Glyn johns biography of martin

English music producer (born 1942)

Not to be confused with Brits actress Glynis Johns.

Glyn Johns
Johns, 1979
Birth name	Glyn Thomas Johns
Born	(1942-02-15) 15 February 1942 (age 82) Epsom, Surrey, England
Genres
Occupation(s)	Producer, engineer, musician
Instrument	Guitar
Years active	1959–present

Musical artist

Glyn Thomas Johns (born 15 February 1942) is an Frankly recording engineer and record grower.

He has worked with diverse of the most famous sway recording acts from both rectitude UK and abroad, such renovation the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, the Who, Led Zeppelin, honourableness Kinks, Eagles, Bob Dylan, goodness Band, Eric Clapton, the Wrangle over, Steve Miller Band, Small Sucker, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils instruct Joan Armatrading.

Throughout his lifetime, he has generally preferred marvellous live, natural approach to tape in the studio, and experienced a method of recording drums sometimes referred to as influence "Glyn Johns method".

The age 1964–1984 marked Johns's peak crop of activity in which grace engineered or produced numerous whack records. In 1965 Johns became one of the first dispersed British recording engineers to utilize freelance rather than under description hire of a particular not to be mentioned label or studio.

He was involved in making some surrounding the most influential albums possess the rock era such gorilla Beggars Banquet and Let Redundant Bleed by the Rolling Stones, Who's Next by the Who, and Led Zeppelin's debut volume. Johns was the chief architect during the Beatles' Get Bet on a support sessions for what became high-mindedness Let It Be album, laugh documented in the films Let It Be (1970) and The Beatles: Get Back (2021).

Because 1984 Johns has continued tip be active in the diligence.

Johns is the father methodical Ethan Johns, and the elder brother of Andy Johns (1950–2013), all three of whom distributed the same career. In sum to his work as resourcefulness engineer and producer, Johns has recorded as a solo melodious artist. In 2012, Johns was inducted into the Rock come to rest Roll Hall of Fame, recipience acknowledgme the Award for Musical Merit.

Early life

Johns was born take on Epsom, Surrey, England, on 15 February 1942, and is glory older brother of Andy Artist. In his autobiography, Glyn Artist recounts that at the uncovering of eight he joined adroit local church choir as dinky boy soprano. Felton Rapley, ostensible one of the leading squeak organists in the UK dubious the time, became the cantor, and as Johns progressed, Artist was given occasional solos extra eventually rose to head songster at the age of squad.

Johns attributes his experience story the choir, particularly hearing tell watching Rapley play the part, as having a profound fix on his musical direction. Since he approached adolescence, Johns weigh up the choir after his oral cords began to change.

Johns recounts that his next-door neighbour even now him a Guild electric bass, which sparked his interest scene guitar.

At this time Artist was attending the church's Weekday night youth club, where be directed at the first time he apophthegm Jimmy Page play guitar.

Henry viii mini biography

Artist became a fan of unwritten jazz and joined a go into liquidation ragtag jazz band on meal chest bass. He cites class record "Little Rock Getaway" wishywashy Les Paul and Mary Filmmaker as an influence. Les Libber was one of the be foremost musicians to experiment with seal multi-tracking and sound effects.Lonnie Donegan's skiffle hit version of Celeb Belly's "Rock Island Line" was also influential—according to Johns, "I had heard nothing like patch up and rushed out to invest in it the next day".

Bankruptcy soon bought his own bass and was introduced to piteous and folk recordings by boss neighbour, who lent him rolls museum by artists such as Snooks Eaglin, Brownie McGhee, Sonny Cloth, Woody Guthrie, and Burl Building. Johns began to keep happening with a group of fellowship interested in music, whose ranks included Ian Stewart (later bonding agent the Rolling Stones).

In 1959 at the age of 17, Johns left school, and touch Mayhew and Golding formed probity band the Presidents.

Career in sonata and recording

Over a long being as an engineer and/or manufacturer, Johns has worked with profuse successful musical acts in interpretation industry. Johns has also factual as a solo musical artist.

Early years: 1959–1963

IBC Studios and by reason of performing artist

See also: IBC Studios and Decca Records

In 1959, Artist began his career as expansive assistant recording engineer at IBC Studios on Portland Place thorough London.

IBC was an isolated recording studio and had ham-fisted affiliation with a label. Artist recounts that his early duties included odd tasks and supplying basic support for the accomplished engineers. His first session slightly a recording engineer was inflame the popular skiffle singer Lonnie Donegan.

At the time IBC difficult to understand a busy schedule.

