David Spero | |
---|---|
Born | |
Occupation(s) | DJ, manager, producer, executive |
Spouse | Ellen Spero |
Children | 1 |
David Spero, a rock-radio pioneer in the 1970s [1] [2] is a high-profile music manager and owner of the Cleveland office of Alliance Artists Ltd.
At the age of 13, before beginning his career as a DJ at WXEN (now WHLK), WNCR (now WGAR-FM), WMMS, [3] M105-FM (now WMJI), [4] and WNCX, [5] Spero worked as a cue card holder on The Upbeat Show which his father, Herman Spero, produced. [6] At 15, Spero was helping to set the order of songs as a co-writer and assistant producer of the show. [7] In describing the show, Spero explained that it was like Dick Clark's American Bandstand in that it featured the newest performers and their music, but unlike Clark's show, which had just one act and mostly dancing, Upbeat had eight or more live acts each week. [8]
At the age of 16, [7] Spero got his start in radio on WXEN's graveyard shift. [9] Shortly after WXEN, Spero moved to WNCR and then WMMS at around 19 years of age. [10] While still living with his parents, Spero got a break at WNCR when radio host Don Imus helped him get promoted to the morning spot on the station. [11] As a DJ at WMMS in the 1970s, Spero interviewed most of the rock stars who went to Cleveland. [12] In fact, Humble Pie credits Spero for breaking the band locally in the US. [13] And, although his fellow DJ "Kid Leo" is widely credited with breaking Bruce Springsteen, it was Spero who "told fellow WMMR [ sic ] DJ 'Kid Leo' about Springsteen." [14]
In the spring of 1974, Spero took a break from being a DJ and resigned as the afternoon drive host on WMMS to manage Michael Stanley's career. [15] Spero managed the Michael Stanley Band [16] during their early building process. [17] According to Jim Girard of Citi-Music Magazine, Spero used his influence to get the band a deal with Epic Records, [4] although Spero credits Bill Szymczyk and Irving Azoff – Joe Walsh's manager at the time, with getting Michael's new band signed. [18] Michael Stanley's second solo album, Friends and Legends , was the first project Spero was involved with as his manager. [18]
Spero was managing Stanley when his band opened for the Eagles on tour, thus Spero gained valuable experience in managing a band and developed a relationship with the Eagles, both of which proved helpful to Spero's career. [19]
In 1978 Spero returned to radio at Cleveland's M105-FM (now WMJI) [4] both to avoid the travel since he was newly married [20] and because he missed working in radio. [21]
Radio felt increasingly corporate and no longer held the same appeal for Spero, so he again looked for a change in career. [22] Even as he kept a foot in the door with radio via a Saturday show on WNCX, Spero left M105-FM and spent over ten years with Columbia Pictures. [5] In March 1984, Boxoffice magazine listed in its "On the Move" page that Spero was promoted to Manager of the Cleveland-Cincinnati branch office. [23] He continued to work up through the ranks and was Columbia's Regional Managing Director in Independence, Ohio, when the film company relocated that office to Chicago. [5]
Returning to talent management, Spero became Joe Walsh's manager [24] just before Walsh released his ninth studio album Ordinary Average Guy . [25] Spero and Walsh have maintained a friendship for over thirty years. [26]
Spero produced 'The Joe Walsh/Glenn Frey Tour' – the precursor to 'The Eagles: Hell Freezes Over Tour' – after facilitating the reconciliation between Walsh and Frey which eventually brought the entire band back together. [20] He describes the Hell Freezes Over Tour as "the coolest thing I ever did." [27]
In the late 1990s, in addition to Joe Walsh, Spero was managing other musicians including the classic pop act Raspberries [28] and Ted Neeley, a rock and roll musician well known for performing the title role in the 1973 movie and long-running road production of Jesus Christ Superstar . [20] He also was managing Harry Nilsson in 1994 when the Grammy award winning musician died in his sleep [29] a few days after completing work on his album "Lost and Found". [30]
In 2000, Spero accepted a position as Senior Director of Programming for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame where he set up many shows and creative events including MTV Live At The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. [4] John Mayer, Linkin Park, Avril Lavigne and Godsmack are among the artists Spero brought to the Rock Hall. [7] Spero served as a member of their Board of Trustees into 2008. [31] Among the many events he brought to the Rock Hall, in October 2005, Spero recreated Upbeat in a benefit helping inner city teenagers. [8]
In addition to his involvement with Cleveland's Hall of Fame, on October 7, 2007, Spero himself was inducted as one of the Radio/Television Broadcasters Hall of Fame of Ohio's Class of 2007. [32] And when Graham Nash was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010 for the second time, this time with The Hollies [33] – the first time was in 1997 with Crosby, Stills and Nash [34] – Nash acknowledged the help and support of Spero during his remarks. [35]
