TicketMaster Showcase

Red Letter Day and The Zimmermans Selected

The acoustic duo Red Letter Day and the alternative rock group The Zimmermans were among six groups selected to perform at the Ticketmaster Music Showcase to be held at The Abyss nightclub in Virginia Beach on August 15. The annual showcase event was started by Ticketmaster in 1993 for the purpose of giving back to the music community, at the grassroots level, by providing exposure for unsigned bands. The event is unique in that it is a showcase and not a contest, no winners or losers are announced. Also participating groups receive a stipend to cover transportation costs and will have an opportunity to speak with record company executives who are flown in by Ticketmaster to view the shows. Event organizers promise four or five record executives from prominent labels at each event, though the names for the August 15 showcase were not available for publication. Expressing a firm belief that Ticketmaster is committed to nuturing developing bands ,Tom Mooney, Showcase Executive Producer emphasized, "We started doing this way before the brewhaha with Pearl Jam."

Bands were selected for the showcase through a submission process that, this year, generated over 10,000 entries nationwide. "I just saw it somewhere, keeping an eye out for opporunities is part of the job of a manager," Lisa E. said, who also functions as The Zimmermans' lead singer.

Approximately 32 local and four regional showcases will be held throughout the country. Groups progress to the regional and national level through invitation. Mooney stresses that the process is as personalized as possible in order minimize any sense of a cattle call. A national showcase will be held at the new "Billboard Live" facility in Los Angeles on November 20. All participants in the national showcase will received the same cash and musical equipment awards.

New Releases

• Singer/songwriter Chip Monk has released a self titled CD on the Mintwood Music label. Recorded at Wally Cleaver's Recording, Monk's music and lyrics have a country/blues/folk sound. The project was produced by Monk and Jeff Covert and mastered by Steve Murphy at Avalon Studios.
• Kenny Lattimore, formerly the lead vocalist in the group Mannequin, has a solo debut single, Never Too Busy, out on Columbia Records which is receiving national radio airplay. Lattimore can also be heard as a featured lead singer on William Becton's Gospel album, Broken which has been on the Billboard charts for over 50 weeks. Becton's chart success earned him the Washington Area Music Association's Emerging Artist Award last year. The album was produced by Kenny Lattimore, Dave "Jam" Hall (Mariah Carey) and Keith Crouch (Brandy).
• Let Me Clear My Throat, DJ Kool's latest Rap project, has placed on the Billboard Heatseekers Album Charts. The Heatseekers chart lists the best-selling titles by new and developing artists and defined as those who have never appeared in the top 100 of the Billboard 200 chart. When an artist reaches this level, the album and the artist's subsequent albums are immediately ineligible to appear on the Heatseekers chart.
• Mike Ivey, creative force and alter-ego of Basehead, the celebrated Hip Hop band who helped create the Alternative Hip Hop genre, release a new Basehead LP, Faith, on Imago Records. Ivey is also the co-owner of Recording Arts Studio in Fairfax where he is producing several major label projects.
• P.O.M.G. (Poetry Of A Mining Generation), the duo project by seminal D.C. Rappers The P.O.P. and One Man Gang has a late June release date. The P.O.P. sold over 30,000 units of their debut, release, Just Claimin' My City in the D.C. Metropolitan area, label mate, One Man Gang has sold 15,000 copies of his EP, Tryin To Get Over.
• Hip Hop stallworth, Brother Most has just released his debut album on Green Shoes/Ichiban Records titled Mood & Intensity. Most's release features D.C.'s Born Jamericans on the track, Black Woman.
• Me'Shell Ndegeocello has a new release Peace Beyond Passion on Maverick Records. The album's first single Leviticus: Faggot, an examination of gay bashing and intolerance, is causing a stir both for its title and lyrics. Working with producer David Gamson, Me'Shell recruited Joshua Redman, Billy Preston, one-time Prince and the Revolution guitarist Wendy Melvoin and Wah Wah Watson, known for his studio work for the Temptations, to help create her album. The string arrangements on Leviticus: Faggot were composed by Paul Riser, who did similar work on the early '70s Temptations hit Papa Was A Rolling Stone. WPGC-FM has placed Leviticus: Faggot on its play list.
• In a departure from their on-going blues bands, guitarist James Mabry and saxman Jacques Johnson teamed up to create Blues Plus, a compilation of blues standards and original material. Produced by Johnson, the album was engineered by Timm Biery at Wizard Works studios in Beltsville. The recording included Biery on drums and John Previti on bass, both known for their work with Danny Gatton, plus country/blues singer Angie Miller adding background vocals.
• Irish folk performer Seamus Kennedy has a new release titled Seamus Kennedy in Concert on the Gransha Records label. The album was engineered by Brad Hayford at RBO Studios in Springfield. Guests appearing on the project include Billy McComiskey and violinist Bob Spates. Kennedy is also recording with, Mike Auldridge, of the Seldom Scene, working on a Christmas album.
• Saffire, The Uppity Blues Women have a new album on Alligator Records titled Cleaning House.
• Secrets Toni Braxton's new CD release debuted at #2 on Billboard's 200 album chart and #1 on the Billboard R&B chart. Only her second album, the project took 18 months to complete and includes the producing skills of Babyface, R. Kelly, David Foster, Keith Crouch, Tony Rich, Soul Shock & Karlin and Bryce Wilson. Braxton co-wrote two of the album tracks Talking In His Sleep and How Could An Angel Break My Heart plus received co-executive producer credit on the project along with Babyface and L.A. Reid. You're Makin' Me High is the first hit single to come out of Secrets. The CD builds on Braxton's trademark soulful vocals that gained her three Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, on the release of her 1993 self-titled debut album.
• Once Hush will release their debut CD Say It Anyway. The disc was produced by John Alagia and mixed by Alagia, Doug Derryberry and Jon Altschiller (Phish, Bonnie Raitt). The tracks were recorded at Rutabaga Studio and Bias Recording. In tune with current marketing techniques, a limited edition set of 100 numbered CDs were printed to commemorate the event and less than 20 of the discs remain as the rest where purchased at $100. This trend has caught on with the group Everything who will also issue a limited edition of their new release. Once Hush's CD release party will be a little out of the ordinary, as they have planned a Hollywood-style catered event that will include spot lights, 98 Rock radio personality Kirk McEwen as the MC, and a complete light show. An as yet undertermined cut from Say It Anyway will be included on the 4th AWARE Compilation CD due for release in September.
• The groups Yogaberry and Yuma House have released a split 7" on Cindyland Records. One side of the 7" contains two songs by Yogaberry, Simone and Cloud Machine and the other side has Yuma House's Top Flight and Explosive B. The release will be available at Go! Compact Disc and Vinyl Ink.
• Ruthie and the Wranglers' new CD Wrangler City will be relased this month.
• Darkangeles has released The Screaming Tree a four song EP on CD and cassette.

