Gary James' Interview With Singer/Songwriter/Guitarist
David Haerle



David Haerle served as president of a record label, been introduced onstage at The Grand Ole Opry when he was only nine years old by Roy Acuff, played in Rock and Alternative New Wave bands in the 1980s and became an agent with one of the biggest booking agencies in the business, I.C.M. (International Creative Management). And now he's talking to us about his background in music.

Q - David, you were in some Rock bands and Alternative bands. Did any of the bands you were in have regional or national success?

A - Not national. I was in a band called Paradise Drive. That's the more notable one. The one before that was just backyard parties. Paradise Drive in the '80s, I was probably 16, 17 years old. I'm 54 now. The most I would say is we played some of the fairly significant clubs in L.A. like Club Lingerie on Sunset, Club 88. Places like that. That band went on to become Painting Over Picasso, but I was already out of it then and I think they had a deal with Roadrunner (Records) within the next couple of years. But yeah, just within the city here we played some notable clubs, but nothing national or anything like that. No record deal while I was in it.

Q - Did you ever play The Troubadour or Gazzarri's?

A - I went to Gazzarri's 'cause Gazzarri's had developed its reputation from Van Halen. They were in there in the '70s. My era was later. But I don't think Gazzarri's would have been the right fit for Paradise Drive. We did not play The Troubadour. It had a wide array of acts. I think Gazzarri's might have been more focused on Metal and Hair Metal. This band I was in would have been Alternative/New Wave. Of course The Troubadour is still around today. We did love Gazzarri's a lot, just to watch bands.

Q - Who'd you see there?

A - It was a band that nobody's ever heard of. I loved them. They were called Brand Boulevard. I don't think they went on to do anything. We would just go to the club to be there. We would see who's there. When Brand Boulevard was there I always dug 'em. I just thought they were great. I was young enough to look up to them as musicians.

Q - How did your time in Paradise Drive translate to you getting a job with I.C.M.?

A - I left the group, I'm probably 17 at that point, maybe 18. I left the group to probably do my own thing musically. But basically the short version, nothing too mysterious, I needed a job. My step-mother knew what you might call the office manager of I.C.M., which was actually a pretty big position, a big company. I don't know if I have the right term. Head of Personnel. Head of Operations. And got me a job in the mail room. It was a neat time in my life, Gary, because I.C.M. was sort of what you would call one of the Big Three at that time. To my understanding, their stature has lessened next to say William Morris and C.A.A. (Creative Artists Agency) and U.T.A. (United Talent Agency) are probably the real big ones now. At the time, certainly the Big Three. But I didn't know who they were. I didn't know anything about that world. It meant really nothing to me. It was just a job in a mail room. But I got this job and I was enthused about it. I found that I liked it. So I started working there. My first aspiration was to be head of the mail room, but I got passed over. I met a woman. We would later get married and she was in the Music Department. She was quite a few years older than me. She had been there quite some time and had seen some really interesting eras in the Rock 'n' Roll era from the agency perspective. I took an interest in her department, which was the Music Department at I.C.M. Of course I.C.M. was known for their film and literary and television. A real powerhouse there. But they still had a great music department. I took an interest in that. It was kind of a natural 'cause that was what I was interested in. Diana, her name, got me an interview with her boss, who was Alex Hodges, who is now a key executive at the Nederlander Organization.

Q - Alex Hodges was with the Paragon Agency. He booked The Allman Brothers.

A - Oh, yeah. You know your history, Gary.

Q - Do I ever!

A - He managed Otis Redding, but at the time I think the Paragon Agency and I.C.M. made an offer for him to come over. Alex was a bigwig. Diana, we did divorce quite a number of years ago, but we were together a long time and she worked for him and he had a second position open and I got that interview and I got that job. We disclosed to him that were a romantic couple. (laughs) And he approved it. But he was managing Stevie Ray Vaughan on the side. It was known. It was open. It was considered a co-existing thing. I got that job in the Music Department in '87, '88, and Stevie died in the helicopter crash very soon after. It was a very somber time. Back to your question, really just needing a job and my step-mother had this connection. As I started doing the job I realized, oh, there's things here at this company, I.C.M. that interest me.

Q - You worked in the Los Angeles office then?

A - Correct. 8899 Beverly Boulevard. Long ago they vacated that facility.

Q - Who did you book?

