We have personally selected our featured artists
not only for their exceptional musical abilities,


but also for their commitment to providing a
total entertainment experience
marked by the ultra-personal touch.

 

Mark Rivera - Ringo Starr's All Starr Band (Musical Director), Billy Joel, Elton John, Foreigner, Simon & Garfunkel, John Lennon, Peter Gabriel, Hall & Oates
For the past 26 years as a member of Billy Joel's band, Mark has played some of the most memorable sax solos in pop music. For the past 12 years, Mark has had the privilege of working closely with Ringo Starr and some of the greatest musicians of all time in helping the former Beatle® assemble his "All Starr Band." Mark is recognized around the world as one of the best musical directors in the industry.

 

Nils Lofgren - Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Ringo Starr
In addition to a solo career spanning over three decades, Nils is best known for being a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. His career spans studio and on-stage collaborations with some of the world's greatest artists, and his solo recordings are legendary. He is currently preparing to tour with Springsteen and The E Street Band during 2007-08.

 

Will Lee - David Letterman, The Fab Faux, More recordings than we can list.
Will can be seen every week night on your TV screen playing at the Ed Sullivan Theatre as the bassist with Paul Shaffer & The CBS Orchestra on the wildly popular Late Show with David Letterman, and you can hear him playing and singing on numerous studio recordings as well as many commercials on both television and radio.

 

Colin Hay - Men At Work
Colin first landed on our shores from his native Australia as frontman and principal songwriter of Men At Work. With Hay's wry songs and burnished vocals leading the way, they were responsible for a series of massive hits during the Eighties ("Down Under" and "Who Can It Be Now" among them), becoming in the process one of the first pop icons of the video era. With his one-man show "Colin Hay: Man At Work," placement of his songs in film ("Garden State") and television ("Scrubs"), and the release of solo CDs like 2002's "Company Of Strangers" and his latest 2007 work, "Are You Lookin' At Me," Colin's skills as a songwriter, arranger, engineer, and bandleader--unified by his immediately identifiable voice-- have kept him in the industry's forefront.

 

Jack Blades - Night Ranger, Damn Yankees, Shaw Blades
In addition to fronting Night Ranger, one of the most successful mainstream/arena rock bands of the Eighties, bassist/singer Jack Blades has either recorded with, penned songs for, or produced albums for some of rock's biggest names.

 

Kelly Keagy - Night Ranger
Kelly is best known as the drummer for Night Ranger and the lead singer of their classic hit, "Sister Christian." Kelly started out his career as a drummer, but over the years he has gained experience in many aspects of the music business, gaining success as a hit songwriter both singularly and with others.

 

Jeff Carlisi - .38 Special
Jeff is the original guitarist and songwriter for the classic rock band .38 Special, which boasted more than five platinum albums during the 1980s and is best known for songs such as “Caught Up In You,” “Second Chance” and “Hold On Loosely.” Today, Carlisi is helping young aspiring musicians make their rock star dreams come true with Camp JAM, a comprehensive rock ‘n’ roll summer camp for ages 7-17 that he co-founded in 2004 and which now operates in fifteen cities across the country.

 

Bruce Kulick - KISS, Grand Funk Railroad, Meatloaf, Michael Bolton, Kayne West, Billy Squier
Bruce Kulick was the lead guitarist for KISS for twelve years, joining the band for the Animalize tour in 1984 and continuing with the band until the 1996 reunion tour. His contributions to the band covered over 10 album releases including his performance on MTV's "KISS Unplugged." Since the year 2000 Bruce has been lead guitarist for Grand Funk Railroad touring all across the U.S. with original members Don Brewer and Mel Schacher. Kulick's recording, songwriting, and performing credits include Meatloaf, Michael Bolton, Kayne West and Billy Squier among others. He has toured around the world in addition as a solo artist supporting his two solo discs, Audiodog and Transformer.

 

GE Smith - SNL, Bob Dylan, Hall & Oates
For most people, GE is still best recognized for being the leader of the Saturday Night Live Band. Throughout the 80s and 90s, GE could be seen playing his guitar before virtually every commercial during the show. But before that, he recorded and toured with David Bowie, Darryl Hall & John Oates, and Bob Dylan (famously working on Dylan's "Neverending Tour" of the late eighties and serving as Musical Director for his Madison Square Garden tribute). Smith is acknowledged as one of rock's pre-eminent guitarists, both in-studio and on-stage.

