WARREN BARIGIAN R.I.P. ROCK IN PERPETUITY
April 16, 2014
BACK IN THE EARLY 70’s WHEN I WAS GENERAL MANAGER OF WARNER BROTHERS MUSIC I KEPT HEARING ABOUT A “VOCAL COACH” (FOR LACK OF A BETTER WORD) WHO WAS WORKING MIRACLES WITH SOME OUR STAFF WRITERS INCLUDING JACKSON BROWNE, DANNY O’KEEFE, BOB STRAUSS, AND WARREN ZEVON. HIS NAME WAS WARREN BARIGIAN AND HE USED UNORTHODOX METHODS TO BRING OUT THE BEST VOCALLY FROM EACH OF HIS CLIENTS.
WHEN I HEARD THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE VOCAL QUALITY OF JACKSON BROWNES FIRST AND SECOND ALBUM I WAS AMAZED! I MY FRIEND SINGER/SONGWRITER PATTI DAHLSTROM (“EMOTION”) HAD A SINGLES DEAL WITH UNI RECORDS AND INTRODUCED ME TO WARREN…SHE REMEMBERS FONDLY…
I BELIEVE IT WAS PATTI THAT FIRST INTRODUCED ME TO HIM, WHEN I WAS PREPARING TO DO MY VERY FIRST ALBUM IN 1974..
HOW HE EVER GOT ME TO SING PAST MY FEARS WAS MIRACULOUS. HE WOULD CONTORT YOUR BODY IN A CERTAIN WAY AND YOU WOULD LOSE PRESENCE OF MIND, AND IN THOSE PRECISE MOMENTS, HE COULD PULL SOMETHING OUT OF YOU VOCALLY THAT YOU NEVER KNEW YOU HAD.
HE LOVED AND RESPECTED FAMILY. WHEN MINE MOVED INTO A LARGE HOME AFTER MY SUCCESS WITH ‘RHINESTONE COWBOY’, HE SHOWED UP ONE DAY WITH FOUR LARGE BOTTLES OF WINE. I ASKED HIM WHY THE FOUR BOTTLES? HE INFORMED ME THAT THEY STOOD FOR THE FOUR CORNERS OF THE FOUNDATION OF MY HOUSE.
BUT HERE IS MY FAVORITE STORY, AND I CAN HEAR HIS RICH LAUGHTER AS I’M WRITING THIS..
SOMETIME DURING THE MID 80’S I DEVELOPED A SORENESS IN MY THROAT THAT WAS LASTING OVER THREE MONTHS. I BECAME VERY CONCERNED, AS THIS WAS SOMETHING I NEVER HAD BEFORE. I WENT TO A FEW DOCTORS WHO MISDIAGNOSED ME ENTIRELY, ALTHOUGH THE LAST DOCTOR DID FIND THAT I HAD AN ULCER ON ONE OF MY VOCAL CHORDS, AND PRESCRIBED AN ANTI-BIOTIC. THE MEDICINE UPSET MY STOMACH, SO I DID WHAT I SHOULD HAVE DONE IN THE FIRST PLACE..I CALLED WARREN.
I ARRIVED AT HIS HOUSE AND WAS GREETED WITH HIS USUAL BIG HUG AND ROBUST LAUGHTER, TELLING ME THAT HE KNEW EXACTLY
WHAT HAD TO BE DONE. HE INSTRUCTED ME TO LAY DOWN ON HIS COUCH. HE THEN PUT A BAND AROUND MY HEAD THAT WAS ATTACHED TO AN ALPHA WAVE MACHINE. WHEN I CLOSED MY EYES, I SAW LIGHTS FLASHING PAST AS THE MACHINE BEGAN TO RELAX ME. HE THEN PUT A HAND-TOWEL ON MY THROAT, AND WAS ABOUT TO PLACE A SMALL VIBRATOR OVER IT. I ASKED HIM WHAT HE WAS DOING!?! HE LAUGHED THAT LAUGH, AND THEN ASKED ME IF I NOTICED THAT WHEN I HAD A WOUND THAT WAS FINALLY HEALING, THE AREA STARTED TO ITCH..I REPLIED ‘YES’. HE LAUGHED AGAIN AS HE SWITCHED ON THE VIBRATOR, PLACING IT OVER THE TOWEL, TOLD ME TO SLEEP, AND SIMPLY REPLIED, ‘WELL..WE’RE GOING TO FOOL THE HEALING SYSTEM AND WE’RE GOING TO ”TICKLE’ YOU BACK TO HEALTH. IT WAS BRILLIANT..I SAW HIM MAYBE THREE OR FOUR TIMES FOR THIS ‘TREATMENT’, AND THE PROBLEM IN MY THROAT TOTALLY DISAPPEARED.
