i met bob clearmountain last night!

sofa · 16th March 2005, 06:23 PM

Hello friends,
last night at the world trade center in Mexico city I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Clearmountain at a conference along with other great mexican engineers.
Just for the record he is one of the nicest,down to earth persons I've ever met.
he also shared some of his secrets with the audience.

Shaman · 16th March 2005, 06:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sofa

he also shared some of his secrets with the audience.

Come on , be a nice fellow gearslut and tell us a bit ....

Drumsound · 16th March 2005, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shaman

Come on , be a nice fellow gearslut and tell us a bit ....

Yes, please.

sofa · 16th March 2005, 07:17 PM

I personally asked him:
How long did it take you to mix "woman in chains" by tears for fears? only 1 day.
he said with a laugh that he had originally mixed the song "seeds of love"but they absolutely hated his mix.(song was mixed by dave bascombe and tff i think)

what about born in the usa?"oh that one was quiet easy since most of the record is played with musicians interacting."

what about Aimee mann?"a pleasure to work with"

somebody also asked how does he balance work with family:"my wife Betty and my daughter are my balance."He also regretted not listening to his wife telling him to mix Creed's 1st.album.(they sold millions!)audience laughs.

compared to apogee how do you rate digidesign ad converters?
digidesign:a bit harsh.
apogee:very musical.

what about sample rates?
"if you listen flat to a rough mix you won't hear the difference between 48 and 96.Only when you start tweaking knobs you'll hear a "subtle"difference.(whatever that means).
with 192 i think he doesn't even bother.

he says he admires tchad blake and eddie kramer.

That's all I can remember right now.I drove 10 hours in total from my hometown but it was really worth it.I think he is a genius.His talent is incredible.

bye now gearslutz.

toque-eh! · 16th March 2005, 07:19 PM

i'd like to know what he did to get the ridiculously sick tom sounds on the first rezillos album. i'm sure a lot of it was the tuning and recording, but still...

that would be taking him back, i'm sure he'd laugh.

congrats on your "great" encounter.

wwittman · 16th March 2005, 07:21 PM

He's a very nice guy.

Sofa,
where's the picture from, in your profile? is that a big API?

sofa · 16th March 2005, 07:27 PM

the api is from the gearslutz archives.I personally own a soundcraft dc2020.
By the way Bob "autographed" 2 cd's i brought from his work.

Shaman · 16th March 2005, 10:01 PM

woman in chains ............mmmmmm.....

one of my all time favourites

Quote:

Originally Posted by sofa

compared to apogee how do you rate digidesign ad converters?
digidesign:a bit harsh.
apogee:very musical.

Let´s be it has also a ´balancing´reason, for his wife is the owner of apogee

Anyway - I think he´s right with the new AD-16 series.

**Jules** · 16th March 2005, 10:33 PM

I have emailed him a few times and asked over at Apogee to also pass it on, that I would like him to be a guest moderator here for a month.

I asked him personally at the AES show in SF last year and he seemed not against the idea!

Perhaps we can ask here too!

Please get in touch Bob!

jules @ gearslutz.com

toddro · 16th March 2005, 10:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sofa

I personally asked him:
How long did it take you to mix "woman in chains" by tears for fears? only 1 day.
he said with a laugh that he had originally mixed the song "seeds of love"but they absolutely hated his mix.(song was mixed by dave bascombe and tff i think)
.

I have worked some with Oleta Adams and she has some great stories about recording "Woman In Chains" and "Badman's Song" with TFF - amazing tunes...

JTR · 16th March 2005, 11:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shaman

Let´s be it has also a ´balancing´reason, for his wife is the owner of apogee

Anyway - I think he´s right with the new AD-16 series.

Yeah - talk about a gearslutz' dream spouse!
Wonder if she brings home free samples from work?
"Here hon, thought you might like to try this"

That alone should be enuff to make him an honorary guest moderator!

Jose Mrochek · 17th March 2005, 12:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jules

I have emailed him a few times and asked over at Apogee to also pass it on, that I would like him to be a guest moderator here for a month.

I asked him personally at the AES show in SF last year and he seemed not against the idea!

Perhaps we can ask here too!

