Corey Bailey
Audio Engineering
USEFUL INFORMATION
People I Have Known
As one who worked in the entertainment industry, It should go without saying that
I have met plenty of entertainers. Out of that, came so many stories that several
people have said that I should write a book. Maybe I will. But in the meantime,
here is a list of some of the people that I met and/or worked with.
Let me start by saying that, in all instances, I am quoting from memory.
Therefore, those mentioned here may have a slightly different recollection.
The names listed below, with some exceptions, are those of famous artists.
Not mentioned are most of the band members and technical staff. I knew and
worked with all of them that were associated with the ‘Stars’ and they are all great
people that were also very knowledgeable and talented. A number of the band
members and/or session musicians are mentioned in the stories associated with
the names listed below. Quite a number of those not mentioned, are indeed
responsible for the success of those that are on this list. Some of the names are
combined because, in those instances, I worked with both individuals on the
same project.
I have also added those who had a great influence on my career.
This page is being added to and changed regularly.
Corey Bailey
Hoyt Axton
My first encounter with Hoyt was when I did the editing and assembly of the 2Tr.
Master audio tape of his album “Fearless” and Hoyt came to listen to the
playback and approve everything before the tape was sent to the record
company and mastering lab. The record was recorded and mixed by Alex
Kazanegras. When it came time to assemble the audio tape master, Alex couldn’t
make it because he was booked for another project and the task was handed off
to me.
Years later (1979) I received a call from Hoyt’s secretary, Marlene, asking if I
would travel to Lake Tahoe, CA to record a demo with Hoyt and the band for a
children’s story that he had written. The recording was to take place at Hoyt’s
home in North Shore, Lake Tahoe. Hoyt’s home was a four story house built on
the side of a hill overlooking the entire lake. It consisted of eight bedrooms, five
bathrooms and with a dining room that had a table long enough to seat the entire
band plus guests. The recording equipment was stored in a closet and had to be
set up and calibrated. Hoyt and the band were still on tour and would arrive at the
house with me set up and ready to record. The living room was the recording
room (a room that was 25’ by 40’ with a 36’ cathedral ceiling). The adjacent
breakfast nook served as the control room. Hoyt and the band arrived late one
afternoon and after a round of introductions, they proceeded to schlep their
equipment up three flights of narrow stairs and set up in the living room. After a
sound check, dinner was served and following the dinner break, we began
running down the song “He’s in My Power” with Hoyt producing and yours truly at
the controls. During the session, Hoyt puffed on a tobacco pipe that contained
marijuana. He offered me a hit from his pipe several times during the recording
session and I always politely refused, citing that I needed to stay focused. We
recorded several takes of the song and Hoyt never got the take he was looking
for. Although I had been told that we could erase everything, I head-leadered the
beginning of the last (and best) take anyhow. The band members went to bed
after what had been a very long day and Hoyt and I retired to the living
(recording) room. Now, out of excuses, I proceeded to get high with Hoyt only
after he assured me that we were done for the day. While we were chatting, Hoyt
was playing with this section of ribbed tubing, twirling it while the tube made a
whistling sound. Hoyt explained that the tube was capable of three different notes
depending on how fast the tube was twirled. The sound made by the tube was
somewhat ethereal and Hoyt wanted to try recording several tracks of it as a
sound effect to be used in the Children’s story. Then he suggested: “Why don’t
we record a few tracks now, just to see if the idea will work?” I reminded him that
he had assured me that we were done for the day before I got high with him. After
some convincing by Hoyt, I found myself putting the 16Tr. tape back on the
machine. I spun down to the last 30 seconds or so and we recorded about twelve
tracks of Hoyt swinging the hose at various speeds. We stopped there and Hoyt
came into the breakfast nook for a playback and we both agreed that he was
onto something. It was then I discovered that I had rewound too far for a couple
of takes and erased a few seconds of the end of the best take of “He’s in My
Power”, replacing it with a few tracks of the twirling hose recording. My blood ran
cold. This was the cardinal sin of recording engineers and I had never, ever, done
anything like this before. Sensing something was wrong, Hoyt asked: “What
happened?” And so, I told him. He stood there, silent, while my life flashed before
my eyes. After what seemed like an eternal silence, Hoyt said: “I was not happy
with any of those takes anyway so we’ll jump on this song first thing tomorrow
with a rested band. Meanwhile, we got in a good rehearsal and now we know we
can do something with the sound effect.” The next day, the band played a killer
version of the song and I felt somewhat exonerated. Hoyt and I became good
friends. Ultimately, I installed the recording equipment in a studio environment
that was built on to the house. I recorded four albums and several commercials
with Hoyt at his house. I had the pleasure of getting to know his entire family and
met many of his friends and colleagues.
Joan Baez
I met Joan (and her band) when we were recording one of her tours with the Haji
Sound Recording truck. The result of our efforts became the record “From Every
Stage.” There were several memorable events from that tour, but the one that
sticks out was the encore at the Sacramento Civic Auditorium. The hall itself was
long and narrow and the reflection from the back wall reached the stage about a
short second after the sound was initiated on-stage. The trade term for this
phenomenon is “Slap Back.” We warned the band about the situation and they
learned how to deal with it during the sound check. When the audience arrived
and was seated, the Slap Back was diminished considerably but not eliminated.
