In 1963 at the age of 18,Curb formed Sidewalk Records and helped launch the careers of multiple West Coastrock and roll artists.[7] In 1969,his company merged with MGM Records and he became president of both MGM Records and Verve Records.[8] The companies eventually became Curb Records.[9]
Curb (center) with members of the Mike Curb Congregation and Davy Jones on a television special in 1972.
Curb had a Top 40 pop hit in early 1971 with the title cut from his album Burning Bridges[26] (written and composed by Lalo Schifrin and Mike Curb),which was used as the theme of Brian G. Hutton's film starring Clint Eastwood,Kelly's Heroes.[27] The song reached No. 1 in South Africa,Australia and New Zealand.[28]
In 1969,Curb signed Christian rock pioneer Larry Norman,DeGarmo &Key,2nd Chapter of Acts,and Debby Boone - artists considered to be the earliest contemporary Christian music artists.[32] Curb wrote and produced music for the Hanna-Barbera animated series Cattanooga Cats. The theme for the cartoon series Hot Wheels is credited to Mike Curb and the Curbstones.[33]
in 1970,Billboard reported that Curb,as president of MGM Records,fired 18 acts for what Curb believed was their promotion of hard drugs in their songs.[41] Curb said,"Drug groups are the cancer of the industry. Their effect on young people who are their fans or followers is devastating. When they appear smashed out of their minds and describe musically a great experience they had on LSD,they are glorifying hard drugs. I credit hard drug record acts with hundreds and hundreds of new young drug users."[42]
Curb has always disputed that any acts were dropped from MGM only for drug-related reasons. Billboard reported that Curb was alarmed by the drug-related deaths of Janis Joplin,Jimi Hendrix,and Alan Wilson of Canned Heat.[41] Among the musicians incorrectly thought to be included in the purge were The Velvet Underground and Frank Zappa's group The Mothers of Invention. Zappa,however,spoke out against drug use throughout his career and,by early 1969,had fulfilled his MGM/Verve contract and moved to his own Bizarre Records label,distributed by Warner Bros.The Velvet Underground had already left the label by then to sign with Atlantic Records,who released their fourth studio album Loaded.[43] Also,when Eric Burdon,who was an advocate of psychedelics,dared Curb to release him from his contract although he was his biggest selling artist,Curb acquiesced.[44][45] Burdon also launched a campaign—by distributing bumper stickers—called Curb the Clap.[46]
Curb claimed industry support,and the record company official he cited was Bill Gallagher,the president of Paramount Records.[47]Columbia Records president Clive Davis said Curb was "grandstanding",and that his anti-drug stance had made him "a minor hero of the Nixon administration."[48] In 1997,Curb stated the affair had happened at a time when "you were considered a freak if you spoke out against drugs."[45]
Political career
Signatures from a resolution signed by Curb in his ceremonial role of President of the California State Senate
Encouraged to enter politics in part by Ronald Reagan,Curb was elected Lieutenant Governor of California in 1978,defeating the incumbent Democrat,Mervyn M. Dymally. Democratic candidate Jerry Brown was re-elected governor in the same year. During much 1979–1980,when Brown was out of the state campaigning to become the Democratic presidential candidate,Curb was acting governor,vetoing legislation,issuing executive orders and making appointments. According to the December 28,1979,edition of the San Francisco Chronicle,"...the California Supreme Court ruled yesterday that when the governor is out of state,the lieutenant governor is free to exercise all powers of the chief executive...".[49]
Curb worked with Harvey Milk on the campaign against the Briggs Initiative,a ballot initiative that would have banned gays and lesbians from working in public schools. He persuaded President Reagan to oppose it,and it was defeated. In 2023,Curb achieved a major victory in his challenge to Tennessee Governor Bill Lee,where the court declared it unconstitutional to force private businesses to post discriminatory LGBT signs.[50]
In 1982,Curb lost the Republican gubernatorial nomination to California Attorney General George Deukmejian. In 1986,Curb ran again for lieutenant governor as the Republican nominee against the incumbent Democrat,Leo T. McCarthy,losing a bitterly contested race,largely run on the issue of punishment for drug trafficking and violent crimes. A vocal opponent of drug use,Curb advocated extension of the death penalty to include drug pushers whose narcotics trafficking resulted in a death.[51] In 1980,Curb was co-chairman of Ronald Reagan's successful presidential campaign. Curb was also chairman of the convention program in Detroit and was later appointed by Reagan to be chairman of the national finance committee.[52]
Involvement in car racing
A motorsport enthusiast,Curb is a co-owner of the Curb Agajanian Performance Group,a team that has won ten national championships. His sponsorship and ownership have included three of NASCAR's most celebrated drivers. He owned Richard Petty's famed No. 43 car in 1984 and 1985,during which Petty achieved his 199th and 200th career wins. Curb was also a sponsor for Dale Earnhardt during his 1980 Winston Cup championship winning season,and sponsored Darrell Waltrip's No. 12 Toyota Tundra in the Craftsman Truck Series,driven by Joey Miller in 2006. Curb-Agajanian also ran cars for many years in the Indianapolis 500,including for Dan Wheldon and Alexander Rossi,with whom he won the 2011 and 2016 Indianapolis 500s respectively.[52] Curb was the co-owner with Richard Childress of the No. 98 Chevrolet driven by Austin Dillon.[53]