Please get in touch Bob!

jules @ gearslutz.com

we should all try to email him. His webpage is www.mixthis.com

sofa · 17th March 2005, 12:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toddro

I have worked some with Oleta Adams and she has some great stories about recording "Woman In Chains" and "Badman's Song" with TFF - amazing tunes...

Hey Life's about sharing,why don't you tell us the stories?I think Oleta's voice is so full of expression.

Just for the record.Somebody asked Bob about mp3's,ipods,etc.He told the following story:

"when I was little i didn't know butter existed.There was only margarine at home.Then,one day when my folks took me to a restaurant i tasted real butter and i said:This is fantastic!"
referering to how we should educate young people to listen to real sound and not the usual compressed crap u can download for free on the web.

toddro · 17th March 2005, 04:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sofa

Hey Life's about sharing,why don't you tell us the stories?I think Oleta's voice is so full of expression.

She has an amzing voice that sounds like it has a built-in 1073 top-shelf! And she never warmed up or anything (that I saw). She just went in and started singing, and the tape machine had best be in red from the get-go!

I remember she said that "Badman's Song" was cut live with the full band (she played piano) with percussion and everything all going down at once into Roland's Fairlight. They did 28 takes (!!!) with all kinds of different arrangements, ideas, etc. and everybidy was completely wiped by the end of the day - and he went back to the 2nd take it used it in its entirity.

Drumsound · 17th March 2005, 05:43 AM

Sofa and Todd,

Thanks for sharing!

Jules,

Yes please keep trying to ger Bob Clearmountain to guest mod.

Watersound · 17th March 2005, 06:34 AM

Woman in Chains is one of my favorite mixes- awesome! Now there's a song with emotion and heart...by the way has anyone checked out the new Tears For Fears album? It's great- I'd love to hear other opinions because I think sonically it sounds fantastic.

Synth80s · 17th March 2005, 08:11 AM

I'm going to go out on a limb and say I think the new TFF album is their best. It's not just good by the standards of "can they still be any good a decade later?," it's simply a great album on its own merits. "The Seeds of Love" may be their most challenging and original album, but I think "Everybody Loves a Happy Ending" represents TFF's strongest, most consistent songwriting to date. Maturity can have its advantages, you know!

If TFF were a new band or their latest album were released by Coldplay, it would be hailed as the greatest thing around. I hope people don't write them off as a "where are they now?" 80's band because they obviously still have the chops and they deserve an audience.

-Synth80s

Fletcher · 17th March 2005, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sofa

I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Clearmountain at a conference along with other great mexican engineers.

I didn't know Bob was a great Mexican engineer!! Learn something new every day...

toddro · 17th March 2005, 01:54 PM

Elemental was a great records as well - HUGE sounding... Roland is a freak of nature to be sure.

You know Oleta was discovered by them when she was singing in a hotel bar in Kansas City. TFF came in and heard her one night as they were touring and called the hotel about a year and a half later looking for her to sing on Seeds. She had left the hotel, but luckily the girl that answered the phone knew her, and though she thought the whole was a prank or a crackpot (Oleta as well at first) she passed the info on to Oleta, and the rest is history...

I had heard several versions of that story, but tht is the way she tells it...

FMNYC · 17th March 2005, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fletcher

I didn't know Bob was a great Mexican engineer!! Learn something new every day...

who knew?
i guess his real name is Senor Roberto Claramontana.

FM

FM threw himself at the mercy of the court.

PRobb · 17th March 2005, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FMNYC

who knew?
i guess his real name is Senor Roberto Claramontana.

FM

FM threw himself at the mercy of the court.

Actually, I think I remember hearing that his family name was something Italian like Ciaramonte, and Clearmountain was an Anglicization.

Either way, the man is one of the greats and I'm sure everyone here would be thrilled if he was a guest moderator. Pleeeeeeeeese?!??!?!?!

One of my faves from him is "Don't Get Me Wrong" by The Pretenders. Also "Avalon" by Roxy Music. Oh yeah, "Start Me Up" by some English band. I better stop. this could get to be a long list.

sofa · 17th March 2005, 10:50 PM

hey fletcher why don't you share some more good stories with the rest of us,it'd be great to hear them.
Like the one time you made fun of Alesis at a NAMM.

