Robert Wilson Royer (born December 6, 1942, in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
)
is an American musician and songwriter, best known as a founding member of the soft rock band
Bread
Bread is a staple food prepared from a dough of flour (usually wheat) and water, usually by baking. Throughout recorded history and around the world, it has been an important part of many cultures' diet. It is one of the oldest human-made f ...
from 1968 to 1971. While he was with the band, they had a #5 UK/#1 US hit single with "
Make It With You
"Make It with You" is a song written by David Gates and originally recorded by American pop-rock group Bread, of which Gates was a member. Gates and drummer Mike Botts are the only members of the group to appear on the recording which was a No. ...
". He was replaced by
Larry Knechtel
Lawrence William Knechtel (August 4, 1940 – August 20, 2009) was an American keyboard player and bassist who was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a collection of Los Angeles-based session musicians who worked with such renowned artists as Simon ...
in 1971.
In 1970, Royer and
Jimmy Griffin
James Arthur Griffin (August 10, 1943 – January 11, 2005) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter, best known for his work with the 1970s soft rock band Bread. He won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1970 as co-writer ...
, under the pseudonyms Robb Wilson and Arthur James, wrote the lyrics for "
For All We Know", featured in the film ''
Lovers and Other Strangers
''Lovers and Other Strangers'' is a 1970 American romantic comedy film directed by Cy Howard, adapted from the 1968 Broadway play of the same name by Renée Taylor and Joseph Bologna. The cast includes Richard S. Castellano, Gig Young, Cloris Lea ...
''. It won the
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who have composed th ...
and was a Top Ten hit for
The Carpenters
The Carpenters (officially known as Carpenters) were an American vocal and instrumental duo consisting of siblings Karen Carpenter, Karen (1950–1983) and Richard Carpenter (musician), Richard Carpenter (born 1946). They produced a distinct ...
in March and April 1971.
Before co-founding Bread, Royer had been a member of the band
The Pleasure Fair
The Pleasure Fair was a musical performing group based in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The original group membership included Robb Royer, Tim Hallinan, Michele Cochrane and Stephen Cohn.
Robb Royer obtained his first guitar when he was 19 year ...
, whose only album in 1967 was produced and arranged by
David Gates
David Ashworth Gates (December 11, 1940 – January 5, 2023) was a American singer-songwriter, guitarist, musician and producer, frontman and co-lead singer (with Jimmy Griffin) of the group Bread, which reached the top of the musical charts i ...
, Royer's future bandmate in Bread.
Now living and working in Nashville, his songwriting credits include works for
Jimmy Griffin
James Arthur Griffin (August 10, 1943 – January 11, 2005) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter, best known for his work with the 1970s soft rock band Bread. He won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1970 as co-writer ...
,
The Remingtons
The Remingtons were an American country music group founded in 1991. They consisted of guitarists and vocalists Jimmy Griffin, Richard Mainegra, and Rick Yancey. Griffin was previously a member of the soft rock group Bread, while Mainegra and Ya ...
,
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
,
John Michael Montgomery
John Michael Montgomery (born January 20, 1965) is an American country music singer. Montgomery began singing with his brother Eddie, who would later become known as one half of the duo Montgomery Gentry, before beginning his major-label solo ca ...
,
Randy Travis
Randy Bruce Traywick (born May 4, 1959), known professionally as Randy Travis, is an American country music and gospel music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor.
Active from 1978 until being incapacitated by a stroke in 2013, he has recor ...
,
Billy Burnette
Dorsey William Burnette III (born May 8, 1953 in Memphis, Tennessee, United States) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter who was part of the band Fleetwood Mac from 1987 to 1995. Burnette also had a brief career in acting.
Family ba ...
, The Finnigan Brothers (
Mike Finnigan
Michael Kelly Finnigan (April 26, 1945 – August 11, 2021) was an American keyboard player and vocalist, his speciality being the B3 Hammond organ. Working primarily as a freelance studio musician and touring player, he played with a wide va ...
) and others.
