Who are your favourite and not-so-favourite producers/engineers?

[Beagle]

I just thought that perhaps everyone could submit their candidates for favourite and not-so-favourite producer and /or engineer, for sounds you like or don't like. The actual music is not a criteria for this subject, just sound.

definitely...

Glyn Johns: Creator of some of the most natural sounding recordings ever made...Joan Armatrading, Eagles, Faces, John Hiatt, Steve Miller, The Who, the list is endless.

James Guthrie: "The Wall", Judas Priest "Hell Bent For Leather", Ambrosia. Some nice big open warm recordings. Rumor has it he would mix running the tape in reverse so the transients would it the tape "softer".

Ron Nevison: His recordings of Bad Company, Zeppelin, Babys, Eddie Money and extremely clear and open, with a huge soundstage and great clarity and impact on the drum kit. During the 80's, he turned up the treble energy a notch or two and got a bit zingy with Heart, Kiss and Ozzy.

Bill Schnee: When you see his name on the recording credits, you are most likely holding a good sounding record.

not so sure...

Roy Thomas Baker: Some classic albums to his credit with The Cars (1st) Queen "Night At The Opera", Journey et al. Listening to his recording now, I find his sound has become distinctly dated, although I found his work, like "The Cars", fresh sounding at the time. The recordings now sound a bit gimmicky, the drums overly processed.

George Massenburg: Lots of great stuff, Linda, Little Feat, The Rankins, Lyle Lovett. A studio genius. Unfortunately, I find it a bit too clinical sounding at times, like it's trying to prove something technically rather than bringing music..

definitely not...

Todd Rundgren: Very coloured sound and muddy productions with bells ringing all over the place.
Too many effects and terrible drum sound. Ruined many a potentially great event, XTC, Steve Hillage, Hall & Oates

I'll come back later with some more.

[Claus]

Glyn Johns... hmmh, he has ruined the sound on Joe Satriani's self titled record.

[mcow1]

Gotta start with George Martin for producers I like. Along with Tony Clarke (Moody Blues) and Glyn Johns.
Sometimes good stuff from Tom Dowd and A little more iffy with Tony Visconte.
Dislikes I can't remember off the top of my head (I try to forget 'em). But if I do remember I'll put them in.
Oh. yeah Geoff Emerick for engineer.

[Paul Chang]

Jack Pfeiffer, who produced so many RCA Living Stereo treasures. He started his career as an engineer.

[Grant]

Whom I don't like:

Jon Astley? TERRIBLE!
Erik Labson
George Marino
Glen Meadows

[Beagle]

You don't like Marino, Grant? I thought he did some pretty good stuff at Sterling.

I was thinking more of actual recording engineers/producers as opposed to mastering engineers. Some more I like are:

Ken Scott: Great sound, great run from 1974-1987, with stuff like "Crime Of The Century", Happy The Man, Dixie Dregs, Jeff Beck, Level 42, Tubes, Gamma, Elton John, Bowie etc.

Val Garay: Arguably one of the best engineers ever. Just listen to the pure sounding "Simple Dreams", "JT", "Mistaken Identity", "Boats Against The Current"

Bill Bottrell: Genius with Shelby Lynne, Toy Matinee, Wire Train, David Baerwald

Craig Street/ Danny Kopelson: gods

Henry Lewy
Joe Ferla
Steve Albini
Mi_

Perhaps this topic is a waste of time. Maybe it's just telling people stuff they already know.

[Steve Hoffman]

Go back in time a bit more.

Norman Petty Producer/Engineer of Buddy Holly/Crickets/Jimmy Gilmer/Fireballs/Buddy Knox, etc.

No cleaner, better engineered sound I have ever heard!



Don't forget Bill Wenzel Producer/Engineer of Pipeline, Boss and countless other Surf Music Classics on his Downey Records label.

Bill Porter The engineer of RCA-Victor's Nashville Sound --- Elvis, Orbison and everyone else who recorded at RCA.

[Paul Chang]

And Richard Mohr - the only producer in RCA's classical department right before Jack Pfeiffer started.

[Steve Hoffman]

Oh geez, I forgot John Kraus, the Capitol Records engineer who did Nat Cole's "Love Is The Thing" and all of the Stan Freberg records and everything else at Capitol.

[Steve Hoffman]

Oh yeah, Eli Oberstein of RCA-Victor in the 1930's and 40's.

John Hammond

Phil Spector

Brian Wilson

John/Alan Lomax

Milt Gabler Producer of "Rock Around The Clock" and so many other Decca greats including Billie Holiday.

Ron Richards of Hollies fame.

Hugo and Luigi of RCA -- Sam Cooke, etc.

Shadow Morton (the east coast Phil Spector)--Red Bird Records--Leader Of The Pack, etc.

[Paul Chang]

Can't just talk about RCA Living Stereo without mentioning Mercury Living Presence. C. Robert Fine and Wilma Cozart. They made a Fine couple.

[Bobbit]

Absolutly would have to include Roy DuNann , Howard Holzer and producer Lester Koenig of Contemporary Records!

[Steve Hoffman]

Yeah, good call!


And Orrin Keepnews of Riverside Records and
Bob Weinstock of Prestige Records.

Both gave us great jazz!

[ED in NY]

Originally posted by Claus
Glyn Johns... hmmh, he has ruined the sound on Joe Satriani's self titled record.

