Thriving Ivory (album)

Thriving Ivory is the self-titled debut album of the American alternative rock group Thriving Ivory. The album was originally released on May 18, 2003 on the Wolfgang label, and re-released on June 24, 2008 on Wind-Up Records. The sound of their self-titled release was inspired by bands such as U2 and Coldplay. The debut album hit #1 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart.

Recording
After enthralling the Santa Barbara College community the group relocated to San Francisco as their buzz grew. Self-released discs and the Internet helped spread the word, pulling in more than half a million hits to Thriving Ivory's MySpace music player.

Thriving Ivory's live shows sealed the deal with anyone who witnessed one. "I was immediately attracted to Thriving Ivory's sound," notes an admittedly "stubborn and hardheaded" Sonoma State Star reviewer. "It was surprisingly melodic, sweeping and triumphant. The vocals were raw, gritty and yet refined and pleasantly reminiscent of a young Robert Plant. The piano was simply enchanting, providing a sturdy backbone for their sound, which was rounded off with laid back guitar riffs, smooth bass and rhythmic drums...Their music is larger than they know... The band exudes a cohesion found only in seasoned bands like the Rolling Stones, and yet, they are seemingly unaware of how big they could be."

Veteran manager Arnold Pustinik (former management partner of legendary rock impresario Bill Graham) was piqued by a demo to catch a live show that wowed him and joined forces with the group. Thriving Ivory began recording their album with Manning in the basement of Cribley's family home as major labels sniffed out the buzz and came courting. But it was an immediate offer from Wind-Up Records that presented Thriving Ivory with the ideal launching pad for the final stage of their ascent to rock music's upper stratosphere.

Signing with Wind-Up Records & re-release
Signing with Wind-Up in 2007, the band worked with producers Howard Benson (who had previously worked with Seether and Daughtry) and Chris Manning (former bassist for Jellyfish) for their debut. Released in 2008, Thriving Ivory contained several songs that had been available on the group’s self-released records. The first single was “Angels on the Moon,” the moony ballad that represented the band's yearning, heartfelt reach and was responsible for making their presence known on the airwaves years prior. With their delicate string sections and lovelorn lyrics, Thriving Ivory's songs drew comparisons to Coldplay and U2.

The single "Angels to the Moon" was certified Gold in 2010 after selling 500,000 copies.

Personnel
Clayton Stroope - Lead vocals Scott Jason - Piano, Keyboard Drew Cribley - Guitars Bret Cohune - Bass Paul Niedermier - Drums, Percussion