Career
Early interests in music
Robb Royer was exposed to recordings of classical music from early childhood and in Junior High school he pursued playing clarinet in the band. He attended and graduated from Sierra High School in Tollhouse, CA. While there he briefly participated in marching band but preferred to focus on the music rather than the marching. During his senior year he participated in concert band playing alto saxophone.
Royer obtained his first guitar when he was a 19-year-old sophomore at San Fernando Valley State College (now
California State University, Northridge
California State University, Northridge (CSUN or Cal State Northridge) is a public university in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. With a total enrollment of 38,551 students (as of Fall 2021), it has the second largest un ...
). He met Tim Hallinan at the school. "Finally, when I began playing guitar, the scales tipped and Tim saw reason to talk to me. He liked to sing and I liked to play."
The two began to perform together as "Robb & Tim" and then later added the talent of Michele Cochrane. Hallinan recalled "What I remember best about Michele was, first, that she could actually sing. I was just faking it, doing what I've done since I was born, an approach to life that begins with the words, 'Act like you can –' In this case, it was sing. But Michele actually could; she had a glorious voice."
The Pleasure Fair
Soon the trio became a quartet with the addition of
Stephen Cohn, who had previously graduated from Valley State's music department, giving a senior recital in classical guitar. The group called themselves by various names, the most notable being "The Pleasure Fair" and by 1966 they managed to obtain a recording contract for a single with Hanna Barbera Records under the name "The Rainy Day People". "Junior Executive" was the "A" side, backed with "I'm Telling It To You" (both songs written by Cohn, Hallinan and Royer)
A year later the group signed a recording contract with Uni Records in 1967 David Gates was hired as the arranger and conductor for the Pleasure Fair's self-titled album.
Royer's song "Say What You See" (co-written with Tim Hallinan) would end up in 1968 being produced by Jimmy Griffin and arranged by David Gates. It was sung by a trio calling themselves "The Curtain Calls". Soon afterward in the same year the three founding members of Bread (Royer, Griffin and Gates) would combine forces as their own group.
Jimmy Griffin collaborations
Robb Royer met
Jimmy Griffin
James Arthur Griffin (August 10, 1943 – January 11, 2005) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter, best known for his work with the 1970s soft rock band Bread. He won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1970 as co-writer ...
through a mutual friend, Maria Yolanda Aguayo, who would later become Griffin's wife. Initially Griffin asked Royer to help with writing horn parts for a music course that Griffin was taking. Soon Royer and Griffin were working together as staff songwriters for Viva Publishing. Jimmy Griffin had been hired by Viva first and was originally supposed to write with another Viva writer, but preferred working with Royer. Griffin soon forced the issue with Viva when he asked if they wanted only half of the publishing rights or all of the rights, resulting in Viva hiring Royer by 1967. Griffin earned $75 a week (US$ in dollars) and Royer received $50 a week (US$ in dollars), but those salaries were sufficient to pay the rent at that time (Royer's rent for his L.A. apartment was $80 a month in 1967).
Royer and Griffin, using the pseudonyms Robb Wilson and Arthur James, wrote the lyrics for "
For All We Know", featured in the film ''
Lovers and Other Strangers
''Lovers and Other Strangers'' is a 1970 American romantic comedy film directed by Cy Howard, adapted from the 1968 Broadway play of the same name by Renée Taylor and Joseph Bologna. The cast includes Richard S. Castellano, Gig Young, Cloris Lea ...
,'' which won the
Academy Award for Best Song
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...
. The song has charted three times: The Carpenters (1971) reached number one on the Adult Contemporary charts (#3 in the Billboard Hot 100); Shirley Bassey (1971) reached number six on the UK charts; Nicki French (1995) reached number 42 on the UK charts.
Royer and Griffin would continue to write and collaborate on various projects until Griffin's death in 2005.
Bread
![Bread 1971](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/Bread_1971.JPG)
Robb Royer and Jimmy Griffin co-founded Bread with
David Gates
David Ashworth Gates (December 11, 1940 – January 5, 2023) was a American singer-songwriter, guitarist, musician and producer, frontman and co-lead singer (with Jimmy Griffin) of the group Bread, which reached the top of the musical charts i ...
in 1968. Maria Yolanda Aguayo once again contributed to the band's history when she revealed a trend she noticed as (Record Producer)
Gary Usher
Gary Lee Usher (December 14, 1938 – May 25, 1990) was an American rock musician, songwriter, and record producer, who worked with numerous California acts in the 1960s, including the Byrds, the Beach Boys, and Dick Dale. Usher also produced fict ...
