Gregg Alexander
Encyclopedia
Gregg Alexander is an American singer/songwriter
and producer
, best known as the frontman of the New Radicals
, who scored the international hit "You Get What You Give
" in late 1998. Earlier in life he recorded two solo albums, Michigan Rain
and Intoxifornication
. He dissolved the New Radicals in 1999 to focus on production and songwriting work, winning a Grammy for the song "The Game of Love
" in 2003.
, Michigan
, and was raised in a conservative Jehovah's Witness household. He quickly developed into a multi-talented musician after receiving his first guitar at the age of 12 and teaching himself to play several instruments. At the age of fourteen Gregg joined the band The Circus, with fellow classmates George Snow, John Mabarak, along with Gregg's older brother Stephen Aiuto. They played the 1984 highschool Battle of the Bands, competing against John Lowery (John 5). By the age of 16, he signed his first recording contract with A&M
after playing his demo tapes to producer Rick Nowels
. He released his debut album Michigan Rain
in 1989 at the age of 17, to little notice. In 1992 he signed to Epic
and released Intoxifornication
, which consisted largely of re-released songs from Michigan Rain and was again ignored.
In the mid-1990s, Alexander would often busk
in Tompkins Square Park
and Central Park
.
, a revolving-door band with no permanent members other than Alexander and long-term collaborator Danielle Brisebois
. They released the album Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too
in October 1998, which went on to sell over a million copies. The single "You Get What You Give
" was released that fall and was a smash hit internationally. The song's unique sunny production sound became a template for much of Alexander's future production work.
It was not long after the New Radicals' success that Alexander became tired of the constant media attention and exhaustive touring schedule. In July 1999, "Someday We'll Know
" was announced as the band's second single. However, several days later Alexander announced he was disbanding the New Radicals to focus on production work. He said that "the fatigue of traveling and getting three hours sleep in a different hotel every night to do boring 'hanging and schmoozing' with radio and retail people is definitely not for me." Despite disagreements with MCA, Alexander finally agreed to shoot a video for "Someday We'll Know"; but with the band now defunct, the song got little attention and the New Radicals became known as a one-hit wonder
.
, Sophie Ellis-Bextor
, Enrique Iglesias
,Texas
, Hanson
, Geri Halliwell
, Melanie C
, Mónica Naranjo
and fellow ex-New Radical Danielle Brisebois
. Most noteworthy was the song "The Game of Love
" by Santana
and Michelle Branch
, which earned Alexander a Grammy in 2003
.
Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine
described him as "the catchiest, smartest professional mainstream pop songwriter of the early 2000s."
In 2003 a new Alexander track, "A Love Like That
", was released uncredited on the Internet. It was suspected to be a New Radicals outtake, as parts of the lyrics were found in the booklet for Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too.
A new song entitled "Why Can't We Make Things Work" written by Alexander (and Rick Nowels
) was released by Any Dream Will Do
winner Lee Mead
in November 2007, on his self-titled album.
In 2010, Boyzone
will release "Love Is a Hurricane
", a song written by Gregg Alexander and Danielle Brisebois, which appears on the band's album, Brother
(2010).
frontman Rivers Cuomo
released a cover of the song "The World We Love So Much" in his 2007 release "Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo
"
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, best known as the frontman of the New Radicals
New Radicals
New Radicals were an American pop rock band active in the late 1990s, centered on frontman Gregg Alexander, who wrote and produced all of their songs and was the sole constant member...
, who scored the international hit "You Get What You Give
You Get What You Give
"You Get What You Give" is a song by the New Radicals. It was an international hit, the first and most successful single from their album Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too. It reached No. 30 on Billboard Hot 100 Airplay in January 1999, No. 36 on the overall Hot 100 and No. 8 on the Billboard...
" in late 1998. Earlier in life he recorded two solo albums, Michigan Rain
Michigan Rain
Michigan Rain is the debut album from Gregg Alexander, released in 1989 by A&M Records.The album was originally supposed to be titled Save Me From Myself, but the title was changed at the last minute, because, as Alexander explained, "[...] the cover was me standing on a bridge with a broken mirror...
and Intoxifornication
Intoxifornication
Intoxifornication is the second album by Gregg Alexander, released on May 5, 1992.It includes five tracks that had already been released on Alexander's 1989 debut album Michigan Rain.Both "Smokin' In Bed" and "The Truth" were released as one-track promotional...
