ABOUT MarilynMusic
Thank you for your interest.
We at MarilynMusic strive to create consistently authentic music, maintaining the highest standards of composition, production, and performance.
Casey Conrad & Michael Gaines
MarilynMusic
Listening to MarilynMusic, one hears everything from rock, pop, r&b to jazz. The range of styles in this musical catalogue is almost as vast as the experience of the two writers themselves.
Casey Conrad and Michael Gaines each draw inspiration and knowledge from lifetimes spent in the music and entertainment business. Between the two of them they have worked in almost every aspect, including television, film, theatre and the performance of music.
MarilynMusic combines a passion for original authentic music, with a desire to please today's pop audience. The composers collaborate on every aspect of the music from the writing to the full production, also playing on the recordings - Conrad on bass and drums, Gaines on guitar. They also rely on the best New York City musicians and singers, all having successful music careers of their own.
With decades of combined experience and state of the art studios, MarilynMusic is well prepared to expertly execute any project, from songs, to film scoring, to commercial jingles.
Listening to MarilynMusic, one hears everything from rock, pop, r&b to jazz. The range of styles in this musical catalogue is almost as vast as the experience of the two writers themselves.
Casey Conrad and Michael Gaines each draw inspiration and knowledge from lifetimes spent in the music and entertainment business. Between the two of them they have worked in almost every aspect, including television, film, theatre and the performance of music.
MarilynMusic combines a passion for original authentic music, with a desire to please today's pop audience. The composers collaborate on every aspect of the music from the writing to the full production, also playing on the recordings - Conrad on bass and drums, Gaines on guitar. They also rely on the best New York City musicians and singers, all having successful music careers of their own.
With decades of combined experience and state of the art studios, MarilynMusic is well prepared to expertly execute any project, from songs, to film scoring, to commercial jingles.
Meet Casey Conrad
Conrad was born in Hollywood and raised in the entertainment industry. His babysitters included actress Lauren Bacall, singer Sammy Davis Jr., and boxer Joe Louis. His mother Mara Lynn, a film/tv and theatre actress, exposed him to music starting him early on the entertainment career path.
His father Harold Conrad (whom Humphrey Bogart portrayed in the film "The Harder They Fall",) was a NYC sportswriter turned screenwriter turned boxing promoter, who created many of Muhammad Ali's (then Cassius Clay) early fights.
Conrad began studying acting, singing and tap dancing at age eight in NYC. His godfather, Buddy Rich, (one of the greatest and most prolific drummers in the world,) gave Conrad his first drum set at age 10 and inspired him to study jazz. "Watching Buddy perform" says Conrad, "motivated me to play drums, so I spent the next few years listening to mostly jazz and classical music." His passion eventually led him to other genres including R&B, rock, calypso, fusion and latin music, all of which appear in his current work as a composer.
He attended the Bronx High School of Science, during which time he began having jam sessions at home with close friend and now world renowned bassist Anthony Jackson. After graduation, he went on to study music at North Texas State University and returned to New York in 1974 where he secured a spot on the New York session scene playing drums for artists, bands and composers like Chaka Khan, Bo Diddley, Carlos Franzetti, Ruben Blades, The Fania All-stars, Hector Lavoe, and many others.
Conrad, with fellow New Yorker and famed Bahamian musician Wendel Stuart also performed together from the mid 1970's until Stuart's untimely death at the age of 45 over a decade later. Their calypso/reggae record "Freedom" was number one in the Bahamas for five years. The Wendel Stuart Band was so popular there in fact, that every New Year's Eve, they returned to play for the Prime Minister, Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling. He continued to do session work through the 1980's at which time the studio recording business began to falter as the age of digital music arrived. This setback didn't stop him however, seeing it as an opportunity to explore new musical possibilities. He began learning about this new technology that would soon revolutionize the music industry. He bought an Atari computer with MIDI capabilities and learned how to compose and sequence. He worked with computers and music production throughout the 1990's while simultaneously writing and developing new artists and bands. During this period, Conrad's music was featured in films like "Paid In Full," "Soaring Words," and "Juror #8" among others.
Moving into the 2000's one of Conrad's main projects has been a collaboration with childhood friend, guitar player and writer Michael Gaines, on an extensive catalogue of compositions and recordings. Conrad co-writes, produces, arranges and plays bass and drums on the recordings.
While he lists Beethoven, Stravinsky, the Beatles, and Miles Davis among artists he greatly admires, he's very clear that John Coltrane and Jimmy Hendrix are at the top of his list stating, "hopefully music will continue to evolve past where these giants have taken it."
Conrad was born in Hollywood and raised in the entertainment industry. His babysitters included actress Lauren Bacall, singer Sammy Davis Jr., and boxer Joe Louis. His mother Mara Lynn, a film/tv and theatre actress, exposed him to music starting him early on the entertainment career path.His father Harold Conrad (whom Humphrey Bogart portrayed in the film "The Harder They Fall",) was a NYC sportswriter turned screenwriter turned boxing promoter, who created many of Muhammad Ali's (then Cassius Clay) early fights.
Conrad began studying acting, singing and tap dancing at age eight in NYC. His godfather, Buddy Rich, (one of the greatest and most prolific drummers in the world,) gave Conrad his first drum set at age 10 and inspired him to study jazz. "Watching Buddy perform" says Conrad, "motivated me to play drums, so I spent the next few years listening to mostly jazz and classical music." His passion eventually led him to other genres including R&B, rock, calypso, fusion and latin music, all of which appear in his current work as a composer.
