John King, also known as "King Gizmo", is an American

music producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

and one-half of the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

-based duo the

Dust Brothers The Dust Brothers are a pair of songwriters and producers consisting of E.Z. Mike ( Michael Simpson) and King Gizmo ( John King). They are famous for the sample-based music they produced in the 1980s and 1990s, and specifically for their work on ...

. As the Dust Brothers, King and Michael "E.Z. Mike" Simpson were noted for their dense

sample Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of s ...

-based music, notably on the

Beastie Boys Beastie Boys were an American rap rock group from New York City, formed in 1978. The group was composed of Mike D, Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (voca ...

' 1989 album ''

Paul's Boutique ''Paul's Boutique'' is the second studio album by American hip hop group Beastie Boys, released on July 25, 1989, by Capitol Records. Produced by the Dust Brothers, the album is composed almost entirely from samples, and was recorded over two y ...

'', and later in 1996 with

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi music, lo-fi style, and became ...

's ''

Odelay ''Odelay'' is the fifth studio album by American musician Beck, released on June 18, 1996, by DGC Records. The album featured several successful singles, including " Where It's At", "Devils Haircut", and "The New Pollution", and peaked at number s ...

''. King teamed with

Medeski Martin & Wood Medeski Martin & Wood (or MMW) is an American jazz fusion band formed in 1991, consisting of John Medeski on keyboards, Billy Martin on drums, and Chris Wood on bass. The band is influenced by musical traditions including funk and hip hop and ...

to create their 2004 album ''

End of the World Party (Just in Case) ''End of the World Party (Just in Case)'' is an album released by Medeski Martin & Wood. Track listing # "Anonymous Skulls" – 4:24 # "End of the World Party" – 5:11 # "Reflector" – 4:11 # "Bloody Oil" – 4:42 # "New Planet" – 4:07 # "M ...

''. He has also worked with

Tenacious D Tenacious D is an American comedy rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California in 1994. It was founded by actors Jack Black and Kyle Gass, who were members of The Actors' Gang theater company at the time. The duo's name is derived from "tenacio ...

. The Dust Brothers produced their early 2000s releases, ''Tenacious D'' and ''

D Fun Pak Tenacious D is an American comedy rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California in 1994. It was founded by actors Jack Black and Kyle Gass, who were members of The Actors' Gang theater company at the time. The duo's name is derived from "tenacio ...

'', and King would return to produce the band's follow-up and soundtrack to their 2006 film, ''

The Pick of Destiny ''The Pick of Destiny'' is the second studio album by American comedy rock band Tenacious D, the soundtrack for their feature film of the same name. The album was released on November 14, 2006, through Epic Records, and debuted at number 8 ...

'', for which he also wrote the instrumental score. King would also work with

Kyle Gass Kyle Richard Gass (born July 14, 1960) is an American musician, comedian and actor best known for co-founding—and being a member of—Tenacious D, a Grammy-winning comedy band. He also co-founded the bands Trainwreck and the Kyle Gass Band, ...

of Tenacious D on his side-project, Trainwreck, this included two Trainwreck releases which would be distributed by

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

. In 2007, King was nominated for an Annie Award (the highest honor given for excellence in animation) for Best Music in an Animated Television Production for his work on the

Shorty McShorts' Shorts ''Shorty McShorts' Shorts'' was an American animated anthology series, which consisted of 4-/5-minute shorts. It aired from July 28, 2006, to May 25, 2007. Summary The host of the show is Shorty McShorts. His name is often shortened to "Shorty" o ...

“Boyz on Da Run” (created by

Rob Reger Emily the Strange is an illustrated Character (arts), fictional character featured in several comic books, graphic novels and in various merchandise and clothing lines. She was created by Rob Reger for his company Cosmic Debris Etc. Inc. located i ...

and Brian Brooks)– Walt Disney Television Animation. In 2008, King received a Grammy for his production and mixing work on

Steve Earle Stephen Fain Earle (; born January 17, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, author, and actor. Earle began his career as a songwriter in Nashville and released his first EP in 1982. Initially working in the country music g ...

's album '' Washington Square Serenade'', which was awarded Best Contemporary Folk / Americana album.

References

Record producers from California Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Claremont McKenna College alumni {{music-producer-stub