Jerry L. Greenberg is an American music executive, who at 32, was the youngest president of any major record company in the recording industry and received that title in 1974 as President of

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

. He started his career in the music business as a drummer in the band "Jerry Green and The Passengers" which he founded. The band recorded for

, Roulette Records, United Artists, and DCP Record labels. By the age of eighteen years, Greenberg already had his own record label, called Green-Sea Records. During his tenure as president of several major labels, Jerry has signed such acts as

ABBA ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...

, The Blues Brothers, Foreigner, Genesis, T. S. Monk,

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...

, Dr. Dre &

Eazy-E Eric Lynn Wright (September 7, 1964 – March 26, 1995), known professionally as Eazy-E, was an American rapper who propelled West Coast rap and gangsta rap by leading the group N.W.A and its label, Ruthless Records. Eazy-E is often re ...

(Production Deal), Motörhead, Brownstone and 3T. Jerry also introduced Mariah Carey to Tommy Mottola. In addition to signing acts Jerry has worked with some of the greatest artists in music including,

AC/DC AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, although the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formativ ...

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

, Bad Company,

Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry Gibb, Barry, Robin Gibb, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in ...

, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Dr. John, Dusty Springfield,

Eagles Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

, Emerson, Lake & Palmer,

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

, The Rolling Stones, Yes, and

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

Biography

Jerry Green and The Passengers

1957 - Gerald L. Greenberg from

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

formed his own band. The band recorded for

, Roulette Records, United Artists, and DCP Records as Jerry Green and The Passengers. By the age of eighteen, Greenberg already had his own record label, called Green-Sea Records.

Seaboard Distributors

1964 - Greenberg joined Seaboard Distributors in

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

, as a record promoter, where he promoted records to radio stations for such labels as

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock an ...

, Liberty Records,

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...

, Philips, Roulette Records, and many others.

Gerald Wexler

1967 - Jerry Wexler asked Greenberg to become his

personal assistant A personal assistant, also referred to as personal aide (PA) or personal secretary (PS), is a job title describing a person who assists a specific person with their daily business or personal task. It is a subspecialty of secretarial duties ...

at Atlantic Records. At that time, Wexler was Vice President of Atlantic Records, and was the producer of

, Dusty Springfield, Dr. John, and many others. Wexler taught Greenberg all about recording, producing, finding songs, and the day-to-day tasks of running a major label.

General Manager of Atlantic Records

1969 - When Atlantic's parent company, Warner Bros-Seven Arts was sold to Kinney Services (Predecessor to Warner Communications in 1969, Greenberg was announced

General Manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

of Atlantic Records. Jerry Wexler spent a majority of his time in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, which left Greenberg plenty of time to spend with Ahmet Ertegun, who was President of Atlantic at that time.

Vice President of Radio Promotion and Artists and Repertoire

1972 - Within five years, Greenberg held two titles; Vice President of Radio Promotion, and Vice President of Artists and Repertoire for Atlantic Records.

Ahmet Ertegun announces new President

1974 - Ahmet Ertegun, now

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

, announced Greenberg as President of Atlantic Records, making him the youngest president of a major record company at 32. Greenberg was then signing artists and overseeing the company on a daily basis.

Mirage is Born

1980 - Jerry Greenberg becomes a consultant to Atlantic while forming his own label with his brother, Bob Greenberg, calle
Mirage Music
Jerry remained on the East Coast, Bob on the West Coast.

MGM/United Artists Music

1986 - Greenberg is named President of

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

/ United Artists. During his tenure at United Artists Music, he was

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...

for the soundtrack to the movie ' Karate Kid 2,' which went gold. With Chairman Jerry Weintraub leaving the company abruptly, the new management team didn't want to continue having a recording company. Greenberg was asked to stay on and produce movie soundtracks, and in turn, ended up working with such greats as

Mel Brooks Melvin James Brooks (né Kaminsky; born June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and songwriter. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodie ...

on the soundtrack for the 1987 comedy, ' Spaceballs.'

Atco Records

1988 - Greenberg was asked to return to Atlantic Records as President of Atco Records, which was Atlantic's other label based in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Once there, he continued to sign major artists, including Michel'le and JJ Fad, produced by Dr. Dre and

. Both albums went platinum, and it was the first rap album to go platinum for WEA Distribution. He also signed a platinum rock group from England, The Escape Club, and served as executive producer of the soundtrack to the hit motion picture, '' Coming to America'', starring

Eddie Murphy Edward Regan Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American actor, comedian, and singer. He had his breakthrough as a standup comic before gaining stardom for his film roles; he is widely recognized as one of the greatest comedians of all time. H ...