After the show, when Joan came out for her encore, she had decided to sing
“Amazing Grace”, A-Capella, with the audience. During the first verse of the song,
she realized that the slap back was an issue so she sang harmony with the echo
and the audience, almost simultaneously. The audience was stunned. It was as
though they had a religious experience. Shortly after Joan had left the stage, I
went into the arena to collect the audience mics and the audience was still in their
seats, wondering what had just happened. Obviously, that version of “Amazing
Grace” made the album. It seems that every artist has a website now and Joan
Baez is no exception: http://www.joanbaez.com/
Hal Blaine
Hal Blaine was one of recorded music’s legendary drummers. Hal was the
foundation for “The Wrecking Crew” (AKA, “The Clique”). During the 1960’s, Hal
Blaine played on 80% of the Rock & Roll and Pop music that was recorded in Los
Angeles, CA. Hal had two employees who’s job it was to set up his drum sets
ahead of his studio bookings. I knew them as Rick and Robbie. The three of us
became good friends and I used to attend Sprint Car races with them. Hal would
occasionally accompany us to those races. In addition to setting up Hal Blaine’s
drums before recording sessions, Rick and Robbie used to maintain all of Hal’s
drum sets and build new drums as well. They became known at their craft and
several drummers used their services.
One morning, I was setting the microphones for a commercial date at Wally
Heider’s Studio 3 (Hollywood) when Rick and Robbie hauled in Hal’s newest set.
This set had an array of 11 tom-toms and barley fit into the drum booth. I was
devastated as I had only assigned 4 microphones for the drums (which, we’re
already in place) thinking that Hal would be playing the usual ‘cocktail set’ as he
had on so many commercial dates. There wasn’t time to make a change. I
explained my predicament to Rick and Robbie who stood there with a ‘deer in the
headlights’ look when Hal walked in and asked: “What’s the problem?” I
explained the situation and Hal said: “No problem, gimme a Kick, Snare and two
overheads and I’ll play to them.” I miked the drums as Hal suggested and walked
away shaking my head. To my surprise, Hal did indeed play to the microphone
setup. When it came time for him to play a fill, he would hit the toms with an
intensity based on their distance from the microphones. I was blown away. No
wonder the guy was a legend.
Delaney Bramlett
Delaney Bramlett was best known for the band: “Delaney, Bonnie & Friends.” I
got to know Delaney when we recorded about five songs at his house in Shadow
Hills, CA using the Haji Sound Recording truck as the studio control room. On
one occasion during those couple of weeks, Delaney told me this story:
While George Harrison was on tour with Delaney, Bonnie & Friends, he asked
Delaney if he would show him how he wrote a gospel tune and Delaney agreed.
After completing a sound check one day, Delaney and Harrison were jamming
and the song “He’s So Fine” came into Delaney’s head and he used the chord
structure to show Harrison how he built a gospel song starting with a few chord
changes. Delaney had the background singers chime in with “Hallelujah” while he
and George Harrison put together a few impromptu lyrics. Delaney said that
about a month or so after the tour ended, he heard their “impromptu” song on the
radio. He called George Harrison to warn him about the song and before Delaney
could say anything, Harrison told him that due to an error by his publishing
company, Delaney was not listed as one of the song writers and not to worry that
he would be listed as the co-writer. Delaney said to Harrison that he was, in fact,
relieved to hear that he was not listed on the publishing. He went on to explain
the “He’s So Fine” chord changes and told Harrison that it never occurred to him
that Harrison would use their impromptu song from that sound check. According
to Delaney, the settlement cost George Harrison about $400,000.00 (in 1975
dollars!).
Byron Burline
Byron is perhaps best known for being the three-time national fiddle champion.
As a session musician, Byron was one of the best. His list of credits reads like the
who’s who of the music industry. I recorded him several times and he always
wowed everyone who was there. Byron is a very gentle soul. I had the
opportunity to visit him at home and meet his family. He’s still at it, plays regularly
and has a music store: The Doublestop Music Shop in Guthrie Oklahoma.
http://www.doublestop.com/
James Burton
‘JB’ as he is known to his friends, is a guitar players guitar player. James Burton
has played with the likes of John Denver, Roy Orbison, Ricky Nelson, Emmylou
Harris, Elvis Presley and just about everyone in between. He has his own fan
club and you can buy a copy of his beloved Fender Telecaster from the Fender
Custom Shop. Although I had known and worked with JB for several years, I
really got to know him when we worked on Hoyt Axton’s projects where you had
to stay at Hoyt’s house. James Burton lives with a guitar in his hands. At least, he
did while we stayed at the Axton residence. JB is just as ‘Down Home’ as you can
imagine. JB has his own website: https://www.james-burton.net/
Bob Bushnell
This Bob Bushnell is an electronic engineer who was a recording console builder
that was well known in the industry. I worked as a recording engineer on many of
his consoles. ABC Records and Sunset Sound to name just a couple. Some of
his consoles had a pin matrix for assigning certain functions (I used to refer to
them as ‘mumbly pegs’). When I got to know Bob, I asked him about those pin
matrices and he replied: “Because that area of the console is unbalanced.”