WE ARE ALL ONE OF A KIND, BUT WARREN WAS BIGGER THAN LIFE ITSELF, AND ALTHOUGH HE SUFFERED FROM VARIOUS ILLNESSES
LATER IN LIFE, HE STILL THOUGHT OF ME, AS I DID OF HIM, AND ALWAYS ENCOURAGED ME, RELEASING HIS LOVE, ENCASED IN WONDERFUL, RICH LAUGHTER.
I CELEBRATE MY FRIENDSHIP WITH HIM, AND LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING HIM IN THE AFTERLIFE.”
“He gave me a voice to sing with and was my dear friend for more than forty years. His suffering is over but the memory of his kindness and his amazing work will live on. Rest In Peace, Warren.”
Danny O’Keefe
ROBERT STRAUSS WAS ALSO DEEPLY AFFECTED BY WARREN…
“One of the most kind, brilliant men I ever knew. His contribution to the understanding of voice and its relationship to other physiological systems is beyond measure. Rest in peace, Warren. Although we’ve been out of touch for many years, I still think of him often. My deepest condolences to Henry and all of Warren’s loved ones.”
Robert Strauss
SOME OF WARRENS OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS WERE MENTIONED IN HIS OBITUARY IN THE FRESNO BEE…
“On the nineteenth of March 2014, the voice of the brilliant founder and developer of Vocal Bio Matrix, was stilled. He lectured and taught for over 45 years. He worked with hundreds of top performing artists including: Keith Carradine, Bette Midler, James Coburn, Rene Russo, Tom Petty, Meatloaf, Bonnie Rait, Jackson Browne, Mary Wilson of the Supremes, and also Cher. David Geffen, music industry giant of Geffen Records, sent literally, teams of his artists to work with Warren. He developed this technique working with singers. His natural attraction to body energetics, science, and metaphysics helped him explore avenues of the voice never fully studied before. He leaves behind his brother, Henry Barigian; sister, Harriet Mouradian, and her daughters, Eileen and Laura. He had many cousins, that will forever cherish his memory. Warren was preceded in death by his father, Henry Barigian Sr., and mother, Irene Bagdasarian Barigian, both from Fowler and Fresno, California. Warren would say, “Your value as a human being is based upon your ability to create, and true creation only comes forth from your essence. When you are not embraced by your essence, you cannot possibly be yourself; you are doomed to live a life of drama, fear, and anger. The inability to have contact with your essence is the greatest travesty of civilization. We have become ships without rudders with nothing to guide us. The light of your life is your essence, for it guides you into forces that give you value and purpose.”
I’M PROUD TO HAVE BEEN WARREN BARIGIANS FRIEND AND TREASURE THE TIME HE SPENT AND ALL THE WONDERFUL DISCOVERIES HE SHARED WITH ME, INCLUDING HOW TO RETRIEVE LOST MEMORIES.
FIVE YEARS AGO, WHEN I WAS WRITING MY FIRST BOOK, “I DID IT FOR A SONG”, I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT I REMEMBERED EVERYTHING ACCURATELY AND WARREN SUGGESTED THAT I TAKE TWO TABLESPOONS OF EXTRA VIRGIN COCONUT OIL EVERY TIME I SAT DOWN TO WRITE. ONCE AGAIN HE WAS RIGHT ON THE MONEY! MY FRIENDS WERE ALL AMAZED AT HOW MUCH I REMEMBERED.
