Clear Channel Music Group Splits Bill Graham Presents Into Two Entities

DENVER, June 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The highly successful Northwest U.S. music promoter Bill Graham Presents has been divided into two independent promoter firms -- Bill Graham Presents and Chuck Morris Presents -- under the banner of Clear Channel Music Group (CCMG) which oversees these two and 12 other top North American promoters.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050609/DATH025LOGO )

Founder Chuck Morris -- a 35-year industry vet -- becomes president of the newly created Denver-based promoter, Chuck Morris Presents (CMP), while former CMP vice president Brent Fedrizzi is upped to chief operating officer. Legendary San Francisco-based promoter Bill Graham Presents (BGP) will now focus on concerts throughout Northern California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana, while CMP does the same in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming.

"Chuck Morris, Brent Fedrizzi and their team have a great track record in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming -- expanding from two guys booking 35 concerts a year to 15 smart professionals who will soon top 300 concerts a year in some of the area's best indoor and outdoor facilities," said CCMG president/CEO Michael Rapino. "Now, both CMP and BGP can concentrate on expanding and improving operations in their geographic areas of expertise."

As president, Morris will pursue company growth and new business opportunities. Fedrizzi will continue as top talent booker while taking on responsibility for day-to-day operations. Morris will now report directly to Los Angeles-based Rapino, while Fedrizzi continues to report to Morris.

"I have made a point of surrounding myself with great local talent -- including two of the best promoters in the country, Brent Fedrizzi and Don Strasburg; a top-of-the-line marketing department ably led by Kate McKenzie; gifted ticketing department chief Fred Paull; and a production and publicity department, under Tommy Hauser and Michele 'Mel' Gibson, that is unparalleled," Morris declared. "Everyone here was either born or schooled in Denver, so they really understand this market.

"To be able to report directly to the great visionaries who are running Clear Channel Music Group is something that I am really looking forward to. Now, as one of 13 regional promotion firm presidents in the CCMG family, I relish the prospect of working alongside such legendary promoters as Larry Magid and Don Law, whom I have admired from the day I got into the business."

In January 1998, Chuck Morris helped launch the partnership Chuck Morris Presents/Bill Graham Presents, with the San Francisco-based promotion house founded by concert pioneer Bill Graham. The company was bought by SFX in 2000, and all of SFX was purchased by Clear Channel Entertainment in 2001.

In Colorado, Morris, Fedrizzi and colleagues took a startup and built it into the market leader in seven years, successfully expanding into Wyoming and Utah. When CMP takes over downtown Denver's historic Paramount Theatre on August 1, 2005, its number of annual shows should climb to more than 300 per year.

Chuck Morris, with the help of his partners at BGP, created the renowned Fillmore Auditorium in Denver, where the firm currently promotes approximately 75 shows per year by such superstars as Bob Dylan, Sting, David Bowie and Paul Simon. Bands such as String Cheese Incident, Phil Lesh & Friends and Big Head Todd & the Monsters have come to consider Denver's Fillmore Auditorium their second home.

In the summer of 2002, Chuck Morris and Clear Channel Entertainment, in partnership with Kroenke Sports Enterprises, opened the 5000-seat Universal Lending CityLights Pavilion in downtown Denver, an amphitheater modeled on Fleet Boston Pavilion in the Red Sox's hometown. It has already earned a reputation as one of Denver's best venues.

Chuck Morris Presents promotes the majority of shows at beautiful Red Rocks Amphitheatre and the Pepsi Center as well as all the concerts at the CMP-owned Fillmore Auditorium and co-owned Universal Lending Pavilion. In the past seven years, they have booked and promoted hundreds of top bands, including The Dead, Cher, The Dave Matthews Band, The Eagles and David Bowie.

"Taking over the Paramount is very exciting for us, and it looks like we'll have our biggest Red Rock season ever this summer, with Van Morrison and Jack Johnson already sold out as well as many acts headed that way," Chuck Morris explained. "We enjoyed working alongside Bill Graham Presents for the past seven years, but now the buck stops here in Denver, which is a challenge we embrace."

About Chuck Morris Presents & Venue Group

Chuck Morris Presents, a division of Clear Channel Music Group, has been a leader in promoting and marketing live music since it was founded in 1998. Chuck Morris Presents promotes live music and festivals throughout Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. Chuck Morris, President of Chuck Morris Presents, leads the company from its headquarters in Denver. Chuck Morris Presents Venue Group operates the following venues in Colorado, The Fillmore Auditorium, Universal Lending Pavilion (a joint venture with Kroenke Sports Enterprises), and as of August 1, 2005 The Paramount Theatre. Brent Fedrizzi, Chief Operating Officer of Chuck Morris Presents leads the venue group from Denver.

About Clear Channel Music Group

Clear Channel Music Group, a division of Clear Channel Entertainment, focuses on global, national and local promoting, venue and festival management and artist touring services. The Music Group promotes live music concerts by a majority of the world's most popular performers, as well as many new up-and- coming artists. Clear Channel Music Group comprises 13 business units; Bill Graham Presents, Avalon Attractions, Evening Star Productions, PACE Concerts, Cellar Door North, Cellar Door South, Belkin Productions, Elevated Concerts, Electric Factory, Jim Koplik Presents, Ron Delsener Presents, Tea Party Concerts and Chuck Morris Presents. It currently owns, operates, or books approximately 80 live entertainment venues in the U.S., including 45 amphitheaters, 25 theaters and clubs, plus 8 venues in Europe. Clear Channel Entertainment is a subsidiary of Clear Channel Communications , a global leader in the out-of-home advertising industry. More information may be found by visiting http://www.cc.com/ and http://www.clearchannel.com/ .