In these days when every singer hopes to appear on American Idol or America’s Got Talent and win instant fame—or infamy— by showing off vocal pyrotechnics, Scott Snapp is (as the San Francisco Chronicle noted) a “refreshing relief.” Six-time Emmy and DGA Award-winning director Tony Charmoli calls Scott “a great talent” and Academy Award, Golden Globe, and Grammy winner Paul Williams praises his singing as “nothing over-sung or over-sold.”
Scott got his start at the age of eighteen, when he entered a talent contest and won a week’s booking at the local club in Beverly Hills. You could say music was in his blood. His mother had lived and performed in New York City while attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and as a teenager Scott would sing out full tilt as he walked along country roads. From there, he worked his way west, developing his craft and eventually singing to SRO crowds at such legendary venues as the Troubadour, the Backlot and the Cinegrill. Along the way he worked with some of the best-known songwriters, including Motown great Ron Miller, Oscar winner Paul Jabara, and Oscar and Grammy nominee Allan Rich. Grammy winner Melissa Manchester calls Scott “a very good songwriter,” and the Santa Monica Evening Outlook said he’s “a powerful singer with dynamic stage presence.” The Los Angeles Herald Examiner admired Scott’s ability to “carefully and subtly move his audience to tears.” Whether he is using his “rich, lyric baritone” with its three-octave range doing rock, ballads, blues, or show tunes, his performances have been called “electrifying,” his presence notable for his “easy grace, affability, and style.” Or, as the L.A. Weekly succinctly put it, “Snapp is a charmer.”
Most recently, Scott performed for sold-out audiences at Vitello’s in Los Angeles and at the prestigious Metropolitan Room in New York City, to promote his first CD, WITHOUT THE MUSIC.
For this effort, Scott enlisted the aid of established pros to help showcase his talents. Renowned Broadway poster designer David Edward Byrd designed the cover. A Who’s Who of Session Players back up Scott’s vocals. And the “masterly production” (Sebastiano Lionti) and arrangements are by Bob Esty, whose genius has resulted in gold, platinum, and multi-platinum hits for performers as varied as Barbra Streisand, Cher, and Donna Summer and who has also worked with cabaret stars such as Sally Kellerman, to say nothing of the Beach Boys, Andy Williams, and opera star Julia Migenes. For WITHOUT THE MUSIC Esty has mixed elements of pop, jazz, swing, and blues together with a hint of Broadway and a nod to rock and Weimar Berlin cabaret, into a seamless, resonant sound palette that is distinctively Scott Snapp.
As Rex Reed observed, “If anything about this business made any sense, Scott Snapp would have been a big star a long time ago.” Listen to WITHOUT THE MUSIC and you may agree: The time has come.
“Paul Jabara introduced me to Scott Snapp after one of Scott’s shows at the “Backlot” in Los Angeles. At the time, Scott was performing his own material as well as other hits. Scott asked me to work with him on the spot. Although I was impressed with his talent, I was busy with “The Broadway Album” at the time.When we reconnected in 2005, Scott has a much more extensive collection of work. We listened to everything and I knew that this CD ["Without the Music"] could be something special.
Scott and I have worked diligently on “Without the Music”, Scott has grown enormously as a performer during this experience. Because of the diversity of the material, we chose to make the CD thematically different from anything I’ve done before.
This work has been a wonderful journey. When working with a new artist, it’s tricky to make them realize their full potential. Scott rose to every challenge.
Scott is a unique talent, and I am proud to introduce him to a wider audience with this remarkable CD. — Bob Esty”
Scott Snapp’s career is managed by Dorian Hannaway, Hannaway We Go!, (310) 854-3999, Hannaway@aol.com