I CAN NEVER THANK HIM ENOUGH FOR THE ENCOURAGEMENT THAT HE GAVE ME THROUGHOUT MY LIFE…FROM WORKING WITH ME AS A SINGER WHEN I RECORDED AN ALBUM FOR CASABLANCA TO HELPING NEW AND ESTABLISHED SINGER/SONGWRITERS WHO ATTENDED THE ARTIE WAYNE MOTIVATION COURSE, NOT ONLY DID WARREN LECTURE A FEW TIMES HE SHARED SOME VALUABLE INFORMATION TO THE SRO CROWD WHICH INCLUDED MY MUSICAL DIRECTOR ALAN O’DAY (“UNDERCOVER ANGEL”, “ANGIE BABY”), JOHN BARNES (CO-WRITER OF MICHAEL JACKSONS “BAD”), JASON BLOOM (ONE OF THE WRITERS FOR THE BACKSTREET BOYS), AND DIANE WARREN “UNBREAK MY HEART”, “HOW CAN I LIVE WITHOUT YOU?”, “IF I COULD TURN BACK TIME”).
WARREN, MAY YOU R.I.P. ROCK IN PERPETUITY
RESPECTFULLY, YOUR FRIEND ARTIE
YOU CAN BUY MY BOOK, “I DID IT FOR A SONG” (AVAILABLE ONLINE ONLY FOR $9.99 BY CHECK OR MONEY ORDER TO ARTIE WAYNE P.O. BOX 1105 , DESERT HOT SPRINGS CALIFORNIA, 92240 OR THROUGH PAYPAL TO MY E-MAIL ADDRESS artiewayne@gmail.com
CAN THE MEDIA SAVE ARTIE WAYNE?
October 21, 2011
WHEN I READ THAT MICHAEL JACKSON’S ESTATE EARNED $315 MILLION DOLLARS SINCE MICHAEL PASSED AWAY TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO, I KNEW THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG. I HAVE TWO SONGS, “TOUCH THE ONE YOU LOVE” AND “LITTLE CHRISTMAS TREE”, BOTH CO-WRITTEN WITH GEORGE CLINTON, JR., THAT WERE IN FOUR POSTHUMOUS RELEASES…THAT EARNED ME LESS THAN $3OOO.OO IN THE SAME PERIOD OF TIME.
IN FACT, THE LAST QUARTER I DIDN’T EARN A PENNY! WHEN I WROTE ABOUT IT, I WAS CONTACTED BY DAWN LEE WAKEFIELD FROM THE NATIONAL EXAMINER WHO IS HELPING ME NOW TO FIND JUSTICE!
DAWN WROTE, “Reading the Artie Wayne biography, ‘I Did it for a Song,’ readers are moved, nay compelled, to ask themselves two basic questions.
Question 1: Can nice guys finish first in business? Answer: Which business? Response: The Music business.
Question 2: Which nice guy? Answer: Artie Wayne. Response: The answer is up to you, the reader to decide.
Do you know Artie Wayne? If you love rock and roll music, chances are good you’ve heard his name at some point in the last 50 years. And it could be for a number of reasons. Among other things, Wayne is a singer, songwriter, demo guy, promoter, producer, record label executive, nurturer of creativity, messenger of great ideas, and more. He’s more than a Renaissance guy. He’s a futurist, in the best sense of the word.
Most importantly, Wayne’s best skill is having been, and still being ‘the man in the middle’ of some of the best music ever to go from ‘how about this?’ to ‘vinyl is final’ stages. And as Wayne says, ‘he did it for a song.’
Or, you have read it if you’re one of those types to check in often on blogs such as ‘The Pop Culture Addict,’ ‘Forgotten Hits,’ or even ‘Artie Wayne on the Web.’ If so, then you probably scout out treasures on eBay, you have alerts set to find a copy of a song or album that means the world to you. We know you.
