Creed Bratton | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | William Charles Schneider |
Born | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | February 8, 1943
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Formerly of | The Grass Roots |
Website | creedbratton |
Creed Bratton (born William Charles Schneider; February 8, 1943) [1] is an American actor and musician. A former member of the rock band the Grass Roots, he is best known for playing a fictionalized version of himself on the NBC sitcom The Office, which earned him five nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.
Bratton was born William Charles Schneider in Los Angeles, and grew up in Visalia, California, a town near Sequoia National Park. [2]
Bratton adopted his new name while on a global excursion as a traveling musician. He traveled through Europe, Africa and the Middle East. He played guitar at a large folk festival in Israel, appearing with his group the Young Californians. Fellow American and guitarist Warren Entner witnessed Bratton's performance and asked to give him a call when he got back to the United States. In 1966, they formed a partnership and recruited the remaining members needed for their group, the 13th Floor. Bratton played lead guitar, Rick Coonce played drums, Entner played rhythm guitar and Kenny Fukomoto played bass. The Young Californians recorded a demo and sent it to Dunhill, a new record company headed by Lou Adler.
Producers/songwriters P. F. Sloan and Steve Barri heard the demo and liked it. They needed new band members for a folk-rock group that they had created in 1965. The 13th Floor lost their bass player to the draft during this time, and quickly recruited Rob Grill, changing the band's name to the "Grass Roots" for prior name recognition. The group went straight to the Top 10 with the song "Let's Live for Today" in 1967 and toured the United States. Iconic hit songs such as "Midnight Confessions" cemented the group's standing as major contributors to the rock-music scene. [3]
The Grass Roots had top songwriters offering their best songs to them and wrote many songs themselves. For their major songs, music on the recordings was played by the LA studio musicians known as the Wrecking Crew. [4] Bratton co-wrote the songs "Beatin' Round the Bush", "No Exit" and "Hot Bright Lights", and self-composed "Dinner for Eight" and "House of Stone". He sang lead vocals on "This Precious Time" and "Dinner for Eight". Bratton played with the group on its albums Let's Live for Today , Feelings , Golden Grass (a compilation) and Lovin' Things . Three of the albums charted, and Golden Grass received a gold record certification. He took part in ten of the group's singles, eight of which charted; "Midnight Confessions" received a gold record certification.
The Grass Roots played at the Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival on Sunday, June 11, 1967, during the "Summer of Love" as their top-ten hit "Let's Live for Today" was hitting the airwaves. [5] Though the music festival occurred before the Monterey Pop Festival, it was not filmed as was the latter festival (see List of electronic music festivals). On Sunday, October 27, 1968, the group played at the San Francisco Pop Festival and then played at the Los Angeles Pop Festival and Miami Pop Festival in December as the top-ten hit "Midnight Confessions" was becoming popular.
In April 1969, Bratton became frustrated by Dunhill's refusal to allow the band to write its own songs and play the instruments on its records (although the members did play alone at concerts). After a disastrous appearance at the Fillmore West in April 1969, Bratton was asked to leave the band. [4]
In 2001 and 2002, Bratton released three albums showcasing his solo recordings since the 1960s with the assistance of Peter White. In 2007, he presented an induction award to the Wrecking Crew at the Musicians Hall of Fame. In 2008, he released another album of new music with producer Jon Tiven. In 2010, Bratton released an album titled "Bounce Back" with producer Dave Way. In 2011, Bratton released an album of greatest hits from his first three solo albums, titled "Demo". In 2010 and 2012, Bratton performed live at the SXSW festival. In 2013, Bratton released an original work in three acts as an audio biography titled Tell Me About It. Songs ranged from those recently written to pieces that he had written decades before. Bratton states that he listens to much jazz and classical music. [6]
On January 18, 2014, Bratton joined his friend Zachary Scot Johnson for a duet for the 500th consecutive day of the thesongadayproject on YouTube. [7]
Bratton began to pursue an acting career in 1975. He has appeared in films such as Mask and Heart Like a Wheel . He was a cast member, playing a fictional version of himself, on NBC's Emmy and SAG award-winning The Office . In a deleted scene from the episode "Booze Cruise", he speaks about his time with the Grass Roots. In Season 3 Episode 10 "A Benihana Christmas", Creed sings a karaoke rendition of his song "Spinnin' N Reelin'" during the Christmas party. In a deleted scene from Season 3 Episode 21 "Product Recall", the reporter from the Scranton Times recognizes him as Creed Bratton from the band the Grass Roots and mentions that he wrote his obituary. In the episode "Money", he says "he never goes bankrupt", as all his debt "is always transferred to William Charles Schneider" (which is his birth name), while holding an allegedly fake passport on camera. In the series finale, his character is revealed to be a part of Grass Roots, and was arrested after being a wanted fugitive living at the Dunder Mifflin office. This episode also features Bratton performing his song "All the Faces".
