Joel Dorn - RIP

[BFrank]

Received this forwarded email from a friend of mine today.

Hello - It's with great sadness to report the death of Joel Dorn.

Joel was one of the great producers at Atlantic Records in many of

it's great years and won 4 Grammies while he was there including

Roberta Flack's "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and " Killing Me

Softly With Your Song' plus a Keith jarrett/Gary Burton

collaboration. He worked with Rashaan Roland Kirk, Les McCann, Eddie

Harris, Jimmy Scott, Neville Brothers, Leon Redbone and Asleep at the

Wheel (another grammy won on that) just to name a few. He owned 32

jazz at one time and was helming Label M and Hyena. I had the

pleasure of getting to talk to him multiple times and just soaked up

the stories of his life. He was a good guy and still had the passion

to stay in the business he loved because of the music...the music

drove him to do what he did. A tip of the hat....rip

[BFrank]

More ...

Grammy-winning jazz producer Joel Dorn dies at 65

31 minutes ago

Veteran record producer Joel Dorn, who worked with such artists as Roberta Flack, Max Roach and the Neville Brothers, died of a heart attack on Monday in New York. He was 65.

Dorn, a one-time disc-jockey at a Philadelphia jazz radio station, was perhaps best known for his work with Atlantic Records' prestigious jazz stable between 1967 and 1974. Working alongside the label's jazz chief, Nesuhi Ertegun, he brought a pop sensibility to works by musicians such as Roach, Herbie Mann, Les McCann and Eddie Harris, Mose Allison and Rahsaan Roland Kirk.

Dorn once said his two biggest influences were songwriting duo Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, and producer Phil Spector.

"To this day before I go in and make a record, I'll throw on 'Be My Baby' or a Coasters record," he said.

In the pop field, he helped set Bette Midler and Flack on the course to stardom, producing their debut albums. He and Flack won consecutive record of the year Grammys, for "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" (1972) and "Killing Me Softly With His Song" (1973).

He also ventured into rock with the Allman Brothers Band's second release, 1970's "Idlewild South," and Don McLean's 1974 album, "Homeless Brother." (McLean was the inspiration for the songwriters of "Killing Me Softly...")

Dorn "bridged the worlds of jazz and pop with enormous skill and grace, never compromising the integrity of his artists and their music," said Edgar Bronfman, Jr., the chairman and chief executive of Atlantic's Warner Music Group Inc parent.

Dorn left Atlantic in 1974, and worked for other labels' acts, such as Leon Redbone, Lou Rawls and the Neville Brothers. His collaboration with the latter spawned their 1981 breakthrough "Fiyo on the Bayou."

In his later years, he formed his own labels, and oversaw reissues of classic jazz albums for Columbia Records, Rhino Records and GRP Records. At the time of his death, he was a partner in the roots label Hyena Records, and was working on a five-disc tribute to his mentor, "Homage A Nesuhi." He is survived by three sons.

(Reporting by Dean Goodman; editing by Eric Walsh)

Copyright © 2007 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.

Copyright © 2007 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.

[Guest Bill Barton]

R.I.P.

His work with Rahsaan always makes me smile.

[Elissa]

Wow. Rest in Peace, Joel Dorn, and thanks for much music.

[Big Al]

Thanks for Muse Records and 32Jazz, a big part of my jazz education.

RIP. Way too young.

[RDK]

Just saw this minutes ago on Yahoo. Very sad news. I've been on a 32 Jazz/Label M kick lately, so I've been reading a lot of Dorn's notes. Seemed like a genuinely quirky, sincere, and passionate producer and music fan.

[Christiern]

What a shock that is! I did not know Joel very well, but he took my place at WHAT (Philly) when I left to join Riverside in NY--we shared stories. I just saw him in an old Sam Cooke documentary the other night. He will be remembered as his work continues to bring people enjoyment, but 65 is far too young.

[Dan Gould]

Sad news - he was someone who had such a positive impact on the music - it leaves me wondering whatever happened to the Left Bank tapes that one of his companies had the rights.

[JSngry]

Seemed to be a quirky guy, but in a good way. Certainly left a legacy, that's for sure, an entire "style" of Atlantic jazz albums. Maybe not to everybody's liking, but now that time has passed, it's hard not to say that it was a style that impacted a lot of people. For instance, Rashaan's Mercury/etc. albums were good records, but his Atlantic sides ended up being "stories", more than "just" records. Debate the merits of that all you want, but don't deny the validity of the approach. And that's a style he carried to other artists too. So yeah, he had a thing, and more power to him for that.

65 is indeed too young, but hey, he didn't waste the time he had. RIP & gracias beaucoup for real.

[Noj]

Very sad news. I've been on a 32 Jazz/Label M kick lately, so I've been reading a lot of Dorn's notes. Seemed like a genuinely quirky, sincere, and passionate producer and music fan.

What Ray said.

32Jazz and Label M reissued what have become some of my favorite albums.

