James Guthrie (record producer)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

James Guthrie
Birth nameJames K. A. Guthrie
Born (1953-11-14) 14 November 1953 (age 70)
Audio engineer
, record producer, composer, filmmaker, photographer, musician
Instrument(s)Guitar
Years active1973–present

James K. A. Guthrie (born 14 November 1953) is an English

recording engineer and record producer best known for his work with the progressive rock band Pink Floyd serving as a producer and engineer for the band since 1978. He is the owner and operator of das boot recording in Lake Tahoe
, California. Married to Melissa Kathryn (Braun) Guthrie and parent of two cats, Bert & Jack. Original music and scoring.

Early years

Guthrie began his career on 1 October 1973 at

Rocket Brothers), as well as introducing vocalist Rachel Brennock (his then-girlfriend,[6] who used the stage name Rachel Fury) to Pink Floyd,[7]
she joined the touring band from 1987 to 1989.

Guthrie later worked at other London-area studios such as

The Movies (Double A and Bullets Through The Barrier); followed by work with Runner (producing their only release, which made the Billboard Top 100). After producing the Judas Priest track "Better By You, Better Than Me" for the album Stained Class, he was selected to produce their follow-up album Killing Machine
(aka Hell Bent for Leather).

By 1980, Guthrie's body of work in regards to engineering, mixing, and production would include a total of six hit singles on both the British and American charts: the first three singles from Heatwave, Marshall Hain's "Dancing in the City", Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)" and The Pointer Sisters' "He's So Shy".

Pink Floyd

In mid-1978, Guthrie received a request from Pink Floyd's manager,

Tom Robinson (and the end result was his production of "Our People", the b-side of the "Bully for You" single in 1979). The other was for Pink Floyd, about to embark on their new project, a concept album which was eventually titled The Wall. Based on his previous production credits and after meeting with Guthrie, Roger Waters believed he would be a good fit. Guthrie accepted the assignment with the request that he would be allowed to engineer the record himself.[8]

Guthrie was the only member of the production team to be awarded by

Best Engineered Recording, Non-Classical.[9]

A case can be made for Guthrie's involvement as an important element of the timeless sound Pink Floyd was able to achieve with The Wall.

TapeOp
magazine: "James Guthrie was great on The Wall – I thought he did a great job."

Guthrie's initial involvement with Pink Floyd was to last nearly five years; in addition to engineering and co-production duties on The Wall, he also served as the Sound Mixer (supervising the

Graham Hartstone and Nicholas Le Messurier). He was then asked to co-produce (along with Michael Kamen) The Final Cut, the last release of Waters-era Pink Floyd. According to Andy Jackson, who served as engineer for the recording along with Guthrie, the use of the name "Max" in the songs "The Gunner's Dream" and "Paranoid Eyes" is an appropriation of Guthrie's nickname (the members of the production team – Guthrie, Jackson and Kamen – each had nicknames), which Waters had originally included as a joke, but decided that it suited the overall concept and created an actual character in the narrative with the name.[11]

Guthrie appears in at least three documentaries about Pink Floyd: in The Lost Documentary (filmed in August 1980 and never officially released but was made available in 2004), he is interviewed and receives an onscreen credit as "Sound Mixer". In The Other Side of The Wall (chronicling the making of Pink Floyd The Wall) he appears onscreen during a sequence depicting recording of additional music for the film but is neither credited nor interviewed; and in Retrospective: Looking Back at The Wall (included on the DVD release of Pink Floyd—The Wall) he is interviewed and receives an onscreen credit as "Music Producer" in the second half of the documentary. Guthrie also appears in the "Editing and Music"

electronic press kit used to promote the release of Pulse in 1995. A little-known feature of the Waters DVD release In the Flesh
is when the viewer selects the option for "A/V Setup" the menu screen shows a looping film of Guthrie (as well as his assistant Joel Plante) at the recording console inside Le Mobile Remote Recording Studio, used to record the audio for the CD and DVD releases.

Post-Wall era

In 1986 Guthrie emigrated to the United States, first residing in Los Angeles where he and his business manager/partner Larry Belling owned and operated Slippery Studios, a recording facility specifically geared towards sessions for film. Guthrie eventually settled in Lake Tahoe, California where he designed his own home-based studio, das boot recording (named in tribute to Guthrie's love of WWII-era American submarines).