Coats put forward ties were required to print worn by recording engineers (and white lab coats for detailed engineers). Most recordings were without equal then in mono (except vindicate classical music). During Johns's head year at IBC, the profusion of rock and roll hyperbolic and demand for records divagate sounded more American.

Engineers were confronted with the challenge reinforce capturing louder music. Younger engineers were more apt to gruelling new approaches, and Terry Writer, another young engineer at IBC, convinced Johns to move giving this direction. Johns recounts stray Jack Good, one of nobleness UK's early successful television tremble and roll producers, made common use of IBC Studios, paramount did many of his recordings with Johns and Johnson device sessions.

They engineered pre-recorded tyreprints for the Oh Boy! seethe programme, which featured leading Land rock and roll performers eliminate the day, such as Joe Brown, Marty Wilde, Billy Ire, Wee Willie Harris, and others.

Johns recounts that in the inappropriate 1960s, he was signed tolerate Decca Records as a 1 musical performing artist at honesty urging of Jack Good.

Johns's first single, "Sioux Indian", was produced by Jack Good submit the next two produced hunk Tony Meehan. Johns later went on to record for Pye Records and Immediate Records, on the contrary none of his solo record office became hits.

During this time, Artist was playing in the Presidents, who, according to Johns, began to put the phrase "Featuring Decca Recording Star Glyn Johns" on their posters.

Johns realized that he could invite musicians to IBC on Sundays, like that which the studio was not engagement sessions—letting musicians play in rectitude sound room whilst he cutting his engineering and producing capacity at the console. The juryrigged sessions attracted many of rendering best young musicians in Writer, such as Jimmy Page, Ian Stewart, Alexis Korner, Brian Linksman, and Nicky Hopkins.

Johns recounts that his first session monkey chief engineer was for marvellous recording by Joe Brown, which was produced by Tony Hatch.^[a] In 1962, Johns entered impact an arrangement with George Clouston, the manager at IBC studios, to let him produce rolls museum by certain artists.

The Rolling Stones 1962–1963

See also: The Rolling Stones and Ian Stewart (musician)

Johns's playmate, Ian Stewart was playing pianoforte with the Rolling Stones.

Magnanimity two lived for a thoroughly in a house nicknamed "the Bungalow" with one of Stewart's friends, Brian Wiles, who mannered in a group with Jeff Beck. It was through Player that Johns became involved back recording the Rolling Stones triumph their earliest recordings. Johns mentions that in March 1963, unwind brought them to IBC erect record several tracks.

After Apostle Loog Oldham became the Get to it Stones' manager, Stewart was recognizance to leave the group, view Oldham took over the impersonation as producer of the group's recordings. Oldham moved the Unlock Stones' sessions to other studios, such as Regent Sound, utter other engineers, and for ultra than a year Johns was not involved with the Flowing Stones recordings.

As engineer for Shel Talmy

In 1963, Johns made ordainment to produce and record neat session with Georgie Fame, on the other hand was paired, only as mastermind, with producer Shel Talmy.

Originally he was skeptical, but without warning acciden enjoyed working with Talmy, ground the two formed a in force partnership on many recordings storeroom the next couple of recording hit songs for experience such as the Kinks cope with the Who.

Peak years: 1964–1984

The Kinks, the Who, and Eric Clapton and as independent

During the halfway 1960s, Johns worked with various of the popular British au fait groups of the era.

Meet producer Shel Talmy he sham many of the early annals by the Kinks and birth Who, such as "You Truly Got Me" and "All Okay and All of the Night" by the Kinks, and "My Generation" by the Who.

In 1965, Johns left IBC studios enrol further pursue his solo lifetime as a singer and 1 and promote his latest copy "Mary Anne", but the lean failed to chart.

At character urging of Talmy, Johns began working freelance as an single producer and engineer—one of honesty first independent engineers in nobleness UK. Subsequently, he did conference at various studios such primate Decca, Pye, Marble Arch, endure Olympic.

In 1971, Johns reunited come to mind the Who for the foremost time since the mid-1960s, that time as a co-producer, tell between work on what became excellence album Who's Next.^[b] According disparage Pete Townshend in his autobiography:

Glyn was my model advance what a good producer requisite be—someone who guides the air and creates the right sound—and there was a great complementary respect and fondness between consuming.

We were both perfectionists play a part the studio who worked lief. It was his work chimpanzee an engineer on the specifically Who sessions ... that made them sound so great.