In 2008, he appeared in a short film with Kyle Gass titled Just One Of The Gynos, which won an award for best short film at the 2008 Malibu International Film Festival. He appeared in the feature film Labor Pains in 2009. His recent film projects are The Ghastly Love of Johnny X , written, produced and directed by Paul Bunnell; I Am Ben, written, produced and directed by Mathew Brady and Gaelan Connell; and Terri produced by David Guy Levy. Terri was selected by the Sundance Film Festival 2011 to appear in the US dramatic competition. It was one of only 16 films selected from 1,102 submissions to the US dramatic category. [8] In 2012, he appeared as special guest star in Staged with Brandon Olive who appeared with him in Just One Of The Gynos. In 2013, he starred in Saving Lincoln, a biography set during the American Civil War.
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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1983 | Heart Like a Wheel | Photographer | |
1985 | Mask | Carnival Ticket Taker | |
1987 | The Wild Pair | Dalton | |
1988 | Seven Hours to Judgment | Subway Worker | |
1991 | Neon City | Guard at Neon | Also worked as a grip |
2006 | The Manual | Maj. Edwards | Short film |
2008 | Just One Of The Gynos | Dr. Gus Callery | |
2009 | Remembering Nigel | Himself | |
2011 | I Am Ben | Dr. Cobb | |
Terri | Uncle James | ||
2012 | The Ghastly Love of Johnny X | Mickey O'Flynn | |
The Guilt Trip | Suitor | ||
Melvin Smarty | |||
2013 | Saving Lincoln | Senator Charles Sumner | |
2015 | Band of Robbers | Dobbins | |
The Sound of Magic | SRC | ||
2018 | The Sisters Brothers | Quarrel Saloon Guy Town 2 | |
2021 | Hero Mode | James Tisdale |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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1967 | The Hollywood Palace | Himself (guest) | |
1967–1969 | American Bandstand | 4 episodes | |
1968 | With Six You Get Eggroll | ||
1969 | It's Happening | Episode: "The Grassroots" | |
Playboy After Dark | |||
1975 | Kolchak: The Night Stalker | Man Entering Lab | Episode "Primal Scream" |
1977 | Quincy M.E. | Young Man | Episode "No Deadly Secret" |
Eight Is Enough | Merv | Episode "Mortgage Burnin' Blues" | |
1986 | The Magical World of Disney | Court Clerk | Episode: "A Fighting Choice" |
1987 | U.S. Marshals: Waco & Rhinehart | Agent Jones | Television film |
1994 | Secret Sins Of The Father | Gas Station Worker | Television film |
2003–2004; 2006 | The Bernie Mac Show | Various | 6 episodes |
2005–2013 | The Office | Creed Bratton | Recurring role (seasons 1–3); main cast (seasons 4–9) SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (1) Nominated - SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (5) |
2007–2008 | Today | Himself (guest) | 2 episodes |
2008 | Celebrity Family Feud | Himself (guest) | Episode: "The Office vs. American Gladiators, Hickeys vs. Camden County" |
2010 | The Forgotten | Guy | Episode: "Double Doe" |
Funny or Die Presents | Himself | 4 episodes | |
2012 | Liz & Dick | Darryl Zanuck | Television film |
2014 | Adventure Time | Phlannel Boxingday | Episode: "Lemonhope Part Two" |
