Editing Tonio K

{{short description|American singer-songwriter}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2014}}
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{{Infobox musical artist
|name                = Tonio K
|birth_name          = Steven M. Krikorian
|birth_date          = {{birth date and age|1950|7|4}}
|birth_place         = United States
|instrument          = 
|background          = solo_singer
|genre               = [[Rock music|Rock]]
|occupation          = Musician
|years_active        = 1963–present
|label               = 
|associated_acts=
}}

'''Tonio K.''' (born Vladamir '''Steven M. Krikorian''', July 4, 1950)<ref>Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll, revised edition, 1995, Rolling Stone Press/Simon and Schuster</ref> is an American singer/songwriter who has released eight albums. His songs have been recorded by [[Al Green]], [[Aaron Neville]], [[Burt Bacharach]], [[Bonnie Raitt]], [[Chicago (band)|Chicago]], [[Wynonna Judd]] and [[Vanessa L. Williams|Vanessa Williams]], among many others.<ref>Warner-Chappell Music Publishing, 1991–2000</ref> His song "16 Tons of Monkeys," co-written with guitarist Steve Schiff, was featured in the 1992 Academy Award-winning short film ''[[Session Man (film)|Session Man]]''. He worked with Bacharach and hip-hop impresario [[Dr. Dre]] on Bacharach's ''At This Time,'' which won the Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Recording in 2005.

== Recording and performing artist ==
As a teenager, Krikorian, along with friends Alan Shapazian, Steve Olson, Nick van Maarth, and Duane Scott, formed a surf-funk/psychedelic-punk band called The Raik's Progress, which recorded a single for Liberty Records, released in 1966. Known for their Dadaist-inspired between-song routines, one reviewer described their performance while opening for [[Buffalo Springfield]] at San Francisco's [[The Fillmore|Fillmore]] Auditorium as being like "the [[Three Stooges]] playing strip poker with [[Iggy and the Stooges]]." A full-length album by the band, ''Sewer Rat Love Chant,'' was eventually issued on Sundazed Records in 2003.

In the early 1970s, Krikorian recorded two albums with [[Buddy Holly]]'s original band, [[The Crickets]]. The group consisted of founding members [[Jerry Allison|J.I. Allison]] and [[Sonny Curtis]], plus [[Rick Grech]] ([[Blind Faith]], [[Traffic (band)|Traffic]]) and [[Albert Lee]] ([[Heads, Hands and Feet]], [[Eric Clapton]]) and the Raik's Nick van Maarth who would later join California rock ensemble [[Wha-Koo]]. ''Remnants'' (1973) and ''A Long Way from Lubbock'' (1974) were produced by long-time Holly and Cricket cohort, [[Bob Montgomery (musician)|Bob Montgomery]]. In 2004, Krikorian reunited with the Crickets for a track on their star-studded ([[Eric Clapton]], [[Graham Nash]], [[Phil Everly]]) album, ''The Crickets and Their Buddies,'' singing lead on the Holly classic, "Not Fade Away."

In 1978, Krikorian went solo with ''Life in the Foodchain'' on [[Irving Azoff]]'s [[Full Moon Records|Full Moon]]/Epic label. Adopting the moniker Tonio K., a reference to the writings of [[Kafka]] and [[Thomas Mann]], he was hailed as America's answer to Britain's [[Angry Young Men]] ([[Elvis Costello]], [[Joe Jackson (manager)|Joe Jackson]], [[Graham Parker]]) and the "funniest serious songwriter in America." The record was produced by Rob Fraboni ([[The Band]], [[Bob Dylan]], [[Joe Cocker]]) and featured a supporting cast that included [[Earl Slick]], [[Garth Hudson]], [[Dick Dale]] and [[Albert Lee]]. It was also the first Pop/Rock record to feature the percussive sounds of an [[AK 47|AK-47]] firing live ammunition. The album debuted on L.A. radio station [[KROQ]] and garnered much critical acclaim. Steve Simels at ''[[Stereo Review]]'' proclaimed it "the greatest album ever recorded" which helped establish K. as an artist to watch.

K.'s follow-up album, ''Amerika'', was released in 1980 via Clive Davis's Arista Records. Filled with literary and political references, the album was hailed as "Punk for academics" and once again pronounced by Simels to be "the greatest record ever recorded" (as was every ensuing Tonio K. disc).