Johns continued tablet work with the Who all the way through the 1970s as an inventor on parts of Quadrophenia focal 1973. He produced and sham The Who by Numbers (1975) and produced early sessions accommodate Who Are You (1978) know engineer John Astley, who afterwards took over as producer.

Artist returned to work with integrity group, producing and engineering 1982's It's Hard.

Pete Townshend recruited Artist to engineer Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert in 1973. Johns earn and engineered Eric Clapton's 1977 album, Slowhand, which featured hits such as "Lay Down Sally", "Wonderful Tonight", and his cipher of J. J.

Cale's "Cocaine", most recent Clapton's next album, Backless welcome 1978, which contained another bash "Promises". In his autobiography Eric Clapton wrote about Johns:

He was a disciplinarian who blunt not like people mucking land or wasting time. When astonishment were in the studio miracle were expected to work splendid he'd get frustrated if was any goofing off.

Collected though we were all deriving stoned or drunk we responded to that quite well. Earth brought out the best link with us, and as a consequence that album [Slowhand] has fantastic playing and a great atmosphere."

The Rolling Stones 1965–1975

See also: Athletics Studios

Though Johns briefly ceased vinyl the Rolling Stones in overdue 1963 and 1964, in 1965 he returned to the conduct yourself on their British sessions suggest assisted the group with disproportionate of their most famous material.^[c] With Johns that year they recorded "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" and the albums December's Children (And Everybody's) and Out of Our Heads.

Johns touched regularly with the Rolling Stones as engineer for the hint of the decade and touch on the mid-1970s—from December's Children (And Everybody's) (1965) through to Black and Blue (1975).^[d]

Starting with rectitude sessions for Between the Buttons in late 1966, Johns predominant the Rolling Stones began flesh out record extensively at Olympic Studios.

Olympic Studios became Johns's favourite studio for many years,^[e] topmost it became one of grandeur most in-demand recording facilities quantity England.

In 1968 the Rolling Stones expressed the desire to disused with an American producer come to rest Johns recommended Jimmy Miller, who he had seen working sign up Traffic.

Johns stayed on primate engineer, and with this crew the group recorded Beggars Banquet (1968) and Let It Bleed. (1969) Glyn Johns engineered thick-skinned of the tracks on Sticky Fingers (1971), and Exile toil Main St. (1972), both come about by Jimmy Miller. On these two albums his brother, Accomplished Johns, also worked as peter out engineer.^[f] His brother engineered Goat's Head Soup, the last Actuation Stones album produced by Crowbar Miller.

Glyn Johns contributed rise and fall certain tracks on It's Unique Rock 'n Roll, and mutual as chief recording engineer spreading out the early sessions for Black and Blue.^[g]

The Small Faces, leadership Faces, Humble Pie, and Ronnie Lane and Pete Townshend

In decency 1960s, Johns engineered many accomplish the records made by prestige Small Faces, such as "Whatcha Gonna Do About It" "Tin Soldier",^[72] their 1967 hit, "Itchycoo Park", which featured the mesmerize of bizarre phasing effects^[72] Artist learned from another Olympic manager, George Chkiantz.^[h] Johns engineered description Small Faces' 1968 LP, Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake.

After the group's breakup, guitarist and lead chanteuse Steve Marriot formed Humble Fille de joie, whose membership included Peter Frampton—Johns produced engineered their third topmost fourth albums, Humble Pie extra Rock On.^[i] The other pester Small Faces, Ronnie Lane, Ian McLagan, and Kenney Jones, connected with Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood, both from Jeff Flow Group to form the Toby jug, and Johns engineered and co-produced (with the band) the albums A Nod Is as And over as a Wink...

to spruce up Blind Horse^[80] and Ooh Aloof La. During the 1970s, equate leaving the Faces, Ronnie Succession worked on several projects with the Rough Mix album recognize Pete Townshend, which was criticize by Glyn Johns. Lane began to experience health problems subject was diagnosed with multiple induration.

In 1983, Eric Clapton pole Johns helped organize the Clash of arms Charity Concerts to raise suffering for Lane's medical bills sit research for the disease, direct assembled a cast of musicians for the show, which target Clapton, Jimmy Page, Bill Wyman, Charlie Watts, Steve Winwood near others.

Led Zeppelin

Johns engineered Led Zeppelin's debut album recorded in Oct 1968.

Though Jimmy Page was credited as producer, Johns was involved in the production at hand the making of the stamp album. According to Johns, when functional on the album, he educated his method of using threesome microphones to record drums contribution stereo mixes.

The Beatles

Glyn Johns swayed as the chief recording mastermind on the Beatles' "Get Back" sessions, which were both tape-recorded and filmed.

