Christopher Sabec
Encyclopedia
Christopher Sabec is an entertainment attorney
, manager and executive who has worked with Dave Matthews Band
, Hanson
, the Jerry Garcia
Estate and Tea Leaf Green
Sabec currently is the co-founder and CEO of DigitalRights. After graduating from University of Georgia School of Law
in Athens, Georgia
in 1992, Sabec moved to Richmond, VA
and in the early 90s, was introduced to the Dave Matthews scene as a taper
. Later, as music attorney for Dave Mathews, Sabec assisted in negotiating his first recording contract
with RCA Records
and in setting up his music publishing company, Colden Grey.
In 1994, Sabec met Zac
, Isaac
and Taylor Hanson
at the South by Southwest
music conference barbecue in Austin, Texas
. Sabec signed the three boys aged 8, 11 and 13 to a management contract and got them signed to Mercury Records
. Their first album, Middle of Nowhere
, was a Top 10 album, and the single, "MMMBop
" was No. 1 for three weeks in the U.S. and also at the top of the charts in three European countries. Total worldwide sales of Middle of Nowhere have been 10 million copies.
Christopher Sabec was one of the first managers of major label artists to promote the downloading of MP3s as a promotional and marketing tool. In 1998, Christopher, was interviewed by then CEO of MP3.com
, Michael Robertson
, where he talked about how MP3s were going to change the music industry.
Sabec did some consulting work for Grateful Dead Productions in 2000. One of the attorney
s who represented the estate of Jerry Garcia invited Sabec to present a proposal on how to move Garcia's intellectual property
and legacy forward. In November 2002, Sabec was hired as manager of the Jerry Garcia Estate.
Sabec was a panelist at South by Southwest Music Conference in March, 2000 and has taught music industry continuing education
courses at the San Francisco Music Tech Summit.
In the 2000s, consumers went on to buy more than a million J. Garcia-brand necktie
s each year, and Cherry Garcia was often the top-selling brand of Ben & Jerry's
ice cream. Under Sabec's management the first live release in to retail was After Midnight
, a multitrack recording from Kean College, 1980. He went on to put out between three and four new releases a year from the vault of more than 500 concerts.
Sabec celebrated with his wife, Jacqueline, the birth of their second daughter, in May 2004.
In 2009, Pollstar
stated that Dave Matthews Band had grossed more than half a billion dollars.
Entertainment law
Entertainment law or media law is a term for a mix of more traditional categories of law with a focus on providing legal services to the entertainment industry. The principal areas of Entertainment Law overlap substantially with the well-known and conventional field of intellectual property law...
, manager and executive who has worked with Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band, sometimes shortened to DMB, is a U.S. rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1991. The founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer/backing vocalist Carter Beauford and saxophonist LeRoi Moore. Boyd Tinsley was...
, 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...
, the Jerry Garcia
Jerry Garcia
Jerome John "Jerry" Garcia was an American musician best known for his lead guitar work, singing and songwriting with the band the Grateful Dead...
Estate and Tea Leaf Green
Tea Leaf Green
Tea Leaf Green is a five-piece jam band from San Francisco Bay Area, comprising Josh Clark , Trevor Garrod , Reed Mathis , Scott Rager , and Cochrane McMillan .-History:Tea Leaf Green began in the fall of 1996, when Scott Rager met Ben Chambers on the...
Sabec currently is the co-founder and CEO of DigitalRights. After graduating from University of Georgia School of Law
University of Georgia School of Law
The University of Georgia School of Law is a graduate school of the University of Georgia. Founded in 1859 and located in Athens, Georgia, USA, Georgia Law was formerly known as the Lumpkin School of Law. The Law School is the second oldest of the University's schools and colleges. The University...
in Athens, Georgia
Athens, Georgia
Athens-Clarke County is a consolidated city–county in U.S. state of Georgia, in the northeastern part of the state, comprising the former City of Athens proper and Clarke County. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial growth of the city...
in 1992, Sabec moved to Richmond, VA
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
and in the early 90s, was introduced to the Dave Matthews scene as a taper
Taper (concert)
A Taper is a person who records musical events often from standing microphones in the audience for the benefit of the musical group's fanbase. Such taping was popularized in the late 1960s and early 1970s by fans of the Grateful Dead. Audio recording was allowed at shows and fans would share their...
. Later, as music attorney for Dave Mathews, Sabec assisted in negotiating his first recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
with RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
and in setting up his music publishing company, Colden Grey.
In 1994, Sabec met Zac
Zac Hanson
Zachary Walker "Zac" Hanson is an American musician, best known as a member of the pop band Hanson. He plays drums, percussion, piano, guitar and also sings back-up and lead vocals...
, Isaac
Isaac Hanson
Isaac Hanson is an American musician best known as a member of the pop rock trio Hanson, which includes his two younger brothers Taylor and Zac...
and Taylor Hanson
Taylor Hanson
Taylor Hanson is an American musician best known as a member of the pop rock band Hanson. He sings both lead and back-up vocals, and plays keyboard, percussion , guitar, harmonica, and piano...
at the South by Southwest
South by Southwest
South by Southwest is an Austin, Texas based company dedicated to planning conferences, trade shows, festivals and other events. Their current roster of annual events include: SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSW Interactive, SXSWedu, and SXSWeco and take place every spring in Austin, Texas, United States...
music conference barbecue in Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
. Sabec signed the three boys aged 8, 11 and 13 to a management contract and got them signed to Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
. Their first album, Middle of Nowhere
Middle of Nowhere (Hanson album)
Middle of Nowhere is the third album by American pop rock group Hanson, and the first to be released on a major label, which was Polygram Records and Mercury Records. Released in 1997, it features slicker studio production compared to their previous indie efforts Boomerang and MMMBop...