Franklin & Bash | Judge Patrick Semmer | Episode: "Kershaw v. Lincecum" | |
Garfunkel and Oates | Kazoo Man | Episode: "Maturity" | |
2015 | Comedy Bang! Bang! | Grandfather | Episode: "Ty Burrell Wears a Chambray Shirt & Clear Frame Glasses" |
Grace and Frankie | Seth | Episode: "The Bachelor Party" | |
2017 | The New V.I.P.'s | Charlie | Television film |
2019 | Hello Realtor | Sal | Episode: "Pilot" |
Into the Dark | George Atwood | Episode: "Culture Shock" | |
2020 | Upload | Rupert Tilford | Episode: "The Funeral" |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2008 | The Office: The Outburst | Creed Bratton | 4 episodes |
2009 | The Office: Blackmail | ||
2010 | The Office: The Mentor | Episode: "Reimbursements" | |
The Office: The 3rd Floor | Episode: "The Final Product" | ||
In Gayle We Trust | Denny Potter | 2 episodes | |
2011 | The Office: The Podcast | Creed Bratton | 3 episodes |
2012 | Staged | Villain | Episode: "Gym Class Heroes" |
2017 | The New V.I.P.'s | Charlie | |
2024 | Tunnel Rave | Man in the Tree |
Year | Title | Role |
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2011 | World Gone Sour | Narrator (voice) |
2020 | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | Emerson Black (voice) |
Release date | Title | Flip side | Record Label | Chart Positions | |||
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US Billboard | US Cashbox | UK | |||||
1967 | Let's Live for Today | Depressed Feeling | Dunhill | 8 | 5 | ||
Things I Should Have Said | Tip Of My Tongue | Dunhill | 23 | 36 | |||
Wake Up, Wake Up | No Exit | Dunhill | 68 | 61 | |||
1968 | Melody For You | Hey Friend | Dunhill | 123 | 120 | ||
Feelings | Here's Where You Belong | Dunhill | 118 | ||||
Midnight Confessions ++ | Who Will You Be Tomorrow | Dunhill | 5 | 5 | |||
Bella Linda | Hot Bright Lights | Dunhill | 28 | 20 | |||
1969 | Melody For You | All Good Things Come To An End | Dunhill | ||||
Lovin' Things | You And Love Are The Same | Dunhill | 49 | 35 | |||
The River Is Wide | (You Gotta) Live For Love | Dunhill | 31 | 16 |
++ - Gold Record - RIAA Certification
Release date | Title | Record Label | Chart Positions | |||
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US Billboard | US Cashbox | UK | ||||
1967 | Let's Live for Today | Dunhill | 75 | 69 | ||
1968 | Feelings | Dunhill | ||||
Golden Grass ++ | Dunhill | 25 | 25 | |||
1969 | Lovin' Things | Dunhill | 73 | 58 | ||
2001 | Chasin’ The Ball | Kindred | ||||
The 80’s | Kindred | |||||
2002 | Coarsegold | Kindred | ||||
2008 | Creed Bratton | Kindred | ||||
2010 | Bounce Back | Kindred | ||||
2011 | Demo | Kindred | ||||
2018 | While The Young Punks Dance | Alien Chicken | ||||
2020 | Slightly Altered | Alien Chicken |
++ - Gold Record - RIAA Certification
Béla Anton Leoš Fleck is an American banjo player. An acclaimed virtuoso, he is an innovative and technically proficient pioneer and ambassador of the banjo, playing music from bluegrass, jazz, classical, rock and various world music genres. He is best known for his work with the bands New Grass Revival and Béla Fleck and the Flecktones. Fleck has won 17 Grammy Awards and been nominated 39 times.
