Executive Interview s

Page 12 2003 Edition POLLSTAR

talking to Shell White, an excitedmanager of a young singer named

Norah Jones. (Jones is that personwho kept going to the stage duringthe last Grammys awards show.)

White told POLLSTAR thatshe went with Brauner becausehe intrinsically understood the

crossover booking strategy she envi-sioned for her artist.

When Jones talked to

POLLSTAR, she was hesitantabout the larger rooms. She thoughther music was designed forintimate settings. People standing

in the back of a venue, not payingattention, wasn’t her thing.But she got what she wanted.

Larger rooms, yes, but places whereevery butt was in a seat. Thissummer, she is playing rooms

that range from 2,000 to 5,000capacity.

The best part of this interview

isn’t in the following pages. It’s thestuff that got left out; it’s easy totalk to Joe about music, about

artists, about how much he loves hiscoworkers, especially Mario Tirado.Mention Kathleen Edwards and

he explains that she is the real deal,that her agent, Jack Ross at TheAgency Group, is wonderful, that

manager Patrick Sambrook istop notch.

Mention an artist he knows

like Gary Jules – who is notan official client of MontereyPeninsula Artists – and he

explains how Jules made hisrecord for $90 in his house onan eight-track tape recorder and

how charismatic the songwriteris in real life.

And that’s what the concertbusiness is supposed to be about,right? We were just happy to talk

to the dude who used to co-bookThe Replacements.

Let’s start with the standard

question. What’s your story,

man?

I was at State University of

New York, Binghamton and

booked off-campus concerts

from 1980 through ’82. This was

not with the college concerts.

This was me and one other

person putting our own money

up, following our passion of

punk music. It was fun. Frank

Riley at that time was the only

agent I knew who was working

with the artists I was deeply

passionate about.

After I graduated in 1983,

I wanted to be an entertainment

lawyer for lack of a better focus

in my life. I called Frank for any

entertainment lawyers he could

recommend. He said, “Why

would you want to be any kind

of lawyer?”

I said, “Well, then why don’t

you offer me a job?” And he did.

I started working with Frank

at a company called Singer

Management. He then left to

start Venture Booking, which

represented The Replacements,

Soul Asylum, Hüsker Dü, and

Jonathan Richman.

I can’t play an instrument;

I myself am not a musician, but

here I was working with Robyn

Hitchcock and The dBs, which

I was listening to in college.

Fortunately, my wife had a better

job financially at the time. Here

I was, getting into all these clubs

for free and working with these

great bands. It was just a very,

very fun part of my life.

My wife and I were expecting

our first child and didn’t want

to leave New York. David Lloyd

arranged for me to have a job

interview at APA, where I worked

for 13 and a half years. (Lloyd

is now an agent at International

Music Network.)

Frank had plans with Pat

Magnarella – who currently man-

ages Green Day, The Wallflowers,

and the Goo Goo Dolls – to move

to California.

I went from working with

The Replacements, Camper Van

Beethoven, and 10,000 Maniacs

to working with Harry Connick

Jr., Tony Bennett, and Wynton

Marsalis. I worked with Johnny

Cash and Rosemary Clooney. I

was lucky to get close to Rosemary

and was very fond of her and I’m

blessed to be able to spend time

with someone like Johnny Cash.

He’s always been John to me.

There was an element of a 6-

year-old’s first visit to Disneyland.

I sat with Johnny at his table

the night he was inducted into

the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame,

along with his wife, June Carter

Cash, and daughters Rosanne and

Carlene. That night, he introduced

me to Neil Young, Keith Richards,

Little Richard, and The Edge.

But at some point, I kind of

felt I was ready for a change as was

Mario Tirado, who had been at

APA longer than I had. Instead of

going out looking for something

new to do separately, we felt we

had something substantial by

teaming up our experience and

the artists we represented. I used

to joke with Paul Goldman about

once or twice a year, asking him

when Monterey would open a

New York office.

Mario and I met with Paul

and Garry Buck on a Friday in

New York, and they offered us

this amazing opportunity the

following Monday. We’re in our

third year with Monterey and,

as far as I’m concerned, it’s the

greatest group of people I have

ever been associated with profes-

sionally. It’s a dream come true.