In 2003, managing Billy Bob Thornton, Spero helped his Edge of the World album get off the ground with a summer tour. [22] A few years later, in 2007, Spero was Yusuf Islam's manager, co-managing him with his brother David Gordon, for the Deluxe reissues of Tea for the Tillerman and Teaser and the Firecat . [36] David then did the A&R work for the former Cat Stevens' Roadsinger CD [37] and put together his tour in Europe and the US in 2009 [38] which was Islam's first full tour since 1976. [39]
Spero was instrumental in bringing together Paul McCartney and Islam into the recording studio for one of the tracks. [40] That track, "Boots & Sand," also features Dolly Parton, [41] Islam's longtime friend and collaborator. [38]
With his son Adam working alongside him, [8] Spero continues to manage artists from his home in South Euclid, Ohio, representing Dickey Betts, Dave Mason, The Funk Brothers and many others. [40] Like he did in the '70s with Michael Stanley, Spero continues to work with up-and-coming artists explaining "You need to mix the old with the new to keep up the variety of interests." [22]
Michael Stanley was an American singer-songwriter, musician, radio and television personality. As a solo artist and with the Michael Stanley Band (MSB), and Michael Stanley and the Resonators (MS&R) his brand of heartland rock was popular in Cleveland, Ohio, and around the American Midwest in the 1970s and 1980s.
WNCX is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, featuring a classic rock format known as "98.5 WNCX". Owned by Audacy, Inc., WNCX serves Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio as a co-flagship station for the Cleveland Browns Radio Network and the Cleveland affiliate for Little Steven's Underground Garage.
WHK is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, carrying a talk format known as "AM 1420 The Answer". Owned by the Salem Media Group, the station serves both Greater Cleveland and the Northeast Ohio region as an affiliate for the Salem Radio Network. WHK's studios are currently located in the Cleveland suburb of Independence while the transmitter site resides in neighboring Seven Hills.
WMMS is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio, commonly identified as "The Buzzard". Widely regarded as one of the most influential rock stations in America throughout its history, the station has also drawn controversy for unusually aggressive tactics both on and off the air. Owned by iHeartMedia, and broadcasting a mix of active rock and hot talk, WMMS is currently the flagship station for Rover's Morning Glory, the FM flagship for the Cavaliers AudioVerse and Cleveland Guardians Radio Network, the Cleveland affiliate for The House of Hair with Dee Snider and the home of radio personality Alan Cox.
WGAR-FM is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, and features a country music format. Owned by iHeartMedia, the station serves Greater Cleveland and surrounding Northeast Ohio as the local affiliate for The Bobby Bones Show. WGAR-FM's studios are located at the Six Six Eight Building in downtown Cleveland's Gateway District and the transmitter is in nearby Parma.
WHLK is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, known as "106.5 The Lake" and carrying an adult hits format. Owned by iHeartMedia, the station serves Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio. WHLK's studios are located at the Six Six Eight Building in downtown Cleveland's Gateway District while the station transmitter is in nearby Parma. Along with a standard analog transmission, WHLK broadcasts over two HD Radio channels and is available online via iHeartRadio.
WZAK is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, featuring an urban adult contemporary format. Owned by Urban One, WZAK serves Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio as a local affiliate for nationally syndicated personalities Rickey Smiley, D. L. Hughley and Ralph Tresvant. WZAK's studios are located in Independence, while the station transmitter resides in Brecksville. Along with a standard analog transmission, WZAK broadcasts over three HD Radio channels and is available online.
Progressive rock is a radio station programming format that emerged in the late 1960s, in which disc jockeys are given wide latitude in what they may play, similar to the freeform format but with the proviso that some kind of rock music is almost always played. It enjoyed the height of its popularity in the late 1960s and 1970s. The name for the format began being used circa 1968, when serious disc jockeys were playing "progressive 'music for the head'" and discussing social issues in between records. During the late 1960s, as long-playing records began to supplant the single in popularity with rock audiences, progressive rock stations placed more emphasis on album tracks than did their AM counterparts. Throughout the 1970s, as FM stations moved to more structured formats, progressive rock evolved into album-oriented rock (AOR).