A - Okay, so I'm first working for Alex Hodges. I was there for a few months. An opening came up with Doug Hofer. Alex, knowing what you know, was the Rock Department. They probably called it the Contemporary Department. He was the West Coast head if I remember correctly. An opening came up for an agent in what they called at the time Adult Contemporary. They might have called it the Variety Department. It was maybe one of those names. So, I worked for Doug Hofer. Over the course of the next year or so, Doug was having some personal problems and eventually he and I.C.M. parted ways and I just started sort of started doing the work at his desk and Doug's desk, to get to your question, I was booking the convention world. He was the convention guy. I started taking over that business. As I'm sure you're well aware, anyone looking to have a private event, whether it be an offer coming in from a big company like Apple Computer or Sun Microsystems, to an insurance firm, they would come through my office. So they weren't wanting Metallica. They maybe would have wanted Dana Carvey from Saturday Night Live, or Suzanne Sommers, who had a variety show. I remember one of my great disappointments was they wanted to book a private event, Gene Kelly. By that point he was well retired. They wanted him to give a talk. I was going to go cover the show and was truly excited about meeting Gene, but the show got canceled for some reason. So that was a near miss. Anyway, back to your question. It was Harry Blackstone, the magician. Billy Crystal was really hot at the time. I'm not sure if I did a date with him, but he was certainly sought after. So it was the comedians who were often right for a corporate event or what you would call a variety show. But I remember an offer coming in for the Pet Shop Boys, or it was Depeche Mode. That would have been a more forward company. Those two didn't happen. Not a lot of Rock bands were necessarily up for doing a corporate event.

Q - Did you book Bobcat Goldthwait?

A - Yes. Bobcat was a client.

Q - You can thank me for that.

A - I totally remember him.

Q - I worked with Bobcat's mother, Kate, at the Sears credit office in Fayetteville, New York. In fact, she was my boss. So I would get daily updates on his career. One day Kate was telling me Bob can't make up his mind what agency to sign with, William Morris or I.C.M. I said, "I've been told that William Morris tends to pay more attention to their established clients. That's not the case at ICM. They work with newer acts." And Bob signed with I.C.M.

A - Yup. And I'm wondering if he signed with Steve Levine 'cause Steve was a mentor. Bobcat was my era. Ellen DeGeneres, I remember meeting with her in my office to see if she could up her corporate dates. She was popular, but hadn't become a superstar. But Bobcat, that is so neat. That is awesome.

Q - So I guess you got Bobcat thanks to me.

A - Thanks to you. And I thank you. Yes. He was an important part of the roster, that's for sure.

Q - You mentioned Gene Kelly earlier. Did you ever work with or meet some of the stars of the 1950s?

A - The man who made me an agent was Mort Viner. Mort's been deceased for awhile. But Mort was like my link to like the Golden Era of Hollywood. Mort's longtime clients, Dean Martin, Shirley MacLaine, Gene Kelly. I felt like this is just incredible. I knew a fair amount of my entertainment history. This is three generations before my time, but I just thought this was the greatest thing, to have this kind of link in Mort. He made me an agent. Those calls, you'd just hear them through the week; "Dean on line one, Shirley." (laughs)

Q - I take it you liked being an agent.

A - I did. I never saw it coming Gary. It was almost surreal. I dropped out of high school. I mean, my parents put me in good schools. I only finished 11th grade. I got a GED and floundered for awhile, so I always look back at I.C.M. as college for me because I had this great mentor, John Huie, who runs the CAA office in Nashville, or at least the Nashville Music, or co-runs it. Phil Casey had the Urban Department, and Alex (Hodges) and Steve Levine for Comedy. So it was like college. Even before I became an agent, like again kind of back to where I felt like I was crossing generations. Here I was, delivering the mail to Ben Benjamin and his secretary of thirty years, Dorothy. I will never forget 'em. Burt Lancaster, Benjamin's guy for forty years. You get the idea. Even though I was a music guy, it was super fun getting to know just a little bit, these legendary Hollywood agents in the film field.

Q - How long were with I.C.M.?

A - Five years. It must've been '85 to '90 now that I think about it.

Q - After your father passed away, you went on to head a record label he founded, CMH Records. What was that record label all about?

A - My dad founded CMH in '75 as a majority owner with a minority owner, "Guitar Boogie" Arthur Smith. Arthur, just a brief tangent, wrote "Dueling Banjos", probably Bluegrass music's most famous composition ever. He also had the first million selling guitar instrumental and is an influence on Paul McCartney, the instrumental being on MGM, "Guitar Boogie". So, he teamed up with Arthur and they launched it. Their niche in the market Gary, my dad had worked at Starday (Records) in Nashville. He had immigrated from Germany and fell in love with Country music. Growing up in post-war Germany and hearing it played on our Armed Forces Radio Network. That's where he got the Country music bug. Basically it was his life's passion. His dream at 21 was to come to Nashville and work in the industry. He got a job right away at Starday. His other dream was to start a label. They kicked it off in '75 and they saw a niche in the market which was these great Bluegrass artists who were not necessarily able any longer to have a major label deal because it wasn't that kind of sales. So they signed many of the great names and specifically Bluegrass. Country too. Traditional Country. They began cutting albums. That was the beginning of CMH and that's how they got it kicked off.

