The concert sold out in 21 minutes, with Hollywood Bowl Events manager Mark Ferber noting, "I can‘t remember, since the Beatles, a longer box office line than this morning for Garth Brooks."

Garth has appeared on the covers of Rolling Stone, Forbes, Time, George, Entertainment Weekly and The Saturday Evening Post. In 1994 Playboy named him "the King of Pop Music". In addition, he was interviewed by Barbara Walters for one of her ABC prime time television specials, and by Jane Pauley for Dateline NBC. A frequent performer on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Garth has also guested on Saturday Night Live (which he also hosted in Feb. ’98 and Nov. ’99), The Oprah Winfrey Show, Late Night With Conan O‘Brien, Live With Regis & Kathie Lee, The Rosie O‘Donnell Show, Donny & Marie, The Howie Mandel Show, Today, Good Morning America and CBS The Early Show, among others.

Garth was born on February, 7th, 1962 in Tulsa, OK, and raised in Yukon, OK. His parents are Troyal Raymond Brooks and the late Colleen Carroll Brooks. Colleen Carroll recorded for Capitol Records in the 1950‘s and performed with Red Foley on the Ozark Ju

"Buddy Mondlock represents the best of the new generation of singer/songwriters in folk music. His writing style is grounded in the traditions of the past, but has its heart in the present. He is one of my favourite writers."

NANCI GRIFFITH

"Buddy Mondlock is consistently eclectic, consistently innovative and consistently one of the few artists that doesn‘t irritate me. I love working with him and he better keep working with me."

JANIS IAN

"Buddy Mondlock writes beautiful songs and plays the kind of guitar they deserve. He‘s a fine person and a fine artist."

TOWNES VAN ZANDT

"I first saw Buddy Mondlock while hosting the Ballad Tree, a tradition at the Kerrville Folk Festival. This kid in a bathing suit walked up and played "No Choice" to an audience of 30-40 people. By the time he got to the second verse, he had 200 people singing along with him. He blew me away! Pay attention to Buddy; he‘s a great writer."

GUY CLARK

"Mondlock‘s songs are like movies you want to see again. He starts with the same world we all see and hear, but he transforms the sights and sounds into revelations that delight and melodies that linger."

ED MORRIS

BILLBOARD MAGAZINE

"Buddy Mondlock is the most startling new songwriting talent I‘ve heard this year. This guy is an American original, a folk poet whose vision veers effortlessly from wild witticism to soul-piercing insights. Living proof that the troubadour tradition sings on."

ROBERT K. OERMANN

SYNDICATED MUSIC WRITER

Notable covers by other artists.......

Partial Discography

Larry has also had songs recorded by:-

Neil Thrasher was born into a family of acclaimed tenor singers and performers. This environment fostered Neil‘s desire to make music as well. But while Neil has inherited the family vocal ability, he chooses to make his living as a songwriter. Years of patient pursuit of the craft have paid off and Neil has grown to be considered one of Nashville‘s finest writers. As a result, many of Music City‘s most popular artists have recorded his songs. His catalogue includes cuts by Kenny Chesney, Diamond Rio, Reba McEntire and Don Williams, among others.

Ironically, one of Neil‘s other talents initially brought him to Nashville. An accomplished athlete, he originally moved to Tennessee to play college football. Subsequently, he joined a quartet vocal group and toured while developing his craft as a songwriter. In short time he landed an exclusive songwriting deal back in Nashville at Major Bob Music. It was there that he began to write with another young writer, Kelly Shiver. In the process of recording their songs the two found that their combined voices had a seamless vocal harmony that surpassed even the purest family blends. The sound was so remarkable that Asylum Records took note of the two and offered them a recording deal as a duo. They went on to record an album for the company as Thrasher Shiver and to earn two Country Music Association Nominations for Duo of the Year. By then, though, both Neil and Kelly had families of their own and the demands of touring to support sales of their record began to keep them on the road for long periods of time. The two decided to leave recording behind and pursue their respective songwriting careers, which allowed them to be home with their families more.

It is rare to know someone who has lived his profession from every angle. But, with his musical heritage, stage experience and vocal ability, Neil is that uncommon find. So, if all his yesterdays make him who is today, it‘s no wonder that he has become an accomplished songwriter. Neil Thrasher has been practising his entire life.

People on Music Row don‘t excite easily. After all, when you swim in a talent pool every day with the likes of Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson and Reba McEntire, it takes a pretty big wave to attract your attention. But with a one song performance at an annual AIDS benefit, which garnered him a standing ovation, Mark Luna jumped to the top of Nashville‘s "most likely to be signed" list. Those who witnessed the performance have been on Luna-alert ever since. Now comes the payoff: Mark Luna, the singer‘s debut album on A&M Records.