5.1 Surround Sound
), including Pink Floyd-related releases.

In the 1980s, Guthrie would produce a number of other releases, including Heatwave's fourth album

Johnnie Wilder, Jr.), Queensrÿche's major-label debut The Warning, Ambrosia's concept album Road Island (the final release of the David Pack era), and three tracks on The Boomtown Rats' In the Long Grass. He would also work as an engineer on various releases, such as Kate Bush's Hounds of Love (all orchestral sessions) and The Dream Academy's Remembrance Days; as well as contributing miscellaneous music and sound design for films such as Lethal Weapon, The Dead Zone and Lifeforce. Guthrie has also produced tracks for Toto and Danish rock band Kashmir, among other artists. Guthrie would also become the engineer who has mixed the most releases using QSound technology, nine in all.[13]

Guthrie's primary responsibility was (as it is to this day) to serve as one of the final authorities on the audio quality of Pink Floyd and Floyd-related releases. He has mixed and/or mastered nearly every Pink Floyd and Floyd-related release since 1978, and could be considered to be Pink Floyd's archival engineer. Others have referred to him similarly, such as mastering engineer Doug Sax ("He has also been the Floyd's quality control man ever since The Wall.")[14] and musician/Pink Floyd associate Jon Carin ("He is the keeper of the audio flame.")[15] In 2002, Guthrie was selected by the band to engineer the 30th Anniversary reissue of The Dark Side of the Moon in the SACD format, providing the mix and mastering for 5.1 Surround Sound. The final product was the biggest-selling Surround Sound release of 2003, the winner of three 2003 Surround Music awards, and received overwhelming praise from the technical press, including Jerry Del Colliano of Audio Video Revolution ("If you were to own only one SACD, Dark Side of the Moon is it.")[16] and this summation from Matt Rowe of The Digital Bits: "The way I see it, James Guthrie should be asked to do every 5.1 SACD project from here on out. For every band."[17]

In recent years, Guthrie has worked on a number of projects, including an eponymous-named remix of the

Live Earth
.

In 2011 Guthrie contributed to two major reissue projects for Kate Bush and Pink Floyd. On Bush's release

Why Pink Floyd...? the entire back catalogue of the band has been remastered by Guthrie for release in a variety of deluxe editions and box sets. In conjunction with the campaign was the release of his 5.1 mix and mastering of Wish You Were Here for SACD by independent audiophile distributor Acoustic Sounds. 2012 would see Guthrie returning to producing with The Dreamer's Machine
, the debut album by singer-songwriter James Carrington, which he co-produced and mixed.

In 2014 Guthrie was invited to be the Guest of Honour for Princeton University's Pink Floyd: Sight, Sound and Structure academic conference – which took place 10–14 April – sponsoring a 5.1 demonstration of The Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here albums and the world premiere of the Surround Sound mix of Roger Waters' 1992 release Amused to Death, as well as delivering a keynote speech on his work with Pink Floyd in addition to his insights regarding the roles of production and engineering in recorded music.[18]

2015 saw releases from both Roger Waters and David Gilmour which featured mastering by Guthrie and Joel Plante, as well as the debut album from Matt Gilmour, entitled The Grey.

In 2018, Guthrie and Plante undertook a project to remaster the entire studio catalogue for Kate Bush, to be released in a series of boxsets as well as single discs.[19]

Selected discography and credits (Pink Floyd and related releases)