Curb was the only car owner to win in all 10 NASCAR auto racing series in the United States –the NASCAR Cup Series,the Xfinity Series (formerly the Nationwide series and Busch Series),the Craftsman Truck Series (formerly the Gander Outdoors Truck Series and Camping World Truck Series),the Grand-Am Rolex Daytona Prototype National Sports Car Series (now the IMSA SportsCar Championship merged with American Le Mans),the IMSA GT Series (formerly IMSA Camel GT),Continental Series (formerly IMSA GTS),the Late Model All American Series,the Modifieds and the K&N East and West Series.[53]
Curb is also a long-time sponsor of ThorSport Racing in the Truck Series,as part-owner of the team's No. 98 Ford driven by Grant Enfinger. He maintained a similar partnership with Phil Parsons Racing in the Cup Series,which also ran the No. 98. Parsons drivers Christopher Bell and Rico Abreu won the 2013 and 2014 USAC National Midget tours.[54][55]
In Nashville,Curb has become a civic leader and benefactor of Belmont University,where his donation toward the construction of a new arena resulted in it being named the Curb Event Center. The university includes the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business. Curb endowed the Curb Center and the Curb Creative Campus program at Vanderbilt University and the Mike Curb Institute of Music at Rhodes College in Memphis. In 2024,he made the largest ever donation to Belmont,contributing $58 million to expand the Curb College's presence on Music Row.[57]
In August 2006,[59] Curb pledged $10 million to California State University,Northridge (CSUN) (in Los Angeles) to endow his alma mater's arts college and provide a lead gift for the university's regional performing arts center. Of the $10 million gift,$5 million supported CSUN's College of Arts,Media,and Communication,one of the university's largest colleges that offers degree and certificate programs for more than 4,400 students. Of the gift,$4 million went into a general endowment for the college,and $1 million endowed a faculty chair specializing in music industry studies. As a result,the college was named in his honor. Studies with in the Mike Curb College of Arts,Media,and Communication include Media,Arts,Music,Business,Journalism,and Communication Studies.
CSU Channel Islands dedicated the Mike Curb Studio in Napa Hall at the Camarillo,California campus on October 21,2010. The studio is a post-production and film and video production facility.[61][62]
Troyal Garth Brooks is an American country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity,particularly in the United States with success on the country music single and album charts,multi-platinum recordings and record-breaking live performances,while also crossing over into the mainstream pop arena.
Martin David Robinson,known professionally as Marty Robbins,was an American singer,songwriter,multi-instrumentalist,and NASCAR racing driver. Robbins was one of the most popular and successful country and western singers for most of his nearly four-decade career,which spanned from the late 1940s to the early 1980s. He was also an early outlaw country pioneer.
The story of Tennessee's contribution to American music is essentially the story of three cities:Nashville,Memphis,and Bristol. While Nashville is most famous for its status as the long-time capital of country music,Bristol is recognized as the "Birthplace of Country Music". Memphis musicians have had an enormous influence on blues,early rock and roll,R&B,and soul music,as well as an increasing presence in rap.
Shelton Hank Williams,known as Hank Williams III,is an American musician,singer,songwriter and multi-instrumentalist,known for his fusion of traditional and honky-tonk country music with rockabilly and punk rock. He was the drummer of hardcore punk band Arson Anthem,and bassist of Phil Anselmo's band Superjoint Ritual. He has released eleven studio albums,including five for Curb Records.
Ian &Sylvia were a Canadian folk and country music duo which consisted of Ian and Sylvia Tyson. They began performing together in 1959,married in 1964,and divorced and stopped performing together in 1975.
Samuel Timothy McGraw is an American country singer,songwriter,record producer,and actor. He has released 16 studio albums. 10 of those albums have reached number one on the Top Country Albums charts,with his 1994 breakthrough album Not a Moment Too Soon being the top country album of 1994. In total,McGraw's albums have produced 65 singles,25 of which have reached number one on the Hot Country Songs or Country Airplay charts. Three of these singles –"It's Your Love","Just to See You Smile",and "Live Like You Were Dying" –were respectively the top country songs of 1997,1998,and 2004 according to Billboard Year-End. He has also won three Grammy Awards,14 Academy of Country Music awards,11 Country Music Association (CMA) awards,10 American Music Awards,and three People's Choice Awards. His Soul2Soul II Tour,which was done in partnership with his wife,Faith Hill,is one of the highest-grossing tours in country music history,and one of the top five among all genres of music. He has sold more than 80 million records worldwide,making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time.