A native of San Antonio, Texas, Luna grew up in Austin. He attended the University of Texas for two years before moving on to the University of North Texas to complete his degree in music. "I‘ve been performing my whole life," Luna says. "I sang in school talent shows, and I was in choir for years and years in both high school and college."

"During this time, I also played at weddings, churches and folk masses. When I went to college, my brother and I started playing the taverns. Then we had a trio for several years."

Like many of today‘s top country artists, Luna was greatly inspired by pop music. "I grew up with artists like Jackson Browne, the Eagles and Crosby, Stills & Nash - those accoustic-oriented rock bands," he says. "That whole early ’70‘s Southern California sound was always about songs. So, I grew up on great songs." He says Rodney Crowell, New Grass Revival and Foster & Lloyd were instrumental in converting him to country music. "I didn‘t listen to a lot of country music when I was young." Luna continues, "but I loved Willie Nelson. To me, he was the ultimate Texas hippie poet. I remember playing the [Wanted: The Outlaws] album with Willie & Waylon. I wore that eight-track out, and I still go back to the record."

Once out of college, Luna took a job directing a musical variety show at a park in San Marcos, Texas. One of the women in the show decided to go to San Antonio to audition for a job at Opryland. She invited Luna to go with her and accompany her on guitar. Since he was already there, he wound up auditioning too. And he got the gig. In February, 1989, Luna moved to Nashville to start rehearsals.

After work, he hung around many of the Nashville nightclubs that sponsored songwriters nights. Luna was particularly drawn to the fertile songwriting grounds of the Third Coast Cafe. "I cut my teeth there," he says. "It gave me my first real sense of community." Eventually, he became such a fixture that he was picked to host Third Coast‘s open-mic show. Many of the writers he met at the now-defunct club--including Chuck Cannon, Billy Falcon and Richard Ferreira--have cuts on Luna‘s new album.

That spring, he began his first of two sessions at Opryland. "It was just a little-bitty show," he says. "It was called ’The Country Club Show‘ and was tucked away in a corner of the park. It wasn‘t the big Opryland dance thing." A major benefit of the job was that certain performers were picked each week to sing on the Grand Ole Opry‘s Saturday matinee. "I came to work one day," Luna recalls "and they told me I had been selected for the Opry, so I did the afternoon show with Roy Acuff. I sang ’I‘m So Lonesome I Could Cry‘. Roy Acuff was great and he asked me to sing the last verse again." A few days later, Nashville Scene, a local entertainment weekly, featured Luna and Acuff on its front cover, which carried the tagline, "Changing Of The Guard."

In 1990, Luna resumed his seasonal performances at Opryland, working from May through August. That fall, one of his Third Coast friends invited Bob Doyle, Garth Brooks‘ publisher and co-manager, to listen to Luna sing some of his original compositions. Doyle liked what he heard and a few months later signed Luna to a publishing deal. "I spent the next three years building a catalogue and picking up work as a session singer," Luna says. Lari White, another Third Coast acquaintance, asked Luna to sing background on her first RCA album. For a short while, he also toured with White. In addition to these in-town activities, he developed and worked a club circuit that took him to college and resort towns in Missouri, Colorado, Kentucky, South Carolina and Georgia. "It was just me and my guitar," Luna laughs, "doing James Taylor and playing ’American Pie‘ all night long."

His breakthrough came when he took part in a songwriters segment for the Country Music Cares benefit at the Grand Ole Opry House. Billy Ray Cyrus, Kathy Mattea, Tracy Lawrence and K.T. Oslin were among the events‘ headliners. Luna performed in a portion of the show that featured fellow singer/songwriters Victoria Shaw, Don Schlitz and Kevin Welch. For his part, Luna sang "All I‘ll Ever Ask", a piece he co-wrote with Billy Falcon and which is included on his album. The crowd response was overwhelming. Tom Roland, music critic for the daily Tennessean heard Mark for the first time that night. A few weeks later, Roland featured Luna in a large and laudatory article, complete with a colour picture, that asserted the young Texan was a "Star In The Making". "It kind of opened the eyes of Music Row," Luna says.

Luna impressed again when he sang at Nashville‘s Summer Lights Festival in June, 1994. Among the thousands who watched his show were executives from newly established Polydor Records. They made Luna an offer, he signed to Polydor on Valentine‘s Day, 1995 and began recording his album about four months later.

After having written and performed for more than six years with some of Music Row‘s most creative people, Luna was more than ready to record. In fact, he was by now so steeped in his music that producer Buddy Cannon suggested he serve as co-producer of the album. "Most of the arrangements of the songs we selected for the album were ones I already had set when I was doing the songs live. The objective for me --and Buddy knew this as well--was to record the same way I had been playing on stage."

