DESCRIPTION:
Brad Martin- Before I Knew Better- Brad Martin first whet his appetite for stone country as a small boy, listening to his father plunk out tunes on his guitar while rehearsing in the family den in the tiny four-stoplight town of Greenfield, Ohio (also the hometown of Johnny Paycheck). His dad was such a huge influence on him growing up, that the first time Brad heard Haggard on the radio, he thought it was his dad singing. He soon discovered his dad's secret and began listening to every country record he could find.

By a very early age, Brad was already tagging along to dates at fairs and festivals around and soaking up all he could absorb about the life of a musician. "There was always music around when I was growing up," he recalls. "Dad would play all over Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Indiana and I would be right there from load-in to load-out listening to the music he played. There wasn't a band rehearsal in the garage or a show that I missed. I would listen to record after record of all the great country legends and dream of being there one day. Music was always there around us and always a part of our lives."

His father eventually traded his musical aspirations for a blue-collar job at the local factory to focus on his family responsibilities, but the seed had already started to take root in his young son.

After graduating college in 1994, Brad made a beeline for Tennessee and his dreams of becoming a star, and was soon performing five nights a week in Printers Alley at a club called Barbara's. Ask him what he considers his first big break, and he'll laughingly tell you, "Paying my first month's rent."

It wasn't long before Brad was turning heads of many people in the business. Brad signed his first co-publishing and management deal after only a short time in town. There were many who saw great potential in Brad and his music. "At that time in my life, I couldn't believe that things were going so well. I knew it was time for me to write songs, sing as many demos as possible and refine my style as an artist." Brad did just that and out of that process came to be the artist he is today.

Brad eventually caught the eye of Sony Music executives and signed his first major recording deal with Epic Records. Brad's first move after getting the greenlight to record his music was to seek out the right producer, and he struck up a musical kinship with Billy Joe Walker, Jr. (Travis Tritt, Pam Tillis, Mark Chesnutt, Tracy Byrd). The two talked at length about Brad's goals musically, and then set out to make them reality.

"Recording the first album was an experience that finally gave me the opportunity to show my fans who I was as a writer and an artist at that stage in my career. I felt that the record had to have great musical value and be a lot fun. Looking back and listening to that record there isn't much I would change. Maybe a song or two just because I feel I have grown so much musically, but that's what fun about listening to that record. It had a wide range for audience. There is however, a few I plan to record again someday."

Brad's hit debut single, "Before I Knew Better," the survival anthem/ode to "experience being the best teacher," tells the tale of a wild young guy who goes off half-cocked most of the time, until his pride causes him to lose the love of his life one day. "That song is just the truth," admits Brad. "And everybody has made mistakes, everybody has a past and things they have to face one day. It's about life lessons, and learning from them, and mending the fences."

On "Rub Me the Right Way," the second top 40 single release, Brad channels a bit of rough and rowdy style. "This guy has had a rough tough day, the boss has been on his case all day, but he knows he has someone special at home. It's kind of your working man's blues, woman-friendly composition, with a 'Take this job and shove it' sentiment." The seed of that song came from watching his dad for many years bust his knuckles over 50 hour weeks to get ahead all the while struggling to balance work, family and music, but benefiting from the constant encouragement from his wife.

Paying tribute to the sexy, beautiful women of the world "Now That's a Woman" lends a tasty love song to the well rounded collaborations that make up Brad's first album. " This song is for all the girls who make it happen" says Brad.

"I love writing and recording, but my passion is performing. I'm really just a road dog at heart, and I'm always ready to hit the road!" says Brad enthusiastically.