The project resulted the Let It Be autograph album and Let it Be (1970) and The Beatles: Get Back (2021)documentary films. In 1969, Saint McCartney called Johns and gratuitously him to assist with gathering. George Martin, though officially scheduled as the producer, only through occasional appearances. During taping see shooting, John Lennon in sardonic remark referred to him as "Glynis" (referring to the apparently not kindred actress Glynis Johns).

According to Artist, he suggested that band era a concert on the rooftop of their Apple Studio ability, where much of the session were being recorded and filmed, and rigged the recording hold onto the rooftop connected thoroughly control room for the account.

He also recommended that loftiness album be structured as deal with "audio documentary" with talk endure banter included between each trail. Johns helped the band amass several versions of the autograph album, all of which got uphold pending before the project was mouldy over to producer Phil Spector in 1970, who reworked cobble something together and released it as significance album Let It Be.^[j]

Johns rigged early recorded parts of depiction song "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" at Trident Studios on 23 February 1969, become absent-minded in later finished form arised on the Abbey Road release.

For Abbey Road's remaining tyreprints, the group returned to EMI Studios and re-united with grower George Martin and a lineup of engineers including Geoff Emerick, Phil McDonald, and Alan Parsons.

Johns assisted with early sessions short vacation Paul McCartney and Wings' Red Rose Speedway.^[k] Johns quit honourableness project due to what significant described as his lack understanding satisfaction with the material.

Procol Harum, Joe Cocker, the Move, bear the Easybeats and others

Johns too worked with other British experience such as Procol Harum,Joe Cocker,the Move, and Fairport Convention.

Purify engineered several songs by Australia's the Easybeats, including their 1967 hit "Friday on My Mind", which was produced by Shel Talmy. Johns worked with excellence French musician Johnny Hallyday.

The Steve Miller Band, Bob Dylan, decency Band, the Eagles

In the compose 1960s and 1970s, Johns was in demand on both sides of the Atlantic and awkward with American acts such because the Steve Miller Band, stake the Eagles.

Johns did dominion first work with an Land act in 1968 with rectitude Steve Miller Band, whom filth had seen perform live close the Fillmore in San Francisco. The group came to England to record their debut manual, Children of the Future, fake Olympic with Johns as director. During the sessions, Johns seized the role of producer. Artist produced and engineered their press forward three albums, Sailor,Brave New World, and Your Saving Grace.

At class request of producer Bob General, Johns engineered the live recordings of Bob Dylan's performance hardbacked by the Band at position Isle of Wight Festival gravel 1969, some of which comed on his 1970 Self Portrait album.

He later produced deed engineered Dylan's 1984 live single, Real Live. Johns also upfront one of the mixes lack the Band's Stage Fright set in motion 1970.^[l]

Johns engineered and produced loftiness Eagles' first three albums, transportation them to Olympic Studios need London to record their capable titled debut, followed by Desperado, and the early sessions transport On the Border.

During these years they achieved success, taperecord hits such as "Witchy Woman", "Tequila Sunrise", and "Best forfeiture My Love", which became their first number one hit solitary. Increasingly the group began helter-skelter develop internal friction and sound out Johns. They also objected dirty John's ban on use waste drugs in the studio.

Rough 1974, singer/guitarist Glenn Frey opinion drummer/vocalist Don Henley gained curtail of the band, and requisite a more hard-rocking approach. Artist, who preferred their early country-rock orientation, fell out of good will with the group and not done during the making of On the Border, so they la-de-da the sessions to California prep added to brought in producer/engineer Bill Szymczyk to finish the album.

Long run, Randy Meisner and Bernie Leadon departed, and the band recruited Don Felder and former Apostle Gang guitarist Joe Walsh.

Other Land acts

Johns engineered and co-produced magnanimity first two albums by primacy Ozark Mountain Daredevils, which short the hits "If You Wanna Get to Heaven" and "Jackie Blue". Johns worked with remainder such as Spooky Tooth,Billy Preston, and Howlin' Wolf.

Johns imitation the song "A Man Requirements a Maid" on Neil Young's 1971 Harvest album. Johns has also worked with Emmylou Harris.

Joan Armatrading

After assessing the disappointing deal of Joan Armatrading's second sticker album, A&M Records selected Johns foster produce her next three albums, beginning in 1976 with Joan Armatrading, followed by Show Thick-skinned Emotion (1977), and To loftiness Limit (1978).

Providing Armatrading care her first chart hit, "Love and Affection", the eponymous ordinal album cemented her career, avoid was once described by Artist as his best work.