After a move to Capitol Records in 1982, K. recorded a five-song 12-inch EP "La Bomba," a live-in-the-studio album produced by Carter (Motels, Tina Turner, Paula Cole). Recorded in the famous Capitol Studio B, it featured K.'s touring band: George “Geo” Conner (guitar), Alfredo Acosta Alwag (drums), and Enrique “Eric” Gotthelf (bass). The song "Mars Needs Women" also appears on this EP.

Tonio next released ''Romeo Unchained'' on What?/A&M Records. Hailed by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as “the best Bob Dylan album since Dylan himself lost interest in the Pop song form,” the album landed on numerous critics’ Top 10 Albums of the Year lists. Recorded during 1985 and 1986, it was produced, variously, by Rick Neigher, Bob Rose ([[Julian Lennon]]) and [[T Bone Burnett]] ([[Counting Crows]], [[The Wallflowers|Wallflowers]], [[Robert Plant]] & [[Alison Krauss]]). The musicians on these recordings included Neigher (on many instruments), Rose, Burnett, Peter Banks ([[Yes (band)|Yes]]), David Mansfield, David Miner, David Raven, Tim Pierce, [[Tim Chandler]], and [[Rob Watson (musician)|Rob Watson]].
''Notes From The Lost Civilization,'' again on What?/A&M, followed in 1988. It was concurrently released on the Word label, a gospel/Christian music subsidiary of A&M; the Word version of the release did not include the song "What Women Want"<ref>Unofficial Tonio K fan club web site (Martin Stillone), accessed June 30, 2010</ref>(presumably for the lyric " . . . they want sex, yeah that's true" although the point of the song is that women want love). Produced by Tonio K. and [[David Miner (musician)|David Miner]], with [[T Bone Burnett]] serving as Executive Producer, the all-star cast of supporting musicians included Burnett, [[Booker T Jones|Booker T. Jones]] on [[Hammond b3|Hammond B-3]], [[Jim Keltner]], Raymond Pounds and [[Alex Acuña]] on drums and percussion, [[James Jamerson|James Jamerson, Jr.]] and [[David Miner (musician)|David Miner]] on bass, and [[Charlie Sexton]] and [[Jack Sherman (guitarist)|Jack Sherman]] on additional guitars. The video for the single, "Without Love," marked Tonio's first airplay on MTV.

''Olé'' was Tonio K.'s final record for A&M. Recorded in 1989 and 1990, it didn't see release until 1997 on Gadfly Records. (The reasons for this are well documented in the liner notes to the CD.) It was produced by [[T Bone Burnett]] and [[David Miner (musician)|David Miner]] with a core band consisting of Marc Ribot, [[Booker T Jones|Booker T. Jones]], David Raven and Bruce Thomas ([[The Attractions|Attractions]]). Additional guitarists included Jack Sherman, Charlie Sexton, Rusty Anderson, [[Los Lobos]]' David Hidalgo and [[The Replacements (band)|The Replacements]]' Paul Westerberg. Although ''Olé'' was K.'s last major label recording, several other compilation and live CDs have been issued (see discography below).

== Songwriter ==
Tonio K. continued as a performing singer/songwriter into the 1990s but gradually withdrew from live concerts and focused more on crafting songs with and for other artists. His biggest commercial success, "Love Is," was co-written with long-time collaborator John Keller, composer [[Michael Caruso (musician)|Michael Caruso ]] and recorded by [[Vanessa L. Williams|Vanessa Williams]] and [[Brian McKnight]]. It was a #1 Pop and AC (Adult Contemporary) radio single and one of the most-played songs of 1993. K. has publicly questioned the validity of Caruso's credit on the recording-- though without using his name-- and appears validated only by virtue of his refusing to name Caruso specifically and by not having given up any of his financial stake in the song, for which Keller apparently offered a percentage of his own to Caruso. (K. has been quoted as saying that his first choice for vocalist on the song was the famously gruff-voiced [[Tom Waits]]). He also co-wrote, with [[Bob Thiele|Bob Thiele, Jr.]] and [[John Shanks]], the [[Bonnie Raitt]] AC hit, "You.”

Tonio and close friend [[Charlie Sexton]] have written many (mostly unreleased) songs since Sexton first recorded K.'s "Impressed" and "You Don't Belong Here" on his debut album, ''Pictures for Pleasure,'' in 1985. "Graceland (Never Been To)," opening track to the Quentin Tarantino-written and Tony Scott-directed movie ''True Romance,'' is one of their more notable, albeit obscure, cuts. K. was involved in writing six songs on Sexton's Arc Angels debut on Geffen Records. He also co-wrote with Sexton for his ''Under the Wishing Tree'' release on MCA.

