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Michael Stanley (born March 25, 1948 as Michael Stanley Gee) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and radio personality. Both as a solo artist and with the Michael Stanley Band (MSB), his brand of heartland rock was popular in Cleveland, Ohio, and around the American Midwest in the 1970s and 1980s.
Early life, family and education
Michael Stanley Gee graduated from Rocky River High School in 1966. He attended Hiram College on a baseball scholarship and graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1970.
Career
Early career
While in college, Michael Stanley was in the band Silk which released an album, Smooth As Raw Silk, on ABC Records in 1969.
While working as a regional manager for a record store chain, he released his first solo album, Michael Stanley, in 1973. The album and its follow-up Friends & Legends were produced by Bill Szymczyk and featured contributions from Joe Walsh, Todd Rundgren and David Sanborn.
Michael Stanley Band
The Michael Stanley Band was formed by Stanley in 1974 with singer-songwriter–lead guitarist Jonah Koslen, former Glass Harp bassist Daniel Pecchio and drummer Tommy Dobeck from the band Circus.There were several personnel changes over the years and by 1982 the group had evolved into a seven-piece band.
Nicknamed MSB by their fans, the band set several attendance records at Cleveland area venues including a record 20,320 at the Richfield Coliseum on July 20, 1979 and a record 40,529 for two Coliseum concerts on December 31, 1981 and January 1, 1982.The band's greatest achievement was a total attendance of 74,404 during a four-night stand at Blossom Music Center on August 25, 26, 30 and 31, 1982.
The group reached the peak of their popularity nationally in 1981 when the single "He Can't Love You" from the album Heartland (written and sung by keyboardist Kevin Raleigh) made the Top 40 (#33 Billboard, #27 Cash Box) and "In the Heartland" from the album North Coast went to #6 on Billboard's Top Tracks chart. Their video for "He Can't Love You" was the 47th video ever played on MTV. The band's last Top 40 hit was "My Town" in 1983.
The band dissolved in 1986 with a series of twelve farewell shows at the Front Row Theater in Highland Heights, Ohio (suburban Cleveland) during the 1986–87 holiday season.Since then, Stanley has performed regularly throughout Northeast Ohio with former members of MSB and with the Resonators and as Michael Stanley and Friends.
In 2004, the sketch comedy troupe Last Call Cleveland produced Michael Stanley Superstar: The Unauthorized Autobiography of the Cuyahoga Messiah, a play which parodied Stanley's status as a local celebrity.
On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Michael Stanley among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.
- Personnel
- Michael Stanley – guitar, vocals
- Jonah Koslen – lead guitar, vocals (1974–77)
- Daniel Pecchio – bass, vocals (1974–79)
- Tommy Dobeck – drums
- Bob Pelander – keyboards (1976–87)
- Gary Markasky – lead guitar (1978–83)
- Kevin Raleigh – keyboards, vocals (1978–87)
- Michael Gismondi – bass (1979–87)
- Rick Bell – saxophone (1982–84)
- Danny Powers – lead guitar (1983–87)
Television and radio
Stanley was the co-host of PM Magazine on WJW Channel 8 from 1987 to 1990 and its follow-up Cleveland Tonight until 1991.He also appeared on The Drew Carey Show, playing himself.
Since 1990, Stanley has been the afternoon drive disc jockey for classic rock radio station WNCX in Cleveland.
Awards and honors
- 2012 - Cleveland Association of Broadcasters Excellence in Radio Award
- 2019 - The City of Cleveland renamed a section of Huron Avenue in downtown Cleveland as Michael Stanley Way.