You’re also the music lover who reads liner notes and knows the name of the recording studio, the recording engineer, arranger, composer, publisher and who played bass on those Billboard chart hits across the country for the past 50 years, a period in which the genre of rock and roll rose, soared, and crested into the genre we now enjoy as “classic rock music.”
In a Perfect World
In a perfect world, the music industry is an assortment of vibrant personalities, creative talents, unique business and music skills and opportunities to bring all these factors together. When combined, bright people of like minds and commensurate talents find each other, join forces and create great musical works.
Creating a music product that is known and appreciated from Middletown, CT to San Jacinto, CA is usually done for the sheer joy of creation. That’s in a perfect world. But inevitably external variables creep into the equation, introducing imperfections and exceptions, advance sales, chart positions, units moved, power rotations, remainders, returns, pre-orders, gold and platinum certification, the Grammy Awards and who will be nominated for the controversial, dubious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
So, who is Artie Wayne? He’s a man who lives in that perfect world, believes in the basic goodness of others, and has trusted more than a few people to do the right thing by him, particularly when they said that they would in the first place. During his career, within the upper echelon of the music business, he’s found some of the faith and trust he’s placed in others to be well worth his time.
Others have disappointed him in large measure, but he doesn’t absorb the negative energy of their misdeeds. Instead, he figures it’s just a matter of time before they do right by him. A do-right man, as the song goes.
Artie actually entered this world as Wayne Kent, a great name on two levels. One, it’s strong, to the point, and sounds like a guy who’d grow up to be an executive, doesn’t it? Two, it’s gently amusing that both names comprise portions of the alter egos of two cartoon heroes whom people are always counting on to rescue them and in fact, save the world.
Batman, as you know, was Gotham City millionaire Bruce Wayne by day; and Superman, of course, was mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent, he of the Daily Planet. Put them together and you have Wayne Kent. I doubt he ever once thought about that, yet the longer you visit with Artie Wayne, and the more you learn of his amazing abilities to make others’ dreams come true, as he introduces the world to yet undiscovered talents, the more likely you are to search him for a cape and a mask.
Just Call Him Artie
The name switch came from his being bright enough to use his real name, Wayne Kent, for songs he’d written for ASCAP publishing. His pseudonym for BMI songs was Art Wayne. It was not all that unusual back in the day to have a show biz stage name if you didn’t like the name your parents gave you. But he was savvy enough, early on, to know that he could be in both publishing organizations with a little panache and an extra non de plume. His friend and colleague, Ed Silvers, began calling him ‘Artie,’ and hence, ‘Artie Wayne’ became the bon vivant of the music business. He has not let go of the spotlight yet. He owns it. It belongs to him. That, and a few other things are due him.
How and where he’d get into the music business was never a worry. Artie seemed to have a sixth sense and proclivity for being in the right place at the right time. As a young songwriter working on future hits with a great friend, Ben Raleigh, Artie’s natural confidence and magnetic personality took them far up the ranks in short measure, all because of a positive attitude he still has to this very day. It started with Bo Diddley and Bobby Darin.
Going into Bo Diddley’s backstage dressing room before his appearance on Alan Freed’s TV show, ‘The Big Beat,’ Artie was just hoping for an autograph. Instead, Bo showed him how to get his famous ‘Hey, Bo Diddley’ riff, even tuning Artie’s guitar to an open E-chord for him. The lesson ended when (get this) Jimmy Clanton, Jackie Wilson, and Bobby Darin come through the door, interrupting the lesson to play Diddley a test pressing of Bobby’s song, ‘Dream Lover.’
Incredible Breaks, Breaking Records
Wayne and Darin became good friends, with much in common as two Bronx boys who loved music. Darin encouraged Artie in his songwriting and is responsible for not only starting Artie’s career as a songwriter, he kept it from ending. Artie shared with Darin his excitement, as he was about to sign a management contract with Alan Freed. Darin knew something that Artie (and most of the rest of America) didn’t, that Freed’s house of cards was soon about to come down with the revelation of the payola scam. Darin suggested to Artie that he go see a publishing friend of his who was officing at 1650 Broadway.
