Formed in the spring of '99, Gerri Ranta (guitar, vocals), Tim White (bass) & Tony Cale (drums) hit the local music scene running and charmed music fans with their basic, clean approach to pop music, winning the 2000 Sacramento Area Music Award for Best New Band. That July, Baby Grand began to record their debut album Spectrum at Retrofit Recording (co-owned by drummer Tony) with co-owner/engineer J-R Thompson. A year later, the record was completed. In hopes of adding the warmth and fullness of the album to their live shows, the decision to add J-R as a second guitarist was unanimous and he was soon won over by the band's tireless efforts at recruitment. Spectrum was released June '02 on Spy-Fi Records, and Baby Grand was nominated for the 2002 SAMMIES in the Best Pop Band category. Gerri Ranta was also recently presented with the 2003 Critics' Choice Award for Outstanding Female Vocalist.