Ernie Halter

Ernie Halter is a soul-infused singer/songwriter, a guy who's been influenced as much by Lennon/McCartney as he has by Otis Redding. Born in Inglewood, CA, raised in Orange County, Ernie Halter grew up during a short but important technological era - "The Cassette Generation" - with a collection that included the Beatles' Abbey Road, Billy Joel's Glass Houses, and Elton John's Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy. During his college years, a friend made him a mix tape of Stevie Wonder's greatest hits, which he played over and over until he knew every note. But we're getting ahead of ourselves.

Halter began taking piano lessons at age 8, and at the coaxing of a friend, he played his first official gig at a coffee shop in Newport Beach when he was 17. After working as a musician-for-hire, Halter realized about two years ago that it was time to do his own thing: “I just decided that if I was going to be a songwriter, I was going to have to set that goal and just do it. I couldn't wait for the opportunity; I had to create it for myself." Halter made a few self-distributed demo tapes and kept up a steady stream of gigs, but it wasn't until he released the self-recorded “Lo-Fidelity” that things really began to take off.

The invaluable assistance of MySpace in strengthening Halter's profile can't be overstated. With over 72,000 friends (at this writing), it was Halter's tech-savvy approach that appealed to the label that signed him, Rock Ridge Music. "Everything that was ever cool with helping promote independent music, like Napster, MP3.com or Tonos.com, came and went, and I always seemed to really key into it after the fact" says Halter. "But I started hearing about MySpace and friends were encouraging me to sign up and post my music, so I did, and I started seeing people coming to my gigs that I'd never seen before; people who had found me on MySpace.and, then this huge light went off in my head, and I realized, 'For once, I finally recognized a great opportunity before it crashed!'" Halter began as the ultimate example of someone who utilized the power of grassroots promotion via Myspace to its fullest potential, incorporating such unique features as a live "tour van cam" and nightly webcasts of his concerts across the US. "I think it's really paying off," he says. "Once something hits a certain momentum, it becomes a viral thing and takes on a life of its own. It's been really good to me."

In addition to his constant touring - he's hit 35 states this year and has no intention of slowing down - Halter's new album, Congress Hotel, will be released in February 2007. Produced by Barrie Maguire and David Kalish, who manned the boards for kindred spirit Amos Lee, the album was a dream collaboration for Halter. Maguire and Kalish successfully brought their magic touch to Halter's material, with the help of guest performances from Lee Thornburg of Tower of Power, Pete Thomas (from Elvis Costello's Attractions), Reggie McBride (Stevie Wonder, Keb Mo), David Leach (Donavon Frankenreiter), Greg Leisz (Ben Harper), and Chris Joyner (Sheryl Crow, the Wallflowers).

Even with the album release on the horizon and the prospect of increased media attention as a result, you may be surprised to find that Halter isn't really looking for the brass ring that's inscribed "Major Label Record Deal." "Every artist I know who's signed to a label tells me to stay independent," he says, "because unless you're a disgusting success, you don't really make any money on a major label. This is why I'm so stoked about signing to Rock Ridge. Because I'd much rather be on a very strong indie label that's well respected, that 'gets it,’ and will support me."

Influenced by some of the legendary names of pop and soul, such as the Beatles, Elton John, Otis Redding, Stevie Wonder, and -- oddly -- the Go-Go's, Californian Ernie Halter first began to make waves for himself with the release of his 2005 collection, Lo-Fidelity. The singer and songwriter got his start playing a small -- mostly covers -- coffeehouse gig in 1992, and was able to maintain the difficult position of being a working musician (and closet songwriter) by simply paying his dues, working on songs in his spare time, and playing in coffeehouses and smaller gigs to keep active on the scene and to sharpen his skills. Eventually, word of mouth and the Internet community on websites such as MySpace worked in Halter's favor, and by 2007 -- and his next release, Congress Hotel (on Rock Ridge Music) -- he had built up quite a buzz, and the staunchly indie Halter could be seen touring throughout much of the United States. ~ Chris True, All Music Guide