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Bob Clearmountain (born Chiaramonte, January 15, 1953) is an American
mixing engineer A mixing engineer (or simply mix engineer) is responsible for combining ("mixing") different sonic elements of an auditory piece into a complete rendition (also known as "final mix" or "mixdown"), whether in music, film, or any other content of a ...
and
record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...
, best known for his work with major acts, including
Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...
,
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
,
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...
,
Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry (lead vocals/keyboards/principal songwriter) and Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson (bass). By the time the band recorded their Roxy Music (album), first albu ...
,
Pretenders Pretenders may refer to: Film * ''Pretenders'' (2018 film), an American drama film * ''The Pretenders'' (1916 film), a lost American silent film * ''The Pretenders'' (1981 film), a Dutch film Literature * ''Cemetery Girl – Book One: The P ...
, and
Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born November 5, 1959) is a British and Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, and photographer. He is estimated to have sold between 75 million and more than 100 million album, records and Single (music), si ...
. Described by ''
Sound on Sound ''Sound on Sound'' is a monthly music technology magazine. The magazine includes product tests of electronic musical performance and recording devices, and interviews with industry professionals. Due to its technical focus, it is predominantly ...
'' magazine as having "his name on more hit records than anyone else in the history of popular music", he is credited with establishing the role of mixing engineer. Clearmountain has mixed some of the most iconic live shows in music history, including
Live Aid Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...
and
The Concert for New York City The Concert for New York City was a benefit concert that took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City in response to the September 11 attacks. Aside from performing for charity, the concert honored the first responders from the New Yor ...
. Records mixed by Clearmountain have won eight
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
s. He has also won two
Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
from five nominations.


Early life and education

Born in Connecticut, Clearmountain later moved to New York City, where he graduated from
Greenwich High School Greenwich High School is a four-year public high school in Greenwich, Connecticut, United States. The school is part of the Greenwich Public Schools system and serves roughly 2,700 students. It offers over 295 courses and a wide variety of co-cu ...
in 1971. As a teenager, Clearmountain had many friends who were musicians. He loved music, and played
bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...
in various bar bands, but felt he didn't want his career to depend on other musicians. When a band he was a member of went to
Mediasound Studios Mediasound was an American independent recording studio facility located at 311 West 57th Street in New York City established in 1969 by Harry Hirsch and Bob Walters with financial backing from Joel Rosenman and John P. Roberts. History The st ...
on 57th Street in New York to record a demo, Clearmountain felt like he could live there. Recognizing his interest in recording, Clearmountain assembled a makeshift
home studio Home recording is the practice of recording sound in a private home instead of a professional recording studio. A studio set up for home recording is called a home studio or project studio. Home recording is widely practiced by voice actors, narra ...
with a two-track
reel-to-reel tape recorder Reel-to-reel audio tape recording, also called open-reel recording, is magnetic tape audio recording in which the recording tape is spooled between reels. To prepare for use, the ''supply reel'' (or ''feed reel'') containing the tape is plac ...
, some
microphone A microphone, colloquially called a mic (), or mike, is a transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and publi ...
s and a
talkback Talkback or talk back may refer to: *Talkback (album), ''Talkback'' (album), a 1983 album by the Canadian band the Spoons *Talk Back (Kembe X album), ''Talk Back'' (Kembe X album), 2016 *Talkback, an alternate name for Marvel Comics superhero C ...
. He also loved to make tape recordings of the band's concerts.