Of course, there is a business

aspect to this fantasy. You’re

dealing with an artist’s touring

career and I take a great amount

of pride that I’m focused and

sensitive to their financial

expectations, their touring career,

their comfort level on the road.

Does that get down to

the brown M&Ms scenario?

No, but there’s definitely give

and take. There’s always extremely

open dialogue between me and

the artists I represent. I don’t just

go through the managers. I insist

I have a relationship with the artist

because your relationship is withthe artist. Managers may come

and go, record companies might

go and come, but the artist has to

feel their best interests are being

looked after, and I insist on having

input.

The great level of trust the

artists give me allows me to book

their tours in an intelligent fashion

from their specific needs pre-show

and after-show as well as their

availability for fans, as well as their

Joe BraunerMonterey Peninsula Artists

First of all, it’s not like Joe Brauner’s life sucked

before 2002, but he certainly had a good year.

Because he takes every phone call, he wound up

s Executive Interview

POLLSTAR 2003 Edition Page 13

diet – all of that. It’s not just brown

M&Ms or deli trays.

Obviously, at a lower level,

young artists may feel they’re just

lucky to get the date, but Monterey

fights for its clients at any level.

Their day is 24 hours long and

the 90 minutes onstage is just the

smallest fraction. They’ve got to be

made as comfortable as possible

in that environment, whether it’s

in a smoking clause or people who

want a part of them. You’ve got to

give them a comfort zone.

Everything goes smoothly if

everybody’s aware of the needs,

and they’re minimal needs for

the most part. Bela Fleck & The

Flecktones stick around after

the show for as long as it takes to

meet and speak to everybody who

would like to talk to them. Wynton

Marsalis is the same way. Some

artists do not want to travel more

than 250 miles a day; some will go

450 plus. It’s no great shakes but

it’s knowing what their limitations

are. They’re creative spirits, on

the road, and they’ve just got to

be given nurturing.

Outside of a rainstorm or an act

of God, which we have no control

over, our clients should not have

any surprises when they show up.

How is Norah Jones’ tour

shaping up?

The tour starts June 6th in Ft.

Myers, Fla., in a 1,700-seat theatre.

It runs through August 18th at

The Joint in Las Vegas, which is

also about 1,700 seats. On average,

though, the venue capacities are

between 4,000 and 5,000.

Norah Jones’ co-managers,

Sam Feldman and Steve Macklam,

have given Monterey strong

support and trust in putting

together this headlining tour.

We tried to underplay every

market and let her career develop

slowly. Underplay, keep ticket

prices in the mid-$20s to a

maximum of $50 and put her

into venues where she can develop.

We could have played much larger

venues for considerably more

money, but we feel Norah is still

growing and developing and

we’re not in it for the quick buck.

She’s very concerned about being

overexposed and we are extremely

protective and sensitive to her

feelings and needs.

Since I’ve known her, Norah

has had amazing instincts and it’s

easier for Norah to respectfully say

no to more things than she says

yes to, and she’s been right so far.

There was not going to be any

change because of the Grammys.

The tour was outlined and routed

prior to that and we didn’t change

our plans. We could have played

two nights at Radio City Music

Hall but Norah wanted to play the

Beacon Theatre for multiple nights

instead because it’s a cool room,

it’s a cool vibe and let’s just take

this in baby steps.

Plus, keep in mind she has

sold many records but her touring

development has not been on

the same pace. We didn’t need to

chase something that was still of

unknown quality.

There are artists out there,

such as The White Stripes,

that prefer the smaller rooms.

I think The White Stripes have

shown remarkable restraint and

intelligence to do that. There are

so many bands out there that have

huge success in radio and retail,

then had grander ambitions when

it came to touring. All you have

to do is pick up a POLLSTAR

box office history to see how that

strategy failed.

Mario always says that agenting

is a dying art. You’re not just

taking phone calls and trading

e-mails with promoters; you have

to represent the best interest of

your artists.

