Paul Boutin (sound engineer)
Paul Boutin | |
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Genres | |
Occupations | Sound engineer and vocal producer |
Years active | 1995–present |
Paul Boutin is a French-born American music mixer, audio engineer and a long-time collaborator with producer/songwriter/artist Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.
Over the last 20 years, Paul Boutin contributed to more than 60
As engineer, Paul Boutin won a
Early career
Paul Boutin (born 1970 in Paris) studied biological engineering in France before moving to the United States in 1991. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston where he specialized in music production and sound engineering.
In 1995, Paul Boutin went to
At Record Plant, Paul Boutin was involved in recording/mixing sessions for
In 1996, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds opened his own private studio “Brandon’s Way Recording” in Los Angeles where Paul Boutin joined him.
Selected discography: 1990s and 2000s
Albums and singles
At Brandon’s Way, Paul Boutin worked on major projects that earned multiple
- A Song For Mama". This album was Grammy nominated for “Best R&B Album” in 1998.[7]
- My Way (Usher, 1997)
- My Love Is Your Love (Whitney Houston, 1998) including the gold single "When You Believe" featuring Mariah Carey. This album was Grammy nominated for “Best R&B Album” in 2000.[7]
- Mary (Mary J. Blige, 1999) including the song "Don’t Waste Your Time" Grammy nominated for “Best R&B Performance by a duo/group” in 2000
- Can't Take Me Home (Pink, 2000) including the Billboard Hot 100 #5 song "Most Girls"
- The Heat (Toni Braxton, 2000). This album was Grammy nominated for “Best R&B Album” in 2001.[7]
- Luther Vandross (2001)
- Try It On My Own"
- Thankful (Kelly Clarkson, 2003) and Soulful (Ruben Studdard, 2003) including Billboard Hot 100 #2 song "Flying Without Wings"
- Words & Music (John Mellencamp, 2004)
- Thnks fr the mmrs"
- The Makings Of a Man (Jaheim, 2007)
Otherwise, between 1996 and 2007, Paul Boutin engineered or co-engineered all the albums recorded by Babyface as solo artist. Those records are including Christmas with Babyface (1998), Face2Face (2001), Grown & Sexy (2005) and Playlist (2007).
Movies and television soundtracks
After being credited for his work as assistant on the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack, Paul Boutin worked on several original soundtracks between 1995 and 2005. On the R&B side, he co-engineered most of the
Paul Boutin recorded the Grammy nominated song "
He also contributed to television projects including the engineering of the song "The Way Love Goes" (performed by Al Green and produced by Babyface, main theme of the
Special projects and production
In 2004, Paul Boutin engineered the cover version of "Wake Up Everybody". Produced by Babyface, the song urged young Americans to vote and was performed by a supergroup including numerous R&B/Hip-Hop singers and rappers such as Brandy, Missy Elliott, Monica, Akon, Fabolous, Eve, Jaheim, Wyclef Jean, Jadakiss and Musiq among others.
During summer 2008, Paul Boutin flew across the United States as engineer/mixer of "
In addition to his work as sound engineer, Paul Boutin produced the whole album One Less Dream by Morris Brothers (2007, Miles High Record).[15] He also played piano, keyboards and percussions on this record.
Recent discography: 2010s and 2020s
From the end of the 2000s, Paul Boutin has been more focused on mixing. He’s still working closely with Babyface and Toni Braxton as well as producers Antonio Dixon and The Rascals.
Mixing and vocal production
As engineer/mixer, Paul Boutin won a Grammy Award[16] with artists Toni Braxton and Babyface for his work on Love, Marriage & Divorce (Best R&B Album in 2015).
Furthermore, he contributed to two other Grammy nominated albums in 2015[17] with Partners by Barbra Streisand (Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album) and Forever Yours by Smokie Norful (Best Gospel Album).
Paul Boutin engineered in 2015-2016 (recording, mixing, percussions) the albums Return of the Tender Lover by Babyface and Timeless by After 7, respectively #2 and #4 on the Billboard Top R&B albums chart.[18][19]
In 2018, Paul Boutin is credited as vocal producer, engineer and mixer of
Spell my Name, the tenth album by Toni Braxton, is released in 2020. Paul Boutin is co-executive producer, vocal producer and mixer of the project.