Career


Mediasound and Power Station

Determined to make a career in recording, he visited Mediasound frequently and lobbied the studio for a job. He was eventually hired as a
gofer A gofer, go-fer or gopher is an employee who specializes in the delivery of specific items to their superior(s). Examples of these items include a cup of coffee, a tool, a tailored suit, or a car. Outside of the business world, the term is use ...
in 1972. On his first day working at the studio, after making about two deliveries, he realized that studio staff had been looking for him – they had apparently been expecting him to be working on a
recording session A studio recording, or a recording session is any recording made in a studio, as opposed to a live recording, which is usually made in a concert venue or a theatre, with an audience attending the performance. Studio cast recordings In the case o ...
as an assistant
engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...
. The star-struck new assistant engineer found that his first session was with
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...
. Ellington's solo piano session remained unreleased until 2017, when
Storyville Records Storyville Records is an international record company and label based in Copenhagen, Denmark, specializing in jazz and blues music. Besides its original material, Storyville Records has reissued many vintage jazz recordings that previously appea ...
released it as ''An Intimate Piano Session''. At Mediasound, Clearmountain engineered albums for
Kool & the Gang Kool & the Gang is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B, soul music, soul, and funk band formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964. Its founding members include brothers Robert "Kool" Bell and Ronald Bell (musician), Ronald Bell (also known as " ...
. He also played bass on
the Dead Boys The Dead Boys are an American punk rock band from Cleveland, Ohio. The band was among the first wave of punk, and regarded by many as one of the rowdiest and most violent groups of the era. They were formed by vocalist Stiv Bators, rhythm gu ...
' first album, '' Young, Loud and Snotty'' (1977), before Jeff Magnum rejoined the group. In 1977, Clearmountain was approached by his Mediasound co-worker,
Tony Bongiovi Anthony Carmine Bongiovi Jr. (born September 7, 1947) is an American record producer and recording engineer. He is the cousin of musician Jon Bon Jovi. Early life Anthony Carmine Bongiovi Jr. was born on September 7, 1947, in Raritan, New Jerse ...
, who had decided to build his own recording studio. Clearmountain became part of Bongiovi's team that designed and opened
Power Station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the electricity generation, generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electr ...
, with Clearmountain becoming the studio's Chief Engineer. Clearmountain worked exclusively at the Power Station over the next two or three years, working with artists including
The Rezillos The Rezillos are a punk and new wave band formed in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1976. Although emerging at the same time as other bands in the punk rock movement, the Rezillos did not share the nihilism or social commentary of their contemporaries ...
,
Narada Michael Walden Narada Michael Walden ( ; Michael Walden; born April 23, 1952) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He acquired the nickname Narada from Sri Chinmoy. He began his career as a drummer, working primarily in the jazz ...
, and others. During this time, he recorded several hit albums for the
Nile Rodgers Nile Gregory Rodgers Jr. (born September 19, 1952) is an American musician, songwriter, guitarist and record producer. The co-founder of Chic, he has written, produced, and performed on records that have sold more than 750 million albums and 1 ...
/
Bernard Edwards Bernard Edwards (October 31, 1952 – April 18, 1996) was an American bassist and record producer, known primarily for his work in disco with musician Nile Rodgers, with whom he co-founded Chic. In 2017, Edwards was selected as the 53rd greates ...
project
Chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Etymology '' Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English dictionaries classified ...
and
Sister Sledge Sister Sledge was an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consists of sisters Joni, Kim, Debbie, and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. I ...
's hit album '' We Are Family'', which established his reputation as a mixing engineer. Clearmountain soon found himself being sought out specifically as a mixing engineer, with
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
requesting Clearmountain to mix their single, " Miss You", and
Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry (lead vocals/keyboards/principal songwriter) and Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson (bass). By the time the band recorded their Roxy Music (album), first albu ...
having him remix their single " Dance Away".


