Millard Powers
Encyclopedia
Avery Millard Powers III (born December 24, 1965 in Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city by population in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. According to the 2010 U.S...

) is an American musician, songwriter, record 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...

, and grammy nominated recording engineer.

Early history

Powers studied piano for six years, and played trumpet in his middle school and high school bands for five years. He went on to study Guitar Performance and Communications at University of North Carolina at Greensboro
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro , also known as UNC Greensboro, is a public university in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States and is a constituent institution of the University of North Carolina system. The university offers more than 100 undergraduate, 61 master's and 26...

.

Majosha

Majosha
Majosha
Majosha was a band formed around early 1988 with Ben Folds on bass, Millard Powers on guitar, and Dave Rich on drums. They played their first show at Duke University's Battle of the Bands in 1988 and won. Majosha released an EP, Party Night: Five Songs About Jesus in 1988, which contained four...

 was a band formed around early 1988 with Ben Folds
Ben Folds
Benjamin Scott "Ben" Folds is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and television personality. From 1995-2000, Folds was the frontman and pianist of the alternative rock band Ben Folds Five. Since the group disbanded, Folds has performed as a solo artist and has toured all over the world...

 on bass, Powers on guitar, and Dave Rich on drums. They played their first show at Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...

's Battle of the Bands
Battle of the Bands
Battle of Bands is a contest in which two or more bands compete for the title of "best band". The winner is determined by a panel of judges, the general response of the audience, or a combination. The winning band usually receives a prize in addition to bragging rights. Traditionally, battles of...

 in 1988 and won. Majosha released an EP, Party Night: Five Songs About Jesus in 1988, which contained four tracks, and none of which were about Jesus. After gaining popularity, they released their first album, Shut Up and Listen to Majosha
Shut Up and Listen to Majosha
Shut Up and Listen to Majosha is Majosha's first and only album. This album never made it to CD, and was only ever available on vinyl and cassette. All songs were written by Ben Folds and Millard Powers except "Emaline", written by both Ben Folds and Evan Olson...

in 1989. Around the same time, they did a dance mix of Get That Bug which was released in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. The band's label was Fresh Avery Records. All tracks were produced by Folds and Powers.

The Semantics

The Semantics
The Semantics
The Semantics were a band from Nashville, Tennessee, formed by Jody Spence, Millard Powers and Will Owsley. Their music is generally regarded as power pop, combining elements of 70s pop and southern rock.- History :...

, a power-pop band formed by Millard Powers and Will Owsley
Owsley (musician)
William Reese "Will" Owsley III , known professionally as Owsley, was an American singer-songwriter, best known as for his work as guitarist in Amy Grant's touring band. His solo albums won critical acclaim and one Grammy Award nomination...

, featured Jody Spence and Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...

's son, Zak Starkey
Zak Starkey
Zak Starkey is an English rock drummer. He is the son of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr and Starr's first wife Maureen Starkey Tigrett. He is also well known for his unofficial membership in the English rock band The Who, with whom he has performed and recorded since 1996. He is also the third...

. Ben Folds
Ben Folds
Benjamin Scott "Ben" Folds is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and television personality. From 1995-2000, Folds was the frontman and pianist of the alternative rock band Ben Folds Five. Since the group disbanded, Folds has performed as a solo artist and has toured all over the world...

 appeared on drums on two demos which were not released and on keyboard at a few live performances. Folds was not involved with the creative aspects of the group. The band was signed to Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...

, and their album Powerbill, initially slated for release through Geffen Records in 1993, was released in Japan through Alfa International on December 21, 1996.

Solo album

Powers released a self-titled solo album in 2001. Powers played all instruments (bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

, drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

, keyboard
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

), recorded, produced, mixed, and engineered the album himself in his apartment in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

. No other artists were featured on the album.