Works and credits
Here is a selection of recent records (album, singles) including songs recorded and/or mixed by Paul Boutin.[2]
- 2011 : Fly on the Wall, Twenty by Boyz II Men and The Letter by Avant including first single "Kiss Goodbye"
- 2011 : Back to Love by Anthony Hamilton nominated for “Best R&B Album”[7] and including Billboard Adult R&B #1 single "Pray For Me", also nominated for “Best R&B song”.[21]
- 2012 : Girl on Fire by Alicia Keys. This gold album won a Grammy Award in 2013 (Best R&B Album). Paul Boutin also earned a TEC Award nomination for his work on this record.[22]
- 2013 : Christmas Kisses and Yours Truly by Ariana Grande (certified platinum) including the second single "Baby I"
- 2013 : Loved Me Back To Life by Celine Dion
- 2014 : Love, Marriage & Divorce by Toni Braxton and Babyface. Paul Boutin engineered and mixed the whole Grammy winning album including Billboard Adult R&B #1 single "Hurt You".[23]
- 2014 : Forever Yours by Smokie Norful, Game Changer by Johnny Gill and Beautiful (Platinum Edition) by Jessica Mauboy including "Can I Get A Moment?" (certified gold in Australia)[24]
- 2014 : Partners by Barbra Streisand (certified platinum) with the co-engineering of the duets with Babyface (2), John Legend, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie and Blake Shelton
- 2014 : Gypsy Heart by Colbie Caillat (including the platinum single "Try") and Aretha Franklin Sings The Great Diva Classics
- 2015 : (certified gold)
- 2015 : Return of the Tender Loverby Babyface
- 2016 : Timeless by After 7 including the Billboard Adult R&B #3 single "Runnin' Out"
- 2017 : Johnny Mathis Sings The Great New American Songbook
- 2018 : Sex and Cigarettes by Toni Braxton including the Billboard Adult R&B#1 single "Long as I Live" co-written, engineered and mixed by Paul Boutin. The song earned two Grammy nominations (Best R&B Song, Best R&B Performance)[20] in 2018 and won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Song (Traditional)[25]in 2019.
- 2018 : This Christmas Day by Jessie J
- 2019 : "Love Again" by Brandy and Daniel Caesar, the duet is included on the albums B7 and Case Study 01.
- 2020 : Love Always Wins by Kem and Spell My Name by Toni Braxton including Billboard Adult R&B #1 single "Do It".
References
- ^ "Gold & Platinum: Searchable Database". 63 records (13 singles and 50 albums) from Paul Boutin’s discography were certified as of September 15, 2020. Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
- ^ Allmusic. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
- ^ a b "Paul Boutin: Grammy Archive". grammy.com. 19 November 2019. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
- ^ Verna, Paul (1995-12-02). "Studio Action: Audio Track (p.42)". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Falling Into You: Credits". Discogs. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ Verna, Paul (1996-07-13). "Studio Action: Audio Track (p.43)". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ a b c d e "Grammy Awards History: Best R&B Album". rockonthenet.com. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Grammy Awards History: Album Of The Year". rockonthenet.com. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Josie and the Pussycats Soundtrack: Detailed Credits". MusicBrainz. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "When You Believe: Credits". Discogs. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "How Can I Not Love You: Credits". Discogs. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Golden Globes 2000: Nominees". hfpa.org. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Emmy Awards 2001: Nominees". emmys.com. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Just Stand Up: Credits". Discogs. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Morris Brothers Release One Less Dream Today (2007-10-23)". allaboutjazz.com. 23 October 2007. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ Upton, Liz (2015-02-09). "Berklee Alumni Win 14 Grammy Awards". Berklee News: category 21. berklee.edu. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ Upton, Liz (2014-12-14). "Berklee Alumni Could Win 40 Grammy Awards". Berklee News: second part, categories 7, 21 and 38. berklee.edu. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Top R&B Album Chart 2015-12-26". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
- ^ "Top R&B Album Chart 2016-11-05". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
- ^ a b "61st Annual Grammy Awards". grammy.com. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
- ^ "Grammy Awards History: Best R&B Song". rockonthenet.com. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "TEC Awards 2013: Nominees ('Record Production/Album' category)". legacytecawards.org. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "Toni Braxton & Babyface Duets Album & New Single" (Press release). prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "ARIA Accreditations 2014 singles". aria.com.au. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
- ^ "NAACP Image Awards 2019: Winners". naacp.org. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
External links
- Paul Boutin on Discogs
- Paul Boutin on Allmusic