. He dissolved the New Radicals in 1999 to focus on production and songwriting work, winning a Grammy for the song "The Game of Love
The Game of Love (Santana song)
"The Game of Love" is a song composed by Gregg Alexander and Rick Nowels, and is on the album Shaman by Santana. The vocal performance of the song is by Michelle Branch...
" in 2003.
Early life and career
Gregg Alexander was born in Grosse PointeGrosse Pointe
Grosse Pointe refers to a coastal area in Metro Detroit, Michigan, United States that comprises five adjacent individual communities. From southwest to northeast, they are:*Grosse Pointe Park, city*Grosse Pointe, city*Grosse Pointe Farms, city...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, and was raised in a conservative Jehovah's Witness household. He quickly developed into a multi-talented musician after receiving his first guitar at the age of 12 and teaching himself to play several instruments. At the age of fourteen Gregg joined the band The Circus, with fellow classmates George Snow, John Mabarak, along with Gregg's older brother Stephen Aiuto. They played the 1984 highschool Battle of the Bands, competing against John Lowery (John 5). By the age of 16, he signed his first recording contract with A&M
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M division.-Beginnings:...
after playing his demo tapes to producer Rick Nowels
Rick Nowels
Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is a Grammy / Ivor Novello award-winning songwriter/producer who has worked with many of the most vibrant artists in contemporary music...
. He released his debut album Michigan Rain
Michigan Rain
Michigan Rain is the debut album from Gregg Alexander, released in 1989 by A&M Records.The album was originally supposed to be titled Save Me From Myself, but the title was changed at the last minute, because, as Alexander explained, "[...] the cover was me standing on a bridge with a broken mirror...
in 1989 at the age of 17, to little notice. In 1992 he signed to Epic
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
and released Intoxifornication
Intoxifornication
Intoxifornication is the second album by Gregg Alexander, released on May 5, 1992.It includes five tracks that had already been released on Alexander's 1989 debut album Michigan Rain.Both "Smokin' In Bed" and "The Truth" were released as one-track promotional...
, which consisted largely of re-released songs from Michigan Rain and was again ignored.
In the mid-1990s, Alexander would often busk
Busking
Street performance or busking is the practice of performing in public places, for gratuities, which are generally in the form of money and edibles...
in Tompkins Square Park
Tompkins Square Park
Tompkins Square Park is a 10.5 acre public park in the Alphabet City section of the East Village neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is square in shape, and is bounded on the north by East 10th Street, on the east by Avenue B, on the south by East 7th Street, and on the...
and Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
.
New Radicals
In 1997, Alexander formed the New RadicalsNew Radicals
New Radicals were an American pop rock band active in the late 1990s, centered on frontman Gregg Alexander, who wrote and produced all of their songs and was the sole constant member...
, a revolving-door band with no permanent members other than Alexander and long-term collaborator Danielle Brisebois
Danielle Brisebois
Danielle Anne Brisebois is an American actress, producer, songwriter and singer. In the 1990s she recorded two solo albums, Arrive All Over You and Portable Life, and was a member of the New Radicals...
. They released the album Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too
Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too
Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too is the only album by the New Radicals, released in late 1998 by MCA Records. Two singles were released off it in 1998 and 1999, "You Get What You Give" and "Someday We'll Know"....
in October 1998, which went on to sell over a million copies. The single "You Get What You Give
You Get What You Give
"You Get What You Give" is a song by the New Radicals. It was an international hit, the first and most successful single from their album Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too. It reached No. 30 on Billboard Hot 100 Airplay in January 1999, No. 36 on the overall Hot 100 and No. 8 on the Billboard...
" was released that fall and was a smash hit internationally. The song's unique sunny production sound became a template for much of Alexander's future production work.
It was not long after the New Radicals' success that Alexander became tired of the constant media attention and exhaustive touring schedule. In July 1999, "Someday We'll Know
Someday We'll Know
"Someday We'll Know" is a song by the New Radicals. It was released in May 1999 as the second single off their album Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too and the follow-up to the smash "You Get What You Give"...