He attended the Bronx High School of Science, during which time he began having jam sessions at home with close friend and now world renowned bassist Anthony Jackson. After graduation, he went on to study music at North Texas State University and returned to New York in 1974 where he secured a spot on the New York session scene playing drums for artists, bands and composers like Chaka Khan, Bo Diddley, Carlos Franzetti, Ruben Blades, The Fania All-stars, Hector Lavoe, and many others.
Conrad, with fellow New Yorker and famed Bahamian musician Wendel Stuart also performed together from the mid 1970's until Stuart's untimely death at the age of 45 over a decade later. Their calypso/reggae record "Freedom" was number one in the Bahamas for five years. The Wendel Stuart Band was so popular there in fact, that every New Year's Eve, they returned to play for the Prime Minister, Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling. He continued to do session work through the 1980's at which time the studio recording business began to falter as the age of digital music arrived. This setback didn't stop him however, seeing it as an opportunity to explore new musical possibilities. He began learning about this new technology that would soon revolutionize the music industry. He bought an Atari computer with MIDI capabilities and learned how to compose and sequence. He worked with computers and music production throughout the 1990's while simultaneously writing and developing new artists and bands. During this period, Conrad's music was featured in films like "Paid In Full," "Soaring Words," and "Juror #8" among others.
Moving into the 2000's one of Conrad's main projects has been a collaboration with childhood friend, guitar player and writer Michael Gaines, on an extensive catalogue of compositions and recordings. Conrad co-writes, produces, arranges and plays bass and drums on the recordings.
While he lists Beethoven, Stravinsky, the Beatles, and Miles Davis among artists he greatly admires, he's very clear that John Coltrane and Jimmy Hendrix are at the top of his list stating, "hopefully music will continue to evolve past where these giants have taken it."
Meet Michael Gaines
Michael Gaines has been involved in the entertainment industry since childhood. He began studying dance and theatre when he was six and attended the American School of Ballet appearing as the prince in the NYC Ballet production of the Nutcracker Suite starting at age eleven. His earliest professional memory is doing the first Kit Kat candy bar commercial ever aired. Throughout his childhood his mother was the top jingle singer and contractor in New York City, becoming Burt Bacharach's vocal director for many years singing on all of his major records. Gaines grew up in the recording studios of New York City. Raised in a family of accomplished songwriters, his great uncle was Bud Greene, who wrote numerous American standards including "Sentimental Journey," and "Once In a While." His step father Bob Wells wrote "The Christmas Song" with Mel Torme.
Gaines went on to study music and guitar through high school, then at North Texas State University and later at the Manhattan School of Music. After college he moved to L.A. to pursue an opportunity in the film industry, beginning as a production assistant at Chartoff / Winkler Productions working on films like "Raging Bull" and "RockyII" thru "IV," and "The Right Stuff." Gaines moved up in the ranks securing a position as story editor for Howard Koch and Gene Kirkwood's Production Company, working on such films as "The Pope of Greenwich Village" and "Gorky Park." He began writing and selling his own film and TV projects to Fox, Paramount, Warner Bros. among others. Gaines recently co-produced the independent film "Wednesday Again."
During his career, Gaines has worked with iconic talent like George Balanchine, Robert Deniro, Sly Stallone Mickey Rourke and many others, but despite his involvement in film, music has always been his first calling. Through his relationship with his step dad Bob Wells, he became involved with the publishing business, helping to administrate Well's catalogue of over 300 tunes.
In 2004 he began to seriously pursue writing and producing songs with his childhood friend and collaborator Casey Conrad, forming their company MarilynMusic. Writing, producing, and playing on all the tracks, they also publish and license all the original music available on MarilynMusic.net.
Michael Gaines has been involved in the entertainment industry since childhood. He began studying dance and theatre when he was six and attended the American School of Ballet appearing as the prince in the NYC Ballet production of the Nutcracker Suite starting at age eleven. His earliest professional memory is doing the first Kit Kat candy bar commercial ever aired. Throughout his childhood his mother was the top jingle singer and contractor in New York City, becoming Burt Bacharach's vocal director for many years singing on all of his major records. Gaines grew up in the recording studios of New York City. Raised in a family of accomplished songwriters, his great uncle was Bud Greene, who wrote numerous American standards including "Sentimental Journey," and "Once In a While." His step father Bob Wells wrote "The Christmas Song" with Mel Torme.
Gaines went on to study music and guitar through high school, then at North Texas State University and later at the Manhattan School of Music. After college he moved to L.A. to pursue an opportunity in the film industry, beginning as a production assistant at Chartoff / Winkler Productions working on films like "Raging Bull" and "RockyII" thru "IV," and "The Right Stuff." Gaines moved up in the ranks securing a position as story editor for Howard Koch and Gene Kirkwood's Production Company, working on such films as "The Pope of Greenwich Village" and "Gorky Park." He began writing and selling his own film and TV projects to Fox, Paramount, Warner Bros. among others. Gaines recently co-produced the independent film "Wednesday Again."
During his career, Gaines has worked with iconic talent like George Balanchine, Robert Deniro, Sly Stallone Mickey Rourke and many others, but despite his involvement in film, music has always been his first calling. Through his relationship with his step dad Bob Wells, he became involved with the publishing business, helping to administrate Well's catalogue of over 300 tunes.
In 2004 he began to seriously pursue writing and producing songs with his childhood friend and collaborator Casey Conrad, forming their company MarilynMusic. Writing, producing, and playing on all the tracks, they also publish and license all the original music available on MarilynMusic.net.
