Jim Brickman - Pollstar News

ONE DOESN'T USUALLY think of solo piano as a medium for pop music. For that reason, Jim Brickman didn't have much of an example to follow when he tried to make his way into the music industry with his brand of piano pop. Though the idea didn't catch on right away, Brickman kept selling himself and his music. It took some creative ideas and a lot of convincing before he got his chance. But the pianist has proved he was worth the risk, as his music has spanned many radio formats and he's become one of Windham Hill Records' most successful acts.

While most instrumentalists would surely come up with a host of musical legends to name as influences, Brickman would probably be more likely to name a list of commercials jingles. "I found myself kind of imitating commercials that I'd hear on T.V. and I had a knack for very catchy melodies and choruses," Brickman told POLLSTAR. That's not to say he isn't a learned composer. He has classical composition and performance training from the Cleveland Institute of Music. Although, he was said to be the "black sheep" of the conservatory for bypassing the classical to put his studies to use in mainstream music.

Even before formal training, as a teenager, it was obvious Brickman had natural talent. He started by writing down little songs that popped into his head. That evolved into an early career in commercial jingle writing and producing.

At age 18, Brickman started his own jingle business in his home city of Cleveland. He made up a tape of fake commercials and started soliciting advertising agencies. Things were tough at first because clients had a problem taking the kid seriously. "But when they heard the work, I think they started to appreciate it and I started getting more real work," he said.

Brickman make quite a success out of his business, boasting a client list that grew to include McDonald's, Standard Oil, Pontiac, 7-Up, AT&T, Miller Beer, Revlon, the Walt Disney Company and many more. Along the way, he collaborated with star vocalists including Whitney Houston, Luther Vandross and Michael Bolton.

But Brickman eventually grew tired of the jingle biz. "I had done it for a long time. I started when I was 18 and I had done it for 12 years," he said. "I had really exercised all that I felt I could learn in that environment and I longed to do something that was a little bit more personally satisfying where I was starting to catch up with myself as far as my heart and soul."

So he set out on a new mission – again, against all odds – this time with a demo tape of his piano material in hand. Before looking for a record company, he did some research. "I just sort of drove around the country and visited radio stations and asked them, before I pursued my recording career, 'Would you play this on your radio station? It's solo piano.' Most people said no, but I got the sense that it was a time in adult contemporary radio where they were looking for something a little bit new and different." Brickman figured if he could get his solo piano music on adult contemporary stations, he could garner a much larger audience than with the more narrowly formatted jazz stations.

When Brickman took his proposal to record companies, "They all kind of looked at me like I was nuts," he said. "But Windham Hill found the concept interesting and they really liked the music. They felt it was something different that had never been done before – solo piano pop music, which is really what it is."

With a record deal on the table, the next thing on the agenda was a full-blown attack on radio. Brickman and his manager, David Pringle of Edge Entertainment, saw radio as their key to success so they pioneered a plan. "We just actively pursued radio in a heavy way all the time…. I think a lot of people think that they should only work a record when the product is being released, kind of like sometimes people only tour when they're promoting an album. I believe that you have to always be kind of nurturing the career."

As part of nurturing and expanding his career, Brickman has taken to actively cross formatting his music on radio. On top of AC and pop stations, he ventured to reach country audiences with a duet with Martina McBride on his latest gold album, Picture This. The song, "Valentine," went on to hit the Top 10 on AC charts, making Brickman Windham Hill's highest charting artist ever. He also crossed over to NAC and smooth jazz radio with the song "You Never Know," a duet with saxophonist Boney James. "I'm in a really good position to be able to do this because I'm an instrumentalist," Brickman said. "So my voice is the piano but having guest artists is a way to kind of open up my audience but also grow and learn and be exposed to other great talent."

Brickman is continuing to expand his horizons working with artists such as Collin Raye and Christian group Point of Grace on an upcoming Christmas album. "There conceivably could be three to four singles out for me at Christmas time that are each for different formats," he said.

No matter what kind of audience he's playing to, word among critics is that Brickman puts on one heck of live concert – not an easy task for a one-man show. "I try my best to make it as intimate as possible – to make it feel to the audience like I'm over at their house for dinner or like I'm sitting in their living room because I am on stage by myself. There's no orchestra, there's no band. It's just me," he said. "It's something you have to work at to make it look easy."

Brickman intends to continue the slow, steady path his career has been on for the last three years, building a loyal following. Edge Entertainment, which also handles booking, currently has the pianist on a light summer tour of the U.S.