Tom Dowd
Thomas J. "Tom" Dowd ( born October 25, 1925 in New York; † October 27, 2002 in Miami, Florida) was a successful American record producer.
Life and work
Childhood and youth
Through his parents (father conductor, mother an opera singer ), he came very early into contact with music. Both supported and promoted his interest. After high school graduation in 1942, was supposed to follow the military service, but Tom was too young compared to the other boys from his former class. So it was that he first was able to devote more to education. He studied at City College and played casually in the band from Columbia University, where he soon obtained a post in the local physics laboratory, thanks to his outstanding knowledge in physics.
As a young teenager, he suddenly came up with well-known in professional circles as scientists John R. Dunning, Bill Havens and the later Nobel Prize winner James Rainwater in contact. The research team, which worked under the name " Manhattan Project ", should soon gain notoriety: In 1945, the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Tom Dowd could not believe it and was shocked; he had not known what to todbringendem project he had cooperated.
The beginnings in the music industry
Frustrated Dowd sought after distraction and that he found in a summer job at a music studio, was added to the classical music. The work made him so much fun that he was initially. And in 1949 there was for him something like a key experience: In a three-hour recording session, he recorded the artist Eileen Barton. He saw the artist ever again and this session would not be worth mentioning, if not the first single, titled If I Knew You Were Coming, I'd Have Baked A Cake ( " Had I expected you today 'd ' I there " ) would have been a big hit cake.
Tom Dowd worked meticulously to improve the recording technique; so he took, for example, for each instrument a separate microphone, which was extremely unusual at the time.
He gained reputation and his fame spread more and more among the musicians, such as, inter alia, Dizzy Gillespie and Joe Turner and the Ravens. What was once a summer job, a new career had become.
With Atlantic Records soon was a close business relationship after the book published on Atlantic " Drinkin 'Wine Spo -dee -O -Dee " by Stick McGhee had become a hit.
This was followed in the 50's more plates by artists such as Ray Charles and Ruth Brown. In the following years, more and more established Dowd and Dowd worked passionately on the advancement of technology: Atlantic owed him the possibility of stereo recording, which came into use at the famous jazz musician John Coltrane for the first time. With him Dowd took on albums like Giant Steps and Coltrane 's Sound. With the new stereo sound, the music of the virtuosos could be captured more absorbing. Until the beginning of the 60s, Tom Dowd had developed a reputation as a final exception rounder in terms of production and sound mixing.
In 1967, it was for Tom to Europe: In the course of an extensive tour of a Memphis - all-star group, including Dowd's protege Otis Redding, he was hired as a spokesman for the musicians. The tour was very successful for the musicians, they also made their big idols, the Beatles - these in turn were also impressed by the group from Memphis.
The Muscle Shoals session
After returning we went to Alabama where Tom Dowd recorded during the famous Muscle Shoals session artists such as Wilson Pickett and the then completely unknown Aretha Franklin. These thanked 25 years and countless hits later with her producer when she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the note that Tom had a great share in the typical Aretha sound.
Beginning of the 70s was Tom Dowd to Miami and worked in the newly built Atlantic Records on South Building. One of the first albums that he produced there was At Fillmore East by The Allman Brothers Band. This was followed in the 70's other productions of such a successful groups and artists such as Cream, Rod Stewart and Lynyrd Skynyrd.
The collaboration with the aforementioned Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton and Lynyrd Skynyrd had in the coming years inventory.
In 1996, after 50 years of creative life in the music business, he was nominated for the first time for a Grammy for his contribution to the John Coltrane box set. The previously successful Allman Brothers lived in the 90s again making a comeback. Dowd produced in the years 1990-1994 alone of them a total of four successful albums.
The last years
In addition to further work as a producer Dowd also held lectures at high schools and universities. Thanks to decades of experience he was a " walking encyclopedia " what recording techniques and that concerned around it.
In 2002 he was finally honored for his life's work with the honorary Grammy.
In 2003, his life was filmed under the title Tom Dowd & the Language of Music.
The premiere took place at the Sundance Film Festival. Dowd himself did not live to this: He died on 27 October 2002 at the age of 77 years to cancer.
Discography producer (excerpt)
Discography mixer ( Engineer) (excerpt)
- Music producer
- Americans
- Born in 1925
- Died 2002
- Man
- Grammy winner