Producer and Engineer William Wittman was one of our early guests in 2017 with a two parter, Episodes #15 and #16, where he discussed making seminal records with Cindy Lauper, Joan Osborne, and The Outfield, his time coming up through NYC recording studios, and his work/prank relationship with our very own John Agnello. In this episode, I catch up with Bill about making records with his band Too Much Joy, drum mic techniques, the things we like about in the box mixing, and working at the famed Van Gelder studio in Englewood, NJ.

In this episode, John and Stewart sit down with producer, engineer, musician, song writer, studio owner, and the Godfather of Jangle Pop, the one and only, Mitch Easter. Mitch has always been and continues to be a staple of the Indie Rock scene in North Carolina and beyond. First operating out of Drive in Studio located in his parents' garage, and in 1994 moving to his current studio, the Fidelitorium. Mitch has worked with a laundry list of seminal artists, including R.E.M., Helium, Pavement, Wilco, Ben Folds Five, Pylon, and Polvo.

He’s also an active musician and writer, releasing music for almost a decade with his band "Let’s Active" and currently as a solo artist. In this episode Mitch discusses building, operating, and outfitting his recording studios, the joys and perils of tracking to analog tape, producing the first R.E.M. records, and why it’s not always a good idea to fix everything in a recording.

In 2018 the H9000 Harmonizer®, Eventide’s flagship multi effects processor, won a TEC award for best signal processing hardware. We had the team behind the H9000’s design and development on the podcast in Episodes #66.1, #66.2 and #66.3 to talk about the process of designing, building, and testing the latest in Eventide’s revered Harmonizer line. Now we’re back to talk about what’s new at Eventide and the 2023 TEC award for best signal processing software awarded to their revolutionary equalizer plugin, SplitEQ. Russell Wedelich is the VP of development and director of signal processing at Eventide and had a heavy hand in writing the DSP code that went into the H9000. He’s also the lead DSP engineer responsible for the SplitEQ plugin and its patented technology. Russ and I got to chat about what went into developing SplitEQ, the new Eventide H90 Harmonizer pedal, and the culture that makes Eventide so consistently innovative.

For more from Russell and the rest of the H9000 team check out Gear Club Episodes #66.1, #66.2 and #66.3.

In this episode, we’re delighted to talk with industry legend, Thom Panunzio. Getting his start as an assistant at NYC’s Record Plant, Thom went on to work in every facet of the music business. He’s produced, mixed, and engineered albums for Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Joan Jett, Ozzy Osbourne, Bruce Springsteen, Patti Smith, Alice Cooper, and Aerosmith just to name a few. He helped design The Hit Factory in NYC, A&M Studios in LA, and the Thom Thom Club in Santa Monica, and was the Executive VP for Universal Music and head of A&R at Geffen Records for many years. Thom talks with John and Stewart about his time on staff at the Record Plant, his favorite mixing desks, his reluctant entrance into the world of A&R,  and how the industry and technology has changed over the course of his almost 50 year career. 

Mastering engineer extraordinaire Greg Calbi is a dear friend and was our guest on Gear Club Episode #2 way back in January of 2017. Over the last 50 years Greg has mastered a seemingly endless list of albums across every genera of music, and it’s almost a certainty he’s had a hand in the making of one of your favorite records. In this episode Greg and I got to chat about Sterling Sound moving from Manhattan to its new facility in Edgewater NJ, his workflow from converters to compressors to clients, and the unique changes, challenges, and expectations of modern mastering.

In this episode, we sit down for a conversation with renowned rock photographer Bob Gruen. Bob has been documenting the artists, concerts, and clubs that have come to define rock music, and is responsible for some of the most iconic images of the idiom. Listen in as Bob talks with hosts John and Stewart about his artistic philosophy, his move from film to digital, and being a part of music history.

This month, we’re thrilled to have David Mansfield on the show, a composer, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and arranger with a long and storied career. We have each worked with David for a long time, and know firsthand the talent and depth he brings to all the music he touches. Growing up in New Jersey and beginning his career in local bands, he started playing with Bob Neuwirth at The Bitter End and, at 18, joined Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. From there, he went on to tour and record with Dylan over many albums, and in his 50-year career has worked with an endless variety of artists, including Sting, Van Morrison, Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, Bobby McFerrin, David Byrne, The Wainwrights, The Roches, really the list goes on and on. He’s also composed an equally extensive list of music for film and television, including The movies “Heaven’s Gate” and “The Apostle” and, most recently the Showtime Limited Series “George & Tammy”.

In this episode, David discusses his early career and influences, touring with Dylan, his scoring and composition work, and demonstrates the Psaltery, one of the more unique of his many instruments.

In this episode, we talk with Jorma Kaukonen, electric guitarist extraordinaire for Jefferson Airplane, vocalist/blues picker for Hot Tuna, prolific solo artist, and all-around great guy. At 81 years young, Jorma is still writing, teaching, and gigging with no signs of slowing down. Listen in as we chat about his early career playing Bay Area clubs with Janis Joplin, life in The Airplane, his guitar mentors, speedskating, touring, and teaching guitar at his Fur Peace Ranch in Ohio.

Michael Imperioli is an Emmy award-winning actor, writer, novelist, and musician best known for his role as Christopher Moltisanti in the HBO series "The Sopranos". Since 2006 Michael has fronted the indie rock band "Zopa", and is currently working on a new album with our very own John Agnello. In this episode, Michael talks with our hosts about the parallels between acting and music performance and production, his musical influences, writing songs and screenplays, working on the new record, and whether you can know if a project is going to be a hit.

In this special Gear Club episode, we celebrate the post-Beatle life of John Lennon, who would have turned 82 this year on October 9th. After The Beatles broke up, John and Yoko moved to New York where John produced, recorded, and played songs that spoke to the post-60s generation as they struggled for justice and an end to war. John Lennon impacted the lives of all those he came across, and that impact continues to live on.

To mark the occasion of his birth, we’ve collected first-hand accounts from the producers and engineers who worked most closely with John as he wrote and recorded songs from “Imagine” to “Starting Over”. These people include Shelly Yakus, Jack Douglas, Rod O’Brien, Ed Stasium, Jay Messina, and Greg Calbi.

Dave Darlington is a Grammy award-winning engineer, producer, mastering engineer, and musician who has recorded, mixed, composed, and played in just about every genre of music. He’s worked with the likes of Wayne Shorter, C+C Music Factory, Sting, and Miles Davis among many others. In this interview, Dave takes us through his journey to becoming an engineer, the joys and trials of running his own studio, Bass Hit, shares his recording ethos and inspiration, and gives some key advice on how to get ahead in the industry.