Mark Avsec (born August 23, 1954) is an American rock keyboardist, songwriter, and producer. He was a member of the funk rock band Wild Cherry.

Avsec was an original member of Donnie Iris & the Cruisers. He wrote or co-wrote all of the band's music, was its sole lyricist, and produced all of its albums.[1]

Since 1995, he has also been a copyright lawyer.

Biography

Avsec joined the band Wild Cherry immediately following the recording of the disco hit, "Play That Funky Music" (1976). He was brought in as a session keyboardist for two tracks on the band's debut album, and was then asked to join the group. He also toured with the band, performing "Afternoon Delight" at the 1976 Grammy Awards.[2] During this period, he befriended Donnie Iris, with whom he composed Donnie Iris & The Cruisers' hits "Ah! Leah!" (#19 Billboard Mainstream Rock) and "Love Is Like a Rock" (#9 Billboard Mainstream Rock).

In 1980, Avsec wrote and produced the debut album for the band LaFlavour which garnered the hit single "Mandolay," climbing to number 7 on Billboard's Disco Chart.[3] Avsec later released "Mandolay" himself under the artist name Art Attack. By the time Avsec composed LaFlavour's follow-up album, the band's label, MCA, had decided to change the band's name to "Fair Warning," due to interest in disco music tapering off. The lead-off Fair Warning single composed by Avsec was called "She Don't Know Me," which was taken by MCA from the Fair Warning debut album and given to New Jersey's Bon Jovi, who were preparing their debut album for PolyGram's Mercury label. The label felt Bon Jovi needed the song as a single, making Avsec the only outside songwriter to compose a song released by Bon Jovi that was not co-written by a member of the band. Avsec has played with other musicians such as Mason Ruffner and The James Gang featuring Joe Walsh, Jimmy Fox, and Dale Peters.

In addition to Donnie Iris & the Cruisers, Wild Cherry, and James Gang, Avsec was a member of the Cleveland, Ohio-based band, Breathless.[4] He has also released material in collaboration with fellow Donnie Iris and the Cruisers member Kevin Valentine under the pseudonym Cellarful of Noise.[5]

In 2010, "Angel Love (Come For Me)," a song Avsec co-wrote with Mason Ruffner and Alan Greene, was included on Carlos Santana's Supernatural (Legacy Edition) album.

Avsec decided to become a lawyer because he was sued frivolously for the song "Ah! Leah!" He won the lawsuit but lost all of the royalties defending himself.[6] Today Avsec has a successful practice specializing in intellectual property law based in Cleveland, Ohio, having graduated from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1994 magna cum laude.[7]

Since 2003, Avsec has taught "Law of the Music Industry" at Case Western Reserve University School of Law, and he teaches "Representing the Musical Artist" through the Great Lakes Sports and Entertainment Law Academy, a program that Case Western Reserve University School of Law offers in affiliation with the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.[8] [9]

Discography

Wild Cherry

Studio albums

Compilations

Breathless

  • Breathless, 1979
  • Nobody Leaves This Song Alive, 1980

Donnie Iris and the Cruisers

Studio albums

Live albums

Compilation albums

  • 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of Donnie Iris, 2001
  • 25 Years, 2004

EP

Cellarful of Noise

References

  1. ↑ "The Official Home of Donnie Iris and The Cruisers". Donnieiris.com. Archived from the original on 2013-03-11. Retrieved 2013-03-28.
  2. ↑ "19th Annual GRAMMY Awards (1976)". Retrieved 2020-12-15.
  3. ↑ "LaFlavour History". Laflavour.com. Archived from the original on 2012-02-12. Retrieved 2013-03-28.
  4. ↑ "Breathless History". Tevis Entertainment. Retrieved 2013-03-28.
  5. ↑ "Cellarful of Noise - Music Biography, Credits and Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2013-03-28.
  6. ↑ "Rock Star Now Shines in Court". Cleveland State University.
  7. ↑ "Mark E. Avsec profile". Benesch Law Firm. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
  8. ↑ "Sports & Entertainment Law Academy". Case Western Reserve University School of Law. 17 July 2019. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
  9. ↑ "Entertainment Law Stream". Case Western Reserve University School of Law. 17 July 2019. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
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