You have to look for as many

opportunities in a certain market

as you can. With consolidation,

it seems there’s fewer and fewer

buyers to talk to but that couldn’t

be further from the truth. I have

some dear, wonderful, close

friends at Clear Channel, House

of Blues and AEG, but God, I love,

love dealing with the performing

arts buyers and the independent

promoters.

This may sound like hogwash,

but I take everybody’s phone call

because I have no idea who’s on

the other end of the line. Every

year, there’s at least a dozen people

who have never promoted a show

before that I’ve worked with and

they’ve done an amazing job with

the chance they’ve been given.

That goes for every one of the

artists I work with.

That seems very unusual.

We did a Flecktones show last

year with a young man named

Charlie Jennings in Bristol, Tenn.

He was a high school student and

it was a fund-raiser for his high

school jazz band. If they won

a contest, they were going to

an international championship

in Ireland.

He sounded sincere and

intelligent, and I wound up

speaking to his father who, with

a group from the Chamber of

Commerce and business owners

from the market, guaranteed

the funds. I did my background

check and this thing was a

huge success. Bela told me it was

one of the most professionally

run concerts he had done in

some time.

The jazz band eventually won

the contest and went to Ireland.

You never know who that

person is or what they’re capable

of. And it makes it interesting.

Bristol, Tenn., of all places.

A year and a half later, Charlie

Jennings is in college and he’s

doing a Bela Fleck/Tony Trishka

banjo duo show at the Handle

Bar in South Carolina. He’s doing

his follow-up promotion

and he’s got to be all of 21 years

old.

He’s off to a career.

Yeah! And it’s not even what

he wants to do. I think I felt his

passion when he called. It’s pretty

rare, but it does happen.

The other thing is, going back

to the performing arts buyers

that I think have nurtured and

developed the people Monterey

works with, I’m fortunate to

have clients who will commit

to booking six months to a year

in the future. There’s no knowing

in this economy where we’ll

be in six months, but it’s nice

to know your artists are booked

on a subscription series and

you can build on those anchor

dates.

And the artists know where

they’re going to be playing

in the future: wonderful theatres

with supportive audiences

and with art presenters who

are passionate about how they

market their shows, and they

treat the artists phenomenally

well.

The Flecktones, by the way,

virtually book themselves. The

audience loves them and business

is very strong year after year.

We usually get a phone call

from a promoter the morning

after a show asking to book the

following year. As nice as the

Norah phenomenon has been,

we are just so dramatically

proud to be associated with

Bela Fleck.

JOE AND WIFE Laura squeeze in onNorah Jones at EMI’s Grammy party atthe Blue Fin in NYC February 23rd.

Executive Interview s

Page 14 2003 Edition POLLSTAR

How does a partnership work?

With Mario? We’ve worked

together for 17 years. I spend more

time with him than my wife, which

is real scary. We regularly talk to

each other’s managers. He’s re-

sponsible for Boney James, Dennis

Leary and David Lee Roth, who’s

also with Garry Buck.

We’ve got each other’s backs.

We’re both parents, both family

guys. It could be something as

simple as working together on

routing a tour, covering shows if

one of us can’t make it, or it could

be that I may have a soccer game

for one of my kids and I need

to leave early. If he has to go out

to a little league game, same way

here.

Is that unusual?

Prior to working here, I would

have said it was impossible. This

is as stress free, as supportive

of an environment as I’ve ever

imagined.

You are responsible for your

own success and it’s not about

what you wear to work. It’s not

about being in the office to get the

work done. The work gets done.

It’s still Dan (Weiner) and Fred

(Bohlander)’s vision – a very sup-

portive, nurturing, creative work

environment. Dan and Fred are

available 24-7. I would have never

thought that there were second

acts in doing what

I did. It’s amazing.

Is there a reason for

an artist to postpone

signing exclusively

with Monterey?

To postpone exclu-

sivity? We insist we

work on an exclusive

basis. For instance,

I love Gary Jules, who

is not quote-unquote

a client right now. I

don’t think it would

be fair to Gary for

me to demand exclu-

sivity at this point in his life. I’m

just so happy to have made his ac-

quaintance this past year. I do

think our paths will continue to

cross and we will work closely to-

gether. I hope so.

