Peter Asher with the Laguna Concert Band
"A British Invasion Tribute" Featuring Pop Music Legend Peter Asher with the Laguna Concert Band
On Saturday Feb 6 and Sunday Feb 7, 2016 at the Laguna Playhouse, Laguna’s own 60 piece Symphonic Band backed Peter Asher’s internationally renowned personal retrospective, “A Musical Memoir of the 60s and Beyond" in a World Premiere event! We first came to know him through the global No. 1 smash hit, "A World Without Love" as one half of the British Invasion duo Peter & Gordon. With the backing of the Laguna Concert Band, the two-time Grammy-winner for Producer of the Year brings his multimedia experience to the Laguna Playhouse.
Laguna’s own 60 piece Symphonic Band will present a full program of classic symphonic music culminating with the backing of Peter Asher’s internationally renowned and critically acclaimed personal retrospective, “A Musical Memoir of the 60s and Beyond". - “He has turned down all offers to write his memoirs. He’d rather sing them”. - New York Daily News
Peter Asher, CBE was born in London in 1944, the son of a doctor and a professional musician. He was educated at Westminster School in London and at Kings College, London University, where he studied philosophy.
Peter’s entry into the world of the performing arts was as a child actor. At the age of eight he starred in his first film, “The Planter’s Wife” as the son of Claudette Colbert and Jack Hawkins. He went on to act extensively in various film, TV, radio and stage productions.
His legendary music career began in 1964 as one-half of the singing duo Peter & Gordon, who amassed nine Top 20 records during their career. Their debut single, “A World Without Love” – a song given to them by Paul McCartney – went to number one in over 30 countries, including the U.S. and U.K. In 1968, Mr. Asher became head of A&R for the Beatles newly formed record company, Apple Records, where he found, signed and produced James Taylor and worked closely with the Beatles on their individual projects. During this period he became a key figure in the “revolution” of The Sixties, founding the book shop and art gallery “Indica” (where John and Yoko met and where Allen Ginsberg and William Boroughs visited) and found himself at the centre of an era of profound social and artistic change.
In 1971, Asher moved to the U.S. and founded Peter Asher Management, representing James Taylor and, beginning in 1973, the management and production of Linda Ronstadt as well. Peter Asher Management became one of the most successful Artist Management companies in the US, handling artists such as Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, and Carole King as well as James and Linda.
Asher quit the personal management business in 1995 when he was appointed Senior Vice President of Sony Music, a post he held for eight years.
As a producer, Mr. Asher has worked with such diverse artists as James Taylor, 10,000 Maniacs, Diana Ross, Ed Sheeran, Neil Diamond, Ringo Starr, Linda Ronstadt, Cher, Morrissey, Robin Williams, Jane Monheit, Kenny Loggins, The Dixie Chicks, Fall Out Boy, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Hans Zimmer and Billy Joel, among many others. He has been awarded 37 RIAA-certified gold albums and 22 platinum albums in the U.S., and many more internationally. Mr. Asher has produced fourteen Grammy Award-winning recordings, and in 1977 and 1989 was honored individually with the Grammy Award for “Producer of the Year”. He won a further Grammy in the category of “Comedy Album of the Year” for his production work with Robin Williams.
After a 37 year gap, Peter & Gordon reunited in New York for one benefit concert for a friend on August 2, 2005 which was very successful and they went on to perform together on various special occasions just for the fun of it until Gordon’s untimely death in July of 2009.
Since then Peter has continued to be in high demand as a record producer, consultant, lecturer and as a performer again in his successful one-man show, “A Musical Memoir of the 60s and Beyond”. He has also received various international awards, is a member of Mensa and of SAG-AFTRA, a National Trustee of the Recording Academy and has been a frequent keynote speaker at industry events.
Other projects have included “Carole King & James Taylor Live at the Troubadour”, an album from guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela (“Area 52”, recorded in Cuba) and the Buddy Holly tribute “Listen to Me” (an album and PBS TV Special).
With Hans Zimmer, Peter produced music for “Pirates of the Caribbean 4”, “Sherlock Holmes 2”, “Madagascar 3”, “Man of Steel” and “Rush”. In fact, Peter sang and produced the only original song in “Madagascar 3”, the love theme “Love Always Comes as a Surprise” which Peter co-wrote with his friend Dave Stewart. He also collaborated with Zimmer and Pharrell Williams on the production of all the musical elements of the Academy Awards show 2012 and completed a production project with Elton John, with current artists singing the songs from “Yellow Brick Road” on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of that album. The artists include Ed Sheeran, Miguel, The Band Perry, John Grant, Fall Out Boy and Hunter Hayes and the album was released in March 2014.
Recent productions include “So Familiar”, the follow-up album to the highly successful (and Grammy-winning) “Love Has Come for You” (Steve Martin & Edie Brickell) .These albums have also generated a PBS special and a stage musical, “Bright Star”, of which Peter is the music supervisor. “Bright Star”, directed by Walter Bobbie, will be opening at the Cort Theater on Broadway in March of 2016.
Peter also directed the highly acclaimed Hans Zimmer live concerts (“Hans Zimmer Revealed”) which took place in London on October 10th and 11th 2014 and will be touring Europe extensively in the Spring of 2016.
In the New Year’s Honours list for 2015, Peter Asher was awarded a CBE (“Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire”) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. The official investiture took place at Buckingham Palace on February the 24th, conducted by Prince William, Duke of Cambridge. PeterAsherMusic.com
The “Memoir” portion of the program features the 60 piece Laguna Concert Band backing Peter and his band. Music for the Peter and Gordon classics were custom arranged for this premier event which includes film footage and photos from Peter’s considerable personal archive, brought to life with a storyteller’s gift, transporting audiences back to the heart of 60s popular culture. Icons such as Mick Jagger, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Marianne Faithful, Yoko Ono, Carole King, James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt are among the cast of characters in this narrative – along (of course) with the greatly missed Gordon Waller.
The evening is filled with the music of Peter & Gordon, including “I Go to Pieces”, “True Love Ways”, and “Lady Godiva”. The songs given to Peter & Gordon by Paul McCartney are also front and center: “Woman”, “I Don’t Want to See You Again”, "Nobody I Know”, and “A World Without Love”, all of which were US Top 40 hits. Peter – backed by the 70 piece Laguna Concert Band and his own four piece band-presents these timeless classics along with other old favorites from that golden era. - "The exuberant Mr. Asher knew anyone who rocked and everyone who mattered." (Wall Street Journal)