I strongly disagree with this comment. Even though this record doesn't have the "flash" that Joe's previous releases carried, it is still a fine album. Glyns didn't ruin the sound at all. He captured the sound that JOE WANTED and was after. At that time Joe wasn't interested in making another record that sounded like his previous releases. From the comments that I've read from various interviews with Joe and from the "making of" documentary I saw for the album, both Joe & Glyns were very pleased with the end result.

Best - ED

[ED in NY]

Steve, thanks for recognizing John Hammond !

A great man with a great eye (and ear) for talent.

Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, George Benson, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Stevie Ray Vaughan (to name a few !)

A true legend !


Best - ED

[Sckott]

I'm a fan of Glyn as well, maybe to the dismay of some of the board. Also Roy Thomas Baker (I wonder if he lost weight), Bob Clearmountain, Hugh Padgham, John "MUTT" Lange, Rick Rubin and Mack.

Said someone who knew Mack:

"I met Mack (Queen's famous producer and engineer) and he'll always talk about Queen and tell stories about the studio and he has a lot of them.. but the one thing he always repeated when he talked about Freddie and all the crap that went on inside the band at the time, he always said that Freddie didn't really know what he wanted with life.. but one thing Freddie did want was a
family, and Freddie once said, "You know dear, sometimes I think I should drop this whole silly gay thing, I want to start a family with someone, perhaps Mary. I look at what you (Mack) have and I get jealous, you have something really special.." this was quoted from around 1980 when the Game recordings wrapped up and Freddie was in the studio with Mack and John mixing the song
"Need Your Loving Tonight".. he has a lot of stories.. "

[Kym]

Favorite Producers:

Val Garay. Whatever happened to this guy? I really like his stuff, especially his drum sounds. He was all over the place in the late 70s and early 80s.

Alan Parsons. For producing AND engineering. 'Nuff said.

Peter Henderson. I love his drum sounds on Supertramp's Breakfast in America LP.

Mike Kemp. Not to be confused with any of the Spandau Ballet brothers. Did wonders with The Stranglers's Dreamtime and In the Night LPs.

Robert "Mutt" Lange. Guilty pleasure.

[indy mike]

Hey, did I miss seeing Sam Phillips somewhere on this here list? That slapback echo drifting through the night is just amazing...

[Steve Hoffman]

How could I have missed Sam Phillips? :eek:

[Paul Chang]

I missed RCA recording engineer Lewis Layton in the Living Stereo era.

HMV on the other side of the Atlantic - EMI's Christopher Bishop (producer) and Christopher Parker (balance engineer).

Kenneth Wilkinson (recording engineer) of Decca, who also made recordings anonymously for Lyrita. (Never credited, probably because of Decca?)

Keith Johnson (Reference Recordings, ...), Doug Sax (Sheffield Lab, ...) and Stan Ricker (Mobile Fidelity, ...), who all worked on the historical 1986 Moscow Sessions by Sheffield Lab.

[Grant]

Great producers:

The late Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers
Holland-Dosier-Holland
Stevie Wonder
Lindsay Buckingham
Issac Hayes/David Porter
Chips Moman
Tom Dowd
Arif Mardin
Jerry Wexler
Steve Cropper
Kenny Gamble/Leon Huff
Stevie Wonder
Eddie Kramer
Al Bell
Burt Bacharach/Hal David
Giorgio Moroder
Maurice White
Skip Scarborough
Sylvester Stewart
Prince

[Matt]

Not in terms of sound quality, but for the talent they've guided and helped shape:

John Cale - Produced the Stooges, Modern Lovers, and Patti Smith, all great, highly influential but poor-selling albums in the 70's.

Brian Eno - The Low-Heroes-Lodger trilogy has always been my favorite Bowie albums, and even better is his work with the Talking Heads. I also love his work on Achtung Baby.

Butch Vig - Kurt may not have been crazy about the results, but his work on Nevermind is great, as well as the Smashing Pumpkins breakthrough, Siamese Dream. In fact, Billy Corgan turned into a great producer on the rest of the Pumpkins albums (though it became a wee bit pretentious towards the end).

Dr. Dre - The best rap producer, was probably responsible for the few redeeming qualities Eminem's albums had.

Bob Thiele - producing Coltrane's best work as well as some solid mainstream albums, including the one that reintroduced Johnny Hartman to the world.

Norman Granz - some things I don't like about his work, but he did it with good intentions, especially the work he did with Ella and Billie.

As for least favorite, well, as much as I love Phil Spector and Todd Rundgren, "Let It Be" was disappointing (few good choices, but lots of bad ones) and he made the New York Dolls sound a bit tamer than they really were (though the album is still a classic). I also have mixed feelings about "Stage Fright," which may have been better off with John Simon back in the booth. I think Elvis Costello would've been better served by someone besides Nick Lowe.

[RetroSmith]

Dont forget Norrie Paramour at EMi in the 60s.

The records he made with The Shadows are amazing in their clarity.

And if you want to hear something reall, really nice, put on The Shadows STEREO version of "Wonderful Land".

Now THATS analog!!

[Steve Hoffman]

Mikey,

The Shadows RULE!

[RetroSmith]

Youre not kidding Steve!!

Not only were The Shadows great players, but those records sound so amazing sonically that its incredible.

Thats a sound that nobody else really ever got.

The Ventures had a great sound all their own, but it wasnt The Shadows sound.

Steve...heres an idea for you....a 20 track Shadows hits Cd in SACD format. How does that sound?