Independence and success

Around 1979, Clearmountain became independent, working at various studios in addition to the Power Station. Artists he had worked with brought him back, and he mixed Roxy Music's '' Flesh and Blood'' (1980) and ''
Avalon Avalon () is an island featured in the Arthurian legend. It first appeared in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 1136 ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' as a place of magic where King Arthur's sword Excalibur was made and later where Arthur was taken to recove ...
'' (1982), and the Rolling Stones' ''
Tattoo You ''Tattoo You'' is the sixteenth U.K. and eighteenth U.S. studio album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on 24 August 1981 by Rolling Stones Records. The album is mostly composed of studio outtakes recorded during the 1970 ...
'' (1981) (including engineering vocals and overdubs for "
Start Me Up "Start Me Up" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones from their 1981 album '' Tattoo You''. Released as the album's lead single, it reached number one on Australian Kent Music Report, number two in Canada, number two on the ''B ...
"), as well as their live album, ''
Still Life A still life (: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly wikt:inanimate, inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or artificiality, human-m ...
'' (1982). Clearmountain also began both mixing and producing with
Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born November 5, 1959) is a British and Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, and photographer. He is estimated to have sold between 75 million and more than 100 million album, records and Single (music), si ...
on his 1981 album ''
You Want It You Got It ''You Want It, You Got It'' is the second studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams, released on July 28, 1981 by A&M Records. Background and recording This was the album that created Adams' signature sound, which he has maintai ...
'', beginning a longstanding professional collaboration between the two that continued through ''
Cuts Like a Knife ''Cuts Like a Knife'' is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams. Released on 18 January 1983 by A&M Records, the album was a huge commercial success in the United States and Canada. Three singles were released worldwide ...
'' and Adams' rise to mainstream popularity, and decades beyond. In late 1982, when
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...
chose Nile Rodgers to produce his next album, Clearmountain was chosen to engineer the sessions at the Power Station. The resulting album, '' Let's Dance'' (1983) was a worldwide commercial success. The same year, Clearmountain mixed
Huey Lewis and the News Huey Lewis and the News (formerly known as Huey Lewis & The American Express) are an American rock band based in San Francisco, California. They had a run of hit singles during the 1980s and early 1990s, eventually achieving 19 top ten singl ...
' album ''
Sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...
''. The following year, he produced and mixed
Hall & Oates Daryl Hall & John Oates, commonly known as Hall & Oates, were an American Rock music, rock duo formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1970. Daryl Hall was generally the lead vocalist, while John Oates primarily supplied electric guitar and ba ...
' ''
Big Bam Boom ''Big Bam Boom'' is the twelfth studio album by American duo Daryl Hall & John Oates, released by RCA Records on October 12, 1984. It marked the end of one of the most successful album runs by a duo of the 1980s. RCA issued a remastered versio ...
'' and mixed
Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...
's landmark album '' Born in the U.S.A.''. In 1985, he mixed
Live Aid Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...
. He continued to mix new albums for Springsteen and Bowie, and worked with
Jimmy Iovine James Iovine ( ; born March 11, 1953) is an American entrepreneur, former Music executive, record executive, and media proprietor. He is the co-founder of Interscope Records and became chairman and CEO of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscop ...
, co-producing
Simple Minds Simple Minds are a Scottish Rock music, rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977, becoming best known internationally for their song "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Billboard Hot 100, Hot 100 ...
' ''
Once Upon a Time "Once upon a time" is a stock phrase used to introduce a narrative of past events, typically in fairy tales and folk tales. It has been used in some form since at least 1380 in storytelling in the English language and has started many narrative ...
'' (1985) and
The Pretenders The Pretenders are a British rock band formed in March 1978. The original band consisted of founder and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), James Honeyman-Scott (lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards), Pete Farndon (ba ...
' '' Get Close'' (1986). In 1987, having established himself as a top mixing engineer, he mixed
INXS INXS (a phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian rock band, formed as the Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney. The founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboardist Andrew Farriss, drummer Jon Farriss, gu ...
's album ''
Kick A kick is a physical strike using the leg, in unison usually with an area of the knee or lower using the foot, heel, tibia (shin), ball of the foot, blade of the foot, toes or knee (the latter is also known as a knee strike). This type of ...
'' (1987),
Robbie Robertson Jaime Royal Robertson (July 5, 1943 â€“ August 9, 2023) was a Canadian musician of Indigenous and Jewish ancestry. He was the lead guitarist for Bob Dylan's backing band in the mid-late 1960s and early-mid 1970s. Robertson was also the ...
's debut solo album, and albums for
Crowded House Crowded House are an Australian-New Zealand rock band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia, in 1985. Its founding members were Neil Finn (vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter) and Paul Hester (drums), who were both for ...
and
Divinyls Divinyls () were an Australian rock band that were formed in Sydney in 1980. The band primarily consisted of vocalist Chrissy Amphlett and guitarist Mark McEntee. Amphlett garnered widespread attention for performing on stage in a school un ...
.


