Jon Brewer

Jon Brewer
Born (1950-01-30) 30 January 1950
Eastbourne
Alma mater Sutton Valence School for Boys
Occupation Documentary Director, Producer

Jonathan George Brewer (born 30 January 1950) is an English documentary director and producer who was formerly a manager of rock music acts and artists.[1]

Early life

Brewer was born in Eastbourne, England to Gansel and Eileen Brewer. They later moved to London where Jon was educated at Sutton Valence School for Boys. His father worked with Lloyd's of London as an insurance broker and his mother was a housewife who raised Jon and his siblings, David, Elizabeth, and Victoria. Jon followed his father into the insurance industry at Lloyds, but was soon drawn towards the music industry.

Early career

Soon after beginning his career in music management, Brewer joined forces with artists such as David Bowie, Gene Clark of The Byrds, and Mick Taylor and Bill Wyman of The Rolling Stones, as well as Alvin Lee and 10 Years After.[2][3][4] In 1978 Jon collected two Ivor Novello Awards on behalf of his company, Belfern Music. He was awarded the Ivor Novello Award for producing and publishing Gerry Rafferty's "Baker Street" Best Pop Song and another for Best Song Musically and Lyrically.[5] Brewer was also involved in the reformation of the band Yes with Chris Squire, Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Alan White and Rick Wakeman – the group being well known for their acrimonious relationships with each other. They went on to record the Keys To Ascension project with Jon Brewer managing.[6]

In the early 1980s, Brewer entered the burgeoning video industry, creating the 4th largest independent production company in the UK, Avatar Film Company.[1] The company formed associations with CBS, Fox, EMI, and Universal, CIC and branched out into Europe, Australasia, Japan and through Universal Pictures in America, allowing Brewer to become a producer of feature films.

In 2000, Jon Brewer was responsible for bringing the Fuji Rock Festival to the BBC. A 69-camera shoot, filmed at the base of Mount Fuji in Japan with artists such as Oasis, Eminem, Alanis Morissette and Neil Young, amongst others.[1] He subsequently produced a Dance Music DVD in association with Ministry of Sound, entitled The Annual in 2002. This DVD incorporated 5.1 Surround Sound and psychedelic graphic visual effects for an audio/visual home experience. Brewer employed a similar approach in his production of Cream: the DVD.[7]

Rock documentaries

Brewer first produced a documentary–style program for television in 2003 with the production of Michael Hutchence – The Loved One.[1] Soon after, he produced and directed a feature documentary for television on the Nirvana front-man, Kurt Cobain. The film experienced wide success in television worldwide as well as in Home Entertainment, especially in England, France and Japan.[1] Brewer then began The Classic Artists Series, beginning with the band Cream, and later chronicling the careers of The Moody Blues, Yes and Jimi Hendrix.

Blues documentaries

Brewer was later commissioned to direct the film covering the life story of B.B. King. The film became B.B. King: The Life of Riley (Riley being King's real first name)[1] and was narrated by Morgan Freeman.[8]

Following his experience on B.B. King: The Life of Riley, Brewer began to develop a 3 part series for television, chronicling the development of Blues music through slavery, abolition of slavery and The Civil Rights Movement, Monochrome: Black, White and Blue.[9]

Following the positive reception of B.B. King: The Life of Riley,[10] Brewer was contacted by the Nat King Cole estate to create a documentary feature on the life of Nat King Cole.[11] In 2014 the documentary film Nat King Cole: Afraid of the Dark finished filming and edit. The film premiered in London on 13 May 2014.[12]

Brewer was working with Media Development Lounge to raise funds for a documentary about Guns N' Roses.

Filmography

Title Year Role
Screwball Hotel 1988 Producer
Curse of the Crystal Eye 1991 Producer
Michael Hutchene: The Loved One 2005 Producer[13]
All Apologies: Kurt Cobain 2005 Director, Producer[14]
Classic Artists: Cream 2005 Director, Producer
Classic Artists: The Moody Blues 2005 Director, Producer
Classic Artists: Yes 2006 Director, Producer
Classic Artists: Jethro Tull 2007 Director, Producer
Jimi Hendrix: Guitar Hero 2011 Director, Producer
Legends of the Canyon 2013 Director, Producer
Bad Company: The Official Authorised 40th Anniversary Documentary 2014 Director, Producer
Rock Poet 2014 Director, Producer
B.B. King: The Life of Riley 2014 Director, Producer
Nat King Cole: Afraid of the Dark 2014 Director, Producer

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Jon Brewer – Emperor Media". http://www.businessmag.co.uk/entrepreneur/jon-brewer-emperor-media/. The Business Magazine. 14 March 2013. External link in |website= (help);
  2. ↑ "Belfern Music Ltd.". Discogs. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  3. ↑ "Exclusive Trailer: Opening Scene for Blues Doc 'B.B. King: The Life of Riley' is 'All About Feeling'". Indiewire. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  4. ↑ Robinson, Dan. "Director Shoots Revealing New Film on Nat King Cole". The Oxford Times. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  5. ↑ Lister, David, "Pop ballads bite back in lyrical fashion", The Independent, 28 May 1994
  6. ↑ "Jon Brewer". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  7. ↑ "Cream: The DVD". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  8. ↑ Hughes, Tim. "The Indie View, October 11". The Oxford Times. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  9. ↑ "Monochrome: Black, White and Blue". Cardinal Releasing. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  10. ↑ Vulliamy, Ed. "BB King at 87: the last of the great bluesmen". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  11. ↑ "Nat King Cole: Afraid of the Dark". Cardinal Releasing. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  12. ↑ Strang, Faye. "Making the most of retirement! Sir Bruce Forsyth attends Nat King Cole documentary screening alongside glamorous wife". The Daily Mail. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  13. ↑ Clarke, Betty. "Michael Hutchence, The Loved One". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  14. ↑ "All Apologies: Kurt Cobain". Alice in Videoland. Retrieved 15 December 2014.

External links

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