Founding Fathers

Dean Holmen EMM Records / Hanging Tree Records Production Manager.

E Mail Dean At: dean@deanholmen.com
Dean Holmen: Born July 12th 1959 in Madison WI.

Started playing guitar and drums at the age 10. Started first Band in 1972 (Black Diamond) 50s-60s music. Dean’s love for traditional country music lead him to start a new band in 1973 playing Country music. In 1974 started playing school dances and local jobs until he joined the US ARMY in 1977. Serving in the Army at Ft. Campbell KY. Dean joined a band (Lee & Country Drifters) in Clarksville TN. Dean was sent over to Germany in 1978 started playing with the Army Recreational Band. He was on special duty assignment to play at NCO and O clubs all over Germany. In late 1979 was sent back to Clarksville TN. Dean started playing with the band (Country Stardust) He played clubs all over TN.  In late 1981 was released from the Army and moved back to his home state of Wisconsin. Started playing with local bands throughout the mid west. In 1984 Dean joined (Silver Wings Band) Played and Recorded first record in 1985 with Silver Wings Band.

After years of playing country music Dean was not happy with the way country music was heading. In 2002 Dean headed to Nashville to start recording traditional country music he had been writing for years. His first CD “Dean Holmen (True To Life)” was released in June of 2003. This CD gave Dean a top 10 song “Dear Hank” in Europe and is still his most played song to date. With the success of his first CD Dean recorded his second CD “Dean Holmen (Keep It Country) Released in 2005 by EMM Records of Nashville. Dean spent three weeks on tour in Europe in April of 2005 going to Denmark and Sweden.

Dean is now promoted by Miranda Promotions here in the USA and Dann Hansen of the Hanging Tree Foundation in Europe. 2006 will find Dean in Nashville working on his third CD to be released in 2007 through EMM Records. Dean will also be touring with the Miranda Stars Opry in 2006 as well as planning another tour to Europe for 2007. For more information on Dean and what he will be doing this year please stop by his web site at  www.deanholmen.com  Please sign his Guest Book he would love to hear from you.

 

Dann Hansen  A & R Director Hanging Tree Records

E mail Dann at: hangingtree@newmail.dk                  website

Dann was born on January 19th 1945, and grew up in the middle of Roskilde , a provincial town situated approximately 15 miles  west of Copenhagen .  The interest for Country music was born in his childhood. When he was a seven year old boy,  he saw a RCA mono Album NAMED “GUN’S AND COWBOYS” in a music store downtown, and the front cover show a scene with a duel between two cowboys in front of a saloon. Where one of the combatants lay bleeding in the dust.  What boy could let such Album pass through, without do something to get it?   Dann saved his pocket money for a lifetime he thought. After two months he was able to walk into the store and with a look of a man of the world he ordered this Album. This was Dann’s first knowledge to the American Country Music and this knowledge cost 12.95 Danish kroner as included artist as Hank Snow, Eddy Arnold, Jim Reeves, Sons of the Pioneers, Jimmie Driftwood and had the number LPM-9920.  In his school years he still loved Country. Tommy Steele, Elvis Presley, but it was the country that got him going, and gave him countless bloody noses, in case of in his teens, country music wasn’t cool, and he had to protect his records from those non country lovers, as often created scars.  He learned the Black Smith trade and to operate with milling machines. When he turned 25 years of age, he begun to travel as supervisor for a firm that made Asphalt plants and cranes. With battlefield in the Saudi Arabian Countries, where he still collected country music records and tapes.  After a longer period in the steel business, he switched into a medical factory named Novo as made enzymes and Insulin, and beside this job he started his own local Radio Station named Roskilde Frequency in company with some DJ friends back in 1982.   After a roaring career their radio station had to close in case of disloyal competition. The many country music fans in Roskilde, as had learned about the Independent country  artists in USA, as Dann had taken under his protecting wings, after he had been presented for them by his mentor Howard Vokes,  Pennsylvania's King Of Country Music, and across his many country music friends and artists over there.  He has since 1991 operated on several radio stations. The latest is Roskilde Damp Radio where he has been since 1992.  Dann’s favorite music has always been classic country music. Which he has defended with fist and claws wherever he operated. In 2005 a newer traditional country artist named Dean Holmen came to Denmark to do a radio tour that Dann had set up for him. While Dean was staying with Dann in Denmark they talked about starting a traditional record label for the soul purpose of releasing traditional country music to radio. Less than a year later Hanging Tree Records was established. Hanging Tree Records is a branch of EMM Records started by Dean Holmen back in 2003. Together they teamed up to start this new label to release only traditional country music. Dann will act as A&R director of this label and Dean will oversee the production of all music in the USA. Together Hanging Tree Records and EMM Records hope to corner the market by only releasing great traditional country music.