Q - Your grandparents co-owned the first Country music radio station in Nashville, WENO. Maybe it's just me, but we don't hear a lot about that station. Will you as some point launch a publicity campaign to make people aware of that?

A - You know, I've never thought about it. I think people immediately think about WSM, which goes back to 1930. But WSM played Pop music of course and had the Grand Ole Opry and that was their Country music. So, it was the Country cousin of the airwaves. When they went and committed to that format of full-time Country music, that was a first. My grand parents, prior to that, had been building and operating stations. That was probably their third station maybe is my guess. So Nashville was very much a center for our family. I wasn't born in Nashville, but my brother was, my late brother. My parents got married in Nashville. My mother is a Southerner. My dad, like I said, is an immigrant from Germany. So Nashville, middle Tennessee is certainly the seed of my maternal side of the family.

Q - When you were 9 years old, Roy Acuff brought you onstage at the Grand Ole Opry. What did you do? Sing? Play guitar?

A - (laughs) I didn't do anything. Maybe the press release is misleading. My dad brings me backstage. Roy Acuff was a neighbor of my grandparents. Everybody at that time, it's all changed because I think Country stars have gravitated to newer, traditional areas, but Hendersonville Lake was the area. Johnny Cash, Roy Acuff, my grandparents were out there. Roy's grandchildren played with my brother. Of course my grandparents knew Roy. So, my dad visited the Opry one year. We were just backstage. He was introducing me to people. Roy was of course doing his set. He was the guy. Roy just took my hand, took me onstage to introduce me to the audience. I didn't do anything, but I remember it just like it was yesterday.

Q - What was the audience's reaction?

A - They roared. They just applauded. It was just like a little boy comes out. He just says, "I want you to meet David." It was just the funniest thing. I wasn't playing an instrument or anything. I didn't even play at that time.

Q - Were you dressed in a suit and tie? Did you bow?

A - I don't think I would have been dressed up. I probably waved. (laughs)

Q - The audience fell in love with you even then.

A - There you go.

Q - What kind of singer would you call yourself these days?

A - Well, my original music I would say sits more solidly within sort of the Rock world, kind of the Rock spirit. I do love singing on my own. Sometimes when I play live I throw in a Country song. I don't write Country. My originals are Rock. All my albums are all originals, but I do plan a Country cover album now that you mention it. I do love throwing in Country covers into my live set. Though I hated Bluegrass and Country when I was 9, 12. I fell for it as some point, thanks to my dad, later. I do love singing. I feel like I'm suited to sing some of those songs in terms of my range and so forth. But most of my music is Rock music.

Q - Wouldn't you say that Country music is the new Rock 'n' Roll?

A - Oh, sure. Modern Country has undoubtedly Rock influences, whether it's literally electric Rock guitar solos for the break. There's Hip-Hop elements. There's R&B elements. Country has absorbed a lot of stuff when it comes to Modern Country. There's a lot of changes. When I throw in a cover of a Country song, I'm probably going to throw in a traditional "Boy Named Sue" by Johnny Cash or "Six Days On The Road", by Dave Dudley. Not written by Dave Dudley, but that type of material.

Q - I watched some of your videos online today. "Run And Be Free" and "Go Do That With Sharon". I notice you make a point of enunciating your lyrics so the listener understands what you're singing. I take it that's important to you.

A - I really appreciate objective feedback like that. I don't think I've ever thought of that Gary, but it makes sense that I do. I'm not in touch with a conscious effort that I'm going to sing this way. Although, it's very funny. I was literally on the phone with Bobby Osborne of The Osbornes, who's closing in on 90, and he said something like he made up his mind early on that he was going to sing in a way where you could understand every word. I didn't even think at the time, oh, I relate to that. So I appreciate you just sharing that. I'm not really conscious of that. Growing up, I can't say I cared or paid attention to the lyrical content of Rock music. I could probably recite words from some of the songs, but whereas my long time partner, Erica, lyrics are number on. With Country, the lyric is everything to me. With Rock it was of lesser importance. What Led Zeppelin was singing about, I'm not really sure. (laughs)

Official Website: DavidHaerle.com

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