Mystery Names On the Back of My Favoraite Albums


Teo Macero
Guy Stevens
Tom Wilson

They are all credited as producers of some my favorite albums ("Filles De Kilimanjaro", "London Calling" and "Bringing It All Back Home"). These are not obscure records by little known artists, yet there seems to be vanishingly little information available about these major contributors to popular music.

What little I've found is quite amazing. Apparently Miles Davis and the band would go into the studio and engage in extended improvisations. Teo would then compile/edit these sessions into material suitable for album release. Guy Stevens was instrumental in bringing Procol Harum together, conceptualized the band Mott the Hoople and lent the Rolling Stones the name "Sticky Fingers" for one of their album. Tom Wilson's resume is even more astonishing. He produced Bob Dylan's classic early albums and was instrumental in Dylan going electric. He added the electric guitars and "rock" elements to Simon & Garfunkel's original version of "The Sounds Of Silence". Produced the first two Mothers Of Invention albums. And to top it all off, he then produced the first Velvet Underground record.

Despite these achievements they are considered footnotes in music history. First, can anyone point me towards more information about these three artists? Second, can you add the name(s) of some other figure who are equally as important, yet seemingly forgotten.
128x128onhwy61
mott the hoople recorded You Really Got Me with a vocal track, and were shocked when Stevens took it off the final version which appeared on the first lp. guy stevens had an ear for a good hook and hated records that sounded clean and tidey. truly a legendary rock and roll producer.....eric jacobson is another legend.....the lovin spoonful,sopwith camel, chris issak.....lots more.....also david axelrod and nick venet(capitol records)
Onhwy61: I can't say I know anything about them as people -- I normally don't read music biographies and such -- but I would never have considered these relatively well-known producers to be merely "footnotes" in recorded music history. However, it's true that most producers are never considered "stars" in their own right, exceptions like Sam Phillips, Mike Lieber and Jerry Stoller, Phil Spector, and George Martin notwithstanding.

BTW, my original gatefold copy of the first VU LP (non-peelable banana) says "Produced by Andy Warhol" right on the back cover and spine in the same type-size as the band name, which was of course mostly a conceit, but Tom Wilson is specifically credited with producing only one cut, "Sunday Morning", and with supervision of editing and remixing done by others. And the director of engineering, Val Valentin, is another one of your unsung ubiquitous guys.