1990s

In the early 1990s,
EastWest Sounds EastWest Studios (formerly known as Western Studio, a component of United Western Recorders and later Ocean Way Recording) is a recording studio complex located at 6000 West Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Originally constructed by Bill Putnam in t ...
partnered with Clearmountain to release two commercially-successful Bob Clearmountain Drum sample libraries, and Clearmountain developed SessionTools, a studio management application. In 1991, after Clearmountain had mixed 21 tracks for the
Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985 as a merger of local bands L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band's "classic" line-up consisted of vocalist Axl R ...
albums ''
Use Your Illusion I ''Use Your Illusion I'' is the third studio album by American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, released by Geffen Records on September 17, 1991, the same day as its counterpart '' Use Your Illusion II''. It was the band's first album to feature dru ...
'' and ''
Use Your Illusion II ''Use Your Illusion II'' is the fourth studio album by American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, released by Geffen Records on September 17, 1991, the same day as its counterpart '' Use Your Illusion I''. Both albums were released in conjunction wit ...
'', the band decided to scrap the mixes and start over with engineer Bill Price. Clearmountain continued to work with Adams, Springsteen, Rolling Stones, and INXS, and mixed albums for
Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. He became known as the frontman of the band Roxy Music and also launched a solo career. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established ...
,
The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...
,
Dire Straits Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler (lead vocals, lead guitar), David Knopfler (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), John Illsley (bass guitar, backing vocals) and Pick Withers (drums, percussion). Th ...
,
Aimee Mann Aimee Elizabeth Mann (born September 8, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter. Over the course of four decades, she has released ten studio albums as a solo artist. She is noted for her sardonic and literate lyrics about dark subjects, often d ...
,
The Corrs The Corrs are an Irish family band consisting of siblings Andrea (lead vocals, tin whistle, mandolin, ukulele), Sharon (violin, keyboards, vocals), Caroline (drums, percussion, piano, bodhrán, vocals) and Jim (guitar, piano, keyboards, v ...
,
Jonatha Brooke Jonatha Brooke (born January 23, 1964) is an American folk rock singer-songwriter and guitarist from Massachusetts, United States. Her music merges elements of folk, rock and pop, often with poignant lyrics and complex harmonies. She has been a ...
,
Melissa Etheridge Melissa Lou Etheridge (born May 29, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and guitarist. Her Melissa Etheridge (album), eponymous debut album was released in 1988 and became an underground success. It peaked at No. 22 on the Billbo ...
,
Counting Crows Counting Crows is an American rock band from the San Francisco Bay Area, California. Formed in 1991, the band consists of rhythm guitarist David Bryson, drummer Jim Bogios, vocalist Adam Duritz, keyboardist Charlie Gillingham, David Immerglà ...
and others.


Mix This! studio

In 1994, Clearmountain built Mix This!, a private recording studio located in the basement of his home in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. He eventually sought out the Neve 8068 from the Power Station's Studio A and acquired it for his studio. Episode 6 of the first season of ''
From the Basement ''From the Basement'' is a British web television series created by the record producer Nigel Godrich. It features live music performances by artists in a studio without a host or audience. Development In September 2006, it was announced that ...
'',
Nigel Godrich Nigel Timothy Godrich (born 28 February 1971) is an English record producer, recording engineer and musician. He has worked with acts including Radiohead, Travis, Beck, Air, Paul McCartney, U2, R.E.M., Pavement, Roger Waters, Arcade Fire and ...
's web television series, was filmed at Mix This! rather than the show's usual filming location of London's
Maida Vale Studios Maida Vale Studios is a complex of seven BBC sound studios, of which five are in regular use, in Delaware Road, Maida Vale, west London. It has been used to record thousands of classical music, popular music and drama sessions for BBC Radio 1, ...
. Clearmountain later upgraded the studio to for Dolby Atmos, and used it for immersive album mixes of Roxy Music's ''Avalon'' and Simple Minds' ''Sparkle in the Rain''. On January 8, 2025, the studio and the residence in which it was located were both destroyed by the
Palisades Fire The Palisades Fire was a highly destructive wildfire that began burning in the Santa Monica Mountains of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County on January 7, 2025, and grew to destroy large areas of Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, P ...
.


