Tom Wilson (record producer)
Tom Wilson ( born March 25, 1931 † 6 September 1978; Complete name: Thomas Blanchard Wilson Jr.) was an American record producer, and in the 1960s for his work with Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, Frank Zappa the Mothers of Invention and the Velvet Underground was known. He initially worked for Columbia Records, then he went to Verve Records.
Life
Start of career
Wilson was the son of Tom and Fannie Wilson. Born in 1931, he grew up in Waco, Texas, where he calls the " A. J. Moore High School " and visited the " New Hope Baptist Church " belonged. When he visited the " Fisk University ", Wilson was invited to Harvard, where he dealt with the " Harvard New Jazz Society " and the radio station " WHRB "; went to the latter interest, as he said later, all his success in the music business.
He was virtually the only African-American record producer, who worked in the mainstream of American popular music. Although since the mid-1950s in the business, he was particularly productive in the 1960s. The goal in mind to start a record label and to make the most advanced jazz musicians of his time shooting, he built up the label "Transition Records ". Then appeared a number of albums, including Sun Ra Sun Song ( Sun Ra's first album ) and the album Jazz Advance by Cecil Taylor. Ultimately, the label has been discontinued and sold most of the material on the small label " Delmark Records " in Chicago.
Career at Columbia Records
As a regular producer at Columbia Records Wilson was one of the " midwife " of the folk-rock. He produced Simon and Garfunkel in 1964, released their debut album Wednesday Morning, 3 AM and containing a world hit " The Sound of Silence". Picking up on and inspired by the great success, the interest of local radio stations in Florida on this piece to the Byrds with their folk rock version of Bob Dylan's " Mr. Tambourine Man " had, Wilson took the original sound track from the debut album of the duo and put in the studio - without Simon or Garfunkel knew about it - electrically amplified instruments on which he made a number - one hit from the play and explain the folk rock genre helped. Simon and Garfunkel, who had already disbanded, came to this hit together again - and became famous.
Wilson's other outstanding performance was in his work with Bob Dylan, for whom he produced the album Bringing It All Back Home. Wilson is also known as the producer of the album Highway 61 Revisited, although he only produced a song for this: In 1965 published Dylan's single "Like a Rolling Stone " he had the musician Al Kooper allowed to play the organ, although this hitherto only was known as a guitarist.
Career at Verve Records
In 1966, Wilson ordered the Mothers of Invention for Verve Records. He is a producer of their breakthrough debut album Freak Out! and the subsequent albums released Absolutely Free and We're Only in It for the Money called. However, it is believed by many that Frank Zappa, the head of the group actually had a higher percentage of the production work.
For Verve Wilson also produced the group The Velvet Underground, were at the forefront in the Lou Reed, John Cale and Nico. Another production for Verve was the group Blues Project, with Al Kooper as a singer and keyboard player. Kooper had joined the group after it was rejected by a prelude of the label, Columbia Records - in which Kooper played for Bob Dylan's band, which was produced by Wilson.
Wilson is also called the first album by Soft Machine as a producer.
Firstly, the lion's share of creative work in most of his productions is undeniable musical minds, composers and musicians from this shoot attributable. On the other hand, it is certainly more than just a coincidence that Wilson occupied a supervisory role in the emergence and during the development of several important breakthroughs in American music during the mid-20th century. His commitment to innovative, early works of Sun Ra, Cecil Taylor and Frank Zappa, his caring Supervise the development of Bob Dylan from the eye-catching folk singer to a living legend and voice of a generation, his revival of the already defunct duo Simon & Garfunkel, which he celebrated by made his directing intervention at the recording session for the track " Like a Rolling Stone ", which is often described as the only biggest song of the rock'n'roll era - Tom Wilson was in each case the decisive force. Although he rarely received the attention that would have been this extraordinary successes appropriate, Wilson has to be considered one of the most important and influential producers in the 1960s (along with eminent personalities such as Phil Spector, George Martin, Brian Wilson and Teo Macero ).
Other productions
During his career, Wilson has produced the albums of many other artists. In the field of jazz are the main Curtis Fuller, Benny Golson, John Coltrane, Booker Ervin, Perry Robinson, Eddie Harris, Louis Smith and Booker Little. In the field of rock and pop music are the most important, the Animals, the Fraternity of Man and Country Joe and the Fish.
Plates ( selection)
- Cecil Taylor: Jazz Advance - (1955 )
- Sun Ra: Sun Song - (1957 )
- Sun Ra: The Futuristic Sounds of Sun Ra - (1961 )
- Bob Dylan: The Times They Are A - Changin '- ( 1964)
- Bob Dylan: Another Side of Bob Dylan - (1964 )
- Simon and Garfunkel: Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. - (1965)
- Simon and Garfunkel: "The Sound of Silence" - (1965, Single)
- Bob Dylan: Bringing It All Back Home - (1965 )
- Bob Dylan: " Like a Rolling Stone" - (1965, Single)
- The Mothers of Invention: Freak Out! - (1966)
- The Mothers of Invention: Absolutely Free - (1966 )
- The Mothers of Invention: We're Only in It for the Money - (1966 )
- Eric Burdon and the Animals: C. C. Rider
- Blues Project: Projections - (1967 )
- The Velvet Underground and Nico: The Velvet Underground and Nico - (1967 )
- Eric Burdon and the Animals: Winds of Change - (1967 )
- The Velvet Underground: White Light / White Heat - (1968 )
Swell
- Music producer
- Frank Zappa
- Americans
- Born in 1931
- Died in 1978
- Man