What an incredible break that was. Turned out the company was Aldon Music, and the friend was Don Kirschner. And thus began Wayne’s career. His book of 70 chapters is chock full of star-studded stories like this but the funny thing is, Artie doesn’t think of himself as a star and perhaps he’s not. He’s actually a starmaker. He perceives himself to be a regular guy, born under a lucky star, and never does seem to be affected by all the glitz and glamour that were once a part of his daily life.
Without giving the whole story away, Artie’s career went from songwriter/singer, to demo man, to producer, to (with partner Kelli Ross) running Quincy Jones’ New York publishing companies. And he didn’t stop there. At the pinnacle of his career with Warner Brothers Music, his title was General Professional Manager, and Director of Creative Services.
He ran the ‘New York, Nashville and L.A. offices out of Hollywood,’ and represented the ‘songs of Badfinger, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, the Faces, 5th Dimension, the Kinks, George Clinton, Gordon Lightfoot, Mahavishnu Orchestra, John McLaughlin, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Graham Nash, Randy Newman, J.D.Souther, Stephen Stills, John Sebastian, Sly and the Family Stone, Carly Simon, Jimmy Webb, Allan Toussaint, Donny Hathaway, Neil Young, Glenn Frey, Don Henley, and Dick and Don Addrisi.’ He was the chief ringleader of a group of brash boys of bravado, ‘The Warner Raiders’, seven stalwart songpluggers whose mission was to know every single song in their catalog and find artists and producers to record them. Their successes were legendary.”
Continue reading on Examiner.com Artie Wayne vs. the music industry: Can a nice guy finish first? – National classic rock music | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/classic-rock-music-in-national/artie-wayne-vs-the-music-industry-can-a-nice-guy-finish-first#ixzz1bMflfsIYmusic-industry-can-a-nice-guy-finish-first#ixzz1bME2zPo7
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AN OPEN LETTER TO TONY ORLANDO
June 14, 2011
Tony…How ya’ doin’? I suppose I could have talked to you on the phone or e-mailed you about it, but I wanted to document this in a public forum. You and I have had the advantage as music publishers seeing a song go from the demo stage to number #1 like “TIE A YELLOW RIBBON (“ROUND THE OLD OAK TREE)” in a matter of months and my readers have told me how much they envied that opportunity.
NOW here is everyones chance to see the process in action. Alan O’Day (“UNDERCOVER ANGEL”, which is in the number one movie “SUPER 8”), Sally Stevens, and I just wrote a song about the biggest world phenomenon FACEBOOK…and their over half a billion FACEBOOK FRIENDS!
We didn’t write, however, about the technical aspects of the social network, but about the humanity and the world’s new way of shaking hands!” “I WANNA BE YOUR FACEBOOK FRIEND” directed by Wedigo Watson
Not to rush you, of course, but If you like it and record it in the next 24 hours it could be up on ITunes by the weekend.
Regards, Artie Wayne http://artiewayne.com
Copyright 2011 by Artie Wayne https://artiewayne.wordpress.com/about-artie-wayne/
EXTRA! EXTRA! YOU CAN BUY MY BOOK ,“I DID IT FOR A SONG” AT AMAZON or Barnes & Noble or 
To reach Alan O’Day http://alanoday.com
for Sally Stevens
http://rockphiles.typepad.com/a_life_in_the_day/
http://www.rockphiles.com/rp_artistIndex.php
For Wedigo Watson https://www.facebook.com/people/Wedigo-Watson/100000136383082No to mention
To Reach Tony Orlando http://www.tonyorlandoonline.com/
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CLINT BALLARD JR.- R.I.P. ROCK IN PERPETUITY!
January 21, 2009
Clint Ballard, Jr. is a name I used to pay attention to every time I’d see it in Hit Parader and Song Hits magazines. “I’m Alive” by the Hollies, “The Game Of Love” by Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders”, and “Good Timin’” by Jimmy Jones, because he wrote some of the best crafted songs of our generation.
