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Bob Johnston

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused withBob Johnson.
For other people named Bob Johnston, seeBob Johnston (disambiguation).

Bob Johnston
At Hotel2Tango Studio in Montreal (left) with Howard Bilerman (right)
AtHotel2TangoStudio in Montreal (left) with Howard Bilerman (right)
Background information
Born(1932-05-14)May 14, 1932
Hillsboro, Texas,US
DiedAugust 14, 2015(2015-08-14)(aged 83)
Nashville, Tennessee,US
GenresRock,folk,folk rock,blues,country,gospel
Occupationrecord producer
Formerly ofBob Dylan,Leonard Cohen,Johnny Cash,The Byrds,Simon & Garfunkel

Donald William"Bob"Johnston[citation needed](May 14, 1932 – August 14, 2015) was an American record producer, best known for his work withBob Dylan,Johnny Cash,Leonard Cohen,andSimon & Garfunkel.[1][2]

Early life and career

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Johnston was born into a professional musical family. His grandmother, Mamie Jo Adams, was a songwriter, as was his mother Diane Johnston.[1]Diane wrote songs forGene Autryin the 1950s and scored a hit in 1976 whenAsleep at the Wheelcovered her 1950 demo "Miles and Miles of Texas". After serving in the U.S. Navy, Johnston returned toFort Worth,Texas,where he and his mother collaborated on songwriting forrockabillyartistMac Curtisand others. From 1956 to 1961, Johnston recorded a few rockabilly singles under the name Don Johnston.[3]

He married songwriterJoy Byerswith whom he began to collaborate.[4]In later years, Johnston claimed that songs still credited to his wife Joy Byers were actually co-written, or solely written by himself.[4]He has cited old "contractual reasons" for this situation. The songs in question includeTimi Yuro's 1962 hit "What's A Matter Baby", plus at least 16 songs forElvis Presley's films between 1964 and 1968, including "It Hurts Me","Let Yourself Go",and" Stop, Look and Listen ". Two songs credited to Byers, the aforementioned" Stop, Look and Listen "and" Yeah, She's Evil! "were recorded byBill Haley & His Comets(the latter song was titled "The Meanest Girl in Town"when Presley recorded it). Presley recorded" The Meanest Girl in Town "on June 10, 1964, while Bill Haley recorded his version a week later, on June 16, 1964.[5]

By 1964, he had moved into production work atKapp Recordsin New York, freelance arranging forDot Records,and signed as a songwriter tomusic publisherHill and Range.

Columbia Records: Dylan, Cash, and Cohen

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Johnston began working forColumbia Recordsin New York, where he began producingPatti Pageand thePozo-Seco Singers.[6]In 1965 he was successful in gaining the assignment to produceBob Dylan,[2][7]followed bySimon & Garfunkel,[2]Johnny Cash,Flatt & Scruggs,and thenLeonard Cohen.His style of production varied from a 'documentary' approach capturing a fleeting moment (exemplified by Dylan's albums and Cash's live albums) to providing subtle arrangements with strings, background vocals and seasoned session musicians (exemplified by Cohen's studio albums).

After a couple of years in New York, Johnston became head of Columbia inNashville, Tennessee,where he had known many of thesession musicians,such asCharlie Daniels,for years.[8]He produced three of Cohen's albums, toured with him and also composed music to the Cohen lyric "Come Spend the Morning", recorded by bothLee HazlewoodandEngelbert Humperdinck.[9]

Bob Johnston was very sophisticated. His hospitality was extremely refined. It wasn't just a matter of turning on the machines. He created an atmosphere in the studio that really invited you to do your best, stretch out, do another take, an atmosphere that was free from judgment, free from criticism, full of invitation, full of affirmation. Just the way he'd move while you were singing: He'd dance for you. So, it wasn't all just as laissezfaire as that. Just as art is the concealment of art, laissezfaire is the concealment of tremendous generosity that he was sponsoring in the studio.

— Leonard Cohen quoted inThe Stranger Music of Leonard CohenbyWilliam Ruhlmann,Goldmine

At the beginning of "To Be Alone with You"onNashville Skyline,Bob Dylan asks Johnston "Is it rolling, Bob?"[10]

Independent producer

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Dissatisfied with hissalaryearnings as a Columbia staff producer, particularly after several hit albums which earned him noroyalties,Johnston became an independent producer, most successfully withLindisfarneonFog on the Tyne,which topped the British album chart in 1972.