Studio News

Bias Recording

Mary Chapin Carpenter has just completed her new Columbia Records release, A Place In The World with Bob Dawson engineering and John Jennings co-producing. The album includes the talents of Dave Mattacks, Bob Glaub, Benmont Tench, Duke Levine, Jon Carroll, J.T. Brown, Robbie Magruder, Shawn Colvin, Kim Ritchey and Harry Stinson. One of the album cuts, Let Me Into Your Heart will be the main track for the upcoming movie Tin Cup.

Mary Chapin and band members John Jennings and Duke Levine recorded a live show in Ireland with special guests Sharron Shannon and Paul Brady. The special will be broadcast on cable and will be released as a video. Bob Dawson and Jim Robeson mixed the tracks for the project.

Songwriter Steve McWilliams and his group the Lonely Ones are working on a new CD. Well known for his high energy roots rock tunes, McWilliams' new material has a sharper focus on song structure and lyrics. Everywhere We Go his solo debut album nominated for the 1995 Wammie Award for Recording Roots Rock was recorded at Bias with engineer Heidi Gerber. Working again with Gerber, now not only the engineer but also co-producer, and drummer Evan Pollack. McWilliams has added bass player Paul Frields and harp player John Dixon to the project. The album is expected to be released in the first week of October.

Rutabaga Studio

Doug Derryberry and John Alagia have finished assembling several radio teasers and promotion spots for The Dave Matthews Band. The live acoustic performances used for the spots were recorded by John Alagia while on tour with Matthews during his February New England/Mid-west swing. Radio promotion spots were also assembled for the Ben Folds Five and Caroline Records. Derryberry and Alagia have completed Day By The River's new album Fly and mixed The Peter Fraize Quintet's live album titled You St. Fraize's album is the first release for the recently established Union Records label.


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