What amazed me was how simple most of his songs were, that not just invited you to sing along, but demanded it!
One such delicious treat is “You’re No Good”, first recorded by Dee Dee Warwick, made into an R&B hit by Betty Everett, then into a pop classic by Linda Ronstadt.
Although I knew Clint Ballard, Jr. to say hello to on an elevator in the Brill Building, when I was living in New York in the ‘60s, it wasn’t until I moved to Hollywood; in the’70s did I have a real conversation with him.
I had just left running A&M’s publishing company, and had started The Artie Wayne Organisation, when I got a call from my old friend Bob Reno, who now had his own record label, Midland International (“Fly, Robin, Fly”). He asked if I could meet with his friend Clint, and help him to make a few connections on the West Coast.
On the day Clint comes over to my house, his Linda Rondstat record hits #1 on the Billboard charts. Naturally I’m excited to share this moment with him. I’m surprised that he’s so apprehensive about the current state of the music business, where it’s harder and harder for an independent songwriter to get songs recorded. It seems that more and more singers are writing their own songs, all but shutting out the pros. He said I would hardly recognize the Brill Building or 1650 Broadway.
I told him about of all the possibilities out here in L.A., including accessibility to artists like Three Dog Night, Steppenwolf, The Carpenters, all whom he could easily write for, but he preferred to live back east. I made a few calls on his behalf, but I don’t know of any of them ever paid off.
With Clint Ballard, Jr.’s passing, I hope current artists like Amy Winehouse, Jennifer Hudson, and Beyonce take a serious look at his body of work, and maybe even revive “You’re No Good”.
Clint Ballard, Jr. R.I.P. Rock In Perpetuity!
Respectfully, Artie Wayne https://artiewayne.wordpress.com/about-artie-wayne/
Here’s Linda Ronstadt and “You’re No Good” (feat. Sherlie Matthews)
From my forthcoming book, “I Did It For A Song”
Copyright 2009 by Artie Wayne
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AL GALLICO R.I.P. ROCK N PERPETUITY!
May 21, 2008
AL GALLICO 1920 – 5/21/09
When Ben Raleigh (“Tell Laura I Love Her’, “Wonderful, Wonderful”) and I started writing songs together one of the first publishers we went to see was Al Gallico up at Shapiro Bernstein music.
Al was not only one of the nicest guys I’ve ever known; he was a legend in country music with hits like, “Stand by Your Man”, “Ring Of Fire” and “Wolverton Mountain”. He encouraged Ben and me to write even more than we did and got us quite a few covers including Leroy Van Dyke, Hank Lochlin, and ”The Cowboy Wedding Song” for Clint Eastwood which he sang on his hit TV series, “Rawhide”.
When he was on the forefront of the “British Invasion” with hits by the Animals (“House Of The Rising Sun’, The Zombies, “She’s Not There”, and the Kinks, “You Really Got Me” , he got Freddie and The Dreamers to cut one of our songs.He also spent hours trying to talk me into becoming the first “Negro” country artist signed to a major label, who would be produced by Billy Sherrill. Although I was flattered I knew that the social climate of Nashville, at the time, wouldn’t be comfortable for me.
Even though we became publishing competitors, Al and I remained friends over the years. After I stopped running Irving/ Almo Music, Al took me to lunch and encouraged me to start writing again.
My long time friend and former Warner Raider, Stephen-Craig Aristei who was administering my new publishing company out of Al’s office, married his daughter Linda. This allowed me a chance to see Al more often, and learn more about the music business than I ever could on my own.
I was privileged to have known him and honored to have been his friend.
Al Gallico, R.I.P. Rock In Perpetuity!
Respectfully, Artie Wayne http://artiewayne.com
From my forthcoming book, “I Did It For A Song”
Copyright 2009 by Artie Wayne
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Top picture L to R, Merle Kilgore and Al Gallico receive BMI Award 1962 for “Wolverton Mountain”
Artie Wayne On The Web 