Personal life

Clearmountain is married to Apogee Electronics CEO Betty Bennett. In January 2025, their residence and his studio were destroyed by the
Palisades Fire The Palisades Fire was a highly destructive wildfire that began burning in the Santa Monica Mountains of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County on January 7, 2025, and grew to destroy large areas of Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, P ...
.


Production discography


Selection of work as producer

*
Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born November 5, 1959) is a British and Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, and photographer. He is estimated to have sold between 75 million and more than 100 million album, records and Single (music), si ...
- ''
You Want It You Got It ''You Want It, You Got It'' is the second studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams, released on July 28, 1981 by A&M Records. Background and recording This was the album that created Adams' signature sound, which he has maintai ...
'' (1981), ''
Cuts Like a Knife ''Cuts Like a Knife'' is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams. Released on 18 January 1983 by A&M Records, the album was a huge commercial success in the United States and Canada. Three singles were released worldwide ...
'' (1983), '' Reckless'' (1984) and '' Into the Fire'' (1987) *
Jonatha Brooke Jonatha Brooke (born January 23, 1964) is an American folk rock singer-songwriter and guitarist from Massachusetts, United States. Her music merges elements of folk, rock and pop, often with poignant lyrics and complex harmonies. She has been a ...
- ''Steady Pull'' (2001) and '' Careful What You Wish For'' (2007) * The Church - '' The Blurred Crusade'' (1982) *
Hall & Oates Daryl Hall & John Oates, commonly known as Hall & Oates, were an American Rock music, rock duo formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1970. Daryl Hall was generally the lead vocalist, while John Oates primarily supplied electric guitar and ba ...
- ''
Big Bam Boom ''Big Bam Boom'' is the twelfth studio album by American duo Daryl Hall & John Oates, released by RCA Records on October 12, 1984. It marked the end of one of the most successful album runs by a duo of the 1980s. RCA issued a remastered versio ...
'' (1984) *
Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...
- '' Tripping the Live Fantastic'' (1990) *
The Pretenders The Pretenders are a British rock band formed in March 1978. The original band consisted of founder and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), James Honeyman-Scott (lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards), Pete Farndon (ba ...
- '' Get Close'' (1986) *
Simple Minds Simple Minds are a Scottish Rock music, rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977, becoming best known internationally for their song "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Billboard Hot 100, Hot 100 ...
- ''
Once Upon a Time "Once upon a time" is a stock phrase used to introduce a narrative of past events, typically in fairy tales and folk tales. It has been used in some form since at least 1380 in storytelling in the English language and has started many narrative ...
'' (1985) *
The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...
- '' Join Together'' (1990) *
Michael Stanley Band Michael Stanley (born Michael Stanley Gee; March 25, 1948 – March 5, 2021) was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and radio and television personality. As a solo artist and with the Michael Stanley Band (MSB), and Michael Stanley and t ...
- '' You Can't Fight Fashion'' (1983) *Various - '' Woodstock 94 (1994) *The Silencers - ''Rock 'N' Roll Enforcers'' (1980) *
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
- ''Get Yer Leeds Lungs Out''