Track listing

  1. Pamela (4:28)
  2. One More Step (3:34)
  3. Jerry Deacon (2:26)
  4. Gone (2:49)
  5. She's So Clean (2:26)
  6. Heart Attack (2:55)
  7. Simple Thing (3:04)
  8. Jenny Won't Play Fair (2:19)
  9. Vegas (4:12)

Production and engineering

Powers was nominated for a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...

 for Best Engineered Album
Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
The Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical has been awarded since 1959. The award had several minor name changes:*In 1959 the award was known as Best Engineered Record - Non-Classical...

 in 1999 for his work on the album Owsley
Owsley (album)
- Personnel :* Will Owsley – vocals , guitars , bass , producer , engineer , assistant mixer Additional instruments: Echoplex , Mellotron , Wurlitzer piano , Hammond B-3 , Chamberlin , piano...

 by American singer-songwriter and guitarist Will Owsley.

Touring

He has played with acts such as Counting Crows
Counting Crows
Counting Crows is an American rock band originating from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1991, the group gained popularity following the release of its debut album in 1993, August and Everything After, which featured the hit single "Mr. Jones"...

, Keith Urban
Keith Urban
Keith Lionel Urban is a New Zealand-born Australian, country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban was born in New Zealand and began his career in Australia at an early age...

, Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...

, Ben Folds
Ben Folds
Benjamin Scott "Ben" Folds is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and television personality. From 1995-2000, Folds was the frontman and pianist of the alternative rock band Ben Folds Five. Since the group disbanded, Folds has performed as a solo artist and has toured all over the world...

, Holly Williams
Holly Williams
Holly Williams is an American country music artist. She is the daughter of Hank Williams, Jr. and half-sister of country singer Hank Williams III. Williams has released two studio albums: The Ones We Never Knew and Here with Me, in 2004 and 2009 respectively...

, Cyndi Thomson
Cyndi Thomson
Cyndi Thomson is an American country music artist. Thomson wrote songs with songwriter Tommy Lee James and in 2000, she signed with Capitol Records Nashville as a recording artist...

, Greta Gaines, Anita Cochran
Anita Cochran
Anita Renee Cockerham , known professionally as Anita Cochran, is an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist and record producer. Signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1997, she made her debut on the U.S. country charts that year with the release of her first album Back to You...

, and Butterfly Boucher
Butterfly Boucher
Butterfly Boucher is an Australian singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. She has released two albums, Flutterby and Scary Fragile .-Biography:...

.

Counting Crows

Powers joined Counting Crows
Counting Crows
Counting Crows is an American rock band originating from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1991, the group gained popularity following the release of its debut album in 1993, August and Everything After, which featured the hit single "Mr. Jones"...

 for his first show April 22, 2005, in Denver, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

. He plays bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

, upright double bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...

, piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

, and performs live vocals. He has since recorded two albums with the group, one studio album and one live album. He also appears on a Counting Crows compilation album.

Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings

Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings
Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings
Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings is the fifth studio album by Counting Crows, released in the United States on March 25, 2008. It is thematically divided into two sides: the rock music of Saturday Nights and the more country-influenced Sunday Mornings. Vocalist and lyricist Adam Duritz states that...

was released March 25, 2008. The album debuted at #3 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

 and #1 on iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....

. This is the fifth studio album by Counting Crows
Counting Crows
Counting Crows is an American rock band originating from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1991, the group gained popularity following the release of its debut album in 1993, August and Everything After, which featured the hit single "Mr. Jones"...

. It is thematically divided into two sides: the rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 of Saturday Nights and the more country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

-influenced Sunday Mornings. The Saturday Nights portion was produced by Gil Norton
Gil Norton
Gil Norton is a British record producer known for his work with such bands as Pixies, Echo & the Bunnymen, Foo Fighters, Tribe, Jimmy Eat World, Dashboard Confessional, Feeder, The Distillers, Maxïmo Park, Counting Crows, Terrorvision, The Triffids, Del Amitri, James, The Feelers, The Beekeepers,...

 (who also produced the band's second album, Recovering the Satellites
Recovering the Satellites
-External links:**...

), while Sunday Mornings was produced by Brian Deck
Brian Deck
Brian Deck is an American music producer and member of band Red Red Meat. He co-founded Idful Studios in 1988. Since becoming a full time producer, Deck has worked with bands and artists including Modest Mouse, Iron & Wine, Califone, All Smiles, Fruit Bats , Gomez, The Grates, Holopaw, Baby & Hide,...

