About Watercourse Media:

A long time ago, in a far off galaxy. . . . .

Well, late 1974 to be exact, in Berkeley, California (some people consider that a far off galaxy), Marc Allen and Sky Canyon met and began playing music together. They had such a good time that they formed a band. Then they found Robert Powell just a few months later - a young, innocent (??!#%) and talented musician - and recruited him for the band. They called themselves the Reunion Band (must have been a reunion from some other lifetime, as this was their first band together that they actually remember), and the Reunion Band became a fabulous, kick-ass rock band doing all their own original material. Boy did they have fun! They even made a living at it, travelling as far away as North Carolina, which was for sure a more far off galaxy.

But a famous band they were not to be (yet). The club burned down, some of the band went back to California, and, in 1976, Marc and Sky recorded some mellow vocal albums in the comfort of the living room on the trusty 4-track, pressed some vinyl the next year, and managed to actually sell a couple thousand or so records. . . . Of course, they didn't have any distribution, so they never really caught on . .

But then, in 1979 and 1980, Marc and Sky recorded, on yet the same 4-track, an instrumental album, featuring electric and acoustic pianos and vibraphone. They thought it was pretty interesting music, which was reason enough to press up a thousand pieces of vinyl. "Hey Marc," said Sky, "I'll be thrilled if we sell all thousand copies!" This time, a bunch of distributors also thought it was interesting. That album, entitled BREATHE, launched their first record company, Rising Sun Records. It went on to sell over 50,000 copies, with international distribution and airplay on hundreds of radio stations around the country. You might even have heard it on an airplane – it was among the first New Age albums on the in-flight programming.

After a half dozen years and as many more albums, they sold the company to Narada and went on to other things. Oh yeah, during all of this, they were building New World Library; Sky was President from 1979 through 1985, and when he decided to move on (to Colorado), he turned over the reins to Marc. Everyone who’s anyone knows about New World Library these days; after all, who hasn’t read Shakti Gawain’s Creative Visualization, or Deepak Chopra’s Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, or most recently, Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now???

Fast forward to 2003: The boys are still itching to do more music, from mellow instrumental to kick-ass rock and roll (some things never change) so they start a new label, Watercourse Media. The first three titles are solo albums by Marc, Sky and Robert; coming soon are re-releases of their classic albums from Rising Sun Records (thanks Narada for licensing them back to us), and all kinds of other things planned for the future.

So check out the offerings, listen to samples of all the tracks,
buy something before you leave our site,
and stay tuned for more, and more, and more. . . .

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ABOUT OUR ARTISTS/FOUNDERS:

MARC ALLEN has had a multi-faceted career. He studied music as a child, and began composing at age 16. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Minnesota in 1968, with a degree in Theatre Arts and English Literature. He worked as an actor and composer, then spent most of his twenties studying yoga, Eastern philosophy, Zen Buddhism, and Tibetan Buddhism.

In 1977, he co-founded New World Library with Shakti Gawain. Since 1986, he has guided the company as President and Publisher, producing best sellers including Deepak Chopra’s Seven Spiritual Laws of Success and Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now.

He has written several books, including Visionary Business: An Entrepreneur's Guide to Success and A Visionary Life. He has also composed several albums of music, including Breathe, Petals, and Solo Flight. He lives in Novato, California, with his wife and two children.

SKY CANYON has been a musician since he was eight years old, and is a recognized talent on vibraphone, drums, and percussion. He has been a recording artist, composer and producer for over 35 years in jazz, rock, country, orchestral and ambient/world music.

Sky was President and Publisher of New World Library from 1978-85, building the company from a startup to international success and recognition with a number of best selling titles, including Shakti Gawain’s Creative Visualization. In 1980 he started and was President of Rising Sun Records, a pioneering record company in the new age genre, with international distribution and licensing.

Sky is also a business coach to entrepreneurs, small companies and creative artists, with a focus on management, startups, financial and strategic planning, marketing, product development and publishing. He lives in Boulder, Colorado with his wife of 25 years.

ROBERT POWELL plays a variety of stringed instruments and is known internationally for his distinctive approach to the pedal steel guitar. As a musician, songwriter and producer Robert has worked with many diverse artists from around the world as well as having composed soundtracks for film, television and multi-media.

His past projects include work with Ustad Salamat Ali Kahn, Sachiko, and Titos Sompa. Through his work with Amnesty International he has produced and recorded with many artists including Peter Gabriel, John Lee Hooker and Jackson Browne.

Currently performing with the San Francisco based bands The Venusians, Nathan Paine and Clothesline Revival, Robert is recording the follow up to his debut album DESERT BEACH. He lives in Fairfax, California with his recording studio.

KIKI LA PORTA had a career in the record business in the late 1970s, working for A&M Records in Hollywood as a [what?].

Over the years, she has worked with companies and organizations, from multinational to local to non-profit, to create integrated marketing across a variety of media including print, packaging, and web for more than two decades.

Kiki established Design Communications in 1995 in order to be able to expand the business she started from home while her kids were little, providing branding, strategic communications, advertising, marketing services and graphic design to a variety of clients including The Esalen Institute, Marin Municipal Water District (MMWD), and Tamalpais Bank.

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