Made sense.
Lynn Carey & Mama Lion
The band, Mama Lion, consisted of: Lynn Carey (lead vocals), Neil Merryweather
(bass, vocals), Rick Gaxiola (guitar), James Newton Howard (keyboards,
vocals), Alan Hurtz (guitar) and Coffi Hall (drums, percussion)
At the onset of my career, I worked for an artist management company called
Broomstick Management and the band, Mama Lyon, was one of the acts they
managed. Basically, I recorded demo songs for the various artists that were
signed to Broomstick Management. During the in-between times, I would
assemble and check out the PA and band equipment for those that were going on
tour. It was during one of these times that I was assigned to mix the live sound for
Mama Lyon's first tour. Lynn Carey (actor McDonald Carey's daughter) and Neil
Merryweather were involved in a romantic relationship at the time which
sometimes complicated things. Rick Gaxiola and James Newton Howard (then a
teenager) had never been on tour so, in the beginning, it was like herding baby
ducks. Coffi Hall (a great drummer who certainly had the training) was perhaps
the most experienced musician at the time. The beginning of the tour was a PITA
as the band played mostly clubs and small venues in order to ‘tighten up.’ The
band was scheduled for a tour in Europe which, we were all looking forward to
but about half of the tour got canceled so things were re-shuffled and I got sent
back to Los Angeles from New York city (on Christmas Eve).
David Carradine
I recorded and mixed the score for the movie “A Country Mile” at Haji Sound and
Larrabee Sound Studios. The opening and end credits music was recorded by
Dan Wallin at The Burbank Studios (TBS).
David Carradine was exactly like the character he played in the TV series “Kung
Fu” right down to the wardrobe he wore during the time I worked with him. After I
got to know him well enough, I asked him about the resemblance. He said: “The
character was a perfect fit. I didn’t have to change anything. All I had to do was
learn the script for each episode.” There is a website in memorandum:
https://www.david-carradine.com/
Johnny Cash
I met Johnny Cash at Beverly Garland’s Howard Johnson Hotel in Hollywood (We
called it HoJo’s). I was there to meet with Hoyt Axton regarding an album project
and Johnny Cash showed up for the same. Cash was a big man and had an
imposing posture. However, he was a kind and gentle soul. I was looking forward
to working with him and didn’t get the chance because the record project was
never completed.
Here is the website devoted to Johnny Cash: http://www.johnnycash.com/
Ray Charles
I only met Ray Charles once at Haji Sound and never worked with him.
Ray’s recording engineer, Bob Gratz, used to stop by the studio for a visit.
Haji Sound was charged with keeping the favorite Steinway grand piano originally
located at the CBS Studios in L.A. One day, Bob Gratz brought Ray in so that he
could visit and play the piano. We were all: “OMG, it’s Ray Charles.” Bob sat Ray
down at the piano and Ray Charles delighted himself while he entertained us all.
Joe Cocker
I worked with Joe Cocker on the tour after “Mad Dogs and Englishmen.” I was
actually one of the crew and live sound mixer for the band “Redbone” who was
the opening act for Joe Cocker. I was given the task of mixing the entire show for
both acts which I happily did. In those days there was no stage monitor mixer.
The stage monitor mix was sent as a sub-mix from the house mixer. One
remarkable thing was that the tour itself consisted of 30 shows in 40 days. A
schedule that nearly killed everyone involved because the tour encompassed the
Eastern U.S.A. and Canada which meant that everything had to go through
Customs both entering and leaving the country. Anyone who has had the
pleasure of going through Customs will understand. And, we carried 80 thousand
pounds of gear that had to be checked!
Though no longer with us, here is a website about him: https://www.cocker.com/
David Costell
Dave was a staff engineer at Haji Sound. He had previously worked at Radio
Recorders and was a guitarist for Gary Lewis and the Playboys. Dave recorded
many live concerts and record albums while at Haji Sound. My nickname for
Dave was Dave Cause-hell. His nickname for me was “Leroy” after the song
“Leroy Brown” (another story).
Steve Cropper
Steve Cropper was the lead guitarist for the MG’s (Booker T. & the MG’s), the
Mar-Keys and more including The Blues Brothers. He was also part of the
Motown sound. Steve Cropper has played on more recording sessions and
toured with more famous people than you or I have fingers and toes to count
with. My first encounter with “Cropper” was on a record project for Booker T.
Jones that never got released. Steve Cropper has his own website :
http://playitsteve.com/
Bob De Avila
Bob was a maintenance engineer at Columbia Records Studios in Los Angeles,
CA and was a victim of the studio closures in 1972. Bob was instrumental in the
building of the first Haji Sound mobile recording truck which is where I met him.
His brother, Richard, built the interior for that recording truck (Haji 1). Bob later
went to work at ABC Records and worked under Jerry Feree. I was later hired to
help install studios C and D at ABC so, I guess, we came full circle.