.

Powers' contribution to the album is listed in the liner notes as, "bass guitar, upright double bass, general all-around unflappable musical genius... and vocals."

Live From Soho

iTunes Live from SoHo
ITunes Live from SoHo (Counting Crows EP)
iTunes Live from SoHo is an acoustic live album by American alternative rock band Counting Crows. It is an iTunes exclusive. The latter half of the album consists of songs from their latest studio album, Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings...

was recorded on March 27, 2008, at an in-store performance in Apple's famous SoHo
SoHo
SoHo is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City, notable for being the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, and also, more recently, for the wide variety of stores and shops ranging from trendy boutiques to outlets of upscale national and international chain stores...

 location in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

. This album was an iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....

 exclusive. Powers plays bass and upright double bass.

Aural 6

Aural 6
Aural 6
Aural 6 is an EP by Counting Crows released on November 27, 2008. The Best Buy-exclusive compilation sampler contains tracks from several of their previous albums. This was one of a series of six-song EPs released at Best Buy for $5.99 for Black Friday, 2008.-Track listing:#"Mr...

is an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...

 released on November 27, 2008. The Best Buy
Best Buy
Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Mexico, Canada & China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, CinemaNow, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates...

-exclusive compilation
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...

 sampler contains tracks from several of their previous albums, including Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings. This was one of a series of six-song EPs released at Best Buy on Black Friday
Black Friday (shopping)
Black Friday is the day following Thanksgiving Day in the United States, traditionally the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. On this day, most major retailers open extremely early, often at 4 a.m., or earlier, and offer promotional sales to kick off the shopping season, similar to Boxing...

, 2008.

Television appearances

Powers has made multiple television appearances on Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...

, The Today Show, The View, The Late Show with David Letterman
David Letterman
David Michael Letterman is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, Late Show with David Letterman, broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC...

, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and many other programs between 1991 and present. In 2005 he appeared in 10 episodes of the program Three Wishes, with Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...

. In 2009, Powers performed on the U.K.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 series Live from Abbey Road
Live from Abbey Road
Live from Abbey Road is a 12-part, one-hour performance series/documentary that began filming its first season during 2006 at Abbey Road Studios in London. Season 2 was filmed between 2007 and 2008, season 3 was filmed in 2009 and Season 4 was filmed in 2011...

 with Counting Crows.

2000-2009

  • 2009: Lines, Vines and Trying Times
    Lines, Vines and Trying Times
    Lines, Vines and Trying Times is the fourth studio album by the Jonas Brothers and their third album released under Hollywood Records. It was released June 16, 2009 in the U.S. The album received mixed reviews from critics and fans. In its first week, Lines, Vines and Trying Times sold 247,000...

    , Jonas Brothers
    Jonas Brothers
    The Jonas Brothers are an American boy band. The band gained its popularity from the Disney Channel children's television network. From the shore region of New Jersey, the band consists of three brothers: Paul Kevin Jonas II , Joseph Adam Jonas , and Nicholas Jerry Jonas...

     (12 string acoustic guitar)
  • 2008: Aural 6
    Aural 6
    Aural 6 is an EP by Counting Crows released on November 27, 2008. The Best Buy-exclusive compilation sampler contains tracks from several of their previous albums. This was one of a series of six-song EPs released at Best Buy for $5.99 for Black Friday, 2008.-Track listing:#"Mr...

    , Counting Crows
    Counting Crows
    Counting Crows is an American rock band originating from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1991, the group gained popularity following the release of its debut album in 1993, August and Everything After, which featured the hit single "Mr. Jones"...

     (bass)
  • 2008: Live from SoHo, Counting Crows (bass, upright double bass)
  • 2008: Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings
    Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings
    Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings is the fifth studio album by Counting Crows, released in the United States on March 25, 2008. It is thematically divided into two sides: the rock music of Saturday Nights and the more country-influenced Sunday Mornings. Vocalist and lyricist Adam Duritz states that...