The truth is that even though

the eight of us are fortunate to be

offered artists on a regular basis, I

say we turn down the majority. We

have to adequately offer enough of

our time to these people. If we

can’t really do the right job then

we shouldn’t even try to do it

half-assed. These are people’s lives.

Somebody I was determined

to bust my ass for was Erin

McKeown. I’m just over the moon

for her. She’s opened for Norah

Jones on a few dates, she’s opened

for Ani DiFranco and recently for

David Gray. We just think Erin’s

going to make some noise this

year. It’s rare when you’re knocked

on your ass, and Erin knocked me

on my ass.

The flip side is we don’t always

get what we want. We actively

pursued Hot Hot Heat. Loved the

band. They just got signed to Jim

Guerinot’s management company

and Warner Bros. Although we

didn’t get to work with them,

it is the reason why I got into the

music business. They’re just fun,

they’re just great live, they’re nice

guys and we didn’t get them.

So, instead of sour grapes, I say go

out and buy as many Hot Hot Heat

CDs as you can to support them.

Still, you seem to be most excited

about one of your newest

signings.

There was a feature on Nellie

McKay (pronounced Mc-Eye)

in a recent copy of Time Out NewYork and it was very intriguing.

Her manager was Lach, who gave

the first New York City gigs to Jeff

Buckley, Beck and others, I think,

because he has been running the

anti-folk Hootenanny for years.

I don’t usually listen to music with

the manager or artist in my office

but he played me four songs and

I was basically speechless, which

is very, very rare.

Nellie is an 18-year-old singer/

pianist who writes all of her own

material. Lach said he was having

his Monday open mic night, which

runs all night in the East Village.

Nellie showed up around 2:30 -

3 a.m., played one or two songs

and went out into the night.

Lach was frozen. He had no way

of contacting her, but she returned

the following week for the show-

case and he wound up being her

manager.

After we listened to the four

songs in the office that day,

without meeting her or seeing

her live I told Lach right there

and then I was offering a commit-

ment, without speaking to

any of my associates. It was just

a gut reaction. It was an amazing

leap of faith. I sent her music to

Paul Goldman and Ron Kaplan

and I said, “Am I crazy or is this

just unbelievable?” They were

blown away by it.

It sounds illogical but it’s a

cross between Peggy Lee and

Eminem. It’s unlike anything

that’s currently out there. It’s

very theatrical, might even

border on performance art.

She’s extremely quirky but the

response from the record

companies was immediate.

I saw her for the first time a

week ago at the Sidewalk Café. I sat

with the Trachtenburg Family, a

Monterey client I hadn’t met until

then. Erin McKeown’s manager,

Emily Lichter, was in the city that

night and I asked her to come

hang out with me and see this

new act. She looked at me during

the second or third song and

said, “We’re going to look back on

this night years from now. We’ve

witnessed the start of an amazing

career.”

The booking strategy is

we’re going to start regionally

in the Northeast at this point.

She’s already been offered

a couple shows in New York,

Massachusetts, Philadelphia

and Washington, D.C., just by

word of mouth and people

I’ve sent CDs to. Right now,

it’s whatever anybody’s willing

to give her to open up.

Mario Tirado (L) and Joe show off the New York officewith assistants Maggie Poulos and Brad Saks.

JOE AND SON Jesse join Bela Fleck & The Flecktones and manager Dave Bendett(R) at the Tilles Center in Brookville, N.Y., this March 29th.

s Executive Interview

POLLSTAR 2003 Edition Page 15

One of the messages at the last

CIC was to remember why we got

into this business – because we

love music.

I think that, to some weird

degree, most people in the concert

business are misfits. We’re not

equipped to work in a nine-to-five

suit and tie environment. We’re

really just record company geeks

or music geeks.

For me, it’s great to make a

living from this but if you lose

your sense of passion or childlike

wonder for concerts, it’s real sad.