Since he had already recorded on albums for Lari White, Rodney Crowell, Victoria Shaw, Ty England and Faith Hill, Luna did not suffer from beginner‘s jitters. "The good thing about all the demo and session work I had done for years," he says "was that when it was time for me to make my own record, I was very comfortable in the studio. I could go in and focus on the music itself." The only thing that disrupted his concentration was the fact that he had a song moving up the charts. The song was the Lee Roy Parnell single, "When A Woman Loves A Man," which Luna had co-written with Rafe Van Hoy. "It was my first cut, and I really got caught up in what was happening to it," Luna admits.

A high point in making the album, according to Luna, was finally getting the opportunity to work with Rosemary Butler, his long-time vocal idol. The former backup vocalist for James Taylor and Jackson Browne sings with Luna throughout the new project. "I‘ve been a fan of hers for years," Luna says. "Bringing her to Nashville was my one luxury for the album." Butler joined Luna‘s friends Lari White and Stephony Smith to create an irresistible super chorus for the bluesy "She Needs Me."

Not long after Luna finished recording, Polydor Records evolved into A&M Records. The name change seems almost providential to him. "Being with A&M is really a cool thing for me," he says. "I grew up on [A&M‘s founder] Herb Alpert‘s records. And [A&M artist] Cat Stevens was a big influence of mine."

Luna is actively supporting Operation Smile, a charity for children with facial deformities. His choice of causes was not arbitrary. Luna still bears a facial scar that resulted from the long and painful removal of a birthmark when he was a child. He says he hopes children today will have the benefit of better treatment options than those that were available to him.

Mark Luna is an astoundingly mature and uniformly strong piece of music. Luna co-authored six of the songs and "lived" with the others long enough to make them seamless additions to his own creations. "I wanted to make a record that I could feel good about and proud of," he says, "one that I would want to listen to five, ten or twenty years from now."

Mission accomplished!

"Headman is the cat charting the course for others to follow He's the man with the groove He knows all the musical twists and turns of the past thirty years" -Grover Washington Jr

Gary Headman Haase is a multi-talented producer, writer and musician based in New York City. He has found continual success writing and producing for the top artists ranging from NSync to Celine Dion to Chaka Khan.

Whether Gary is writing for the newest TLC album or the next Nashville based singer sensation, Alicia Elliot, his work is always top notch. His edgy Pop/R&B style along with his sophisticated production sensibilities has more than earned Gary is nickname Headman he has also gained the respect of everyone that he works with.

Although these days Gary is in constant demand as a Pop/R&B producer and writer, his musical roots run wide and deep. He began his career playing bass with Buddy Rich at the age of 18 and has continually been in demand as a session player over the years working with Noel Pointer, Ronnie Laws, Larry Carlton, Anita Baker, Galo Barbieri, Stephanie Mills, Jennifer Holiday, George Benson and many more. He also formed a long lasting musical relationship with Chaka Khan, leading her world tour as the musical director and enjoyed a close relationship with Grover Washington Jr., writing and producing six tracks for Grovers Soulful Strut album.

It is from Gary's extensive experience with all types of artists, whether it be from the pop, jazz, funk, or R&B world that he quite literally brings an amazing array of styles and sounds into each and every production.

"I am fortunate having been exposed to many styles of music at such a young age, from The Jackson Five to The Beatles, from Stevie Wonder to Miles Davis. Add to the mix the many years spent living and working in the Caribbean, where I developed the infectious grooves I love to incorporate into all my music, and youve got a sense of my musical stew. I feel all these influences contribute to my creative juices when producing a world class pop song. for me, music is life" Gary Headman Haase

Throughout his career, Gary has been involved in various aspects of production, arranging and conducting for the Celine Dion sessions. The first single "Thats The Way It Is" from her Greatest Hits CD featured another Gary Haase song, I Met An Angel, as its B-side. Celine decided to open with I Met An Angel on her 1999 television special. Like all of the Celine recordings, each production Gary delves deep to produce the highest quality work, doing everything from playing bass, piano, guitars, keyboards, editing, arranging, and mixing

It is this full blown, hands on approach that led Gary to NSync. After writing the title track to NSyncs Christmas CD, "Home For Christmas", he was requested to write another NSync song," Love is in Our Hearts" on Christmas Day. This song not only appeared on the multi-million selling album but also was recorded as a duet with Rosie O’Donnell. Rosie loved "Love is in Our Hearts on Christmas Day" so much that she also placed the song on the Rosie O’Donnel1 Christmas CD and sang it on her TV Christmas Special last year.

Besides working with these mega artists, Gary continues to work with and develop the new hit artists of tomorrow such as Heather Hedley (RCA), Lornette (Warner Music), The Futures (Warner Music), or Northern Line (Global Talent).