Neil Diamond
I was a staff engineer at Sunset Sound when Neil Diamond booked Studio 1 for a
month and I was assigned to the session. Bill Schnee was booked as the mixer
but couldn't make it so the mixing job was given to Rick Ruggieri. Rick didn’t like
the monitor speakers in Studio 1 so, he brought in a custom built pair of ‘Big
Reds.’ After considerable re-working of the control room to accommodate the Big
Red speakers, things settled down and we got to work. Neil insisted that a
cassette be kept in record to capture everything that happened in the studio so,
at the end of the day, I would give Neil a bunch of cassette tapes and he would
always say: “Put them in the bag.” The ‘Bag’ was a rumpled paper shopping bag
which he always carried under his arm when he would show up for the day. I
finally asked him why he carried around a rumpled shopping bag instead of a
briefcase and he answered: “I’m from New York City where it is not advisable to
carry a briefcase in public. However, almost no one will steal an old rumpled
shopping bag.” The recording session turned out to be the album “You Don’t
Bring Me Flowers.”
Neil is still at it: https://www.neildiamond.com/
Donald “Duck” Dunn
Donald “Duck” Dunn was the studio bassist for Stax Records, the MG’s (Booker
T. & the MG’s), the Mar-Keys and more, including the Blues Brothers. He was an
original part of the Motown sound. I first worked with Duck (I have no idea where
the nickname came from) on a session with Booker T. Jones and no wonder
where the “Motown sound” came from.
More information is available here: http://duckdunnremembered.com/wp/
Duane Eddy
I met Duane Eddy at Hoyt Axtons’ house on the North end of Lake Tahoe. Duane
lived near lake Tahoe on the Nevada side of the Lake at the time. On one
particular record project, at Hoyt’s studio, I had both Duane Eddy and James
Burton in the control room, playing their guitars at the same time. At one point, I
turned to them and said: “I must be in Heaven because I’m recording two
legendary guitarists at the same time.” JB noted that it is rare for two musicians to
be overdubbing at the same time but that he wasn’t quite ready for Heaven yet.
Duane Eddy smiled and nodded in agreement.
Chris Ethridge
Chris was probably best known as the bass player for The Flying Burrito
Brothers. Chris played played on many record albums and ultimately played bass
for Willie Nelson. Chris and I had been friends for so long that I forget how we
met. It was at Chris’s house that I met Dusty Baker who, at the time, played Left
Field for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Jerry Ferree
I first met Jerry when I was introduced to Bill Putnam. Jerry went on to be the
Chief Engineer for ABC Records where I was hired, part time, (at the urging of
Bob De Avila, I think) to help with the installation of studios C and D. Jerry Ferree,
co-authored a book, with Bob Bushnell, about the days with Bill Putnam called:
“From Downbeat To Vinyl.”
John Fiore
John was one of the owners of Haji Sound. He was formerly a recording engineer
for Columbia Records in Los Angeles, CA and recorded many albums there. At
Haji, John mainly took care of the business end of things although he stayed
active as a recording engineer as well.
.
Kinky Friedman
Kinky Friedman recorded the album “Lasso From El Paso” at Haji Sound
Recording while I was the Chief Engineer. The mixers on the album were Alex
Kazanegras and David Costell. I assisted when needed. The project was
memorable because of the almost daily parade of stars that performed on the
record (check the credits). The album was supposed to be named “Asshole From
El Paso” because of Kinky’s live performance of the song of the same name that
he wanted as the title track. However, the proposed song was a performance of
“Okie From Muskogee” with lyrics by Kinky that were ‘R’ rated. Buck Owens, who
owned the song, nixed Kinky’s version and wouldn’t allow it to be released.
Hence the new title.
Lowell George
Lowell George was best known as the lead guitarist and lead singer for the band
“Little Feet.” I worked with Lowell on his solo album “Thanks, I’ll Eat It Here” at
Sunset Sound Recorders in Hollywood, CA. I was one of about a half dozen
recording engineers who worked on that record. My contribution consisted mainly
of guitar and vocal overdubs plus a few rough mixes. Lowell could play any kind
of guitar in front of anyone. Singing was another matter. For lead vocals, Lowell
had to have all of the studio lights turned off. I was basically communicating with
a voice in the darkness on the other side of the control room window. For one
song, he composed the lyrics on the fly and to do this, I set him up in the control
room with a microphone so that he could operate the equipment by himself while
I played pinball in the lounge. I asked him what he did live and he replied: “I don’t
have time to think about it. I’ve tried that approach in the studio but it doesn’t
seem to work.”
Wally Heider
Wally Heider was recording live performances long before multi-track tape
machines were available. Wally told me personally that he used to strap a
professional two track recorder to his back and climb stairs with it. I met Wally
and those who worked for him because of my affiliation with Haji Sound
Recording. We were in the same business, in the same town, just a few blocks
from each other. Wally Heider Recording had studios in Hollywood and San
Francisco. When Heider’s remote trucks were booked, we’d get the referral and
vice-versa. Wally drove a Cadillac and the license plates read: “JAMF.” (You
figure it out).
Deane Jensen
I first met Deane when he was the VP of Engineering at Quad Eight Electronics in
North Hollywood, CA. At that time, Jensen Transformers was just a dream. When
Dean Jensen spoke, you stopped what you were doing and listened. Some years
later, I referred a high performance operational amplifier to Dean and he used it in
several of his circuit designs. I was very proud of myself.
