Michael Omartian (born November 26, 1945 in Evanston, Illinois) is an Armenian-American singer-songwriter, keyboardist, and music producer. He has been a participant in over 350,000,000 albums and CD’s sold worldwide, as a producer, arranger, artist or musician, during a career that has spanned over 38 years. He is the first producer in recording history to have #1 records in three consecutive decades. Michael is a multiple Grammy Award winner, including Grammy for keyboardist of the year. He spent five years on the A & R staff of ABC/Dunhill Records, as a producer, artist and arranger. He was subsequently hired by Warner Bros. Records as a producer and A & R staff member. Michael moved from Los Angeles to Nashville in 1993, where he served on the Board of Governors of the Recording Academy and has helped to shape the curriculum for the first Master’s Degree program in the field of Music Business at Belmont University.
Michael has produced albums for several pop artists including Rod Stewart, Cliff Richard, Christopher Cross, Michael Bolton, Whitney Houston, the Jacksons, Trisha Yearwood, Clint Black, Donna Summer, Joe "Bean" Esposito, Peter Cetera, Benny Hester, Steve Camp, The Imperials, Amy Grant, and Steely Dan. In 1985 Michael Omartian, along with Quincy Jones, co-produced the # 1 hit "We Are the World" by a supergroup of popular musicians billed as USA for Africa.
In one year alone, he was nominated for ten Grammy Awards, three of which he won for his work on Christopher Cross' debut album:
1981 Grammy Award for Record of the Year - "Sailing" (with Christopher Cross)
1981 Grammy Award for Album of the Year - Christopher Cross
1981 Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) - "Sailing"
Career history
In the late '60s, Omartian helped launch
Campus Crusade for Christ's new music outreach group, "The New Folk." In that capacity he arranged much of the music and assisted in training the singers. He was also a founding member of the 1970s
disco-
funk band
Rhythm Heritage, and he also played as a
session musician for artists including
Koinonia,
Steely Dan,
The Four Tops,
Seals and Crofts and
Loggins & Messina.
Omartian has recorded a number of highly polished Contemporary Christian Music albums under his own name, including White Horse, Adam Again, Conversations (an instrumental album) and others. Virtually all of his solo albums are now out-of-print. Omartian produced several Christian albums, most notably for The Imperials albums "Priority" and "One More Song For You" - which were produced in Omartian's basement studio on very tight budgets.
In 2003, Omartian scored an audio book rendition of the Biblical gospels, called "Gospels Come To Life". The audio Bible was read by fellow CCM writer/musician Michael W. Smith, based on musical ideas by Smith. The Spanish version of this audio Bible was narrated by CCM artist, Jaci Velasquez.
Toward the end of 2006 he contributed to an album with Annie Herring (former member of The 2nd Chapter of Acts) called One on One, he plays piano as the solo instrument throughout with Herring providing vocals.
One on One was his second collaboration with Herring; the first being the 1983 album Together Live, a collaborative, in-concert effort with Herring's family trio, The 2nd Chapter of Acts, and Omartian's wife, Stormie. The live double-LP album was recorded in 1982 at The Church on the Way in Van Nuys, California. The album was also released on in video format.
Omartian is one of the few producers in recording history to have number one records in three consecutive decades – the seventies, eighties and nineties. Others in this group include George Martin (1964, 1970 and 1982) for example.
Discography
Artist
Solo
1974 White Horse (Myrrh Records)
1975 Adam Again (known overseas as Onward) (Myrrh Records)
1986 Conversations (instrumental) (Reunion)
1991 The Race (Word/Epic)
Michael and Stormie Omartian
1978 Seasons of the Soul (Michael and Stormie Omartian) (Myrrh Records)
1980 The Builder (Michael and Stormie Omartian) (Seymour)
1982 Mainstream (Michael and Stormie Omartian) (Sparrow)
1982 Omartian Odyssey (compilation album) (Myrrh Records)
1983 Together Live (Michael and Stormie Omartian with 2nd Chapter of Acts) (Sparrow)
Others
1995 Like Brothers (with Pratt & McClain) (Sonrise Music)
1995 Contemporary Mozart (known overseas as "Bon Appetit: Contemporary Mozart Arrangements Volume 2") (K-Tel)
2000 Child of the Promise: A Musical Story Celebrating The Birth of Christ (written by Michael and Stormie Omartian) (Sparrow)
Producer
1974 White Horse - Michael Omartian
1975 Young Frankenstein [Original Soundtrack]
1976 I've Got a Reason - The Richie Furay Band
1976 Streetheart - Dion