's desk girl at
CBS Records CBS Records may refer to:
* CBS Records or CBS/Sony, former name of Sony Music, a global record company
* CBS Records International, label for Columbia Records recordings released outside North America from 1962 to 1990
* CBS Records (2006), founde ...
– band managers generally waited in the lobby but attorneys generally had immediate access to the executives at CBS. The trio quickly hired Al Schlesinger to represent them and he pitched their group to three labels in their search of a recording contract:
Elektra Records
Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the 1 ...
,
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
'
Apple Records
Apple Records is a record label founded by the Beatles in 1968 as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mar ...
and
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 its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...
, but Apple did not have clear leadership and was quickly eliminated from the process while Atlantic had recently signed two supergroups –
Crosby Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN) were a folk rock supergroup made up of American singer-songwriters David Crosby and Stephen Stills and English singer-songwriter Graham Nash. When joined by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young as a fourth member, ...
and
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
– and they were based on the East Coast. Elektra was the label for
The Doors
The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...
, but were becoming embroiled in
Jim Morrison
James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, poet and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredicta ...
's legal battles. When both Atlantic and Elektra offered recording deals to Bread, the group chose the Elektra deal because they had a local headquarters in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
and the group felt Elektra would more actively promote them, given Atlantic's other recent signings.
The first album made use of
Jimmy Gordon's drumming and Gordon also performed drums with the group during their initial gigs, but due to Gordon's high demand among multiple recording artists and his participation with the artists that eventually became
Derek and the Dominos
Derek and the Dominos was an English–American blues rock band formed in the spring of 1970 by guitarist and singer Eric Clapton, keyboardist and singer Bobby Whitlock, bassist Carl Radle and drummer Jim Gordon. All four members had previou ...
, he was replaced with
Mike Botts
Michael Gene Botts (December 8, 1944 – December 9, 2005) was an American drummer, best known for his work with 1970s soft rock band Bread, and as a session musician. During his career, he recorded with Linda Ronstadt, Karla Bonoff, Andrew G ...
as the group's regular drummer, thus expanding the band to a quartet.
After three years, Robb Royer and David Gates came to a breaking point because Gates wanted more control of the group, so Royer left the group in 1971 after its third album
Manna
Manna ( he, מָן, mān, ; ar, اَلْمَنُّ; sometimes or archaically spelled mana) is, according to the Bible, an edible substance which God provided for the Israelites during their travels in the desert during the 40-year period follow ...
and was replaced with famous session keyboardist/bassist/guitarist
Larry Knechtel
Lawrence William Knechtel (August 4, 1940 – August 20, 2009) was an American keyboard player and bassist who was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a collection of Los Angeles-based session musicians who worked with such renowned artists as Simon ...
, who had previously contributed the piano performance on
Simon and Garfunkel
Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music groups of the 1960s, and their biggest hits—including the electric remix of " ...
's "
Bridge Over Troubled Water". Royer continued to write with Griffin and Bread continued to record Royer/Griffin collaborations.
Griffin and Knechtel
Bread disbanded in 1973 and Jimmy, Larry and Robb ended up working together, releasing one album with Polydor records in 1973 under the name "James Griffin & Co." although none of the songs charted. The trio began work on a second album but it was completed by other producers and released in Europe.
Toast/Radio Dixie
In 1982 Royer wrote the song "Quittin' Time" (co-written with Roger Linn) which eight years later was recorded by
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
and won an ASCAP Airplay award. Royer traveled to Nashville to receive the award and stayed with Griffin, who had previously relocated from L.A. to Nashville.
Larry Knechtel
Lawrence William Knechtel (August 4, 1940 – August 20, 2009) was an American keyboard player and bassist who was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a collection of Los Angeles-based session musicians who worked with such renowned artists as Simon ...
had also been living and working as a session musician in Nashville. Royer relocated to Nashville in 1994.