Billy Joel
While in New York City with the band Mama Lion, I was asked to set up the PA for
Billy Joel who was also signed with Broomstick Management at the time.
I worked with the band for three or four nights which was enough time to get to
know everyone. The drummer (Reese Clark) and I hit it off and became lasting
friends. I also did some assisting on Billy Joel’s album “Cold Spring Harbor” at the
Record Plant in LA but it wasn’t enough to warrant any album credits.
Billy Joel is also still at it: https://billyjoel.com/
Booker T Jones
Best known for the band “Booker T. & the MG’s”, Booker T. is still performing.
I was told by Booker T. that the band was formed while he was in high school and
he wrote the song “Green Onions” when he was 17.
I finished and mixed an album for Booker T. that was never released by Epic
Records. Five of the songs had been recorded at Wally Heider Studios in San
Francisco, CA. Some of the songs on the album were covers of already released
hits. One of those songs which, I had the pleasure of recording, was the song
“Higher and Higher” originally sung by Jackie Wilson. I didn’t think that anyone
could come close to the original performance. However, from the moment we first
played back the basic tracks, we knew it was a smash hit. Everyone that worked
on the song or even heard a playback said that it was an obvious hit.
Nonetheless, Epic Records shelved the record and that was it.
A year later, Rita Coolidge (who had sung background vocals on Booker T.’s
version) came to Booker T. and asked if he would arrange that same song for her
and the result was a platinum single that was released by A&M Records.
Carol Kaye
Carol Kaye was one of the bassists that played with the Wrecking Crew. Carol
played on so many sessions that she just might be the most recorded bassist in
history. She certainly destroyed the “Glass Ceiling,” working as a studio musician
at a time when there were almost no women in the recording studio. The only
exceptions were members of an orchestra. Carol is a terrific musician and a great
person as well. And, she has a website: https://www.carolkaye.com/
Alex Kazanegras
Alex was another recording engineer out of the Columbia Records fold and was
the other owner of Haji Sound. I worked extensively with Alex and, as such, he
became my mentor, teaching me everything that he had learned along the way
and introduced me to methods and people that I wouldn’t have otherwise known.
Alex was born in Greece, grew up in Turkey, and migrated to the US when he
was a teenager. As a result, Alex approached some things differently. One day, I
asked Alex what language he he spoke when he thought about things and he
replied: “Turk.”
Jim Keltner
Keltner is an ‘A list’ drummer. He has played on an endless number of recording
sessions and toured with just about everyone who is anyone. For those who like
to read the credits listed on record jackets, Jim Keltner should be a very familiar
name because he has practically played with them all. I’ve worked with Keltner so
many times that I have lost track. Besides being a great drummer, Jim Keltner is
an all around great guy.
Keith Klawitter
The year was 1986 and Robert Budd and myself were putting the finishing
touches on the studios for Cannon Films. In the Construction Trade, it’s known as
a ‘Punch List.’ One of the studios was a stereo production and mixing suite
known as Video Sweetening. Our dilemma with that studio was the fact that
whatever monitor speaker setup we tried simply didn’t work well. We tried
everything that we could think of including contacting all of the available
equipment vendors and invited them to bring in their best. I was about to call in a
specialist that I knew when I got a call from Keith and he explained that he
custom built monitors, could solve our problem and offered to show me some of
his work. I was curious, checked out what he had built, was very impressed and
handed him the task. We never looked back because that room became well
known for how good it sounded. The rest is history, as they say, because Keith
went on to have a very successful career in manufacturing speakers.
Larry Knechtel
I don’t know where to start because, Larry played for so many artists. Larry, in
addition to being a ‘First Call’ player, was also a member of the Wrecking Crew
where the trio was often known as: “Osbourne, Knechtel, Blane”
Although Larry was called mostly for his expertise on keyboards, he was also
proficient at Guitar, Bass and Harmonica.
Neil Lampert
Not as well known as many of the ‘A-List’ players, Neil was one of my favorite
bassists. Mainly because he was one of the very few electric bassists I worked
with, that didn’t need a limiter when recording. Electric Bass guitars usually
produce much more energy (voltage) from the strings that play the low notes than
from the strings that play the higher notes. So, a limiter is often used during
recording to even things out. In the beginning, Neil noticed that I always had a
limiter plugged into his recording chain and when I told him why, he learned to
play the instrument so that a limiter wasn’t needed. I often had Neil play in the
control room, next to me, because he could read an entire orchestral chart page
at a glance while playing his part. Thus, he could cue me when certain
instruments were about to play and I could concentrate more on the recording
process.
Jerry Lee Lewis
Hoyt Axton, James Burton and I had just finished recording with Willie Nelson, at
his studio in Texas, and were leaving when Hoyt decided that we should stop by
and say hi to Jerry Lee since he lived nearby. We sat and chatted with Jerry Lee
Lewis on his back porch for a couple of hours which included some great stories
and homemade lemonade.
Kenny Loggins
I obviously knew Kenny quite well having worked with the band Loggins &
Messina on five albums. Not well known is the fact that Kenny is a record
producer as well. I had the pleasure of working with Kenny Loggins as a
producer. After the band “Loggins & Messina” split up, Kenny launched his solo
career and the rest, as they say, is history. Kenny Loggins is still performing
which is a testament to the great singer/song writer that he is.
