Warren Entner (born 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, organist and guitarist for the rock and roll band The Grass Roots. He subsequently became a manager for several successful heavy metal/rock groups.
Overview
Entner is best known for his vocal contributions on some of The Grass Roots' biggest hits, most notably the memorable "1-2-3-4" count-in to the chorus, as well as lead vocal on the chorus, of Let's Live for Today and the Middle 8 of the song Midnight Confessions.
It was with The Grass Roots that Entner practiced his first efforts as band manager that he would fine tune to become a professional manager for other groups after 1974. Entner identified several songs written by other composers that proved successful when The Grass Roots covered them. He was instrumental in identifying "Let's Live For Today", "Midnight Confessions" and "Lovin' Things" (written by Artie Schroeck) to name a few.[1]
In 1970, he married the Welsh actress, model and beauty queen, Miss World 1961, Rosemarie Frankland. In 1976, she gave birth to their only child together, a daughter. The couple divorced in 1981. He was married again on May 25, 1985, to Stacey Elizabeth Babbitt, who gave birth to his second child in 1986.[2]
Compositions and musical release performance
Entner composed twenty-one songs for The Grass Roots. Two of these, "Feelings" and "Come On And Say It", appeared as single "A" sides. His other nineteen compositions appeared on single "B" sides and albums. He wrote frequently with Rob Grill and they were considered a songwriting team. Entner played with the group on their first nine albums, seven of which charted. He took part in the first twenty-five singles released, twenty of which charted.[3]
Group management
After departing from The Grass Roots in the mid 70s, Entner went behind the scenes of the music business and became a manager. Owning his own firm Warren Entner Management, Entner managed a number of hard rock artists including Angel, Quiet Riot, Faith No More,[4]Rage Against the Machine, Deftones, as well as other acts such as The Grays, Failure and Nada Surf.