Discography
Albums
Silk
| Year | Title | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Smooth As Raw Silk | ABC S-694 | 191 |
Solo
| Year | Title | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Michael Stanley | Tumbleweed TWS 106 | 206 |
| 1973 | Friends and Legends | MCA 372 | 207 |
Michael Stanley Band
| Year | Title | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | You Break It...You Bought It! | Epic PE 33492 | 184 |
| 1976 | Ladies' Choice | Epic PE 33917 | — |
| 1977 | Stagepass | Epic PEG 34661 | 207 |
| 1978 | Cabin Fever | Arista AL 4182 | 99 |
| 1979 | Greatest Hints | Arista AL 4236 | 148 |
| 1980 | Heartland | EMI America SW–17040 | 86 |
| 1981 | North Coast | EMI America SW–17056 | 79 |
| 1982 | MSB | EMI America ST–17071 | 136 |
| 1983 | You Can't Fight Fashion | EMI America ST–17100 | 64 |
| 1984 | Fourth and Ten... | MSB 101 | — |
| 1986 | Inside Moves | MSB 201 | — |
| 1992 | Right Back at Ya (1971–1983) | Razor & Tie RE 1991 | — |
| 1997 | Misery Loves Company: More of the Best 1975–1983 | Razor & Tie RE 2125 | — |
| 2015 | Live at the Ritz NYC 1983 | Line Level 211 | — |
The Ghost Poets
| Year | Title | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | The Ghost Poets | Razor & Tie RT 2812 | — |
Post-MSB solo
| Year | Title | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Coming Up for Air | Intersound 9174 | — |
| 1998 | Live in Tangiers: The Acoustic Shows | Razor & Tie 82836 | — |
| 2000 | Eighteen Down | Razor & Tie 82851 | — |
| 2003 | The Ground | Line Level 201 | — |
| 2005 | American Road | Line Level 202 | — |
| 2006 | The Farrago Sessions | Line Level 203 | — |
| 2007 | The Soft Addictions | Line Level 204 | — |
| 2008 | Just Another Night | Line Level 205 | — |
| 2009 | Shadowland | Line Level 206 | — |
| 2012 | The Hang | Line Level 207 | — |
| 2013 | The Ride | Line Level 208 | — |
| 2014 | The Job | Line Level 209 | — |
| 2014 | The Solo Years 1995–2014 | Line Level 210 | — |
| 2015 | And Then... | Line Level 212 | — |
| 2016 | In a Very Short Time | Line Level | — |
| 2017 | Stolen Time | Line Level | — |
Singles
| Year | A-Side | B-Side | Label | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | "Rock and Roll Man" | "Denver Rain" | Tumbleweed 1010 | — | Michael Stanley |
| "Rosewood Bitters" | "Good Time Charlie" | Tumbleweed 1014 | — | ||
| 1974 | "Yours For a Song" | "Roll On" | MCA 40177 | — | Friends and Legends |
| 1975 | "I'm Gonna Love You" | "Step the Way" | Epic 50116 | — | You Break It...You Bought It! |
| "Face the Music" | "Song for My Children" | Epic 50151 | — | ||
| 1976 | "Ladies' Choice" | "Sweet Refrain" | Epic 50242 | — | Ladies' Choice |
| 1977 | "Nothing's Gonna Change My Mind" | "Love Hasn't Been Here" | Epic 50416 | — | Stagepass |
| 1978 | "Why Should Love Be This Way" | "Late Show" | Arista 0348 | — | Cabin Fever |
| "Baby If You Wanna Dance" | "Fool's Parade" | Arista 0368 | — | ||
| 1979 | "Last Night" | "Down to the Wire" | Arista 0436 | — | Greatest Hints |
| 1980 | "He Can't Love You" | "Carolyn" | EMI America 8063 | 33 | Heartland |
| 1981 | "Lover" | "Save a Little Piece for Me" | EMI America 8064 | 68 | |
| "Falling in Love Again" | "Does It Hurt" | EMI America 8090 | 64 | North Coast | |
| "When Your Heart Says It's Right" | "Victim of Circumstance" | EMI America 8097 | — | ||
| 1982 | "When I'm Holding You Tight" | "In Between the Lines" | EMI America 8130 | 78 | MSB |
| "Take the Time" | "Just a Little Bit Longer" | EMI America 8146 | 81 | ||
| 1983 | "My Town" | "Just How Good" | EMI America 8178 | 39 | You Can't Fight Fashion |
| "Someone Like You" | "Highlife" | EMI America 8189 | 75 | ||
| 1985 | "Show Me Something" | "Somebody Else's Woman" | MSB 701 | — | Inside Moves |
| 1986 | "When All Is Said and Done" | "Here Come the Kids" | MSB 801 | — | |
| "Poor Side of Town" | "Headlights" | MSB 901 | — |