The Grass Roots is an American rock band that charted frequently between 1965 and 1975. The band was originally the creation of Lou Adler and songwriting duo P. F. Sloan and Steve Barri. In their career, they achieved two gold albums and two gold singles, and charted singles on the Billboard Hot 100 a total of 21 times. Among their charting singles, they achieved Top 10 three times, Top 20 six times and Top 40 14 times. They have sold over 20 million records worldwide.
Erik Michael Coonce was the drummer for American rock band The Grass Roots from 1966 to 1972.
"Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" is the debut single by Edison Lighthouse. The song reached the number one spot on the UK Singles Chart on the week ending 31 January 1970, where it remained for a total of five weeks. It also became the first number one single of the 1970s (not counting Rolf Harris's "Two Little Boys" which was a holdover from 1969).
Steve Barri is an American songwriter and record producer.
Joel Larson is an American rock drummer and percussionist who is known as a founding member of The Merry-Go-Round and for being associated with the Turtles and the Grass Roots.
Robert Frank Grill was an American musician and songwriter, best known as lead singer and bassist of the rock and roll group The Grass Roots. Though not a founding member, Grill was the longest-serving member of the band prior to his death in 2011.
"Who'll Stop the Rain" is a song written by John Fogerty and originally recorded by Creedence Clearwater Revival for their 1970 album Cosmo's Factory. Backed with "Travelin' Band", it was one of three double-sided singles from that album to reach the top five on the Billboard Pop Singles chart and the first of two to reach the No. 2 spot on the American charts, alongside "Lookin' Out My Back Door"/"Long As I Can See the Light". In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked it No. 188 on its "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list.
Let's Live for Today is the second studio album by the American rock band the Grass Roots, released in July 1967 by Dunhill Records. A new group was brought in for this album which included Creed Bratton, Rick Coonce, Warren Entner and Rob Grill. It features their first top-ten hit by the same name, "Let's Live for Today". The bulk of the compositions are by group creators Sloan and Barri, but the new group was allowed to compose four songs and was given some input in the studio instrumentation. The other A and B side singles released were "Depressed Feeling", "Things I Should Have Said" b/w "Tip of My Tongue", and "Wake Up, Wake Up" b/w "No Exit". The album charted at No. 75.
"Midnight Confessions" is a song written by Lou T. Josie and originally performed by the Ever-Green Blues. American rock band The Grass Roots later made it famous when they released it as a single in 1968. Though never released on any of the group's studio albums, it was on their first compilation album, Golden Grass, and has since been included on many of their other compilations.
"Let's Live for Today" is a song written by David "Shel" Shapiro and Italian lyricist Mogol, with additional English lyrics provided by Michael Julien. It was first recorded, with Italian lyrics, under the title of "Piangi con me" by the Italian-based English band the Rokes in 1966. Later, when "Piangi con me" was due to be released in the United Kingdom, publisher Dick James Music requested that staff writer Julien compose English lyrics for the song. Julien composed new lyrics, rather than translating them from the Italian, and it was his input that transformed "Piangi con me" into "Let's Live for Today".
Warren Entner is an American singer, songwriter, organist and guitarist for the rock and roll band The Grass Roots. He subsequently became a manager for several successful heavy metal/rock groups.
Dennis Provisor is an American musician and songwriter. He recorded on several different labels, including 20th Century Fox and Valiant, under the name of Denny Provisor. He released some soulful singles as a solo artist. He later joined the groups The Hook, Blue Rose, and The Grass Roots. Provisor is a lead singer, keyboard player and songwriter.
Their 16 Greatest Hits is the third compilation album by the American rock band the Grass Roots. It was originally released by Dunhill Records in September 1971 shortly after the success of "Sooner or Later" earlier that year. The album also included many other hit singles that were released from 1966 to 1971. The album was released on both stereo LP & tape as well as in Quadraphonic Sound on both LP & tape. This album was the only Quadraphonic album released by The Grass Roots.