Tonio K. has written lyrics for both [[Steve Jones (musician)|Steve Jones]] of the [[Sex Pistols]] and [[Burt Bacharach]]. In addition to several years of collaborating with Bacharach, Tonio co-wrote eight of the nine vocal tracks on the aforementioned Grammy-winning CD, ''At This Time.''

Tonio K. film credits include "[[Nobody Lives Without Love]]," co-written with musician/writer/producer [[Larry Klein]] ([[Joni Mitchell]], [[Herbie Hancock]]) and featured on the multi-platinum-selling soundtrack to ''[[Batman Forever]]''; the quasi-Disco semi-hit, "I'm Supposed To Have Sex With You," from the [[Carl Reiner]] film ''[[Summer School (film)|Summer School]];'' "Stop The Clock," co-written with [[T Bone Burnett]] for the early [[Vince Vaughn]]/[[Joaquin Phoenix]]/[[Janeane Garofalo]] vehicle, ''[[Clay Pigeons]]''; the above-mentioned "Graceland" from ''[[True Romance]]''; and his song "The Tuff Do What?" from 1985's movie ''[[Real Genius]]''. 2002's [[Van Wilder]] featuring [[Ryan Reynolds]]... song called Okay written with the band [[Swirl 360]].

Tonio K.'s first known "cover" was a song called "Hey John," recorded by [[Johnny Rivers]] in 1972, but never released. In addition to the cuts mentioned above, he has written with and for [[Brian Wilson]], J.I. Allison, The Crickets, [[Al Green]], [[Bette Midler]], [[The Pointer Sisters]], [[Tanya Tucker]], [[Diane Schuur]], [[Percy Sledge]], [[Phoebe Snow (musician)|Phoebe Snow]], Jules Shear, [[The Runaways]], [[Patty Smyth]], [[Kenny Wayne Shepherd]], and Italian superstar [[Riccardo Cocciante|Richard Cocciante]]. Recent covers include songs by [[Irma Thomas]] ("What Can I Do?" co-written with Burt Bacharach) on her Rounder Records CD ''Simply Grand'' and several songs co-written with pedal steel prodigy [[Robert Randolph (guitarist)|Robert Randolph]] for his CD ''We Walk This Road'', produced by [[T Bone Burnett]].

Musician [["Weird Al" Yankovic]] called Tonio K. one of his "favorite artists".<ref name=TNY>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-new-yorker-interview/how-weird-al-spoofed-himself|title=How Weird Al Spoofed Himself|author=Larson, Sarah|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|date=November 6, 2022}}</ref>

== Discography ==
* ''Life in the Foodchain'', (Full Moon/Epic, 1978)
* ''Amerika'' (Arista, 1980)
* ''La Bomba'' (Capitol/Universal Music, 1982)
* ''Romeo Unchained'' ([[What? Records]]/A&M, 1986)
* ''Notes from the Lost Civilization'' (What?/A&M, 1988)
* ''Olé'' (Gadfly, 1997)
* ''Rodent Weekend '76–'96'' (Gadfly, 1998)
* ''Yugoslavia'' (Gadfly, 1999)
* ''16 Tons of Monkeys'', (Gadfly, 2001)

===As band member===
'''With The Raik's Progress'''
* ''Sewer Rat Love Chant'' (Sundazed, 2003)

'''With The Crickets'''
* ''Remnants'' (Vertigo, 1973)
* ''A Long Way from Lubbock'' (Mercury (UK-only release), 1974)

===Compilation appearances===
* "La Bomba" from ''The Best of La Bamba'' (Rhino, 1988)
* "[[The Funky Western Civilization]]" from ''[[Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Hits of the '80s|New Wave Hits of the 80's]]'' (Rhino, 1994)
* "Another Day in Limbo" from ''Orphans of God: A Tribute to Mark Heard'' (1996)
* "Not Fade Away" (with Peter Case) from ''The Crickets and Their Buddies'' (Sovereign Artists, 2004)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Official website|https://www.toniok.com/}}
*[http://repertoire.bmi.com/writer.asp?fromrow=1&torow=25&keyname=TONIO%20K&querytype=WriterID&keyid=189525&page=1&blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&affiliation=ASCAP&cae=126862172 Tonio K songs in the BMI/ASCAP database]
*[http://whereisthatplace.com Where Is That Place? The Unofficial Tonio K. Homepage]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tonio K}}
[[Category:1950 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American male singers]]
[[Category:American male songwriters]]
[[Category:American people of Armenian descent]]