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Mom + Pop Music Founder Michael Goldstone on Discovering Pearl Jam ..
.. and Courtney Barnett Giving His Company Its First Grammy Nod
http://www.billboard.com/articles/business/6866887/michael-goldstone-mom-pop-interview
2/5/2016 by Jem Aswad
During the 1990s, Michael “Goldie” Goldstone was the A&R guy whom everyone wanted to be. He began working at Chrysalis Records as a teenager, gradually found his way into A&R and his first signing -- Texas guitar ace-turned-heartthrob Charlie Sexton -- reached No. 15 on the Billboard 200 in 1986. But he soon immersed himself in the late-’80s alt-rock scene and signed the ill-fated Seattle quintet Mother Love Bone -- whose singer, Andrew Wood, died of a heroin overdose in March of 1990, just weeks before the release of the band’s highly touted debut album, Apple. Yet that group morphed into Pearl Jam (which has sold 32.5 million albums in the United States, according to Nielsen Music), and during the next 18 years -- at Epic, DreamWorks and Sire -- Goldstone signed Rage Against the Machine (11.7 million copies), Buckcherry (3 million), Regina Spektor (1.5 million) and Tegan & Sara (963,000), and A&R’d the 1992 Singles soundtrack (1.7 million).
Mother Love Bone was signed to PolyGram. Why didn’t the label pick up the option for Pearl Jam?
There was no Pearl Jam yet -- it was only Jeff [Ament] and Stone [Gossard]. There were some demos. In fairness to PolyGram, the band really wanted a fresh start, and [PolyGram] were really gracious about it. I think they felt like the band had been through so much that they really supported them starting fresh, so it wasn't a reflection of Polygram not wanting to continue. So we all dusted ourselves off and started over, and ... you’ve got to believe there’s some kind of higher force when the first singer that they stumbled onto was some security guard in San Diego named Eddie Vedder.
Read more over @ http://www.billboard.com/articles/business/6866887/michael-goldstone-mom-pop-interview
http://www.billboard.com/articles/business/6866887/michael-goldstone-mom-pop-interview
2/5/2016 by Jem Aswad
During the 1990s, Michael “Goldie” Goldstone was the A&R guy whom everyone wanted to be. He began working at Chrysalis Records as a teenager, gradually found his way into A&R and his first signing -- Texas guitar ace-turned-heartthrob Charlie Sexton -- reached No. 15 on the Billboard 200 in 1986. But he soon immersed himself in the late-’80s alt-rock scene and signed the ill-fated Seattle quintet Mother Love Bone -- whose singer, Andrew Wood, died of a heroin overdose in March of 1990, just weeks before the release of the band’s highly touted debut album, Apple. Yet that group morphed into Pearl Jam (which has sold 32.5 million albums in the United States, according to Nielsen Music), and during the next 18 years -- at Epic, DreamWorks and Sire -- Goldstone signed Rage Against the Machine (11.7 million copies), Buckcherry (3 million), Regina Spektor (1.5 million) and Tegan & Sara (963,000), and A&R’d the 1992 Singles soundtrack (1.7 million).
Mother Love Bone was signed to PolyGram. Why didn’t the label pick up the option for Pearl Jam?
There was no Pearl Jam yet -- it was only Jeff [Ament] and Stone [Gossard]. There were some demos. In fairness to PolyGram, the band really wanted a fresh start, and [PolyGram] were really gracious about it. I think they felt like the band had been through so much that they really supported them starting fresh, so it wasn't a reflection of Polygram not wanting to continue. So we all dusted ourselves off and started over, and ... you’ve got to believe there’s some kind of higher force when the first singer that they stumbled onto was some security guard in San Diego named Eddie Vedder.
Read more over @ http://www.billboard.com/articles/business/6866887/michael-goldstone-mom-pop-interview
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