    , Counting Crows (bass, upright double bass, vocals)
  • 2008: Whiskey Thoughts, Greta Gaines (bass)
  • 2008: Raiders of the Lost Hook Volume 3, various artists (featured artist, Heart Attack)
  • 2006: Time Again...Amy Grant Live
    Time Again...Amy Grant Live
    Time Again... Amy Grant Live is the 21st album by Christian music singer-songwriter Amy Grant, released on September 26, 2006 ....

    (CD & DVD), Amy Grant
    Amy Grant
    Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...

     (bass, vocals)
  • 2005: Popcorn And A Mama Who Loves Me Too, Swan Dive
    Swan Dive
    Founded in 1995, Swan Dive is an American musical duo composed of Bill DeMain and Molly Felder. Swan Dive is best known for their album Circle, released in 1998...

     (bass, Moog bass)
  • 2004: It Was Hot, Greta Gaines (bass, vocals)
  • 2004: The Hard Way
    The Hard Way (Owsley album)
    - Personnel :* Will Owsley – vocals , backing vocals , electric guitars , acoustic guitar , bass , piano , producer , engineer...

    , Owsley (bass)
  • 2003: Memory Girls, Warren Zanes (bass, vocals)
  • 2001: Millard Powers, Millard Powers
  • 2001: Gypsy Flat Road
    Gypsy Flat Road
    Gypsy Flat Road is the second studio album from Sandra McCracken.-Track listing:# "Gypsy Flat Road" – 4:17# "Family Name" – 4:34# "Where I`m From" – 4:49# "Violet Eyes" – 3:59# "Springtime Indiana" – 2:40# "Ticket Home" – 5:00...

    , Sandra McCracken
    Sandra McCracken
    Sandra McCracken is an independent singer-songwriter. She currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband and fellow singer-songwriter Derek Webb.-Background:...

     (bass)
  • 2001: Covered, Sarah Siskind
    Sarah Siskind
    Sarah Siskind is a singer and songwriter based in Nashville and grounded in folk and Appalachian roots. Her music has been classified as: rock, folk, americana, and alternative. Alison Krauss has championed Sarah and values her songs so highly that she’s recorded two of them, both of which became...

     (bass)
  • 2000: Six Songs of Mine, Sarah Siskind (bass)

1990-1999

  • 1999: Deep Volume 3, Various Artists (Featured Artist, She's So Clean)
  • 1999: Greta Gaines, Greta Gaines (bass)
  • 1999: Owsley, Owsley (producer, engineer, songwriter)
  • 1998: Nashpop: A Nashville Pop Collection, various artists (featured artist, She's So Clean)
  • 1998: Ten: The Birthday Album, Various Artists (bass, engineer)
  • 1993: Powerbill, The Semantics
    The Semantics
    The Semantics were a band from Nashville, Tennessee, formed by Jody Spence, Millard Powers and Will Owsley. Their music is generally regarded as power pop, combining elements of 70s pop and southern rock.- History :...

     (songwriter, producer, musician)
  • 1992: The World as Best as I Remember It, Volume Two, Rich Mullins
    Rich Mullins
    Richard Wayne "Rich" Mullins was an American Contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter born in Richmond, Indiana. He had two sisters and two brothers....

     (vocals)

1980-1989

  • 1989: Shut Up and Listen to Majosha
    Shut Up and Listen to Majosha
    Shut Up and Listen to Majosha is Majosha's first and only album. This album never made it to CD, and was only ever available on vinyl and cassette. All songs were written by Ben Folds and Millard Powers except "Emaline", written by both Ben Folds and Evan Olson...

    , Majosha
    Majosha
    Majosha was a band formed around early 1988 with Ben Folds on bass, Millard Powers on guitar, and Dave Rich on drums. They played their first show at Duke University's Battle of the Bands in 1988 and won. Majosha released an EP, Party Night: Five Songs About Jesus in 1988, which contained four...

     (guitar
    Guitar
    The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

    , mandolin
    Mandolin
    A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...

    , vocals, 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...

    )
  • 1988: Party Night: Five Songs About Jesus, Majosha (guitar, vocals, producer)

External links

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