Cheryl Lynn
I worked on her first album “Cheryl Lynn” at Sunset Sound. The project, which
began at Studio 55 in Hollywood, CA, was handed off to me by Tom Knox who
had served as the recording engineer and had become double booked. Cheryl is
an amazing vocalist. When adding her vocal to a recording, I recorded
everything, even her practices. In order to record her, I had to place her about
three feet from the microphone because her voice is so powerful. She sang the
song “Daybreak” live with the band and her performance was so good that we
kept it. The 2” master tapes had begun to shed oxide during the project and had
to be transferred before it was too late. A different brand of tape was chosen for
the transfer and we proceeded to get back to work. As fate would have it, the
tapes we had transferred to began to shed oxide and the master tapes had to be
transferred a second time to, yet again, another brand of tape. Long story short:
By the time we mixed the album to a 1/4” master, the final product was now a
fourth generation.
More information about Cheryl Lynn: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheryl_Lynn
George Massenburg
I met George while I was working at Sunset Sound Recorders. I was assigned to
work with Lowell George on his project, “Thanks, I’ll Eat It Here” and George
Massenburg was one of the many engineers (including myself) who worked on
Lowell’s solo album. George was already well known in the recording industry for
having developed a great parametric equalizer. Having worked with George, I
often referred to him as ‘The engineers, engineer’ because he had the knowledge
and expertise to see a need, go home and build a prototype, bring it in and, it
would work….first time! I feel privileged to have worked with George and used his
prototype limiter on Lowell George’s vocals which, later became the GML
Mastering Limiter.
Jim Messina
Like Kenny Loggins, I met and worked with Jim Messina via the band Loggins &
Messina. Besides singing lead vocals and playing lead guitar, Jim was the
producer as well. Jim Messina is relentless. Driven, by some accounts. When
working on the various record projects for Loggins & Messina, Alex Kazanegras
and I used to ‘tag team’ just to keep up with Jim who could go all night and often
did. Jim Messina is no stranger to a recording studio control room as well. It was
at Gold Star Studios where Jim was working as a recording engineer, that he got
involved with the band Buffalo Springfield. Because Jim was in familiar
surroundings in a recording studio control room, he used to test me relentlessly.
Alex was the 1
st
engineer and when Jim and Alex would wind up at a dead end, I
would get called in to sort things out. Often, that ‘dead end’ resulted in: “You can’t
get there from here.”
Jim Messina used to assemble his guitars using the parts from several Fender
Telecasters. I learned a lot about setting up an electric guitar from Jim. To the
best of my knowledge, Jim Messina is still performing.
Willie Nelson
I had known Willie Nelson and his band before I worked with him because a good
friend of mine (Chris Ethridge) played bass for Willie Nelson for some time. I got
my chance to work with him when Hoyt Axton, James Burton & myself flew to
Texas to do some recording at Willie Nelson’s studio located on the Pedernales
River outside of Austin. Willie had bought a nine hole golf course and turned the
clubhouse into a recording studio. The golf course was operational (although now
private) and those band members who played golf had their own personalized
golf carts. There were several condos adjacent to the studio which housed the
band and crew when there was recording to be done.
Willie Nelson’s website: http://willienelson.com/
Ted Nugent
We recorded several live performances using the Haji Sound Recording mobile
truck which were used for Ted Nugent’s album “Double Live Gonzo.” Rolling
Stone Magazine defined Ted Nugent’s followers as ‘Heavy Metal sickies.’ A term
that I borrowed because, after each concert, the arena floor had a pile of vomit
about every 100 square feet which, made picking up cables after the show a
messy job. During the tour with Ted Nugent, the Haji truck ran terrible, starving for
gas all the way up the West Coast of the US. The problem turned out to be a
clogged fuel filter which I discovered on the return trip from Seattle to Los
Angeles. More about Ted Nugent: https://www.tednugent.com/
Leo O’Donnell
Leo was an electronics engineer who invented what became known as SMPTE
Time Code. An invention that impacts everyone who watches TV or movies.
Leo was an Australian who always greeted you with “G’day Mate.” He worked in
radio, television and film. I first met Leo in the 1980’s and had the pleasure of
working with him in the 1990’s.
Leo was a good friend and I miss him tremendously.
Joe Osborn
I worked with Joe several times, with several artists. Joe was a member of the
Osborn, Knechtel, Balne clique as well as Elvis Presley’s TCB band, just to name
a couple. Like so many other studio musicians, Joe played for many, many
artists.
David Paich, Marty Paich
I had worked with David Paich, as a studio musician, on several occasions but
the chance to work with David and his dad which, I did on Cheryl Lynn's’ first
album, turned out to be special. Most of the musicians used for the project came
from the band “Toto” which itself, was a special experience.
Bill Putnam
I met Bill Putnam because of my association with Haji Sound. Alex Kazanegras
and I were discussing the use of UREI limiters (United Recording Electronics
Industries) when Alex decided that I should meet Bill, who was the principal of
UREI. One would never know that Bill Putnam was one of the giants of the
industry. Bill and I talked ‘shop’ several times afterwards. When I first met Bill,
Jerry Feree was working there and I met him for the first time as well.
