Jonathan Brightman or the growth of an American musician? How hard have you find it to get Black Robot noticed and do you have any advice for young bands out there starting out in the industry? Jonathan Brightman: It’s very hard. It feels like carrying a load of boulders on your back uphill in the rain both ways!!! My advice to new bands: Be relentless. 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”
One of the best covers ever, in my opinion, is your cover of JJ Cale’s “Cocaine”. It seems to suit your sound perfectly; did you consider covering any other songs? Jonathan Brightman: We just stumbled into this cover and decided to include it on our record. It would be fun to do any number of Beatles songs…in our own way, of course.
Over the past years Brightman Music has been a top 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. Discover extra information at Jonathan Brightman.
Bassist Jonathan “JB” Brightman was one of the founding members of Buckcherry. No need to tell you about them, as they are a high octane over-the-top rock ‘n’ roll that has scaled greater heights their second time around. Brightman didn’t sit around idle when Buckcherry disbanded after the ill fated Time Bomb album, instead he put his nose to the grindstone and began writing.