RIP Joel Dorn, and thank you.

[Alexander]

He will be missed. His genuine ethusiasm for the music made him an oddity in a music biz increasingly dominated by bean counters. Dorn understood that you could sell records and make great music at the same time. Plus, his liner notes were always a hoot!

[Kalo]

Damn! And only 65. Hyena was shaping up to be another interesting chapter in the quirky story.

[Kalo]

At the time of his death, he was a partner in the roots label Hyena Records, and was working on a five-disc tribute to his mentor, "Homage A Nesuhi."

I hope someone finishes that and releases it!

[brownie]

Sad news!

He was the producer for several favorites albums!

[sidewinder]

What a shock - and, yes, way too young. RIP - and yet another one lost this year to jazz. His enthusiasm for the music will be missed !

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

I'm very sorry to hear this. Joel's productions, of course, occupy a very honoured place in my collection - Hank Crawford, Les McCann, David Newman, Junior Mance, Oscar Brown Jr, Harold Vick, Clarence Wheeler & the Enforcers, The Neville Brothers, Roberta Flack, Eddie Harris, Shirley Scott. And much of this hit me before I'd bought much on Blue Note and Prestige and probably had a significant influence on the way I think about music.

I spoke to him a couple of times in the Label M days and that enthusiasm came through most powerfully. The guy was plainly every bit as much a fan as I.

I think he probably wasn't very good at the business end of things. He started Wolf Records after he left Atlantic. Then Night, after Wolf failed. Then 32 Records. Then Label M. Then Hyena. Talk about "pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again"! Was there anyone in the business who was such a perfect example of the indomitable entrepreneurial spirit? Truly, without people like Joel, there would be nothing to say about music.

There's a sense in which The Masked Announcer is responsible for The Magnificent Goldberg.

Goodbye to The Masked Announcer. RIP.

MG

[B. Goren.]

Sad news. RIP Mr. Dorn.

[Tony Pusey]

what everybody else said. Goodbye

[Harold_Z]

Sad news. RIP Joel.

He produced a lot of records that I think very highly of.

[Cyril]

From the Washington Post

Grammy-winning jazz producer Joel Dorn dies at 65

Reuters

Monday, December 17, 2007; 9:13 PM

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Veteran record producer Joel Dorn, who worked with such artists as Roberta Flack, Max Roach and the Neville Brothers, died of a heart attack on Monday in New York. He was 65.

Dorn, a one-time disc-jockey at a Philadelphia jazz radio station, was perhaps best known for his work with Atlantic Records' prestigious jazz stable between 1967 and 1974. Working alongside the label's jazz chief, Nesuhi Ertegun, he brought a pop sensibility to works by musicians such as Roach, Herbie Mann, Les McCann and Eddie Harris, Mose Allison and Rahsaan Roland Kirk.

Dorn once said his two biggest influences were songwriting duo Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, and producer Phil Spector.

"To this day before I go in and make a record, I'll throw on 'Be My Baby' or a Coasters record," he said.

In the pop field, he helped set Bette Midler and Flack on the course to stardom, producing their debut albums. He and Flack won consecutive record of the year Grammys, for "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" (1972) and "Killing Me Softly With His Song" (1973).

He also ventured into rock with the Allman Brothers Band's second release, 1970's "Idlewild South," and Don McLean's 1974 album, "Homeless Brother." (McLean was the inspiration for the songwriters of "Killing Me Softly...")

Dorn "bridged the worlds of jazz and pop with enormous skill and grace, never compromising the integrity of his artists and their music," said Edgar Bronfman, Jr., the chairman and chief executive of Atlantic's Warner Music Group Inc parent.

Dorn left Atlantic in 1974, and worked for other labels' acts, such as Leon Redbone, Lou Rawls and the Neville Brothers. His collaboration with the latter spawned their 1981 breakthrough "Fiyo on the Bayou."

In his later years, he formed his own labels, and oversaw reissues of classic jazz albums for Columbia Records, Rhino Records and GRP Records. At the time of his death, he was a partner in the roots label Hyena Records, and was working on a five-disc tribute to his mentor, "Homage A Nesuhi." He is survived by three sons.

(Reporting by Dean Goodman; editing by Eric Walsh)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...7121701795.html

R.I.P.

[king ubu]

This is very sad news! Much too early!

I've been a fan of his reissue labels (born too late to grow up with Atlantic vinyl) and have discovered a lot of great music thanks to Dorn's efforts!

[catesta]

Very sad, R.I.P., Mr. Dorn.

[Bright Moments]

damn!

[mikeweil]

Very sad news! R.I.P.

He was one of the first, or maybe even the very first, producer whose name stayed in my memory, through many Atlantic LPs - he really shaped that label for quite a while. That typical Atlantic trademark mixture of soul and jazz, he did a lot for that.

Thanks a lot for plenty good music.

[mjzee]

I'll miss him. His liner notes for 32Jazz were quirky and real. The pricing was excellent and he made the reissue category come alive.