Brian Evans(I)
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Brian Evans was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts. At age 11 he knew
there was something different about him. While most kids were spending
their adolescence listening to rock stations and rap, Brian was
listening to old-time crooners like
Frank Sinatra and
Dean Martin.
His long journey began as an actor, appearing on TV commercials for candy bars such as "Twix," and for McDonalds, and Brian quickly moved into doing movies such as Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987) with Charles Bronson and Book of Love (1990), a movie directed by Robert Shaye, the founder of New Line Cinema, and also the man behind the "Lord of The Rings" success. "Book of Love" remains the only film he directed for New Line, casting Brian in the role of "Schank."
Brian then was asked to do a guest appearance on a new TV series called "Beverly Hills Brats. He appeared on the pilot episode, which was a 90-minute TV movie, special later renamed "Beverly Hills, 90210." While waiting to see what happened with "90210," Brian took a guest spot on Full House (1987) playing the role of Keanu, the boyfriend of Kimmy, played by Andrea Barber.
It wasn't acting Brian longed to do, though, as his passion was to be a crooner, like the ones he listened to as a kid. Brian moved to Canada to spend time with friends, and decided to do a CD of big band crooner standards. He didn't have the money to hire a full big band, so he licensed karaoke tracks with the permission of the karaoke company. The CD sounded great, but Brian was nervous about releasing it anywhere but in Canada, figuring that if people didn't like it, he could always go back to Los Angeles where nobody would know he released the album in Canada.
He couldn't have been more wrong. The CD was released to rave reviews in Canada, climbing to #1 of the HMV Music Chain charts for independent musicians, and the funny thing was that reviewers raved about how great the band was on this new CD, when the "band" was actually karaoke tracks. That CD led to Brian being asked to perform at The Desert Inn, where his idol Sinatra had performed for years (Brian Frank Sinatra in 1993 at a benefit for his wife Barbara's Palm Springs help center).
Brian couldn't believe that he was now playing at The Desert Inn, the world-famous casino where he'd hang his hat for nearly two years. He recorded an album called "Brian Evans - Live at The Desert Inn,". He has since performed at Bally's, The MGM Grand and The Tropicana.
While performing at The Desert Inn, Brian signed a record deal to record and license his albums, now more than 17 CDs, to countries throughout Asia. His records are released in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand, The Republic of China and The Philippines, and he just released a new CD in the US to rave reviews, featuring his remakes of such classic 80s hits as Van Halen's "Jump" and The Fine Young Cannibals' "She Drives Me Crazy," along with his original song "You."
In fact, Grammy Magazine names Brian along with Norah Jones and Rod Stewart as among the newest relevant crooners of our generation, and notable artists such as Dionne Warwick, Frankie Valli, Rich Little, Al Stewart, Michael McDonald and others likely agree, given they've allowed Brian the honor of opening for them all.
He has also sung "The Star Spangled Banner" at 17 professional major league baseball, hockey and basketball games, including ones at Fenway Park for The Boston Red Sox, The Great Western Forum for the Lakers, and GM Place in Vancouver for The Grizzlies. Also an author who published "Dreamer" in 1994, Brian has seen his love for stand-up and acting turn into a singing career.
Brian now lives in Wailea, Hawaii, and Las Vegas, Nevada, where he shares homes. Brian and his band are already preparing to record a new album and are readying for new shows in Las Vegas and around the world.
His long journey began as an actor, appearing on TV commercials for candy bars such as "Twix," and for McDonalds, and Brian quickly moved into doing movies such as Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987) with Charles Bronson and Book of Love (1990), a movie directed by Robert Shaye, the founder of New Line Cinema, and also the man behind the "Lord of The Rings" success. "Book of Love" remains the only film he directed for New Line, casting Brian in the role of "Schank."
Brian then was asked to do a guest appearance on a new TV series called "Beverly Hills Brats. He appeared on the pilot episode, which was a 90-minute TV movie, special later renamed "Beverly Hills, 90210." While waiting to see what happened with "90210," Brian took a guest spot on Full House (1987) playing the role of Keanu, the boyfriend of Kimmy, played by Andrea Barber.
It wasn't acting Brian longed to do, though, as his passion was to be a crooner, like the ones he listened to as a kid. Brian moved to Canada to spend time with friends, and decided to do a CD of big band crooner standards. He didn't have the money to hire a full big band, so he licensed karaoke tracks with the permission of the karaoke company. The CD sounded great, but Brian was nervous about releasing it anywhere but in Canada, figuring that if people didn't like it, he could always go back to Los Angeles where nobody would know he released the album in Canada.
He couldn't have been more wrong. The CD was released to rave reviews in Canada, climbing to #1 of the HMV Music Chain charts for independent musicians, and the funny thing was that reviewers raved about how great the band was on this new CD, when the "band" was actually karaoke tracks. That CD led to Brian being asked to perform at The Desert Inn, where his idol Sinatra had performed for years (Brian Frank Sinatra in 1993 at a benefit for his wife Barbara's Palm Springs help center).
Brian couldn't believe that he was now playing at The Desert Inn, the world-famous casino where he'd hang his hat for nearly two years. He recorded an album called "Brian Evans - Live at The Desert Inn,". He has since performed at Bally's, The MGM Grand and The Tropicana.
While performing at The Desert Inn, Brian signed a record deal to record and license his albums, now more than 17 CDs, to countries throughout Asia. His records are released in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand, The Republic of China and The Philippines, and he just released a new CD in the US to rave reviews, featuring his remakes of such classic 80s hits as Van Halen's "Jump" and The Fine Young Cannibals' "She Drives Me Crazy," along with his original song "You."
In fact, Grammy Magazine names Brian along with Norah Jones and Rod Stewart as among the newest relevant crooners of our generation, and notable artists such as Dionne Warwick, Frankie Valli, Rich Little, Al Stewart, Michael McDonald and others likely agree, given they've allowed Brian the honor of opening for them all.
He has also sung "The Star Spangled Banner" at 17 professional major league baseball, hockey and basketball games, including ones at Fenway Park for The Boston Red Sox, The Great Western Forum for the Lakers, and GM Place in Vancouver for The Grizzlies. Also an author who published "Dreamer" in 1994, Brian has seen his love for stand-up and acting turn into a singing career.
Brian now lives in Wailea, Hawaii, and Las Vegas, Nevada, where he shares homes. Brian and his band are already preparing to record a new album and are readying for new shows in Las Vegas and around the world.
