Sound Man: A Life Recording Hits with The Rolling Stones, The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Eric Clapton, The Faces . . .

I enjoyed reading Glyn John's SOUND MAN. It was not a book from a technology geek who shared any of the real techniques or tricks of the trade as the recording went from quickly done mono recording for singles to sixteen tracks and more when the album became the major art form. What the book was proved to be an engaging account by a participant in the growth of the recording industry from his original station in London as a junior assistant in the early sixties to a highly respected engineer and producer hoping back and forth from the West Coast to England working with some of the best rock bands from the late 60's forward. We find out a lot about the artists and the groups he worked with including much about the inner workings of the Rolling Stones especially how important Ian Stewart was to the band's operation plus some insights on why Mick Taylor left the band. He provides more testimony that we hear more and more of as now it's becoming part of the historic record on the breakup of the Beatles and how difficult it became for them to work together in their final years as a band.His work with The Who in the early 70's brought him face to face with Keith Moon who becomes less the comic boisterous life of the party and instead a much more tragic fellow as his bizarre behavior not only was self-destructive but causing much harm and damage to others as he became almost impossible to work with in and out of the studio. Johns also provides a confirming look at the chemistry of the Eagles from their beginnings to the big time. All the while while reading SOUND MAN we are hearing a person's testimony on the creation of some of the greatest record albums of our time including how Led Zeppelin took shape as a band and cut their first album under Glyn Johns' watchful ears. His perspective is that of a proud and knowledgeable yet refreshingly humble man who had the utmost respect for the artists he recorded at the works they collectively pulled together. His insights into the evolution of the recording industry to what it is today confirms from a professional's point of view just how much creativity and quality has suffered as music men like Jerry Moss at A&M records are no longer in the picture and the music industry is corporate all the way. SOUND MAN is a great read for serious classic rock fans and pop music historians. Some of the best music by the most creative artists are chronicled by a fellow who was right there in the heat of the action for half a century right up to his work mixing Aaron Neville's recent album, MY TRUE STORY, in 2013. Quality pop music depends on men like Glyn Johns in the control room and manning the boards. He is a tremendous talent who helped bring us some of the best music of its time.

I'm a huge Glyn Johns fan! I use his recording methods professionally. I really enjoyed the anecdotal story telling format of the book. It's way better read than a standard biography/autobiography format. I wanted more though. Being known for his methods as a recording engineer, mix engineer, and producer, I would like to have had more information on this topic other than the drum mic'ing method for which he is renown. For example, he tells the story of meeting Chris Stainton for the first time, who promptly told him how to record his piano and was glad he did; but the reader is left hanging because the information regarding said topic doesn't appear. Perhaps this was due to the editor. I don't know if it was due to the editor, or the author's writing style, but felt the punctuation was a bit strange. Highly recommended read though for any music business professional, classic rock fan Glyn Johns fan, or anyone aspiring to be in the production side of the music business.

Not too sure what some of the low-star reviewers were looking for here, but I found this book a great catalog of documented experiences from a guy who lived his dream and had a great ride that started during the days of music production in transition from the old guard of the 50's to the rock and roll era of the 60's and 70's. Much the same as the amazing story of Geoff Emerick and his tenure with the Beatles, Glyn tells his tale of how he somewhat haphazardly found his way into the business he loved and stayed for the whole show. While there are certainly some bits that feel like there was more to tell, overall the book is a collection of well documented stories and insights that only someone with first-hand experience could relate. Glyn's writing was fine for this reader; I found the book flowed well and was great fun to read. Short pieces though some were, it made this an easy book to drop in and out of while waiting in lines, sitting around, or for a quick read before bed. For someone who grew up to the music of this era, it's a very interesting set of back stories that had me digging into my catalog of vinyl and CD's even deeper than usual to re-listen to some of the music he helped bring to all of us.

I'm no fan of rock bios, but this one was a really good and interesting read. Glyn Johns was involved in engineering and producing the recordings of some of the biggest names in rock and pop. Based in London, and with a legacy going back to the mid 60s, his credits include the Stones, the Beatles and Led Zeppelin plus many other names, albums and hit records you will recognise. Indeed, if you want to know shy so many of those bands sounded so great, then look no further than Johns, whose mic'ing techniques are now common practice in the recording world. Unlike many involved in the rock scene, Johns lived a comparatively clean life, so there are no chapters (not even any sentences) about the drunken, drug-fuelled debauchery that plagues most other rock-related testimonials. No, this man was there to do the job and do it right. Which he certainly did. (His brother Andy Johns was also renowned.) It's worth noting that this is a book of experience and observations, not a tell-all reveal. Still, the insight into some people, situations and sessions is something of a reveal. Johns is also straight up and really quite humble, with no attempt to justify his existence on the backs of others. Once I started I didn't put it down, so got through it in a day. I would have liked it to be about 50% longer, simply because it was so enjoyable.

Glyn Johns' perspective is probably the essential piece of the puzzle that represents the relevant facts about rock in the 60s and 70s reported in other books and biographies.

Glyn has a great memory and his stories are super ,even if you don’t like the music he worked on In a similar vein try the book about his American friend Ted Templeman

Viene en perfecto estado, Excelente compra

とても良い本でした。