WTG (Walter (Yetnikoff), Tommy (Motolla), Gerald (Greenberg) Records

1989 - Tommy Mottola, who took over

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

, offered Greenberg a label in California. Gerald was the third person Mottola hired on his team and let him form his own label as President of WTG Records.

MJJ Music (Michael Jackson)

1993 - Sony artist

offered Greenberg the position of President of MJJ Music, Jackson's label distributed through

Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...

. Greenberg served as President and CEO of MJJ Music from 1993 to 2000.

Westwood One

1994 - Greenberg is elected to the

Board of Directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

of Westwood One, the world's #1 supplier of talk, sports, radio, news, and shows all over the world. He currently sits on this Board as the

of the Compensation Committee.

Mirage Music is reactivated

2003-04 - Mirage Music Entertainment has been reactivated with a distribution deal through Sony Music. In addition, Mirage opened a subsidiary office in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

with Stacy Greenberg as General Manager and an office in Las Vegas, NV.

Rainbow Bar & Grill Expansion Group

2005 - Jerry & Bob Greenberg form the Rainbow Bar & Grill Expansion Group. They licensed the name from America's No. 1 Rock & Roll Restaurant on Sunset Strip in Hollywood. The first restaurant opened in June 2005 in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, across from the Hard Rock Hotel. The Rainbow Bar & Grill in Las Vegas recreates the Hollywood location with red leather booths and rock-n-roll memorabilia adorning the walls.

MusiCares

2007 - Jerry Greenberg joins the board of MusiCares established in 1989 by The Recording Academy. MusiCares provides a safety net of critical assistance for music people in times of need. MusiCares services and resources cover a wide range of financial, medical and personal emergencies and each case is treated with integrity and confidentially.

Mirage Music Entertainment

2009 to 2011 - Mirage Tribute Bands is formed. MTB handled tribute bands Led Zepagain (Led Zeppelin tribute band), Rolling the Stones ( The Rolling Stones tribute band), ABBACADABRA (

tribute band), Bonfire (

tribute band), Bella Donna ( Stevie Nicks tribute band), The Long Run (

tribute band), Fan Halen ( Van Halen tribute band) and others. MTB presented Bring Back the Music every Wednesday night at the Hilton Hotel (now Westgate) in Las Vegas.

PEM Records

2013 to Present - Greenberg formed new EDM label with partners from Ibiza, Spain. PEM offices are located in Ibiza and Beverly Hills, Calif. PEM partnership.

Artists signed by Jerry Greenberg

Atlantic Records

* J. Geils Band *

* Archie Bell and the Drells * Blue Magic * The Blues Brothers * Cerrone * Firefall * Foreigner * Gary Numan * Genesis * Major Harris *

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry (lead vocals/keyboards/principal songwriter) and Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson (bass). By the time the band recorded their Roxy Music (album), first albu ...

* Trammps * Jackie Moore * Yusef Lateef

Mirage Music

* Brenda K Starr *Gerard McMann * Nolan Thomas * Phoebe Snow * Robin Gibb * Shannon * South Side Johnny * TS Monk *

* Spinners * Xavion

Atco Records

* Dr. Dre &

(Production Deal) * Escape Club * Michel'le * JJ Fad * R.B. Greaves * Acker Bilk

WTG/Sony Records

* Pauly Shore * Eddie Griffin *Johnny Crash *Jimmy Harnen *8th Wonder * Jason Bonham Band *Hand of Fate *Louie Louie * Motörhead *Stephanie

M.J.J./Sony Music

* 3T * Brownstone * Quo *

Rebbie Jackson Maureen Reillette "Rebbie" Jackson-Brown (; born May 29, 1950) is an American singer and the eldest child of the Jackson family of musicians. She first performed on stage with her siblings during shows in Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas, Nevada, a ...

* Tatyana Ali *Nathan Cavaleri *Men Of Vizion *Tasha Scott

References

Rainbow Bar & Grill Press MentionLook Smart Article

External links

*
Rainbow Bar and Grill LVJerry Greenberg Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (2021) {{DEFAULTSORT:Greenberg, Jerry L. American music industry executives Living people 1942 births