Where Were You When I Needed You is the debut studio album by the American pop band the Grass Roots, released in October 1966 by Dunhill Records. Most of the album is performed by the songwriter/producer duo of P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri. Some of the album features members of a San Francisco band that became the first Grass Roots. The members who recorded are vocalist Willie Fulton and drummer Joel Larson. The A and B side singles released are "Mr. Jones ", "You're a Lonely Girl", "Where Were You When I Needed You", "(These Are) Bad Times", "Only When You're Lonely", "This Is What I Was Made For", Tip of My Tongue" and "Look Out Girl".
Feelings is the third studio album by the American rock band the Grass Roots, released in February 1968 by Dunhill Records. It contained many songs composed by the group's members and studio performances of the musician's instrumentation. The album was intended to take the group into a heavier psychedelic direction with their music. The A- and B-side singles released from the album were "Melody For You" b/w "Hey Friend", "Feelings" b/w "Here's Where You Belong", "Who Will You Be Tomorrow", "Hot Bright Lights", "All Good Things Come to an End" and "You and Love Are the Same". Midway during this run, "Midnight Confessions" was released as an A-side and became the group's highest charting single.
Lovin' Things is the fourth studio album by American rock group the Grass Roots. The album was originally released by Dunhill Records in 1969. The album charted at No. 73. It contained only two songs composed by the group. The album was intended to take the group into a soulful direction that was being rewarded by charting singles. The A- and B-side singles released were "Lovin' Things", "The River Is Wide", "(You Gotta) Live for Love" and "Fly Me to Havana". At the end of this run, "I'd Wait a Million Years" was released as an A side and became the group's next charting single, appearing on their next album, Leaving It All Behind.
Golden Grass is the first greatest hits album by the American rock band the Grass Roots, released in November 1968 by Dunhill Records. The LP's release in the fall of 1968 followed the success of the group's highest-charting single, "Midnight Confessions". It featured a song written by Carole King and Toni Stern titled "Lady Pleasure", which was previously unreleased by the group, as well as a new single, "Bella Linda", which was originally written by the Italian songwriting duo of Lucio Battisti and Mogol. The Grass Roots' version of the song, which was given English lyrics by Barry Gross and Steve Barri, charted at No. 28. Golden Grass is the highest charting Grass Roots album at #25, and was certified gold by the RIAA in 1970.
Leaving It All Behind is the fifth studio album by the American rock band the Grass Roots, released in November 1969 by Dunhill Records. Following the departure of Creed Bratton, who left in April 1969, seasoned musician Dennis Provisor joined the group, solidifying the new direction of the band. Terry Furlong and Brian Naughton became alternating touring guitarists for the group. In a return to grace for the group member composers, it contained six songs written by the group. The album was intended to move the group further in a soulful direction that was being rewarded by more charting singles. The A- and B-side singles released were "I'd Wait a Million Years", "Heaven Knows" b/w "Don't Remind Me", and "Walking Through The Country" b/w "Truck Drivin' Man". At the end of this run "Something's Comin' Over Me" was released as a B-side to "Come On And Say It", a charting single written by the group that appeared on the band's next compilation album, More Golden Grass. The album charted at No. 36, making it the group's highest-charting studio album.
Move Along is the sixth studio album by the American rock group the Grass Roots. The album was released in 1972 and charted at No. 86. It was the last of the group's albums to chart on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart. The album marked the departures of longtime drummer Rick Coonce and keyboardist Dennis Provisor from the group, though Provisor still contributed to the album both as a performer (uncredited) and as a composer. The A- and B-side singles released were "Two Divided by Love", "Glory Bound" b/w "Only One", "The Runway" b/w "Move Along", and "Anyway the Wind Blows" b/w "Monday Love". Later, the song "Someone to Love" was released as the B side to the song "Love Is What You Make It", which appeared on the band's following album, Alotta Mileage.
Today is Thursday, Feb. 8...Those born on this date...actor Creed Bratton in 1943 (age 81)...