Showco
Topic: Company
From HandWiki - Reading time: 4 min
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| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Entertainment technology |
| Fate | Acquired by Clair Bros. Audio Enterprises, Inc. |
| Founded | Script error: No such module "Date time". |
| Founders |
|
| Defunct | October 2000 |
Showco was a sound equipment provider of touring sound reinforcement equipment and services to the concert touring industry. It was based in Dallas, Texas, United States. In 2000, Showco was acquired by Clair Global.
Showco was established in 1970 by Jack Maxson and Rusty Brutsche, and Jack Calmes, and is known for helping to pioneer post Woodstock-era stadium rock shows by providing state-of-the-art sound equipment for famous acts beginning with Led Zeppelin, Three Dog Night and James Taylor.[1] According to Brutsche:
| “ | We were one of the first to realize the amount and scale of equipment that the major arena concerts required. Jack [Maxson] was a recording engineer and I was a musician. We learned that most public address systems were built for the amplification of a single announcer over crowd noise. The dynamics of live music and the power required to generate the sounds we hear at concerts today were almost unthinkable at that time.[1] | ” |
With Showco equipment and services, the star performers could count on reliable and consistent sound reproduction at different venues. Showco introduced such features as mixing gear and stage monitors to aid the musicians. The equipment was also built to handle rugged touring schedules, outdoor weather conditions and quick assembly and disassembly.[1]
Throughout the 1970's, Showco expanded its multi-discipline equipment and services to include stage lighting, set design and fabrication, special effects/lasers and disco sound systems. Later forays into stage lighting led to the 1981 formation of sister company Vari-Lite, Inc.[1]
Showco was acquired by Clair Brothers in late 2000. Showco was merged into the touring arm of Clair Brothers.[2] The combined division was then renamed ClairShowco. In 2008 the name was changed once again to Clair and given the corporate tagline "Global Service and Live Shows Since 1966."[3]
Showco Clients
Showco has provided equipment and services throughout the world for an extensive list of artists' tours, festivals and events.[4][5]
| Aerosmith |
| Al Jarreau |
| Alan Jackson |
| Alanis Morissette |
| Alice Cooper |
| Alice in Chains |
| Allman Brothers |
| Alvin Lee |
| Anita Baker |
| Art Garfunkel |
| Average White Band |
| B. B. King |
| Bad Company |
| Badfinger |
| Barbara Mandrell |
| Barry White |
| Beastie Boys |
| Beck, Bogert & Appice |
| Bee Gees |
| Ben Vereen |
| Billy Bob's Texas |
| Billy Preston |
| Billy Thorpe |
| Black Oak Arkansas |
| Black Sabbath |
| Blockbuster RockFest |
| Blood, Sweat & Tears |
| Bloodrock |
| Bob Seger |
| Bon Jovi |
| Bonnie Bramlett |
| Boston |
| Bread |
| Britney Spears |
| Brooks & Dunn |
| Brothers Johnson |
| Buddy Miles |
| Bull Angus |
| Burton Cummings |
| Cactus |
| Caliban |
| Carole King |
| Cat Stevens |
| CBS Records Conventions |
| Chaka Khan |
| Charlie Daniels Band |
| Chicago |
| Christina Aguilera |
| Claire Hamill |
| Climax Blues Band |
| Clint Black |
| Club MTV Tour |
| Commodores |
| Concert 10 |
| Cornelius Brothers |
| Counting Crows |
| Crazy Horse |
| Culture Club |
| Dave Mason |
| David Bowie |
| David Cassidy |
| Deep Purple |
| Diana Ross |
| Dionne Warwick |
| Dixie Chicks |
| Don Henley |
| Doobie Brothers |
| Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show |
| Dr. John |
| Eagles |
| Earth, Wind & Fire |
| Edgar Winter |
| Edie Brickell & New Bohemians |
| Electric Light Orchestra |
| Elton John |
| Elvin Bishop |
| Elvis Presley |
| England Dan & John Ford Coley |
| Eric Burdon |
| Eric Clapton |
| Extreme |
| Faces |
| Farm Aid |
| Firefall |
| Fleetwood Mac |
| Flo & Eddie |
| Frank Zappa |
| Freddie King |
| Fruit of the Loom CountryFests |
| Garbage |
| Genesis |
| George Benson |
| George Michael |
| George Strait |
| Ginger Baker |
| Glen Campbell |
| Golden Earring |
| Grand Funk Railroad |
| Green Day |
| Guns N' Roses |
| Hall & Oates |
| Havana Jam |
| Hong Kong Trade Show |