  • Pink Floyd
    In the Flesh", backwards cymbal & running and panting on "Run Like Hell
    ".
  • Pink Floyd
    The Wall
    performances (1980–1981) – Front of House mixer.
  • Pink Floyd A Collection of Great Dance Songs (1981) – Co-producer. Sound mixer.
  • Pink Floyd "Money" (1981) – Co-production and mixing of re-recording for A Collection of Great Dance Songs.
  • Nick Mason's Fictitious Sports (1981) – Sound mixer.
  • Pink Floyd—The Wall (1982) – Sound coordinator and engineer. Music co-producer.
  • Pink Floyd The Final Cut (1983) – Co-produced with Roger Waters and Michael Kamen. Engineer. Sound mixer.
  • David Gilmour About Face (1984) – Sound mixer.
  • Pink Floyd A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987) – Additional remixing.
  • Pink Floyd "Run Like Hell" (live version) single (1987) – Mixing with David Gilmour.
  • Roger Waters Amused to Death (1992) – Sound mixer.
  • Pink Floyd CD remasters (1992–1994) – Supervised the remastering of the Pink Floyd back catalogue for CD with Doug Sax. (See also:
    Shine On
     boxset.)
  • Pink Floyd MiniDisc remasters (1994) – Supervised remastering with Doug Sax.
  • Pink Floyd The Division Bell (1994) – Mastering with Doug Sax.
  • Pink Floyd Pulse (1995) – Co-produced with David Gilmour. Recorded and mixed.
  • Pink Floyd Pulse VHS (1995) – Music production. Recorded sound engineer.
  • Pink Floyd Pulse television commercial (1995) – Audio mix.
  • Richard Wright Broken China
    (1996) – Sound mixer.
  • Pink Floyd—The Wall DVD (1999) – Producer. Audio formats.
  • Pink Floyd Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980–81 (1999) – Producer. Recording. Sound mixer.
  • Roger Waters In The Flesh (2000) – Producer. Engineer. Sound mixer.
  • Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here 25th Anniversary video (2001) – Audio mix.
  • Pink Floyd Echoes: The Best of Pink Floyd (2001) – Co-production and mastering.
  • Roger Waters In the Flesh DVD (2001) – Music producer and mixer.
  • Roger Waters
    Flickering Flame: The Solo Years Vol. 1
     (2002) – Compiled with Roger Waters.
  • David Gilmour In Concert DVD (2002) – Audio mastering.
  • Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon 30th Anniversary Edition (2003) – SACD 5.1 mixing and mastering. Stereo remaster.
  • Pink Floyd The Final Cut 2004 remaster – Stereo remaster.
  • Pink Floyd Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980–81 2004 remaster – Stereo remaster.
  • Pink Floyd A Momentary Lapse of Reason 2005 remaster – Stereo remaster.
  • Pink Floyd Live 8 performance (2005) – Assisted in mixing live video feed.
  • Comfortably Numb: A History of "The Wall", Pink Floyd 1978–1981 — Research, editing, photos (2005–2006).
  • Pink Floyd Pulse DVD — Music producer. DVD producer (with Storm Thorgerson). Video restoration. Audio for menus (with Joel Plante). (2005–2006).
  • David Gilmour On an Island (2006) – Mastering with Doug Sax.
  • David Gilmour About Face 2006 remaster – Stereo remaster.
  • Roger Waters "Hello (I Love You)" (2007) – Co-producer with Roger Waters and Howard Shore. Recording and mixing.
  • The Last Mimzy – Remix of Roger Waters' "Hello (I Love You)" for the movie soundtrack (end credits) (2007).
  • The Last Mimzy Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (2007) – Remix of Roger Waters' "Hello (I Love You)" for the soundtrack album (different than the movie version).
  • Pink Floyd The Piper at the Gates of Dawn 40th Anniversary Edition (2007) – Compiled and remastered.
  • Roger Waters
    Live Earth
    performance (2007) – Sound mixer.
  • Live Earth DVD and CD (2007) – Mixing and mastering of Roger Waters songs.
  • Roger Waters
    The Wall Live 30th Anniversary
    world tour (2010–2013) – Music & Quadraphonic pre-production.
  • Pink Floyd CD remasters (2009–2011) – Remastering of the
    Discovery
     boxset.)
  • Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here 35th Anniversary Edition (2011) – SACD 5.1 mixing and mastering. Stereo remaster.
  • The Missing Piano – Director/Producer/Editor/Filming/Sound (2012).
  • 12-12-12: The Concert for Sandy Relief
     digital and physical formats (2012) – Mixing and mastering of Roger Waters songs.
  • The Final Cut: A History of Pink Floyd 1982–1983 — Writing, research, editing, photos (2008–2014).
  • Roger Waters
    Roger Waters The Wall
     (2014) – Music & Quadraphonic pre-production, Sound supervisor: Athens.
  • Roger Waters Amused to Death 2015 remaster – SACD/Blu-ray 5.1 mixing and mastering. Stereo remaster.
  • David Gilmour Rattle That Lock (2015) – Mastering with Joel Plante.
  • Roger Waters
    Roger Waters The Wall
     original motion picture soundtrack (2015) – Music & Quadraphonic pre-production, Sound supervisor: Athens.
  • Roger Waters Desert Trip live performances (2016) – Music pre-production.
  • Pink Floyd vinyl remasters (2015–2018) — Remastering of the Pink Floyd back catalogue (with Joel Plante and Bernie Grundman) for vinyl.
  • Pink Floyd Animals 2018 remix – Stereo/SACD/Blu-ray 5.1 mixing and mastering.
  • Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon 50th Anniversary 2023 stereo remaster of the original album; Dolby Atmos surround mix of the studio album.
  • Pink Floyd Animals 2018 remix – Dolby Atmos surround mix.