" was announced as the band's second single. However, several days later Alexander announced he was disbanding the New Radicals to focus on production work. He said that "the fatigue of traveling and getting three hours sleep in a different hotel every night to do boring 'hanging and schmoozing' with radio and retail people is definitely not for me." Despite disagreements with MCA, Alexander finally agreed to shoot a video for "Someday We'll Know"; but with the band now defunct, the song got little attention and the New Radicals became known as a one-hit wonder
One-hit wonder
A one-hit wonder is a person or act known mainly for only a single success. The term is most often used to describe music performers with only one hit single.-Characteristics:...
.
Post New Radicals
Since disbanding the group in summer 1999, Alexander has written and produced songs for artists including Ronan KeatingRonan Keating
Ronan Patrick John Keating is an Irish recording artist, singer-songwriter, musician, and philanthropist. Keating debuted on the professional music scene alongside Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Shane Lynch and Stephen Gately, in 1994 as the lead singer of Boyzone. His solo career started in 1999, and...
, Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor is an English singer, songwriter, model and occasional DJ. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s, as the lead singer of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo, achieving widespread success in the early 2000s...
, Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Iglesias is a Spanish pop music singer, a son of singer Julio Iglesias.Enrique started his musical career on Mexican label Fonovisa...
,Texas
Texas (band)
Texas are a Scottish pop band from Bearsden, near Glasgow, Scotland. They were founded by Johnny McElhone in 1986 and feature Sharleen Spiteri on lead vocals. Texas made their performing debut in March 1988 at Scotland's University of Dundee...
, Hanson
Hanson (band)
Hanson are an American pop rock band formed in Tulsa, Oklahoma, by brothers Isaac , Taylor , and Zac Hanson . They are best known for the 1997 hit song "MMMBop" from their major label debut album Middle of Nowhere, which earned three Grammy nominations...
, Geri Halliwell
Geri Halliwell
Geraldine Estelle "Geri" Halliwell is an English pop singer-songwriter, author and actress. After coming to international prominence in the late 1990s as Ginger Spice, a member of the girl group the Spice Girls, Halliwell launched her solo career in 1998 and released her album Schizophonic...
, Melanie C
Melanie Chisholm
Melanie Jayne Chisholm is an English singer-songwriter, actress and businesswoman professionally known simply as Melanie C . She is best known as one of the five members of the girl group Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed "Sporty Spice"...
, Mónica Naranjo
Monica Naranjo
Mónica Naranjo Carrasco is a Spanish singer born in Figueras, a village in Spain to Andalusian parents. She has sold over 8 million albums worldwide.- Biography :...
and fellow ex-New Radical Danielle Brisebois
Danielle Brisebois
Danielle Anne Brisebois is an American actress, producer, songwriter and singer. In the 1990s she recorded two solo albums, Arrive All Over You and Portable Life, and was a member of the New Radicals...
. Most noteworthy was the song "The Game of Love
The Game of Love (Santana song)
"The Game of Love" is a song composed by Gregg Alexander and Rick Nowels, and is on the album Shaman by Santana. The vocal performance of the song is by Michelle Branch...
" by Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
and Michelle Branch
Michelle Branch
Michelle Jacquet DeSevren Branch is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and actress. During the early 2000s, she released two top-selling albums, The Spirit Room and Hotel Paper, and was subsequently nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2003...
, which earned Alexander a Grammy in 2003
Grammy Awards of 2003
The 45th Grammy Awards were held on February 23, 2003. Musicians accomplishments from the previous year were recognized. Norah Jones was the night's big winner winning five awards including Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Best New Artist, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Best Pop Vocal...
.
Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
described him as "the catchiest, smartest professional mainstream pop songwriter of the early 2000s."
In 2003 a new Alexander track, "A Love Like That
A Love Like That
"A Love Like That" is a song by Gregg Alexander, released exclusively on MP3 format in 2003. It deals with heartbreak and inability to accept that a partner has moved on, and is the only song in which Alexander has a role as a singer/performer since the disbanding of the New Radicals in 1999...
", was released uncredited on the Internet. It was suspected to be a New Radicals outtake, as parts of the lyrics were found in the booklet for Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too.
