PHIL RAMONE R.I.P. ROCK IN PERPETUITY!
April 2, 2013
STILL UNABLE TO USE MY HANDS I WANTED TO PAY TRIBUTE TO PHIL RAMONE, AN ALL AROUND GOOD GUY WHO I ONCE CONVINCED THE RAMONES DIDN’T NAME THEMSELVES AFTER HIM!
HERE IS WHAT MIKE BARNES AT THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER WROTE
A former violin prodigy and expert engineer, he worked with Dylan, Sinatra, McCartney, Bennett, Charles, Streisand, Simon, Joel and Bacharach and spent more than 50 years in the business.
Phil Ramone, the instinctive music producer whose mixing mastery for Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Bob Dylan, Ray Charles, Paul Simon and Billy Joel helped fashion some of the most sumptuous and top-selling albums of his era, has died. He was 79.
The 14-time Grammy winner and 33-time nominee once dubbed “The Pope of Pop” was hospitalized in late February with an aortic aneurysm in New York and died Saturday morning at New York Presbyterian Hospital, according to Ramone’s son Matt.
A native of South Africa who at age 10 performed as a violinist forQueen Elizabeth II, Ramone spent years working as a songwriter, engineer and acoustics expert in New York before charting a path that would make him a trusted studio partner in the eyes (and ears) of the industry’s biggest stars.
STORY: Music Industry Reacts to Death of Producer Phil Ramone
Among the albums on which he worked were Streisand’s 1967 liveA Happening in Central Park; Paul & Linda McCartney’s Ram(1971), sandwiched between the Beatles and Wings eras; Dylan’s aching Blood on the Tracks (1975); Simon’s pop classic Still Crazy After All These Years (1975); Joel’s critical and commercial breakthrough The Stranger (1977); Sinatra’s last-gaspDuets (1993), a model of technical wizardry; and Charles’ final album, the mega-selling Genius Loves Company (2004).
Ramone served as a songwriter in New York’s famed Brill Building music factory and worked early on with Quincy Jones, Tom Dowd, Creed Taylor, Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller and Burt Bacharach & Hal David, among others. In 1959, he launched the A&R Recording studios on Seventh Avenue in New York, where Blood on the Tracks and so many other classics were recorded.
TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER CLICK ONTO http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/music-producer-phil-ramone-ray-charles-frank-sinatra-425444
PHIL, I’LL MISS YOUR BRILLIANT WORK IN THE STUDIO AS WELL AS OUR LIVELY CONVERSATIONS WHENEVER WE’D RUN INTO EACH OTHER AT THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART
MAY YOUR LEGEND CONTINUE TO GROW, AND MAY YOU ROCK IN PERPETUITY!
Respectfully, your friend Artie Wayne https://artiewayne.wordpress.com/2012/04/10/celebrating-two-million-views-today-on-artie-wayne-on-the-web..
HERE ARE SOME MUSICIANS REACTING TO THE PASSING OF PHIL RAMONE ON TWITTER http://ultimateclassicrock.com/musicians-react-to-the-death-of-phil-ramone-on-twitter/
Artie:
I cannot imagine losing two of my closest pals in the same week. It’s a
shock to my nervous system and they leave a hole in my heart the size of:
“all the years we’ve been colleagues and friends” …
These are not words I’m writing, these are my tears which mystically create
the text in this e-mail to you.
Brooks ArthurHUGH McCRACKEN R.I.P. ROCK IN PERPETUITY!
April 1, 2013
Not only was Hugh McCracken a good friend he was one of most important musical influences in my life! During his divorce he slept on my couch and one night he took he took me to the opening of club Salvation where I saw Jimi Hendrix play for the first time and was “Galactically inspired”
The next day Hugh took me to Manny’s music store and he helped me pick out a white telecaster, like he and Jimi played! Then we went back to my apartment and wrote, “IT”S ONLY THE DOG” which I produced on the Kingsmen (“LOUIE, LOUIE”.) The song was covered a few years later by the Australian group the Night Riders and has become a cult classic.
Hugh’s songwriting abilities were always overshadowed by his success as a musician, which included playing guitar on each of the Beatles solo projects and being seriously considered to replace the late Brian Jones in the Rolling Stones.
While he encouraged my guitar playing, i encouraged his writing and even got Ray Charles to cut, “Go On Home”, but he preferred doing studio work.
Condolences to Hollye McCracken, his family and friends, i know you’re gonna’ miss him!
Hugh McCracken, you were a very special man , may you ROCK IN PERPETUITY!
Respectfully, your friend Artie Wayne https://artiewayne.wordpress.com/2012/04/10/celebrating-two-million-views-today-on-artie-wayne-on-the-web/
Other comments about the passing of Hugh McCracken from around the web include
Fellow session artist Elliott Randall posted his condolences to his Facebook page on Friday (March 29), along with a picture of McCracken.
“It is with unspeakable sadness that I share with you the passing of one of the greatest friends and greatest guitarists/musicians who ever graced this planet,” he wrote viaUltimate Classic Rock.“I am truly privileged to have known this man throughout all of my adult life. See ya on the other side, Hugh McCracken…”
Carole King posted, “So sad to lose Hugh McCracken. Deepest condolences to friends and family of this great New York cat”.
Artie:
I cannot imagine losing two of my closest pals in the same week. It’s a
shock to my nervous system and they leave a hole in my heart the size of:
“all the years we’ve been colleagues and friends” …
These are not words I’m writing, these are my tears which mystically create
the text in this e-mail to you.
Brooks ArthurIF YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS ABOUT HUGHS’ PASSING PLEASE LEAVE THEM IN THE SPACE BELOW or EMAIL ME AT artiewayne@gmail.com AND I’LL PUT THEM IN THE ARTICLE ABOVE
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