The Colorado Music Business Organization
The Colorado Music Business Organization (COMBO) is a
community organization of musicians and music scene supporters. COMBOs mission is to offer the best education and support resources for the
Colorado music community.
Our Next Program! May 20th
COMBO’s Next Program Monday, May 20th : Grammy Winning Sound Engineer Clark Hagan on Why You Need a Really Good Demo Recording
COMBO’s own Board Member and Grammy Award Winning Sound Engineer Clark Hagan has offered to present a program on Why You Need a Really Good Recording of your music. He’ll explain the differences most commonly found between professional recordings and DIY recordings that astute people can really hear.
An example was brought up at a COMBO Program Committee meeting about a contestant on So You Think You Can Dance a few years ago who had a friend, Christina Perri, who had co-written (along with Drew Lawrence and Barrett Yeretsian) a song called “Jar of Hearts” that the contestant really liked and wanted to dance to. The demo she presented, while good, would go over the airwaves sounding not-so-good. So the producers of the dance competition said she could use the song but only if she got a MUCH better recording of it for them to use. End result: The dancer ended up in the Top 5 and the song ended up selling millions of “records” reaching the Top 20 in the U.S., and being certified Platinum 3xs over! So let Clark explain to you what was going on in the TV show’s execs minds and why it is important that you have a great recording ready to go! https://clarkhaganproductions.com/
From Wikipedia:
Perri wrote the song in December 2009, only to begin working with her production and management team in February 2010. While recording for an EP, “Jar of Hearts” was additionally going to be recorded with a full band; however, Perri later decided against it stating that “I imagined people dancing to it. It was all a big ‘just in case.'”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jar_of_Hearts
After graduating from the University of Colorado at Denver, Clark began to master his craft as a recording engineer while working with the legendary Bill Porter whose credits include artists such as Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, and the Everly Brothers while at RCA from 1959 to 1964. After a short stint at Allen-Martin Productions in Louisville, Kentucky, Clark moved to Nashville where his trusted relationship with Porter provided the opportunity to work with the legendary Chet Atkins.
In his time with Atkins, Clark engineered the Grammy Award Winning record in 1996 for best country instrumental and was nominated again in 1997 for a record with Atkins and Tommy Emmanuel in the same category in which he played guitar on to. Clark’s success with Atkins paid off and subsequently led to work with some of Nashville’s top artists including Ray Stevens, Alison Krauss, Bryan White, and Jeffery Steele amongst others. In the highly competitive world of Nashville Clark continued to build relationships with such producers as Scott Litt, Tony Brown, Kyle Lehning, Billy Joe Walker Jr., Bill Schnee, and James William Guercio while also getting to work out of some elite studios such as Woodland Sound Studios, Quad, Omni, and Masterfonics.
Clark has worked with other such national artists as Kenny Passarelli, Marty Haggard, and Eugene Moles along with Colorado artists such as Dave Preston, Oscar Ross, Wild Angels, Nick O’Connor, and Casey James Prestwood and the Burning Angels to name a few. Clark has also been working with the Caribou Ranch estate on the “Caribou Collection” project with artists Elton John, Billy Joel, and Chicago, and is also refurbished one of the original Caribou Ranch consoles the “Olive”.
Whether it be mixing, tracking, or producing, from rock to country, Clark brings his rich heritage and diverse experience to every project and is always looking for artists who share the same passion. to make great sounding records. Along with doing projects out of Macy Sound Studios, Clark is also an experienced technician and is also knowledgeable and competent tech and audio consultant.
Artists Worked With
Chet Atkins, Ray Stevens, Brian White, Jeffery Steele, Turley Richards, Tommy Emmanuel, Duke Robillard, Kenny Passarelli, Days of the New, Mandy Barnett, Vince Gill, Tantric, Jerry Reed, Steve Wariner, Allison Krauss, The Cox Family, Billy Jo Walker Jr., Harold Bradley, Boots Randolph, JD Sumner, Mickey Gilley, Perry Como, and others
Producers Worked With
Chet Atkins, Ray Stevens, James William Guercio, Bill Porter, Steve Wariner, Kyle Lehning, Bill Schnee, Billy Jo Walker Jr., Scott Litt, Gene Eichelberger, Turley Richards, Kenny Passarelli, Tom Harding, and others
Awards / Highlights
– Grammy Award Winner with Chet Atkins 1996 Best Country Instrumental E
“Jam Man” became the theme song for Esurance, has been played over 5,000,000 times Nationally
– Grammy Nominated with Chet Atkins, and Tommy Emmanuel 1997 Best Country Instrumental E,G
– RIAA Certified Platinum record with Brian White E
– Multi-Platinum movie, Get Serious with Ray Stevens M,E
– Justine Valdini-Where Does It Stop M,E
Reached #9 on Adult Contemporary Charts
– Phil Jensen-Oh Silent Night P,M,E
Reached #23 Adult Contemporary Charts
https://clarkhaganproductions.com/
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Announcements and Calendar for This Week!