The Agora Theatre and Ballroom is a music venue located in Cleveland, Ohio.
Danny Sheridan was an American musician, songwriter, producer, actor, and entertainment manager. In 2006 he also became a radio personality on 97.1 KLSX Free FM. He is credited as an influential electric bass player, and as the founder of the Eli Radish Band, pioneers of the so-called outlaw country music genre. This is a style that Sheridan's former band-mate/vocalist David Allan Coe continues to perform today, with a string of hit songs like "Would You Lay with Me " and the anti-boss tune, "Take This Job And Shove It". Still in his teens, Sheridan's Eli Radish toured with such notable acts as The Who and The Doors. The lyrics of Coe's "Longhaired Redneck" forever memorialized the concerts he performed with Sheridan while fronting the Eli Radish Band. In 2014 Sheridan began managing Coe and co-produced his new CD "Just As I Am", with Boris Menart.
Jane Scott was an influential rock critic for The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, Ohio. During her career she covered every major rock concert in Cleveland and was on a first name basis with many stars. Scott was the first major female rock critic, and then the oldest in a field that was mostly dominated by men. Until her retirement from the newspaper in April 2002 she was known as "The World's Oldest Rock Critic." She was also influential in bringing the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to Cleveland.
WKRK-FM is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland Heights, Ohio, known as "Sports Radio 92.3 The Fan" and carrying a sports format. Owned by Audacy, Inc., WKRK-FM serves Greater Cleveland and surrounding Northeast Ohio as a co-flagship for the Cleveland Browns Radio Network and an affiliate of Infinity Sports Network.
Telos Alliance is an American corporation manufacturing audio products primarily for broadcast stations. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, US, the company is divided into six divisions:
John Gorman is a radio personality, executive, and author from Cleveland, Ohio. In September 21, 2007, he published his memoir, The Buzzard: Inside The Glory Days of WMMS and Cleveland Rock Radio.
Faces of Death is the debut studio album by American Hip Hop group B.O.N.E. Enterpri$e. The album was originally released on May 28, 1993, on Stoney Burke, the independent label of Kermit Henderson, a record store owner in Cleveland who helped the band to record the album. A verse from the first 1991 local radio single, titled "Flow Motion", was performed over the phone by member, Krayzie Bone, leading to 4 of the 5 members meeting up with Eazy-E and getting them signed to Ruthless Records. A digitally remastered version was released in 1995 after the band had signed with Eazy-E and changed their name to Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.
Alex Bevan is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, poet, radio personality, and music producer.
The Maxwell Show was a hot talk radio show which aired weekday afternoons on Cleveland rock station WMMS (100.7 FM). The show began in April 2004, and over the next five years, grew to become the Cleveland radio market's #1 afternoon program in several key demographics. However, relations between show host Maxwell and WMMS owner Clear Channel steadily grew strained, and in November 2009 the show was cancelled.
Lawrence James Travagliante—better known by his on-air moniker Kid Leo—serves as both General Manager and afternoon disc jockey on Little Steven's Underground Garage on Sirius XM Radio. He first began in radio in 1973 at noted Cleveland rock station WMMS. During his 16-year tenure, WMMS was consistently one of the highest-rated radio stations in the country. In 1988 he left to work as an executive at Columbia Records, where he served until 2002. Since 2004, Travagliante has been involved with Underground Garage. He also currently operates his own consultancy, LJT Entertainment.
John Lanigan is a radio and TV broadcaster primarily known for his work in Cleveland, Ohio, and as the longtime morning host at WMJI in Cleveland from 1985 to 2014 as well.
Mitch Michaels is an American rock and roll radio disc jockey. Known for his contributions to many spots on the Chicago radio dial, he is best known for helping start WXRT-FM and for his work at WKQX-FM, WLUP-FM "The Loop" and WCKG-FM in Chicago, Illinois. Michaels has been on the air since his first radio job at WHFS-FM in Bethesda, Maryland in 1968. He most recently was 'Doin The Cruise' in the afternoon on WERV-FM 95.9 "The River" in Aurora, Illinois.
I've been married for 20 years. That is my greatest accomplishment
claiming that it just 'wasn't fun anymore,' the popular record spinner decided to get out