Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

JOHNS, Glyn and Andy (producers)

Glyn Johns (b 15 February 1942, Epsom, Surrey) was one of the first record producers to become well known outside the studio, his name appearing on the album sleeves. His interest in music began during the skiffle boom; for a time he combined a trainee engineering job at IBC studios with a singing career; he left to concentrate on the latter under Jack Good, but demand from his former clients led to freelance engineering (unheard of then), his brother Andy Johns following his example. Early sessions with the Rolling Stones led to work with Andrew Oldham; he engineered most of the acts on Oldham's Immediate label including Chris Farlowe and the Small Faces (the phasing effect on 'Itchycoo Park' was the work of Johns and his assistant George Chkiantz). He moved into production with the Steve Miller Band, taking over Miller's abortive self-production of Children Of The Future '68: the sound effects (only a year after the Beatles' Sgt Pepper) were considered revolutionary at the time. He continued to produce Miller; also Led Zeppelin '69, Family's Family Entertainment '69, the Who's Who's Next '71 (all co-produced), Stones' Get Yer Ya-Yas Out '70, Beatles' Let It Be '70, etc.

During the 1970s he became associated with West Coast USA soft rock, dating from production of the Eagles' first three albums '72-4: he was credited with turning them from a bad rock'n'roll band into the layered-harmony soft-rockers they became, one of the most popular and imitated sounds of the decade. He carried on with UK songwriters/ performers Gallagher & Lyle and Andy Fairweather Low, both on A&M, other acts for that label including the Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Joan Armatrading, Paul Kennerley, Live Wire; he played leading role in Kennerly's all-star C&W concept albums White Mansions '78, The Legend Of Jesse James '80, helping to 'cast' them. His insistence on involvement in every aspect of arranging and recording process put him in the forefront of the 'creative' producers of the '70s, who swung the pendulum back from the '60s vogue for self-production; it also caused riffs with several clients (e.g. the Stones) but helped many more.

Glyn Johns worked with the cream of British rock and even New Wave (Combat Rock '82 by the Clash), but he will always be associated with soft rock. His brother Andy stuck with the hard stuff (Jeremy Andrew Johns, b 20 May 1950; d 7 April 2013, Los Angeles of complications from a stomach ulcer): Andy engineered and/or produced 60 or 70 classic rock albums including several by Led Zeppelin and the Stones (famously Exile On Main Street). Glyn's son Ethan Johns also became a producer; Andy's sons were drummer Evan Johns (Hurt) and singer/guitarist Will Johns.