Behind Every Great Artist Is a Greater Manager

photo: Associated Press

The new music documentary Lambert & Stamp is in select theaters. Most people will be scratching their heads asking, “Who?” For fans of the fabled rock foursome the Who (count me as one), we know the answer. Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp were the British band’s managers from their 1960s mod club days to their 1970s stadium-rock incarnation. Lambert and Stamp played a large part in bringing the rock opera Tommy to life and they ultimately brought the band close to financial ruin before being replaced by their current manager, Bill Curbishley, in 1976.

Lambert and Stamp (who have both passed away) had all the makings of great artist managers — brazen entrepreneurship, brash personality, and blind faith in their artist’s talent. Managers can be easy scapegoats in an often thankless gig. An artist manager is simultaneous punching bag, shrink, big brother, den mother, and maid. But at their best, they are the unsung band members — the navigational glue that keeps an artist from going off the rails.

Managers often have personalities and egos as big as the artists they represent. And while the bands get the headlines, here are three managers who deserve their own documentaries. Their stories are every bit as colorful as their clients — three mad geniuses who we have to thank (or blame) for saving some of music’s biggest acts from a life of obscurity.

Peter Grant — Led Zeppelin’s Manager

Zep’s legendary manager was one of the most imposing figures in rock (he weighed more than 300 pounds and stood over 6 feet tall). Grant was a former actor who began his management career with the ill-fated 1960s British supergroup the Yardbirds. His career was punctuated by volatility, drug use, and hedonism — much like the band he repped. More importantly, though, Grant pioneered industry changes that are commonplace today, including securing the majority of concert ticket sales for artists.

This 1992 interview gives a glimpse of Grant’s total dedication to his band:

Paul McGuinness — U2’s Manager

Whatever your opinion about U2’s musical merits, there is no question that their career longevity and ubiquity is virtually unparalleled. Paul McGuiness is the man to thank. He was the band’s only manager from their 1978 inception to until his own retirement in 2013 and a fierce critic of tech companies creating “multibillion-dollar industries on the back of our [music] without paying for it.” You know you’re doing something right when your band brings you onstage to have a stadium full of fans sing happy birthday to you.

Scooter Braun — Justin Bieber’s Manager

33-year old Braun created one of the greatest YouTube success stories of all time. His discovery of Justin Bieber has become music folklore: Braun sees a 12-year-old Bieber on YouTube and convinces him and his mom to move with him to Atlanta. The rest is Comedy Central Roast history. He’s also responsible for bringing PSY into our lives. You’re welcome. More than any other modern-day manager, Braun understood first the power of social media to shape music and springboard acts. He’s a consummate marketer and the first super manager of the digital age.

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