Watersound · 18th March 2005, 01:11 AM

Well put Synth80s!

Wiggy Neve Slut · 18th March 2005, 11:30 AM

I LOVE '"Songs from the big chair"... just got great songs and sure its ALL 80's but i thinks it the songs that really carry the album, just as any good album should be. I thought 'seeds...' was a stinking overbloated piece of shit.. On another note Dave Bascombe has engineered/produced and mixed some seriously kik ass albums as well...guest mod anyone?

Reminds me i must check out the new TTF album if ppls say its half decent.

Wiggy

BBHAMMONDS · 22nd March 2005, 02:55 AM

Thanks for your attention,

I have a dc 2020, gone over with by one of the (I'll leave his name out, for priviacy reasons) original soundcraft creators. All is well, except for the fact it just doesn't sound "beefy" enough to me. Granted, I've mostly worked on 80 series Neve's in my career. I know the VCA's can be a problem on the two mix and we'll probably get rid of that. But, I keep wondering about the two mix amps. I've heard of replacing them with API's, Neve's... Any ideas?

Many Thanks,

Lee Roy

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16th March 2005, 06:23 PM	#1
sofa Gear nut Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: MX/LA Posts: 100	i met bob clearmountain last night! Hello friends, last night at the world trade center in Mexico city I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Clearmountain at a conference along with other great mexican engineers. Just for the record he is one of the nicest,down to earth persons I've ever met. he also shared some of his secrets with the audience. Attached Thumbnails __________________ will work for gear. www.myspace.com/salvadorvelarde www.somaestudios.com

16th March 2005, 07:17 PM	#4
sofa Gear nut Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: MX/LA Posts: 100	I personally asked him: How long did it take you to mix "woman in chains" by tears for fears? only 1 day. he said with a laugh that he had originally mixed the song "seeds of love"but they absolutely hated his mix.(song was mixed by dave bascombe and tff i think) what about born in the usa?"oh that one was quiet easy since most of the record is played with musicians interacting." what about Aimee mann?"a pleasure to work with" somebody also asked how does he balance work with family:"my wife Betty and my daughter are my balance."He also regretted not listening to his wife telling him to mix Creed's 1st.album.(they sold millions!)audience laughs. compared to apogee how do you rate digidesign ad converters? digidesign:a bit harsh. apogee:very musical. what about sample rates? "if you listen flat to a rough mix you won't hear the difference between 48 and 96.Only when you start tweaking knobs you'll hear a "subtle"difference.(whatever that means). with 192 i think he doesn't even bother. he says he admires tchad blake and eddie kramer. That's all I can remember right now.I drove 10 hours in total from my hometown but it was really worth it.I think he is a genius.His talent is incredible. bye now gearslutz. __________________ will work for gear. www.myspace.com/salvadorvelarde www.somaestudios.com

16th March 2005, 07:19 PM	#5
toque-eh! Gear nut Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: vancouver Posts: 141	i'd like to know what he did to get the ridiculously sick tom sounds on the first rezillos album. i'm sure a lot of it was the tuning and recording, but still... that would be taking him back, i'm sure he'd laugh. congrats on your "great" encounter. __________________ ciao, marc headphones suck!

16th March 2005, 07:21 PM	#6
wwittman Lives for gear Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: New York Posts: 1,598	He's a very nice guy. Sofa, where's the picture from, in your profile? is that a big API? __________________ William Wittman Producer/Engineer (Cyndi Lauper, Joan Osborne, The Fixx, The Outfield...)