1977 Crackin' - Crackin'
1977 Love at First Sight - Dionne Warwick
1978 Special Touch - Crackin'
1978 Sweet Salvation - Jim Krueger
1979 Christopher Cross - Christopher Cross
1979 One More Song for You - The Imperials
1981 Maxus - Maxus
1981 Nobody Knows Me Like You - Benny Hester
1981 Priority - The Imperials
1981 Still Feels Good - Tom Johnston
1983 Another Page - Christopher Cross
1983 She Works Hard for the Money - Donna Summer
1984 Camouflage - Rod Stewart
1984 Cats Without Claws - Donna Summer
1985 Choose Life - Debby Boone
1985 Every Turn of the World - Christopher Cross
1985 Vox Humana - Kenny Loggins
1986 About Last Night... [original soundtrack]
1986 Conversations - Michael Omartian
1986 The Karate Kid, Pt. 2 [original soundtrack]
1986 Passion - Jennifer Rush
1986 Precious Moments - Jermaine Jackson
1986 Solitude/Solitaire - Peter Cetera
1987 Friends for Life - Debby Boone
1988 Back of My Mind - Christopher Cross
1988 Rock Solid - The Commodores
1989 Bowling in Paris - Stephen Bishop
1989 Sing [original soundtrack]
1990 Downtown Train - Rod Stewart
1991 For Our Children - Disney
1991 Heart in Motion - Amy Grant
1991 Power of Jennifer Rush - Jennifer Rush
1991 The Race - Michael Omartian
1991 T.E.V.I.N. - Tevin Campbell
1992 Countess - Countess Vaughn
1992 Sarafina! The Sound of Freedom [original soundtrack]
1993 The Standard - Carman
1993 Taking Heaven by Storm - Steve Camp
1994 Christmas Spirit - Donna Summer
1994 House of Love - Amy Grant
1994 Kathy Troccoli - Kathy Troccoli
1994 The Light Inside - Gary Chapman
1994 Maverick [original soundtrack]
1994 Mercy in the Wilderness - Steve Camp
1994 Razon de Cantar - First Call
1994 The Ride - 4Him
1994 Sizzlin' Sounds Collection - various artists
1994 Slow Revival - Bryan Duncan
1995 Come Together: America Salutes the Beatles - various artists
1995 Field of Souls - Wayne Watson
1995 Helen Darling - Helen Darling
1995 One Love - Jonathan Pierce
1996 The Birdcage [original soundtrack]
1996 Come on Back - Billy and Sarah Gaines
1996 Distant Call - Susan Ashton
1996 Life Love & Other Mysteries - Point of Grace
1996 The Message - 4Him
1996 Mission Accomplished: Themes for Spies - various artists
1996 Shelter - Gary Chapman
1996 Summer of '78 - Barry Manilow
1996 Tribute: The Songs of Andrae Crouch - various artists
1997 Amazing Grace, Vol. 2: A Country Salute to Gospel - various artists
1997 Anastasia [original soundtrack]
1997 Let Us Pray: National Day of Prayer - various artists
1997 The Way in a Manger: Country Christmas - various artists
1998 Almighty God - various artists
1998 Civil War: The Nashville Sessions - various artists
1998 Movies Greatest Love Songs - various artists
1998 Obvious - 4Him
1998 Prince of Egypt [original soundtrack]
1998 Visions of Love - Jim Brickman
1998 The Way Home - Wayne Watson
1999 Christmas to Remember - Amy Grant
1999 Fade Into Light - Boz Scaggs
1999 In the Moon of Wintertime: Christmas with Michael Crawford - Michael Crawford
1999 Learning to Breathe - Larry Stewart
1999 Love Takes Time - Bryan Duncan
1999 Touched by an Angel: The Christmas Album [original television soundtrack]
2000 Brand New Dream - Danny Gans
2000 Heart of a Champion - Carman
2000 - 4Him
2000 Nicol Smith - Nicol Smith (Sponberg)
2000 Organ-Ized: All-Star Tribute to the Hammond B3 Organ - various artists
2000 Wayne Watson - Wayne Watson
2001 Angel Eyes [original soundtrack]
2001 Another Perfect World - Peter Cetera
2001 Love Songs - Michael Bolton
2003 Pass the Love - Larnelle Harris
2003 Cliff at Christmas - Cliff Richard
2003 24 - Point of Grace
2003 Visible - 4Him
2004 70s: From Acoustic to the Wall of Sound - Dion
2004 Prayer That Changes Everything - Stormie Omartian
2005 Christmas Reunion - Tony Orlando & Dawn
2005 Duets - Sandi Patty
2005 Something's Goin' On - Cliff Richard
2006 Collections - Kenny Loggins
2009 Where's Our Revolution - Matt Brouwer
2009 Beloved - Lara Landon
2010 Bold As Brass - Cliff Richard
Video
1973 Go Ask Alice (TV) (composer)
1976 Tunnel Vision (orchestrator)
1983 Together Live [with 2nd Chapter of Acts]
1985 We Are the World (arranger, keyboardist)
1994 Amy Grant: Building the House of Love (musician)
1994 Maverick (performer: "Amazing Grace")
References
External links
Michael Omartian official website
Yamaha Corporation artist biography
Inside Musicast With Michael Omartian - March 2007
Category:American keyboardists
Category:American record producers
Category:American session musicians
Category:Steely Dan members
Category:People from Evanston, Illinois
Category:1945 births
Category:Living people
Category:American musicians of Armenian descent
Category:American people of Armenian descent
Category:Grammy Award winners