Bill Robinson
Bill was the General Manager of Sunset Sound Recorders and is the one who
hired me. He was the Chief Engineer of Capitol Records studios before Sunset
Sound and was involved in the very first stereo recording at Capitol. Bill also flew
the documentary plane over Hiroshima when the atom bomb was dropped and
had lots of stories about the event which one had to pry out of him.
Linda Ronstadt
I recorded Linda as a background singer several times. Each time, working with a
different mixture of singers. Linda was always cheerful. Bubbly in fact, and one of
the best voices ever. I never worked on any of her solo albums. Linda was
supposed to sing a duet with Hoyt Axton on one of his album projects but the end
product never came to fruition because when the record company, that she was
signed to heard the performance, they judged it to be too close to a solo
performance which was disallowed under the provisions of her contract with them
(Unless the performance was to be released by the record company in question).
Fortunately, we had enough takes that Linda’s voice was used for augmentation
which, was allowed.
David Lee Roth
A quick aside: I’ve been a fan of Louis Armstrong for as long as I can remember,
even did a bad intimation of him. That said, I was assisting Don Landee, at
Sunset Sound, on Van Halen’s “Van Halen II” album. One evening, David Lee
Roth was sitting in the back of the control room, with his chair leaned up against
the back wall, singing a song that Louis Armstrong had originally recorded while
Don and I were fidgeting with one thing or another. As he finished the tune, I
chimed in on the “Ooh yeah” and we ended the song, singing in unison. We did a
hi-five upon the completion. David said that he wanted to do a solo album where
he would perform some tributes to a few musical greats. A few years later, he
recorded an EP with a selection of his favorites. His website:
https://davidleeroth.com/
Ed Sanford, John Townsend
Ed Sanford and John Townsend were songwriters that became noticed when
their song “Oriental Gate” was honored by the Songwriters Guild. Kenny Loggins
had a hand in the writing of that song as well. That, and the fact that Loggins &
Messina’s drummer was a good friend of theirs (and mine), is how I came to
know them. We would spend Sunday afternoons in the studio recording demos of
their songs using mostly the band members from Loggins & Messina. Everyone
pitched in including the wives and girlfriends with pot-luck food for the occasion.
Those were good times. After hearing some of the recordings, Alex Kazanegras
became a fan. Alex and John Townsend became great friends and may still be
working together.
Lew Schatzer
Lew was instrumental in getting the console up and running at Haji Sound
because we took delivery before the console was finished (long story). Audio
design was child’s play to Lew because, as a young engineer fresh from college,
he helped design the proton splitter (known as the Alternating Gradient
Synchrotron) at Brookhaven Labs. Lew became an electronics consultant to our
facility and I learned alot from him.
Lee Sklar
Lee liked to sit on an extension speaker to his bass amp. This made microphone
placement difficult. When I recorded an electric bassist for the first time, I would
always use a microphone on their amp, in addition to taking their instrument
direct, and then let the musician decide the preference. With Lee Sklar, the mic
and the direct feed sounded the same. He was the only bassist that this
happened with. The other concern that I first had with Lee sitting on his speaker,
was leakage, because the speaker was in the room, not behind a sound baffle. It
turned out not to be a problem because Lee was aware of the situation and kept
the volume low, as long as he could still ‘feel’ the speaker. I recorded Lee Sklar
several times.
Dennis St John
I knew Dennis as the drummer for Neil Diamond. I first met Dennis at Sunset
Sound when we recorded the album “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers.” Dennis and I
became good friends and kept in touch over the years outside of the studio as
well.
Tommy Tedesco
Tommy Tedesco, was a guitarist, and session player extraordinaire. He was one
of the Wrecking Crew which, is how I met him in the first place. I recorded Tommy
many more times over the years. I loved working with musicians of Tommy’s
caliber because they had their own sound and style. All the recording engineer
had to do was make sure that the recording was the best possible.
Eddie Van Halen
I first met Eddie Van Halen while I was a staff engineer at Sunset Sound in
Hollywood, CA. I was assigned to assist Don Landee for a last minute overdub on
Van Halen’s first album. I had yet to meet anyone involved and Don Landee was
the first to show. After the greeting, Don informed me that we would be recording
a car horn that Eddie Van Halen was bringing in. Now, it was my turn for the ‘deer
in the headlights’ look as I asked: “A car horn?” Don confirmed it and said that I
could use any microphone that I thought appropriate. A few minutes later, in
walked Eddie Van Halen, carrying a plywood box that had three car horns
mounted in it. Eddie said that he picked the three because they played a musical
triad. While Eddie went to get a battery and jumper cables, I proceeded to set up
for the recording. I chose a Neumann U47 vacuum tube microphone for the
occasion because that particular mic could handle extreme loudness. We
recorded several takes of the horns (which were very loud) and then after
considerable effort, Don Landee and I were able to get the idea to work on the
intended song. The car horn recording turned out to be the intro to the song:
“Running With The Devil.”