Two OMGs! 1) We publish the newsletter in “articles”, shortened stories of some event in the music business that musicians should know about. A member
![Willie Hammond](https://coloradomusic.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Willie-Hammond-223x300.jpg)
Hallelujah! COMBO and Durango Songwriters Expo Giving Away a Free Entry to the DSE in October!
You may have noticed that we did not run a Songwriting Contest this year so we were disappointed that we would not be able to
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Underground Music Showcases are Finally Here! This Weekend on South Broadway in Denver
UMS week is finally here, and we’ve got your ultimate guide to making the most of it. Whether you’re a first-timer or a seasoned UMS
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KSUT’S 19th Annual Party in the Park is This Friday in Durango!
Join KSUT for our Party in the Park on Friday, July 26th at Buckley Park in Durango. Gates open at 5:30 with music from The
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Celebrated Composer Lena Frank Comes to Colorado to Premiere New Symphony
By Libby Smith, CBS Colorado | Colorado Music Festival brings some of the best classical music to Boulder throughout the summer. The Festival has also
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The City of Boulder Presenting Arts in the Park August 9th – COMBO’s Laurie & Lorrie on at 6:15 p.m.
The City of Boulder presents Arts in the Park, a program showcasing a vibrant blend of arts and cultural performances and will take place at
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Brazilian Singer Ayres Ssaki Fatally Electrocuted After Hugging Wet Fan at Concert
Photo: Ayres & Mariana Sasaki | By Mitchell Peters, Billboard | The 35-year-old musician died almost instantly after hugging a soaking-wet fan during a concert
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SoFar Sounds House Concert July 20th – COMBO’s Summer Tour!
Photo: Sarah Banker | COMBO joined SoFar Sounds for a house concert in the south Denver area on Saturday, July 20th. The “venue” was superb!
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Mile High Blues Society is Holding Its Annual Road to Memphis Blues Challenge
The Mile High Blues Society is holding it annual Road to Memphis Blues Challenge. The winners of this challenge have the opportunity to compete in
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Colorado Springs Front Range Songwriters Group Sends a Request for Their Next Meeting
Hey, Songwriters! As you may know, we will not have our usual workshop in August, but we will return with our monthly meetings on Wednesday,
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Katherine Jackson Loses Battle to Stop Sale of Michael Jackson’s Catalog
By Cedric “Big CED” Thornton, Black Enterprise .com | Michael Jackson’s mother, Katherine Jackson, has lost a dispute with her son’s estate regarding the proposed
![Katy Perry](https://coloradomusic.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Katy-Perry-Rise-300x200.jpg)
Katy Perry Just Flopped So Hard It’s Shocking. Can She Recover?
By Alec Karam, The Daily Beast | Unfortunately, it seems to be really over this time. Five years after Perry attempted her first big comeback
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Mark “Mad Dog” Friedman Sets Up Harmonica-Only Playlist on Spotify, Releases New Single
From Mark Friedman: I have always been intrigued and inspire by harmonica only jams, so finally I put together a playlist on Spotify and one
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Every Week, Gabe and Andy Take a Walk – and “High Five” – for 10 Years Now
Photo: Andy | CBS’s On the Road with Steve Hartman, presented the story of Gabe Scott and Andy Gullahorn, musicians from Nashville, who have pretty
![Katherine Paul](https://coloradomusic.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Black-Belt-Eagle-Scout-178x300.jpg)
Black Belt Eagle Scout Starts GoFundMe After “Medical Emergency” Forces Show Cancellations
Photo: Katherine Paul |By Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork | Katherine Paul says she is “unable to work for the foreseeable future” after a suspected diagnosis of
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Leaving Earth This Past Week: Musicians Dick Asher, Don Buchwald, Duke Fakir, John Mayall, Evelyn Thomas, Jerry Miller, Sandy Posey, Jerry Fuller, Pinche Peach, and Happy Traum // Other Notable Musicians’ Deaths
Photo: John Mayall | So many of our beloved musicians took wings and left us this past week that I’ve condensed their obituaries into a
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Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA’s New Album is a Ballet Score With Colorado Symphony Orchestra
By Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork | RZA is back with a new album—a recording of the score to A Ballet Through Mud, which the Wu-Tang Clan
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Some Elvis Collectibles Recently Sold at Auction Could Be Fake, Graceland Execs Allege
By Abby Montanez, Robb Report | Elvis Presley‘s estate wants to set the record straight about recent memorabilia sales. GWS Auctions, a California-based auction house
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