Selected discography (as producer)

  • Arlan Greene – '"The Jazz Pianist" (b-side of "We've Got To Split Up" single) (Arista), 1976
  • Fury – '"Miss Demeanor/Stay on Your Feet" (Arista), 1977
  • The Movies – Double "A" (GTO), 1977
  • The Movies – Bullets Through The Barrier (GTO), 1978
  • Judas Priest – "Better By You, Better Than Me" Stained Class (Columbia), 1978
  • Judas Priest – Killing Machine (aka Hell Bent for Leather) (Columbia), 1978
  • Runner – Runner (Island), 1979
  • Pink Floyd – The Wall (Harvest/Columbia), 1979
  • Tom Robinson Band – '"Our People" (b-side of "Bully For You" single) (Arista), 1979
  • Heatwave –
    Candles
     (Epic), 1980
  • Pink Floyd – "Money" A Collection of Great Dance Songs (Harvest/Columbia), 1981
  • Ambrosia – Road Island (Warner Bros), 1982
  • Pink Floyd – The Final Cut (Harvest/Columbia), 1983
  • The Boomtown Rats – In the Long Grass (Phonogram/Columbia), 1984 ("Tonight," "Dave," "Drag Me Down")
  • Broadcast – '"Where Are You Now/Visions of You" (A&M), 1984
  • Queensryche – The Warning (EMI America), 1984
  • Andrew Caine – One (Epic), 1986
  • Tom De Luca – Down to the Wire (Epic), 1986
  • Toto – Past to Present 1977–1990 (Columbia), 1990 ("Love Has The Power," "Out of Love," "Can You Hear What I'm Saying," "Animal")
  • The Lou Gramm Band – '"One Dream" Highlander II: The Quickening original soundtrack (WEA), 1992
  • John Wetton – sessions for Raised in Captivity (the completed album was later recorded with another producer and released as Battle Lines), 1992 ("Walking on Air," "If I Was A Country")
  • Toto – Absolutely Live (Sony International), 1993
  • Pink Floyd – Pulse (EMI/Columbia), 1995
  • Kashmir – The Good Life (Sony International), 1999
  • Pink Floyd – Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980–81 (EMI/Columbia), 2000
  • Roger Waters – In The Flesh (Columbia), 2000
  • Pink Floyd – Echoes: The Best of Pink Floyd (EMI/Columbia), 2001
  • Roger Waters –
    Flickering Flame: The Solo Years Vol. 1
     (Columbia), 2002
  • Roger Waters – "Hello (I Love You)" The Last Mimzy original soundtrack (Silva Screen), 2007
  • James Carrington – The Dreamer's Machine (Zero Music), 2012

Awards

(all for the 30th Anniversary Edition of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon in SACD/5.1 Surround Sound):
Best Multichannel Reissue
High Fidelity Review Listener's Choice
Best of Show.

References

  1. ^ Cunningham, M. "Welcome to the Machine", Sound on Stage, May 1997
  2. ^ Fitch, V. and R. Mahon. Comfortably Numb, page 135
  3. ^ Bailey, C. "Interview with Andy Jackson", floydianslip.com, January 2001
  4. ^ White, P. "Andy Jackson: Recording David Gilmour's On An Island", Sound on Sound, July 2006
  5. ^ Blake, M. Pigs Might Fly, page 374
  6. ^ Fitch and Mahon, page 35
  7. ^ Mason, N. Inside Out, page 287
  8. ^ Fitch and Mahon ibid.
  9. ^ [1] [dead link]
  10. ^ Whitlock. K. "Pink Floyd – Behind The Wall", Record Collector, March 2000
  11. ^ Bailey ibid.
  12. ^ Richardson, K. "Tales from the Dark Side", Sound & Vision, May 2003
  13. ^ "Who's Using QSound Audio Technology: Recording Artists A – D". Qsound.com. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
  14. ^ "Doug Sax takes us to the Dark Side", news.acousticsounds.com, March 2003
  15. ^ Danesh, A. "Interview with Jon Carin", brain-damage.co.uk, August 2007
  16. ^ Del Colliano, J. "Pink Floyd: Dark Side of the Moon SACD", avrev.com, March 2003
  17. ^ Rowe, M. "Pink Floyd: The Dark Side of the Moon SACD", thedigitalbits.com, April 2003
  18. ^ "SCHEDULE | Pink Floyd Conference at Princeton University". Pinkfloydconference.princeton.edu. 9 January 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  19. ^ "Album Remasters and Rare Tracks". Katebush.com. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
  20. ^ "DCS Legends".

Bibliography

Books

Articles

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=James_Guthrie_(record_producer)&oldid=1219448055"