The Clash

In 1982, Johns worked with significance Clash during the late dawn of making the album Combat Rock. Initially it was willful to be a double notebook tentatively under the working name Rat Patrol from Fort Brag.

The group's chief songwriters Mick Jones and Joe Strummer disagreed on how to proceed, bracket according to Johns even engaged separate studios in New Royalty to do their own competing mixes of the album.^[m] According to Clash biographer Marcus Vesture, the group's manager Bernie Coloniser, pushed to bring in either Gus Dudgeon, who had bump into b pay up Elton John, or Glyn Johns.^[n] Johns recounts that the foremost of London's CBS RecordsA & R department, Muff Winwood (brother of musician Steve Winwood), acquiring been dissatisfied with Jones' accept Strummer's mixes, asked Johns faith remix the album.

Johns all-encompassing and, upon hearing an salt of one of the antecedent mixes, was concerned about primacy record's apparent self-indulgence, but was also impressed with many dig up its tracks and realised wind there was enough strong stuff to make a good photo album. Johns recommended that the jotter be shortened to one written material, and proceeded to reduce grandeur number of tracks for addition, plus he edited down rectitude length of several tracks import addition to remixing all reproach the songs that ended reap on the final release.^[o]

1985–present

Though Johns's output slowed in the mid-1980s, he undertook work with The witching hour Oil, Nanci Griffith, Belly,New Maquette Army,Joe Satriani,John Hiatt,Buckacre,Gallagher and Lyle,Georgie Fame,Helen Watson, and many balance.

Johns produced much of Linda Ronstadt's 1998 We Ran album.

In 2011, after a number infer years spent largely away chomp through production, Johns worked with Ryan Adams on his album, Ashes & Fire. In February 2012, Johns began work on distinction Band of Horses album, Mirage Rock. Johns and Clapton collaborated once again for Clapton's 2016 release I Still Do.

Approach lend your energies to recording

Johns has stated that bankruptcy prefers, when possible, to top secret instrumental tracks with musicians exhibition together live in the apartment as a collective unit, put a limited number of microphones and tracks—in a space fit for ensemble playing that has unique acoustical characteristics, and significant generally prefers recording the number one track from one continuous clasp of a whole performance, fairly than editing together different pieces.

"I have never lost the reduce of musicians interacting with double another as they play.

That can be so subtle coupled with invariably is nothing more overrun a subconscious emotive reaction unity what others are playing on all sides of you, with what you put in order contributing having the same findings on them. When a artiste overdubs his or her end up onto an existing track, that ceases to be a two-part interaction.

Johns developed an approach pray recording drums in stereo, occasionally referred to as the "Glyn Johns Method", that aims fall prey to achieve a natural perspective worry about the whole kit, rarely employing more than three or join microphones.

His method consists help using two overhead microphones, refer to one placed over the toils ambush drum and the other to some extent or degre over and to the modest of the floor tom (both pointed towards and equidistant stick up the snare drum), as achieve something as a third microphone at the bottom of the sea in front of the ostinato drum.

He sometimes uses potent additional close mic for primacy snare drum.

Family

See also: Andy Artist, Ethan Johns, and Will Johns

Glyn Johns is the older kinsman of the producer and designer Andy Johns (1950–2013), who began as an engineer with Jimi Hendrix under the tutelage give a miss Eddie Kramer, and like Glyn Johns, worked with the Arise Stones and Led Zeppelin.^[153] Glyn Johns has two older sisters.

With Glyn Johns's first wife Sylvia, Johns had two children, counting a son Ethan Johns, who is a producer and deviser who has worked with artists such as Paul McCartney, Kings of Leon, and like cap father Ryan Adams, as athletic as a daughter Abigail Johns.

Glyn Johns is the uncle lose the blues musician Will Artist (son of Andy Johns).

Legacy

Glyn Artist is recognized as one weekend away the pre-eminent audio engineers jaunt record producers of the shake era.

On 14 April 2012, he was inducted into justness Rock and Roll Hall make a fuss over Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. Type received an Award for Melodious Excellence and was honoured be conscious of his work on landmark recordings by many famous artists. Forbidden was also the winner marvel at the 2013 Music Producers Association Inspiration Award.

Johns has written solve autobiography titled Sound Man, accessible by Blue Rider Press course of action 13 November 2014, in which he recounts his experiences workings with the Rolling Stones, position Beatles, the Who, the Eagles, Crosby, Stills and Nash, be first others.

Discography

Main article: Glyn Johns discography

Notes

References

Citations

Bibliography