So Far, So Good The Piano Guys

• 1 (It's Gonna Be) Okay 03:30
• 2 A Thousand Years 04:36
• 3 Fight Song / Amazing Grace 04:05
• 4 The Cello Song 03:15
• 5 Fathers' Eyes 04:00
• 6 Beethoven's 5 Secrets 05:09
• 7 Let It Go 04:05
• 8 Michael Meets Mozart 05:18
• 9 Titanium / Pavane 04:49
• 10 Hello / Lacrimosa 03:52
• 11 All of Me 03:02
• 12 What Makes You Beautiful 02:53
• 13 (It's Gonna Be) Okay 03:30
• Total Runtime 52:04

Info for So Far, So Good

The Piano Guys – four talented dads from Utah – release their new album ‘So Far, So Good’ on Friday 2nd June 2017 (Sony) – a special new collection of their signature sound on their most popular tracks from the past five years and including the single ‘It’s Gonna Be Okay’ where the guys team up for the first time ever with legendary pop singer, Sir Cliff Richard.

The Piano Guys – Steven Sharp Nelson (cello guy), Jon Schmidt (piano guy), Al van der Beek (producer guy) and Paul Anderson (videographer guy) – are an American musical group who became an online sensation through their immensely successful series of strikingly original self-made music videos, all directed by Paul Anderson. Since 2011, they have made over 50 music videos, including their breakout hit, an innovative multi-handed version of One Direction’s ‘What Makes You Beautiful’. This hugely successful and highly creative team specialises in pop/classical mash-ups and ‘So Far, So Good’ epitomises all that is good about them! They are the only group ever to have filmed a music video on the Great Wall of China; they have topped international charts; sold out concert halls all over the world and accrued a massive social media following. They have become superstars on YouTube with a massive viewership of 1 billion hits and over 5.2 million subscribers.

Their incredible rise to fame started in a piano store in Southern Utah called ‘The Piano Guys’, where store-owner, Paul Anderson, was looking for new and unconventional ways to market and sell pianos and to attract a new customer base. He set out to engage potential customers with music videos that showcased the pianos in his store and enlisted the help of pianist Jon Schmidt, cellist Steve Sharp Nelson and producer Al van der Beek. When these four ordinary guys started out together, they had no idea of how incredible their adventure would become.

To coincide with the release of ‘So Far, So Good’, The Piano Guys will appear on 3rd June 2017 at the Royal Albert Hall, London. An additional matinee concert has just been added, due to overwhelming audience demand.

On working with pop legend, Cliff Richard, The Piano Guys noted: “For a bunch of ordinary guys like us to end up making music with pop icon, Cliff Richard, is beyond amazing! Our mission has always been to make music that inspires, uplifts and makes the world a better place and in this aim, we have definitely found a kindred spirit in Sir Cliff.”

The Piano Guys

The Piano Guys
It all started in a piano store in a little Southern Utah town called Saint George. Paul Anderson, the store’s owner, was looking for a new, unconventional way to market pianos. The name of the piano store? The Piano Guys.

Paul embarked upon a self-guided study of social marketing and started a YouTube channel and a Facebook page. He had seen videos “go viral” and was fascinated by this exponential phenomenon. He set out to engage potential customers with music videos that were entertaining and that showcased the pianos he had in his store – envisioning “viral videos” doing his marketing for him. Paul was an ambitious, talented risk taker and felt inspired that if he could find the right people to work with he could create the number one music video channel in the world.

In walked Jon Schmidt. Literally. Jon had built a career in solo piano performance and had a concert in the St. George area. He asked Paul if he could practice on one of the store’s pianos in preparation for his gig that night. Paul explained his idea to Jon and asked if he would be willing to be in a video promoting both the store and Jon’s music. It was a win-win. Jon brought so much to the table. He had experienced the “music business” first hand. He had a gift for combining multiple genres of music in such an entertaining way that he had captivated and captured a broad, substantial fan base.

Enter Steven Sharp Nelson. When Steve was 15 years old he met Jon when they had shared the stage at a concert in which they were both performing. Steve started joining Jon at more and more of his concerts. This rapidly grew into a great friendship and a complementary stage chemistry that had audiences in stiches and in tears in two songs or less. Steve was a multi-instrumentalist that had pioneered a new approach to the cello and to song writing. And his ADHD-fueled creative mind contained a queue of song and video ideas waiting to be produced. Then came Al van der Beek. Al showed up on Steve’s doorstep to help when Steve was moving in just down the street. Al had heard Steve was a musician and he invited his new neighbor to his home where he housed a decked-out studio. Steve and Al began writing tunes together and discovered a supernatural songwriting partnership. Al’s studio and his engineering skills were to become the most important music-writing tool for The Piano Guys, except of course for Al himself, whose innate ability for songwriting had an essential sleek edge to it.

Meanwhile, back at the piano store, employee Tel Stewart, who started as a piano mover, was just completing a degree in videography. His videography and editing skills rounded out TPG’s beginnings and made it possible to include special effects like the “Steve clones” and lightsaber cello bows! Jeremy Crawford, who also worked at the store, was arguably the best and most fearless piano mover in the world (at least as far as we know!) Without Jeremy, our Piano Stunt Coordinator, no one would have ever asked the question that we get so often, “How the heck did they get the piano up there?” Jeremy also stepped up to fill an important operations role as TPG grew so fast we couldn’t keep up. Shaye Scott, a friend of Paul’s, jumped onboard during the genesis of TPG and lent tremendous videography talent – a natural ability to capture the grandeur of nature, where most of TPG videos are filmed. Shaye’s entrepreneurial talent also ably aided the business side of TPG behind the scenes.

Our story is a miracle. We’re just a bunch of ordinary “guys” playing classically influenced instrumental music in videos that showcase incredible locations. And we’re doing well on YouTube?? There are so many coincidences that the summation of each circumstance transcends “happenstance.” We do not take credit for our successes. We cannot. To do so would defy reason. We thank God, our families, and the people who have supported us by sharing our videos, purchasing our music, and encouraging us through comments and messages. Our mission will always be to produce music videos that inspire, uplift, and make the world a better place. If we can make a positive impact in even one person’s life it has all been worth it to us.

Booklet for So Far, So Good