16th March 2005, 07:27 PM	#7
sofa Gear nut Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: MX/LA Posts: 100	the api is from the gearslutz archives.I personally own a soundcraft dc2020. By the way Bob "autographed" 2 cd's i brought from his work. __________________ will work for gear. www.myspace.com/salvadorvelarde www.somaestudios.com

16th March 2005, 10:33 PM	#9
Jules Gearslutz.com admin Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: London, UK Posts: 11,148	I have emailed him a few times and asked over at Apogee to also pass it on, that I would like him to be a guest moderator here for a month. I asked him personally at the AES show in SF last year and he seemed not against the idea! Perhaps we can ask here too! Please get in touch Bob! jules @ gearslutz.com __________________ Jules "While we're at it, insert the standard rant about shit being mixed and mastered to "cd quality". - msquared

17th March 2005, 05:43 AM	#15
Drumsound Lives for gear Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Bloomington Il Posts: 3,555	Sofa and Todd, Thanks for sharing! Jules, Yes please keep trying to ger Bob Clearmountain to guest mod. __________________ Tony Oxide Lounge Recording See the Oxide Lounge! WWJMD? Come see me on the Tape Op boards! "If I have to flip flop more than three times in an A/B test to figure out what the difference is, I lose interest in that difference.'--Tchad Blake

17th March 2005, 06:34 AM	#16
Watersound Lives for gear Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: New Jersey/Nashville, TN Posts: 506	Woman in Chains is one of my favorite mixes- awesome! Now there's a song with emotion and heart...by the way has anyone checked out the new Tears For Fears album? It's great- I'd love to hear other opinions because I think sonically it sounds fantastic. __________________ JD

17th March 2005, 08:11 AM	#17
Synth80s Lives for gear Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Beautiful Southern California (cough, choke, honk) Posts: 751	I'm going to go out on a limb and say I think the new TFF album is their best. It's not just good by the standards of "can they still be any good a decade later?," it's simply a great album on its own merits. "The Seeds of Love" may be their most challenging and original album, but I think "Everybody Loves a Happy Ending" represents TFF's strongest, most consistent songwriting to date. Maturity can have its advantages, you know! If TFF were a new band or their latest album were released by Coldplay, it would be hailed as the greatest thing around. I hope people don't write them off as a "where are they now?" 80's band because they obviously still have the chops and they deserve an audience. -Synth80s

17th March 2005, 01:54 PM	#19
toddro Gear Head Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Franklin, TN Posts: 67	Elemental was a great records as well - HUGE sounding... Roland is a freak of nature to be sure. You know Oleta was discovered by them when she was singing in a hotel bar in Kansas City. TFF came in and heard her one night as they were touring and called the hotel about a year and a half later looking for her to sing on Seeds. She had left the hotel, but luckily the girl that answered the phone knew her, and though she thought the whole was a prank or a crackpot (Oleta as well at first) she passed the info on to Oleta, and the rest is history... I had heard several versions of that story, but tht is the way she tells it... __________________ Todd R. Franklin, TN

17th March 2005, 10:50 PM	#22
sofa Gear nut Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: MX/LA Posts: 100	hey fletcher why don't you share some more good stories with the rest of us,it'd be great to hear them. Like the one time you made fun of Alesis at a NAMM. __________________ will work for gear. www.myspace.com/salvadorvelarde www.somaestudios.com

18th March 2005, 01:11 AM	#23
Watersound Lives for gear Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: New Jersey/Nashville, TN Posts: 506	Well put Synth80s! __________________ JD

18th March 2005, 11:30 AM	#24
Wiggy Neve Slut Lives for gear Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: London, UK Posts: 1,827	I LOVE '"Songs from the big chair"... just got great songs and sure its ALL 80's but i thinks it the songs that really carry the album, just as any good album should be. I thought 'seeds...' was a stinking overbloated piece of shit.. On another note Dave Bascombe has engineered/produced and mixed some seriously kik ass albums as well...guest mod anyone? Reminds me i must check out the new TTF album if ppls say its half decent. Wiggy __________________ If i see another 'Which neve clone is better thread... im seriously gona go postal!!!!!!!"

22nd March 2005, 02:55 AM	#25
BBHAMMONDS Gear interested Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: nashville/ austin Posts: 1	dc 2020 user/ just want it a little stronger Thanks for your attention, I have a dc 2020, gone over with by one of the (I'll leave his name out, for priviacy reasons) original soundcraft creators. All is well, except for the fact it just doesn't sound "beefy" enough to me. Granted, I've mostly worked on 80 series Neve's in my career. I know the VCA's can be a problem on the two mix and we'll probably get rid of that. But, I keep wondering about the two mix amps. I've heard of replacing them with API's, Neve's... Any ideas? Many Thanks, Lee Roy

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