 

Christine Ohlman - SNL / First-Call Vocalist in the World of The Blues
This queen of blue-eyed rock n' soul, known as "The Beehive Queen" for her mile-high platinum blonde hairdo, is the long-time, current vocalist with the Saturday Night Live Band, where she graces the stage of NBC's Studio 8H in Rockefeller Center, and recently expanded the SNL connection by singing the theme song to the Tina Fey/NBC sitcom "30 Rock." Christine is a first-call studio/live musician with particularly deep roots in the Blues, appearing on more recordings than we can list, including Grammy nominees by Charlies Musselwhite and The Howlin' Wolf Band. She tours constantly behind her own four solo CDs and recently guested on Ian Hunter's acclaimed 2007 release "Shrunken Heads."

 

Jeff Kazee - Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes
A longtime member of Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, Jeff has spent years touring with Bon Jovi and can be seen subbing for Paul Shaffer on The Late Show with David Letterman. A blue-eyed soul singer of renown, his roots go back deep to his musical family in Kentucky. Jeff's hipster stage presence and wizardry on piano and Hammond B3 are in high demand from New York to LA and all points in between.

 

Crystal Taliefero - Billy Joel, Elton John, Faith Hill, Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Bob Seger, Joe Cocker
Crystal has a stage presence that is unbelievable. As a multi-instrumentalist, she has been an integral part of Billy Joel's band for the past 19 years. She has also toured with Springsteen, Faith Hill, and many others. An in-demand studio vocalist and producer in her home town of Nashville, she has appeared on dozens of Music City recordings.

 

Tommy Byrnes - Billy Joel, Brian Setzer, Movin' Out Musical Director
Multi-instrumentalist, composer, songwriter and producer Tommy Byrnes has been Billy Joel's guitarist and musical director for the past 19 years. He was key in helping Billy and Twyla Tharp create the Tony Award-winning Broadway smash Movin' Out and served as the show's Musical Director during its long run. Tommy has toured and collaborated with rockabilly legend Brian Setzer (co-writing Setzer's hard-hitting "Barbwire Fence"). His further touring credits include artists as diverse as Enrique Inglesias and Joan Jett, and as a songwriter he's penned tunes for Mandy Moore and others.

 

Charley Drayton - Keith Richards, Johnny Cash, Divynls, Don Henley, Neil Young, Seal, Herbie Hancock, Iggy Pop, Mariah Carey, Chaka Khan, Janet Jackson, Courtney Love, and many more
Brooklyn native Charley Drayton is the consummate performer. Aside from his incomparable drumming talents, he brings to the table his skills a guitarist, bassist, keyboardist, vocalist, arranger, and producer. His lengthy list of playing credits covers the elite of the music industry, from the superstars listed above to artists as diverse as The B-52s, David Sanborn, Michelle Branch, and jazz legend Miles Davis. Charley's unique playing style and approach to songwriting make him one of the most sought-after musicians in the business.

 

Andy York - John Mellencamp
Guitarist Andy York began his musical career in 1987 when he joined Jason & The Scorchers. Since then, his live and studio credits have included Ian Hunter (he produced Hunter's critically-acclaimed 2007 release Shrunken Heads), Robert Plant, Nils Lofgren, Marshall Crenshaw, Wilie Nile, Donovan Leitch, and, most notably, John Mellencamp, for whom he's been the lead guitarist since 1994, sharing songwriting credits on "Positively Crazy" and "Summer of Love," headlining the annual Farm Aid benefit, and appearing with Mellencamp on concert stages worldwide.

 

Eric Martin - Mr. Big
Eric is the voice on Mr. Big's smashes "To Be With You" and "Just Take My Heart." Currently, he has several portions on his plate: he recently wrote and recorded the theme song for the hit pay per view television show Pride FC,which is a major ultimate fighting program. The song, “The Last Man Standing” debuted New Year’s Eve 2006 on pay per view to millions of viewers. Eric also wrote and recorded a song for guitar legend Ronnie Montrose’s upcoming CD 10x10.

 Bob Birch - Elton John
Bob, our West Coast connection, has been playing with Elton John since the early 90's, appearing on, among others, Elton's CDs Road To Eldorado, Peachtree Road, and Big Picture. Elton has said that Bob is the best bassist he's ever worked with, and we agree with that ringing endorsement.
Copyright 2006 © The Mark Rivera Entertainment Group