For other persons of the same name, see Eric Martin.
| Eric Martin | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Eric Lee Martin |
| Born | October 10, 1960 |
| Origin | Long Island, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | Hard rock Heavy metal |
| Occupations | Singer, Songwriter, Musician |
| Instruments | Vocals, Piano, Guitar, Drums, Bass guitar, |
| Years active | 1978–present |
| Associated acts | Mr. Big, Tak Matsumoto Group, Scrap Metal, The Eric Martin Band / EMB / 415, Kid Courage, Jun Senoue |
Eric Lee Martin (born 10 October 1960, Long Island, New York) is the son of Frederick Lee "Pepper" Martin[1] and Iris Martin. He is the eldest of three siblings Dan, Joan and Laurie; and is half-Irish, half-Italian.
Eric is a local of the San Francisco Bay Area, where he first started his career in the music industry in 1978. As a singer, Eric is best known as the vocalist of the (reunited) hard rock band Mr. Big, the multi-talented supergroup that produced the 90s hit ballad "To Be With You", a song that Eric wrote in his teen years.
Early Years
Musically, Eric Martin was first influenced by his father, Frederick Lee “Pepper” Martin. Pepper Martin had a gig as drummer for the band “The Buzz”. This first gig would actually be an opener for Sérgio Mendes, a renowned jazz/ R&B artist in the 70s and 80s.[2]
Eric was a drummer only for a while. Realizing it fit his personality better, he opted for the position of front man / lead vocals in the next bands he was in. He played in a handful of teen rock groups such as “S.F. Bloodshy” and “Backhome” while attending Southside High school in Southside, Alabama. He also was part of a band called “Stark Raving Mad” (which also included future Winger guitarist/keyboardist Paul Taylor) in Santa Rosa, California.
During the summer break in 1974, Eric joined a Musical Comedy Workshop held at Southside High school in Southside. He auditioned for the part of Judas, and for some reason wasn't given the part. Instead, he was the understudy and gave one or two brilliant performances. He was a much better singer than the person they chose for the part; he was one of the best singers in that entire troupe.
Eric accredits the honing of his voice to his teacher, Judy Davis. She taught Eric diction, stamina, and breath-control, among the rest.[3]
The Martin family finally settled in the San Francisco Bay Area at about 1976. Eric attended Foothill High School and met up with some of the guys who would join him in his first successful venture – the band “Kid Courage”. Kid Courage opened for AC/DC for two shows in the Bay Area, which were actually AC/DC’s first shows in America.[4]
Musical Influences
Eric has always been able to sing either rock, soul, or even country music.[5] He grew up listening to both soul and rock icons in the 70s, such as Otis Redding, Paul Rodgers, The Beatles, and The Rolling Stones.[6] When he was about 13 to 15 years old, while living in Italy, he was introduced musically to different artists under Motown Records and Stax/Volt Records.[7]
He also has a partner and mentor in songwriting – his friend Andre Pessis, whom he still writes and performs with up to date.
415/Eric Martin Band 1978–1985
Eric had decided to live independently by the age of 18. His first job was selling ice-cream.[8] The big break he needed came when John Nymann, guitarist for the band “Mile Hi”, gave him a call and asked if he would want to form a new band together. The two had known each other from the past, since their former bands (“Mile Hi” and “Kid Courage”) had played together at the Mabuhay Gardens on Broadway. In agreement, John Nymann and Eric Martin got together people from both their previous bands and formed a new group named 415 – it was the area code for the San Francisco Bay Area, as every person in the band was from that place.[9]
415 was formed in late 1979. It marked the start of Eric Martin’s career as lead vocalist. Eric says, "415 played hundreds of shows at area nightclubs, beer parties, even high school and college dances before eventually headlining San Francisco's premiere night club – the Old Waldorf. Selling out in advance, word quickly spread about our dynamic live shows and soon we were opening for established acts like Billy Squire, Hall & Oates, Rick Springfield, Molly Hatchet, Marshall Tucker Band and Foreigner, to name a few. Eventually, without yet being signed to a recording contract, we played in front of 60,000 fans at the Oakland Stadium at Bill Graham's Days on the Green Concert."[10] The band became a popular local draw, all the while still being an unsigned act.[11]
415 was later signed on to Elektra/Asylum Records under the management of Walter “Herbie” Herbert and Sandy Einstein. Both persons managed and worked for the band “Journey”. The management decided to change the name of the band to the “Eric Martin Band” (EMB), as singer-named bands were popular during that time.[12] EMB debuted their first album in 1983, entitled “Sucker for a Pretty Face”. The LP received a gold disc, and consequently led to the band’s appearance in American Bandstand and in various arena tours as the opening act for the likes of ZZ Top, Night Ranger, and Journey.[13] In one of the interviews, Eric mentions they “worked thousands of shows from clubs, to frat house parties, Bill Graham concerts, opening to anybody and everybody.”[14] One of the most acclaimed performances of the band was a solo tour in 1983 held at Honolulu, Hawaii. But despite continuing to land high-profile gigs as support for some of the most popular acts at the time, the band decided to split up in 1985 after returning from the ZZ Top tour.[15]
Solo Career After Eric Martin Band 1985–1988
After the break-up, Eric continued involving himself in several recordings and gigs. He contributed to the track "I Can't Stop the Fire" from the movie soundtrack Teachers,[16] as well as "These Are the Good Times" and "Eyes Of The World" from the movie Iron Eagle[17]. In 1985, Eric Martin released a self-titled album – Eric Martin – which was followed later on in 1987 by another album called I’m Only Fooling Myself. These solo albums exemplify Eric's unique soulful voice and candid lyrics. The latter, I'm Only Fooling Myself, was re-issued in 2008 by Rock Candy Records. The said album is a compilation of songs written by such people as Myles Hunter, John Waite, and a whole host of other established songwriters. It also included top West Coast session musicians such as drummers Mike Baird (who worked with Rick Springfield and Journey) and Mickey Curry (with Brian Adams and Hall and Oates), guitarists Richie Zito, Tim Pierce, Michael Landau, and Rick Nowells.[18]
A compilation of the two solo albums are available on Soul Sessions - The Capitol Years CD. At his young age, Eric had also been invited to audition for various iconic bands in the 70s-80s such as Van Halen, Toto, and Rainbow.[19]
Mr. Vocalist 1 (2008) and 2 (2009)
In early 2008, Eric was approached by Sony Japan to do a project wherein Eric would cover (translated) famous Japanese Ballads sung by women. The album, entitled "Mr. Vocalist", was released in November 2008 and topped the charts of several cities in Japan; it was also the number-one seller in several online record stores. The album would include ballads such as "I Believe" by Ayaka and "Yuki No Hana" by Mika Nakashima.
Seeing the success of "Mr. Vocalist", Sony Japan opted to follow it up with another one. "Mr. Vocalist 2" was unique from the first because all the songs included in it were famous international ballads, and were voted in by fans either through the internet or through mobile phone. Eric and Sony Japan lined up about 30 international ballads sung by women, such as "Hero" by Mariah Carey and "Eternal Flame" by the Bangles.[33] The top 12 songs were taken from the list and were covered by Eric and Sony Japan's team of top musicians. The resulting album was released on March 4, 2009, and topped the charts all over Japan at its debut. For months, it continued to move along the top five albums in Japan.[34]