A new song entitled "Why Can't We Make Things Work" written by Alexander (and Rick Nowels
Rick Nowels
Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is a Grammy / Ivor Novello award-winning songwriter/producer who has worked with many of the most vibrant artists in contemporary music...
) was released by Any Dream Will Do
Any Dream Will Do (TV series)
Any Dream Will Do, often known as 'Joseph', was a 2007 talent show-themed television series produced by the BBC in the United Kingdom. It searched for a new, unknown lead to play Joseph in a West End revival of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.The show...
winner Lee Mead
Lee Mead
Lee Stephen Mead is an English musical theatre actor, best known for winning the title role in the 2007 West End revival of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat through the BBC reality TV casting show Any Dream Will Do...
in November 2007, on his self-titled album.
In 2010, Boyzone
Boyzone
Boyzone are an Irish boy band comprising Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Ronan Keating,Shane Lynch, and formerly Stephen Gately. Boyzone have 19 singles in the top 40 UK charts and 21 singles in the Ire charts. The group currently have 6 UK number one singles and 9 number one singles in Ireland with 12...
will release "Love Is a Hurricane
Love Is a Hurricane
"Love is a Hurricane" is a song performed by Irish group Boyzone. It was the second single to be released from their fourth studio album, Brother, on 17 May 2010. It is the first single without bandmate Stephen Gately, who died a year earlier...
", a song written by Gregg Alexander and Danielle Brisebois, which appears on the band's album, Brother
Brother (Boyzone album)
Brother was the fourth studio album by Irish pop group Boyzone, which became their first studio album released in 12 years. The album is named in memory of member Stephen Gately who died five months before its release...
(2010).
Aliases
- Gregg Alexander co-wrote and produced "The Game of Love"The Game of Love (Santana song)"The Game of Love" is a song composed by Gregg Alexander and Rick Nowels, and is on the album Shaman by Santana. The vocal performance of the song is by Michelle Branch...
by SantanaCarlos SantanaCarlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
and Michelle BranchMichelle BranchMichelle Jacquet DeSevren Branch is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and actress. During the early 2000s, she released two top-selling albums, The Spirit Room and Hotel Paper, and was subsequently nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2003...
as well as four songs on Enrique IglesiasEnrique IglesiasEnrique Iglesias is a Spanish pop music singer, a son of singer Julio Iglesias.Enrique started his musical career on Mexican label Fonovisa...
' album 77 (Enrique Iglesias album)-Chart positions:-Certifications:-External links:* * * *...
under the pseudonymPseudonymA pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Alex Ander.
Misc.
WeezerWeezer
Weezer is an American alternative rock band. The band currently consists of Rivers Cuomo , Patrick Wilson , Brian Bell , and Scott Shriner . The band has changed lineups three times since its formation in 1992...
frontman Rivers Cuomo
Rivers Cuomo
Rivers Cuomo is an American musician, best known as the lead singer, lead guitarist, and principal songwriter of the alternative rock band Weezer. Raised in an Ashram in Connecticut, Cuomo moved to Los Angeles at age 19, where he participated in a number of rock bands before founding Weezer in 1992...
released a cover of the song "The World We Love So Much" in his 2007 release "Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo
Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo
Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo is a compilation album by Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo, released on December 18, 2007. It is available as a digital release, CD release and 12" vinyl...
"
Discography
- For Gregg Alexander's releases with the New Radicals, see New Radicals' discography
Others
- "Promise Tomorrow Tonight" (1994, duet with Danielle BriseboisDanielle BriseboisDanielle Anne Brisebois is an American actress, producer, songwriter and singer. In the 1990s she recorded two solo albums, Arrive All Over You and Portable Life, and was a member of the New Radicals...
on her album Arrive All Over YouArrive All Over YouArrive All Over You is Danielle Brisebois' debut album, released on May 10, 1994 by Epic Records. It includes the singles "What If God Fell From The Sky", "Gimme Little Sign" and "I Don't Wanna Talk About Love"...
) - "A Love Like ThatA Love Like That"A Love Like That" is a song by Gregg Alexander, released exclusively on MP3 format in 2003. It deals with heartbreak and inability to accept that a partner has moved on, and is the only song in which Alexander has a role as a singer/performer since the disbanding of the New Radicals in 1999...
" (2003, digital download)