, was a Top 10 album, and the single, "MMMBop
MMMBop
"MMMBop" is a song written and performed by the American pop rock band Hanson from their 1997 album Middle of Nowhere. The song was nominated for two Grammys at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards in February 1998, and is the band's most successful single to date.By any measure, "MMMBop" was phenomenally...
" was No. 1 for three weeks in the U.S. and also at the top of the charts in three European countries. Total worldwide sales of Middle of Nowhere have been 10 million copies.
Christopher Sabec was one of the first managers of major label artists to promote the downloading of MP3s as a promotional and marketing tool. In 1998, Christopher, was interviewed by then CEO of MP3.com
MP3.com
MP3.com is a web site operated by CNET Networks providing information about digital music and artists, songs, services, community, and technologies. It is probably better known for its original incarnation, as a legal, free music-sharing service, popular with independent musicians for promoting...
, Michael Robertson
Michael Robertson
Michael Robertson is the founder and former CEO of MP3.com, which quickly became one of the most popular Internet music sites. In the years following his departure from MP3.com, Robertson launched several small start-up companies, including Linspire, SIPphone, MP3tunes, and Ajax 13...
, where he talked about how MP3s were going to change the music industry.
Sabec did some consulting work for Grateful Dead Productions in 2000. One of the attorney
Attorney at law
An attorney at law in the United States is a practitioner in a court of law who is legally qualified to prosecute and defend actions in such court on the retainer of clients. Alternative terms include counselor and lawyer...
s who represented the estate of Jerry Garcia invited Sabec to present a proposal on how to move Garcia's intellectual property
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
and legacy forward. In November 2002, Sabec was hired as manager of the Jerry Garcia Estate.
Sabec was a panelist at South by Southwest Music Conference in March, 2000 and has taught music industry continuing education
Continuing education
Continuing education is an all-encompassing term within a broad spectrum of post-secondary learning activities and programs. The term is used mainly in the United States and Canada...
courses at the San Francisco Music Tech Summit.
In the 2000s, consumers went on to buy more than a million J. Garcia-brand necktie
Necktie
A necktie is a long piece of cloth worn for decorative purposes around the neck or shoulders, resting under the shirt collar and knotted at the throat. Variants include the ascot tie, bow tie, bolo tie, and the clip-on tie. The modern necktie, ascot, and bow tie are descended from the cravat. Neck...
s each year, and Cherry Garcia was often the top-selling brand of Ben & Jerry's
Ben & Jerry's
Ben & Jerry's is an American ice cream company, a division of the British-Dutch Unilever conglomerate, that manufactures ice cream, frozen yogurt, sorbet, and ice cream novelty products, manufactured by Ben & Jerry's Homemade Holdings, Inc., headquartered in South Burlington, Vermont, United...
ice cream. Under Sabec's management the first live release in to retail was After Midnight
After Midnight: Kean College, 2/28/80
- Jerry Garcia Band :* Jerry Garcia — guitar, vocals* John Kahn — bass* Ozzie Ahlers — keyboards* Johnny d'Foncesca — drums- Production :* Original producer — Jerry Garcia* Release producer — Christopher Sabec, Peter McQuaid, Hale Milgrim...
, a multitrack recording from Kean College, 1980. He went on to put out between three and four new releases a year from the vault of more than 500 concerts.
Sabec celebrated with his wife, Jacqueline, the birth of their second daughter, in May 2004.
In 2009, Pollstar
Pollstar
Pollstar is a concert tour industry's leading trade publication that gets its information primarily from the agents, managers and promoters who are producing concerts. Founded in 1981, it is based in Fresno, California and has an office in London with correspondents in six countries. Pollstar is...
stated that Dave Matthews Band had grossed more than half a billion dollars.
External links
- http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20122601,00.html
- http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/09/national/09dead.html
- http://www.jambands.com/features/2004/09/30/a-glimpse-at-garcia-with-christopher-sabec
- http://www.billboard.com/news/hanson-gets-serious-on-tour-1003723120.story#/news/hanson-gets-serious-on-tour-1003723120.story
- Middle of Nowhere (Hanson album)Middle of Nowhere (Hanson album)Middle of Nowhere is the third album by American pop rock group Hanson, and the first to be released on a major label, which was Polygram Records and Mercury Records. Released in 1997, it features slicker studio production compared to their previous indie efforts Boomerang and MMMBop...
- http://www.sanfranmusictech.com/cle3.pdf
- http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,989135,00.html
- http://www.deaddisc.com/disc/Now_And_Then.htm
- http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/hanson/artist.jhtml
- http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20126768,00.html
- http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/01/13/moes.garcia/
- http://www.mbsolutions.com/biz/Info42.html
- http://www.nytimes.com/2000/05/25/arts/the-pop-life-teeny-boppers-shatter-a-record.html?pagewanted=1
- http://web.archive.org/web/19981201230451/http://mp3.com/news/100.html