The rise of a musician and record producer : Jonathan Brightman? What inspires you to write? Jonathan Brightman: I get inspired by seeing other great bands. We write together as a band. That’s really fulfilling. Collaboration is much more fun. I was hoping to catch you in LA last year, but you weren’t playing a lot of dates. Will you be touring this year? Jonathan Brightman: We hope to at least hit some territories in Europe this summer. Touring in the U.S. has gotten really political. For example, bigger bands are now doing this thing called “buy ons”, which is basically charging their opening band to get added to the bill. It’s rotten.
Jonathan Brightman and Buckcherry: Josh Todd grew up in the Anaheim Hills neighborhood of Anaheim, California and later moved to Lake Forest, California. Early on, Todd fronted the Hollywood glam rock band Slamhound. He eventually met lead guitarist Keith Nelson through their tattoo artist (Kevin Quinn). The duo made a few demos before being joined by bassist Jonathan Brightman and drummer Devon Glenn, calling themselves Sparrow. Sparrow began performing around the Hollywood club scene, receiving a strong, local following due to their old school rock and roll vibe, and were signed to DreamWorks Records shortly after. The group changed its name to Buckcherry after receiving a cease-and-desist letter from a record label called Sparrow (owned by EMI). Although the band’s name is a spoonerism of the late Chuck Berry, the group said it was inspired by a drag queen acquaintance of theirs named Buck Cherry.
Black Robot is a California-based hard rock band formed in 2008 by bassist Jonathan Brightman (JB). Brightman recruited Detroit-bred front man Harold Johns on vocals and Black Robot recorded their debut in 2008 with Grammy winning producer Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Shooter Jennings, Rival Sons). Former Buckcherry alumni Devon Glenn & Yogi Lonich and legendary keyboard session player Fred Mandel (Queen, Alice Cooper, Pink Floyd) make guest appearances on the album. In 2009, guitarists Andy Andersson & Staffan Österlind and former Hot Sauce Johnson / Rumblefish / Earshot drummer Possum Hill were added to the line-up. The band has been described as a “new powerhouse” and “good ol’ rock ‘n’ roll influenced by acts like Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Black Crowes and the Rolling Stones”
Your debut album came out in 2009 but I remember hearing ‘Badass’ in 2008, and this year you picked up a nod in Classic Rock’s album of the year. Does it feel like this is a new start?. Jonathan Brightman: Yes. We released an independent version of the record in 2008. We were basically selling them on ebay and online. Once we got larger distribution channels in place we’re finally getting some broader attention.
Over the past years Brightman Music has been a premium Producer Management firm based in Southern California with a presence in New York City and Nashville, Tennessee and London, England. We represent some of the recording industry’s most highly recognized award winning producers, mixers, songwriters and engineers as well as tomorrow’s game changers. We hold a unique emphasis and proven track record on the discovery and development of groundbreaking chart-topping new artists. Our clients work with artists and record labels, big and small from every corner of the globe. We celebrate musical diversity and support artists of all genres. Find more details at Jonathan Brightman.
How long after the demise of Buckcherry did you begin working on new music? Jonathan “JB” Brightman: The way this happened…right after I left Buckcherry Huck (Johns, singer) was moving to Los Angeles. I had made friends with him and we just started writing. So we had written some songs, but there was no agenda to create a band. What Huck and I really intended to do was to have Yogi (former Buckcherry guitarist) and Devon (former Buckcherry drummer) in the band, but that didn’t really work out. I needed some time away from what would become Black Robot. When it came time, I called Yogi and Devon and said to them, “Let’s just go in the studio for two weeks and let’s make a record.” I didn’t have any expectations. I wanted to get in the studio, record, have a good time and if a great record came out of it then we’d release it. It was no pressure.