My musical tastes haven’t

changed all that much since I was

a teenager, but I really get off on

the fact that I can share music with

my kids. My daughter’s 15, my

son’s 11, and that means blasting

All American Rejects, Good

Charlotte, and Bowling For Soup

as loud as we can. It’s great that

my kids feel the same way about

music as I did at that age.

Some of the greatest concert

experiences I’ve had in my life

happened in the last two years.

One was U2 at Madison Square

Garden in October 2001, a month

after 9/11. It was as close to the

quote-unquote religious experi-

ence as I’ve ever had. I’ve seen

U2 a lot but I had grown distant

from them and didn’t really care

that much. But it was like church.

And hearing Bruce Springsteen

singing songs from The Rising in

New York at the Garden was chilling.

Another one was seeing The

Rolling Stones at Roseland. Of all

the bands, I had never seen the

Stones. We had Jonny Lang open-

ing that night and Ron, Garry,

Mario and I went to the sound

check. We walked into Roseland

and the Stones were onstage.

There were maybe 20 people in the

room. So, not only had I never

seen the Stones but I felt like a

proverbial radio contest winner.

And the concert was even bet-

ter. I didn’t know what to expect.

I thought it might have been like

an oldies act or they’d be trying to

milk it for a few bucks, but it was

phenomenal. I had no idea they’d

be that strong. I’ll still see younger

bands but there’s a reason why

bands like the Stones are as suc-

cessful as they are.

This is obviously something

you’re passionate about.

You should still be able to play

music really loud in your car and

your house. I have bought more

CDs in the last two years than

I’ve bought since the format was

introduced, and most of us in

this business can get stuff for free.

But we have friends who are losing

their jobs at record companies.

I don’t want a burned copy; I want

the actual artistic product. Bands

have merch tables and I buy the

T-shirts and the programs for the

kids. I know the bands make so

much more on ancillary income

and I really, honestly do support it.

I think all of us, to some

degree, should realize how lucky

we are to be doing stuff we love.

I’ve known [POLLSTAR founders

Gary Bongiovanni and Gary

Smith] for 20 years and I

still think they get off on

this business.

There are some wonder-

ful promoters out there –

Mike Krebs, Michael Yerke,

Sam Kinkin, Jim Mallonee,

Mark Shulman, Sue

McLean, Kelly Graves and

Jordi Herold, for instance.

I don’t think there’s any

evil people in these great

consolidated groups.

We all have to work for

somebody.

I’m just really lucky

to be part of the Monterey

family. I’m so, so happy with my

relationship to the Flecktones and

Little Feat. I grew up being a Little

Feat fan and I sometimes pinch

myself that I’m actually friends

with Billy Payne and Paul Barrere.

I wish I could clone Bela Fleck

because that’s exactly the kind of

artist I love to work with.

And Norah?

No one can even begin to

understand the Norah Jones

Cinderella story. It just doesn’t

happen. It never happens. No

one within the Norah Jones inner

circle really thinks about it all

that much. She touched a nerve.

Her manager at the time called

me up and said, “I’m Shell White,

I’m managing a young artist

named Norah Jones, we have

a deal with Blue Note and can

I drop off a CD?”

And, what I said earlier about

taking everybody’s phone calls?

I took her call because, why not?

The majority of things we get

unsolicited may not be worth

anything but I said sure. I didn’t

know who Shell White was, I really

wasn’t interested in working with

a jazz artist (which was my false

assumption because she was on

Blue Note) and she dropped off

a seven-song EP of Norah.

And, I have to admit it: I didn’t

listen to it immediately. I got to it

in a few days and I had the same

experience millions of people had.

This voice just hit my soul.

If I didn’t take Shell’s phone

number and if I didn’t take Charlie

Jennings’ call about Bela and

Bristol, Tenn., and if I didn’t take

other people’s phone calls, I’d ...

you just gotta take everybody’s

phone call. Even if less than 1

percent ever lead to anything like

a Gary Jules, you never know

who’s on the other end of that

phone. You just never know. Don’t

take it for granted. *

SAM FELDMAN watches over Joe and Norah Jonesfellow co-manager Steve Macklam at the EMIGrammy Party in NYC February 23rd.

This Space Intentionally Left Blank