Curb Records is an American record label started by Mike Curb,originally as Sidewalk Records in 1963. From 1969 to 1973,Curb merged with MGM Records where Curb served as President of MGM and Verve Records.
Wynonna Ellen Judd,known simply as Wynonna,is an American country music singer. She is one of the most widely recognized and awarded female country musicians in history. In all,she has had 19 No. 1 singles,including those with The Judds. Her solo albums and singles are all credited to—and performed under—the singular stage name,Wynonna. She first rose to fame in the 1980s alongside her mother,Naomi,in their mother-daughter country music duo,The Judds. They released seven albums on Curb Records,in addition to 26 singles,of which 14 were No. 1 hits. In 2023 Wynonna was named the best country music artist picking up the "country champion" award at the "People's Choice Country Awards".
Ian Dawson Tyson was a Canadian singer-songwriter who wrote several folk songs,including "Four Strong Winds" and "Someday Soon",and performed with partner Sylvia Tyson as the duo Ian &Sylvia.
Johnny Tillotson is an American singer-songwriter. He enjoyed his greatest success in the early 1960s,when he scored nine top-ten hits on the pop,country,and adult contemporary Billboard charts,including "Poetry in Motion" and the self-penned "It Keeps Right On a-Hurtin'" and "Without You".
Lonnie Melvin Tillis was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s,his biggest success occurred in the 1970s as part of the outlaw country movement,with a long list of Top 10 hits.
Michael A. Elizondo Jr. is an American producer,songwriter,and multi-instrumentalist. A protégéof Dr. Dre,Elizondo has worked with 50 Cent,Eminem,Carrie Underwood,Fiona Apple,Mastodon,Ry Cooder,Skylar Grey,Twenty One Pilots,Nelly Furtado,and Lin-Manuel Miranda,among others. His songwriting credits include "In da Club" by 50 Cent,Eminem's "Just Lose It" and "The Real Slim Shady","Family Affair" by Mary J. Blige,and Carrie Underwood's "Cowboy Casanova". He has won a Grammy Award from five nominations,which includes two nominations for Producer of the Year.
Bill Ivey is an American folklorist and author. He was the seventh chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts,and is a past chairman of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
Sidewalk Records was a record label based in Hollywood,California that was started in 1963 by Mike Curb at the age of eighteen. The company was first formed as Sidewalk Productions and later became a subsidiary label of Capitol Records. Many recordings by Sidewalk Productions appeared on the related label Tower Records,also a subsidiary of Capitol Records.
Michael Barry Reid is an American country music artist,composer,and former professional football player. He played as a defensive tackle for five seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals in the National Football League (NFL).
Jeffrey LeVasseur,known as Jeffrey Steele,is an American country music singer and songwriter. Along with recording his own material,Steele has become a prolific Nashville songwriter,having co-written more than 60 hit songs for such artists as Montgomery Gentry,Tim McGraw,Faith Hill,LeAnn Rimes,Rascal Flatts,Billy Ray Cyrus,and others.
Domingo Samudio,better known by his stage name Sam the Sham,is a retired American rock and roll singer. Sam the Sham is known for his camp robe and turban and hauling his equipment in a 1952 Packard hearse with maroon velvet curtains. As the front man for the Pharaohs,he sang on several Top 40 hits in the mid-1960s,including the Billboard Hot 100 runners-up "Wooly Bully" and "Li'l Red Riding Hood".
James Dexter Weatherly was an American singer-songwriter who wrote mostly pop and country music. He played quarterback at the University of Mississippi while also writing music with his own bands. He subsequently chose songwriting over a football career. His notable songs include "The Need to Be" and "Midnight Train to Georgia".
Jim Ed Norman is an American musician,multi-platinum record producer,arranger and label-head. As an arranger and producer,he was one of the principal architects of the distinctive sound of West Coast 1970s pop and country rock. He was President of Warner Bros Records Nashville from 1984 to 2004.
Scott Borchetta is an American record executive and founder of the Big Machine Label Group. He started the label in 2005 with Taylor Swift as its first signed artist and 13 employees,he served as its president/CEO,encompassing four imprints:Big Machine Records,BMLG Records,The Valory Music Co. and Nash Icon Records. In 2015,he became an in-house mentor on American Idol in the program's 14th and 15th seasons. He is also a sports car racing driver in the Trans-Am Series and owner of NASCAR Xfinity Series team Big Machine Racing.
↑ "2009 Inductees". North Carolina Music Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
↑ Communications, California State University, Northridge, Office of University Web. "California State University, Northridge". Csun.edu. Retrieved November 5, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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