Re: R.I.P. Richard Perry

Completely missed the fact that he passed last week. He was one of the more commercially successful producers of the 70s - mostly of stuff that wasn't too TP adjacent, though I imagine Nilsson Schmilsson and Ringo are pretty well regarded in these parts. And he founded Planet Records, which put out the first Plimsouls album.

Ringo is surprisingly good for someone who doesn't create high expectations, and Perry is likely a big reason for that. The two he produced for Harry Nilsson are also Nilsson's best albums, IMHO, even if he was frustrated with the follow-up. And even though I'm not really a fan of Carly Simon's records, "You're So Vain" is a great exception, and I think Perry went on record saying it's his most perfect production. He reportedly had Simon record over 100 takes and he went through three different drummers before he got what he was looking for - astounding but I can't argue with the results. There's a lot he produced that really isn't for me, but producing the best and most enduring work for those three is pretty impressive.

Funny you should mention "You're So Vain." I've heard it thousands of times from childhood when I was sucking down that AM Top 40 like an addict. It was one of the biggest hits of its year and I've heard it reliably over the decades in the public music sphere. But at a certain point within the last decade I started actively listening to it and I've come to the conclusion that it's a masterclass in writing and arrangement. So much so that I went to iTunes last year and bought a download to hear it in stereo for the first time on demand. So kudos to Richard Perry for that achievement. It's one of those depth charge songs like "Rocketman" by Elton John, that I've heard thousands of times since release that somehow manage to deliver their payload 40-50 years later in my near-dotage.

Former TP subscriber [81, 82, 83, 84]

[postpunkmonk.com]
For further rumination on the Fresh New Sound of Yesterday®

Sue Saad & the Next and the Cretones were also on Planet Records, so Perry definitely was dipping his toes in the New Wave - though not impressively enough for either of those bands to rate entries on this site (unless I missed them). The Cretones did impress Linda Ronstadt, who covered several of their songs on her bandwagon vault Mad Love.

I see on Wikipedia that one of the Cretones was the son of the great film composer Elmer Bernstein and became a soundtrack composer himself, providing the score for many films, including Bo Derek's Bolero!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/30/2024 04:24PM by breno.

I have a new wave comp album called ‘sharp cuts’ (1980 I think?) that was on Planet…. Featured bands like dB’s, suburban lawns and single bullet theory.

If you’ve ever dug around used vinyl bins, you’ve likely seen a copy…

I forgot Sharp Cuts was on Planet. It's one of those rare compilations that has its own cult following - not on a level with Nuggets or anything, but is pretty fondly remembered by old New Wave codgers of my vintage. I'm still mystified that "Keep It Tight" by Single Bullet Theory somehow avoided being a hit.

And Bates Motel were on Sharp Cuts, before they were nabbed by the Mael brothers to be part of Sparks' early-80s U.S. semi-popular phase. And also before they became Gleaming Spires.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/31/2024 01:04AM by breno.

It's been in my want list for some years now. Sadly, I never bit when it was in every cutout bin! The Suburban Lawns cut is a different recording of "Unable" and since then I've come to appreciate the Alley Cats and Bates Motel.

Former TP subscriber [81, 82, 83, 84]

[postpunkmonk.com]
For further rumination on the Fresh New Sound of Yesterday®

Yeah, why were there copies of Sharp Cuts everywhere? I'm glad to own one (probably spent 99 cents), but I wonder if it was one of those Casablanca Records/Neil Bogart kinda deals, where the label sent out a million copies so they could claim it went platinum, even if 900,000 were returned, and dumped into the cut-out bins.

> It's one of those rare compilations that has
> its own cult following ...

I suspect they're not following it very closely, considering that a still-sealed copy on Discogs can be had for as little as six dollars.

I never said it was a big cult.

According to the I newspaper he also produced Safe as milk by Captain Beefheart,Tiptoe through the tulips by Tiny Tim and Ella by Ella Fitzgerald. I'd say the Captain probably qualifies as a TP artist.