| Humble Pie |
| In Performance at the White House |
| INXS |
| Iggy Pop |
| It's a Beautiful Day |
| J. J. Cale |
| Jackson Browne |
| James Gang |
| James Taylor |
| Janet Jackson |
| Jeff Beck |
| Jefferson Airplane |
| Jerry Jeff Walker |
| Jesus Christ Superstar |
| Jesus Sound Explosion |
| Jim Stafford |
| Joe Cocker |
| Joe Walsh |
| John Fogerty |
| John Mayall |
| John McLaughlin |
| John Waite |
| Johnny Winter |
| Judas Priest |
| Julian Lennon |
| Karla Bonoff |
| KC and the Sunshine Band |
| Kiki Dee |
| KISS |
| Kansas |
| Knebworth Festival |
| Kool & the Gang |
| Korn |
| Krokus |
| Lake |
| Laurie Anderson |
| Led Zeppelin |
| Lee Michaels |
| Leo Kottke |
| Leon Russell |
| Leon Spinks vs. Muhammad Ali II |
| Levon Helm |
| Limp Bizkit |
| Linda Ronstadt |
| Little Feat |
| Live |
| Loggins & Messina |
| Louisiana Jam II |
| Luther Vandross |
| Lynyrd Skynyrd |
| Mahavishnu Orchestra |
| Mar y Sol Pop Festival |
| Maria Muldaur |
| Mariah Carey |
| Marshall Tucker Band |
| Marvin Gaye |
| Mary Kay Conventions |
| Matchbox Twenty |
| Meat Loaf |
| Megadeth |
| Michael Martin Murphy |
| Mick Jagger |
| Mike and the Mechanics |
| Mother Night |
| Mothers of Invention |
| Mountain |
| Musicians United for Safe Energy Conventions |
| NSYNC |
| NARM 1979 |
| Nazareth |
| New Grass Revival |
| Ozark Music Festival |
| Ozzfest |
| Ozzy Osbourne |
| Pantera |
| Parliament Funkadelic |
| Paul McCartney |
| Pete Townshend |
| Peter Frampton |
| Peter Gabriel |
| Phil Collins |
| Phoebe Snow |
| Pope John Paul II |
| Prince |
| Procol Harum |
| Puff Daddy |
| Quiet Riot |
| Rare Earth |
| Reba McEntire |
| REO Speedwagon |
| Richard Pryor |
| Richie Havens |
| Rick James |
| Ritchie Blackmore |
| Robert Palmer |
| Robert Plant |
| Robin Trower |
| Rock in Rio |
| Rod Stewart |
| Roger Daltrey |
| Rossington Collins Band |
| Rufus |
| Sammy Hagar |
| Santana |
| Scandal |
| Seal |
| Shawn Phillips |
| Sheena Easton |
| Slayer |
| Smooth Vinnie & the Fabulous Beards |
| Sonshine Festival |
| Soundgarden |
| Spiro Agnew |
| Staind |
| Starship Encounters |
| Steely Dan |
| Stephen Stills |
| Steppenwolf |
| Steve Miller Band |
| Steve Winwood |
| Steven Stills |
| Stevie Ray Vaughan |
| Stevie Wonder |
| Stone Temple Pilots |
| Sugar Ray |
| Sunday Break II |
| Suzi Quatro |
| T. Rex |
| Tanya Tucker |
| Ted Nugent |
| Ten Years After |
| The Band |
| The Beach Boys |
| The Black Crowes |
| The Blues Brothers |
| The Carpenters |
| The Clash |
| The Dudek-Finnegan-Krueger Band |
| The Firm |
| The Gap Band |
| The Groundhogs |
| The Guess Who |
| The Highwaymen |
| The J. Geils Band |
| The Jackson Five |
| The Jam |
| The Kinks |
| The Moody Blues |
| The New Barbarians |
| The O'Jays |
| The Osmonds |
| The Rolling Stones |
| The Smashing Pumpkins |
| The Who |
| Thin Lizzy |
| Third Eye Blind |
| Three Dog Night |
| Todd Rundgren |
| Tomita |
| Torvill and Dean |
| Toto |
| Uriah Heep |
| US Festival |
| Van Halen |
| Van Morrison |
| Vina del Mar International Song Festival |
| Vince Gill |
| War |
| Waylon Jennings |
| Weather Report |
| West, Bruce & Laing |
| Willie Nelson |
| Willie Nelson's Fourth of July Picnics and Dripping Springs Reunion |
| Wings |
| Wishbone Ash |
| Wynonna Judd |
| Yoko Ono |
| ZZ Top |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Showco Marks 30th Anniversary; Concert Sound Pioneer Set the Stage for Concert Touring Industry". Business Wire. March 2, 2000. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2000_March_2/ai_59702713. Retrieved 2008-04-12.
- ↑ Current, mixonline.com 1 January 2001.
- ↑ ClairShowco Rebranded As Clair, www.prosoundnetwork.com 17 September 2008.
- ↑ "Showco Client List". https://showco.co/client-list-testimonials.
- ↑ Short, Chari (May 2005). "Showco Reunion". Total Production US. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28. https://web.archive.org/web/20080828230555/http://www.totalproductionus.com/SiteFiles/May05_showco.htm. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
External links
- Clair Brothers, Showco website
- The Showco PA provided for The Who's 1975–1976 tour
- Rusty Brutsche Interview – NAMM Oral History Library (2016)
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