Here is Van Halen’s website: http://van-halen.com/
Pat & Lolly Vegas
Pat & Lolly were the front-men for the band “Redbone.” At the time I worked with
them, the band consisted of four musicians: Pat Vegas (Bass guitar & vocals),
Lolly Vegas (Lead guitar & vocals), Tony Bellamy, a Native American, (Rhythm
guitar & vocal harmonies), Peter “Last Walking Bear” DePoe, a full-blood
Cherokee, (Drums & vocal harmonies). I served as an equipment roadie, road
manager and front of house (FOH) mixer for two of their tours. Pat & Lolly moved
from Fresno, CA to Los Angeles in the 1960’s where they became session
musicians and performed on the ‘Sunset Strip.’ Ethnically, they are Latino and
Native American and were totally immersed in the Native American scene. To the
point that the band had a rider in their performance contract that stated; any
Native American who attended one of their concerts in tribal dress, was allowed
backstage to meet the band after the concert. It was often very difficult to get
near the dressing rooms after the show.
Mark Volman, Howard Kaylan
The dynamic duo of Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan are best known as “Flo &
Eddie” or “Flo & Eddie and the Turtles.” Perhaps less known is the fact that the
two were also part of “The Mothers of Invention.” Mark and Howard recorded the
album “Illegal, Immoral & Fattening” at Haji Sound Studios. Alex Kazanegras was
the main mixer and I assisted. One night, Mark Volman was hungry and
happened to like the Super Tacos from Jack-In-The-Box. Mark proceeded to
order dinner for the band & crew and had a difficult time convincing the person on
the other end of the phone that he was serious about ordering 40 Super Tacos. In
order to get the person at Jack-In-The-Box to believe he was serious, he had a
tape box legend autographed by every band member and sent it along with the
roadie to pick up the food. It worked.
Barbara Walters
I had just spent the night in one of the condos at Willie Nelson’s studio located on
the Pedernales River outside of Austin Texas. I walked outside to take in some
Texas air when a couple of limousines pulled up, followed by two tractor-trailer
rigs with the CBS logo on the sides. Out of one of the limousines stepped
Barbara Walters, followed by several people. By the time all of the cars and
trucks emptied, the place was overrun. Barbara asked where she could find Willie
Nelson, explaining that she had been chasing him across the country to get an
interview for the program “60 minutes.” After composing myself some (I was
standing there in slippers and PJ’s), I replied that Willie usually showed up
around 2 PM. I retreated to the condo and warned Hoyt and JB, who were
equally disheveled, and Willie finally showed up that afternoon. As previously
mentioned, Barbara Walters and crew took over the place. Willie explained that
the weekend was already booked for a recording session with Hoyt Axton which,
didn’t seem to matter as the camera crew was already setting up for an interview
in Willies’ office. The fact that a recording session was planned for the evening
only added to the script, as far as the director was concerned so, we adjusted.
In site of it all, we did get a couple of takes so, all was not lost.
Mentor Williams
I worked on a few projects with Mentor producing while I was at Sunset Sound.
As such, we became good friends and stayed in touch outside of the workplace.
More about Mentor Williams in my writing about his brother, Paul Williams.
Paul Williams
I finished the album “A Little On The Windy Side” at Sunset Sound. About half of
the songs were recorded in Nashville, Tenn. By Gene Eichelburger. The project
was produced by Paul's older brother Mentor Williams. The two, side by side,
look like they are not related at all. Aside from looking like they are not related,
Paul is shorter than average (He used to say something like: “Time to lower the
microphone” when he was getting ready to sing) and Mentor is taller and larger
than average. So, the difference between the two is striking.
Mentor Williams is listed separately because I worked on a few projects that he
produced.
Pauls “Official” website: http://www.paulwilliamsofficial.com/
Frank Zappa
I assisted Joe Chiccarelli, on Frank Zappa’fs album “Shiek Yerbuti” at Sunset
Sound. It was an interesting situation because this was Joe Chiccarelli’s first big
name project as a mixer and I was plenty seasoned with credits on eight gold and
two platinum albums. A lot of hand holding was needed in the beginning.
I had never met either Frank or Joe prior to this occasion. Frank Zappa had a
reputation for being demanding and moody. I was expecting a burned out druggie
and Frank Zappa, it turned out, was a regular guy with a dry sense of humor.
Besides being totally against illegal drugs of any kind, his only vices were
espresso coffee (which he used to bring to each session in an air-pot) and
Winston cigarettes, one of which was always lit. Joe Chiccarelli went on to
become a very well known recording engineer.
The Zappa site: https://www.zappa.com/
Steve Zuckerman
Steve is a Music Composer who is best known for his work with commercials.
However, he has composed the music for some feature films as well. It was
Steve who introduced me to Neil Lampert as well as many other great musicians
that I would have otherwise never known. Steve generally worked at a frenetic
pace. So much so, that communication between the assistant and the mixer often
got confused and the wrong track would be put into record. As a result, I invented
the term ‘Conga Heaven’ because sometimes that wrong track already had
something recorded on it. Steve was always very understanding. One of the
hardest things about working with Steve, for me, was the 7am setup call. Most
commercials are recorded and mixed before lunch whereas, most record projects
don’t start until the late afternoon or evening. It seemed like I was always at the
short end of the stick when it came to working between the two.
Zuck is still writing and composing: http://www.creativecombustion.tv/
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