Todd Cerney
Todd David Cerney (August 8, 1953 – March 14, 2011) was an American songwriter and musician.
He composed " Good Morning Beautiful", a 2002 five-week country number one (Billboard) hit for Steve Holy (co-written with Zack Lyle); "The Blues Is M ...
was already a grammy-nominated songwriter when Royer met him in 1994 at Jim Della Croce's house. Cerney had written two top-forty songs (
Loverboy
Loverboy is a Canadian rock band formed in 1979 in Calgary, Alberta. Loverboy's hit singles, particularly " Turn Me Loose" and "Working for the Weekend", have become arena rock staples and are still heard on many classic rock and classic hits r ...
's "Notorious" and
Restless Heart
Restless Heart is an American country music band established in 1984. The band's members are Larry Stewart (lead vocals), John Dittrich (drums, vocals), Paul Gregg (bass guitar, vocals), Dave Innis (piano, keyboards, guitar, vocals), and Greg Je ...
's "
I'll Still Be Loving You
"I'll Still Be Loving You" is a song recorded by American country music group Restless Heart. It was released in January 1987 as the second single from the album ''Wheels''. The song was written by Todd Cerney, Pam Rose, Mary Ann Kennedy and Pat ...
," which reached number one on the Country charts). Cerney had established a private recording studio in his home where he engineered a number of other singer-songwriters' albums.
Griffin, Royer and Cerney first collaborated by co-writing the song "Kyrie" in 1994. Knechtel later joined the trio and together they performed and co-wrote songs (including the 1995 song "Slow Train") under the band name "Toast". Toast performed at various Nashville venues including the Bluebird, Third and Lindsley, and 12th & Porter. They wrote and performed their own songs including such titles as "Road Kill," "Knechtelodeon," "No More Smokin'," "Grenadine," "Magdelena," and "Radio Dixie." The group used session drummers for their recordings and performances. The group would later be known as Radio Dixie in 1998. The name change was intended to help with promotion of the group, but the group disbanded by the end of 1998. Royer and Cerney continued to write together, generating additional titles including "Hurtin' Cowboy," "New Orleans Prayer," "I Believe I Kissed an Angel," and "Beside Myself."
Cosmo and Robetta
Robb Royer, fulfilling a deathbed wish from Jimmy Griffin, completed in 2010 a project begun by the two in 1973 after Bread's first breakup. A mix of rock opera and radio "Theater of the Mind", the project is a dramatic narration completed with sound effects and music which tells the story of Cosmo, an electronics whiz who is the sole human employee of Savage motors. In his spare time he has built Robetta, a robot who later becomes nearly human in appearance and abilities.
The project was an expansion of an earlier work, "The Plastic Sibling", co-written by Robb alongside a number of college friends, including Tim Hallinan.
Additional songwriting
Royer collaborated with
Richard Fagan
Richard Fagan (April 24, 1947 – August 5, 2016) was an American songwriter and musician. He had six top ten singles and 18 charted singles on the Billboard Country charts. Fagan's songs have been recorded by Neil Diamond, George Strait, John ...
to write "
Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident)
"Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident)" is a song written by Richard Fagan and Robb Royer, and recorded by American country music artist John Michael Montgomery. It was released in May 1995 as the second single from his John Michael Montgomer ...
" which was recorded by
John Michael Montgomery
John Michael Montgomery (born January 20, 1965) is an American country music singer. Montgomery began singing with his brother Eddie, who would later become known as one half of the duo Montgomery Gentry, before beginning his major-label solo ca ...
and became a number one Billboard Country chart hit in 1995.
References
External links
The Robb Royer Pitch Sheet blogNashfilms Records Robb Royer CEO
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royer, Robb
1942 births
Best Original Song Academy Award-winning songwriters
Living people
American rock guitarists
American male bass guitarists
American multi-instrumentalists
American rock keyboardists
American rock bass guitarists
American male singers
American flautists
American rock saxophonists
American male saxophonists
Record producers from California
Singers from California
Songwriters from California
Guitarists from Los Angeles
20th-century American bass guitarists
21st-century American saxophonists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
American male songwriters
20th-century flautists
21st-century flautists