In 1972, he toured with Leonard Cohen as a keyboard player, and produced the resulting live albumLive Songs.

In 1978, he producedJimmy Cliff'sGive Thankxalbum, featuring "Bongo Man". In 1979, Johnston produced an album with the San Francisco band Reggae Jackson, titledSmash Hitsthat featured Jimmy Foot,Cheryl Lynn,Kenneth Nash, and Wayne Bidgell (the low voice heard on Jimmy Cliff's "Bongo Man" track).

In 1985, Johnston produced an albumWalking In The Shadowby the San Francisco band The Rhyth-O-Matics, for engineer Fred Catero's newly formed Catero label. Billboard magazine's "Pop Pick of The Week", the album's release was plagued with distribution difficulties.

During a period of financial difficulty, when he was under scrutiny from theIRS,Johnston moved toAustin,Texas, and did no record production for some time. He eventually returned with work onWillie Nelson's 1992 albumThe IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories?(Nelson had his own financial difficulties at the time).

In the mid 1990s, Johnston producedCarl Perkins' albumGo Cat Go!which featured numerous guest stars includingPaul Simon,George HarrisonandRingo Starr,as well as unreleased recordings of Perkins' "Blue Suede Shoes"byJohn LennonandJimi Hendrix.This album's release was delayed until 1996.

Towards the end of his life Johnston returned to working with fresh talent including singer-songwritersNatalie Pinkis(USA),Eron Falbo(Brazil),[11]and indie rock band Friday's Child (USA).[12]Falbo's album73was released in 2013. The final project Johnston worked on wasEvolution: Live at the Saxon Pubwhich he co-produced for Austin band Hector Ward and The Big Time in 2015, which was released in 2016.

Death

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Johnston was in a memory facility and a hospice in Nashville for the last week of his life before dying on August 14, 2015.[13]His wife Joy Johnston (née Byers) died in May 2017.

Selective discography as producer

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References

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  1. ^abEvans, Rush (February 8, 2011)."Dylan producer, Bob Johnston, recalls lifetime of musical memories".Gold Mine Mag.RetrievedJanuary 3,2014.
  2. ^abcBlack, Louis (September 30, 2005)."Momentum and the Mountainside Sound".Austin Chronicle.RetrievedJanuary 3,2014.
  3. ^Hilburn, Robert (2013).Johnny Cash: The Life.Hachette Digital Inc.ISBN9780316248693.
  4. ^abSimmons, Sylvie (2012).I'm Your Man: The Life of Leonard Cohen.Random House LLC.ISBN9780771080425.
  5. ^"Elvis Presley: Originals of Songs He Sang".Davidneale.eu.
  6. ^Kosser, Michael (2006).How Nashville Became Music City, U.S.A.: A History Of Music Row.Lanham, Maryland, US: Backbeat Books. pp. 148–151.ISBN978-1-49306-512-7.
  7. ^Bob Johnstoninterviewed on thePop Chronicles(1969)
  8. ^Kingsbury, Paul (1998).The Encyclopedia of Country Music: The Ultimate Guide to the Music.Oxford University Press. p. 297.ISBN9780199770557.
  9. ^"Engelbert Humperdinck – Come Spend the Morning".AllMusic.RetrievedJanuary 6,2014.
  10. ^Nelson, Paul (May 31, 1969)."Nashville Skyline".Rolling Stone.RetrievedJanuary 6,2014.
  11. ^"Breedlove Presents Bob Johnston at Festival".Cascade Business News.July 7, 2011.RetrievedJanuary 3,2014.
  12. ^[1]ArchivedMarch 31, 2012, at theWayback Machine
  13. ^"Bob Johnston, producer for Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash & more, dies at 83".Billboard.RetrievedAugust 16,2015.
  14. ^"Esther Ofarim - Esther and Abi Ofarim - Esther & Abi Ofarim - Ofraim אסתר עופרים".Esther-ofarim.de.

Further reading

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