News

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  April 7, 2009

  Band Aid

  From Emmy magazine
  
  Working hard for the money – charity, that is – is rarely this much fun.  When Greg Grunberg – aka Matt Parkman on NBC's "Heroes" – pulled a band together with some of his buddies in television, it was supposed to be a one-time charity gig.
  
  "We thought that was going to be the end of it," says James Denton, who plays Mike the plumber on ABC's "Desperate Housewives."  "Little did we know it was going to keep growing."
  
  Grunberg, a drummer for a garage band with guitarist Chris Kelley and former Eagles keyboardist Barry Sarna, agreed to play for that now-memorable fundraiser, for the Guitar Center Music Foundation.
  
  "On that bill was the group Chicago, there were  the guys who played with Macy Gray…and no one cared, press-wise, when they walked the red carpet," Grunberg says.  "But when we walked the carpet, they went crazy. I thought, 'Wow there's real star power in this novelty.' "

  In addition to Grunberg and Denton, the band's main members include Adrian Pasdar ("Heroes"), Bob Guiney ("The Bachelor"), and Bonnie Somerville ("Cashmere Mafia"), along with Jesse Spencer and Hugh Laurie ("House").  So it's no surprise the group is called Band From TV.
  
  One hundred percent of the proceeds from their appearances (corporations have paid up to $200,000) and sales of their CD/DVD "Hoggin' All the Covers" (available on Amazon.com) are split among the various charities each supports.
  
  "Teri Hatcher ['Desperate Housewives'] has joined us onstage, and Hayden Panettiere ['Heroes'], Jorge Garcia ['Lost'], Wayne Brady, and John Mayer. Every time somebody joins us, I insist that they have a charity," says Grunberg, who plays for the Epilepsy Foundation (his 13-year-old son Jake has the disorder).
  
  Since it's all about philanthropy, there are no egos to contend with, band members say.  "I'll be front and center singing, but when it's Hugh's turn to sing, I love backing him up – none of us has a problem relinquishing the spotlight," says lead singer Guiney.
  
  Full-time day jobs make scheduling a challenge, but they make it work. "I was fortunate to be able to play on every gig," says Spencer, the Aussie fiddler who became a regular last year. "I've missed rehearsals, but I've never missed a performance because my schedule is not as bad as Hugh's."
  
  With sponsorship from ExpressJet, the band hopes to go on the road more often, possibly to perform for troops in Afghanistan.  Pasdar, the latest addition on guitar (his wife is Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks) is hoping that Hatcher, Panettiere, or Somerville can join them.
  
  "As devastatingly handsome as the men in this band are, it's not the same if you don't have a girl."
  
     - Janice Rhoshalle Liittlejohn
  

  Source: Emmy magazine

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