Selection of work as live mixer/engineer


KCRW Apogee Sessions

In 2005, Clearmountain collaborated with Apogee Electronics to convert unused space in the company's Santa Monica headquarters into Apogee Studio, a recording studio and performance venue. Beginning in 2010, Santa Monica radio station
KCRW KCRW (89.9 FM broadcasting, FM) is an NPR member station broadcasting from the campus of Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California, where the station is licensed. KCRW airs original news and music programming in addition to programming ...
began hosting live music performances in the venue, called ''KCRW Apogee Sessions'' and later ''KCRW Live from Apogee Studio'', with Clearmountain handling the mixing and recording. Artists for these KCRW sessions have included David Gray,
Ryan Adams David Ryan Adams (born November 5, 1974) is an American Rock music, rock and Country music, country singer-songwriter. He has released 30 studio albums and three as a former member of Whiskeytown. In 2000, Adams left Whiskeytown and released ...
,
Chrissie Hynde Christine Ellen Hynde (born September 7, 1951) is an American-British musician. She is a founding member of the rock band the Pretenders and is the band's lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter; she and drummer Martin Chambers are the ...
,
Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter, author, and photographer. Her 1975 debut album '' Horses'' made her an influential member of the New York City-based punk rock movement. Smith has fu ...
,
Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chr ...
,
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are a Rock music, rock band formed in Melbourne in 1983 by lead vocalist Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and German guitarist-vocalist Blixa Bargeld. The band has featured international personnel throug ...
,
Regina Spektor Regina Ilyinichna Spektor (, ; born February 18, 1980) is a Russian Americans, Russian-born American singer, songwriter, and pianist. After self-releasing her first three records and gaining popularity in New York City's Indie music scene, in ...
,
Glen Hansard Glen James Hansard (born 21 April 1970) is an Irish singer-songwriter and musician. Since 1990, he has been the frontman of the Irish rock band The Frames, with whom he has released six studio albums, four of which have charted in the top ten o ...
,
the Shins The Shins are an American indie rock band formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1996. The band is the project of singer-songwriter James Mercer, who has served as the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes. The band's c ...
,
k.d. lang Kathryn Dawn Lang (born November 2, 1961), known by her stage name k.d. lang (stylised in all lowercase), is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Lang has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical pe ...
,
Shelby Lynne Shelby Lynne (born Shelby Lynn Moorer, October 22, 1968) is an American singer and songwriter and the older sister of singer-songwriter Allison Moorer. The success of her pop rock album '' I Am Shelby Lynne'' (1999) led to her winning the Grammy A ...
,
Leon Bridges Todd Michael "Leon" Bridges (born July 13, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He signed with Columbia Records to release his debut studio album, '' Coming Home'' (2015), which peaked at number six on the ''Billboard'' ...
,
Norah Jones Norah Jones ( ; born Geethali Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She has won several awards for her music and, , has sold more than 53 million records worldwide. '' Billboard'' named her the top jazz artist of ...
,
the Avett Brothers The Avett Brothers are an American folk rock band from Concord, North Carolina. The band is made up of two brothers, Scott Avett (banjo, lead vocals, guitar, piano, kick-drum) and Seth Avett (guitar, lead vocals, piano, hi-hat) along with Bob Cr ...
,
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recorded his album ''Live at the Piano'' at the studio; the first recorded there to receive a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
nomination.


Awards and recognition

Clearmountain has won multiple Grammy and Emmy awards. In 1991, he was awarded the TEC Awards Les Paul Award, honoring "individuals or institutions that have set the highest standards of excellence in the creative application of audio technology." The following year, Clearmountain was awarded the TEC Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2003, he was awarded the
Music Producers Guild The Music Producers Guild (MPG) (UK) promotes and represents individuals in the music production and recording professions. It was founded in 2000. As a guild, the organisation has no political party affiliation. The organisation presents the Mu ...
Icon Award for "a person seen to be an icon of the recording industry."


Grammy Awards & nominations


Emmy Awards & nominations


References


External links


Bob Clearmountain's homepage

Bob Clearmountain Interview
at NAMM Oral History Collection (2016)


See also

*
Chiaramonti Chiaramonti (Gallurese language, Gallurese: ''Chjaramònti'', , literally "Clear Mountains") is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italy, Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about east of Sassar ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clearmountain, Bob 1953 births Living people Record producers from Connecticut Grammy Award winners Latin Grammy Award winners Emmy Award winners American audio engineers Mixing engineers American record producers