Bruce Botnick (born 1945) is an American

audio engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduc ...

and

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

. He is best known for co-producing '' L.A. Woman'', the sixth studio album by

the Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, comprising vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts ...

, after producer Paul A. Rothchild quit during production of the album. Botnick is also known for producing for

Eddie Money Edward Joseph Money ( Mahoney; March 21, 1949September 13, 2019) was an American singer and songwriter who, in the 1970s and 1980s, had eleven Top 40 songs, including " Baby Hold On", " Two Tickets to Paradise", " Think I'm in Love", " Shakin' ...

and his platinum albums ''

'' and '' Life for the Taking,'' as well as

Steve Perry Stephen Ray Perry (born January 22, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer and frontman of the rock band Journey during their most successful years from 1977 to 1987, and again from 1995 to 1998. He wrote/co-wrote ...

's platinum album ''

Street Talk ''Street Talk'' is Steve Perry's first solo studio album, released on April 5, 1984. ''Street Talk'' contains Perry's biggest hit as a solo artist, " Oh Sherrie", written for his then-girlfriend Sherrie Swafford.Steve Perry talks about the re ...

''. Botnick also engineered for

the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...

and their eleventh studio album ''

Pet Sounds ''Pet Sounds'' is the eleventh studio album by the American Rock music, rock band the Beach Boys, released on May 16, 1966, by Capitol Records. It was produced, arranged, and primarily composed by Brian Wilson with guest lyricist Tony Asher. R ...

'', as well as producing and engineering for acts such as

Love Love is a feeling of strong attraction and emotional attachment (psychology), attachment to a person, animal, or thing. It is expressed in many forms, encompassing a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most su ...

Buffalo Springfield Buffalo Springfield was a Canadian-American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1966 by Canadians Neil Young, Bruce Palmer and Dewey Martin (musician), Dewey Martin and Americans Stephen Stills and Richie Furay. The group, widely know ...

, Dave Mason,

the Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959 as the Primettes. A premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful Amer ...

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr. (; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American Rhythm and blues, R&B and soul singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He helped shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player an ...

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

, as well as film composer

Jerry Goldsmith Jerrald King Goldsmith (February 10, 1929July 21, 2004) was an American composer, conductor and orchestrator with a career in film and television scoring that spanned nearly 50 years and over 200 productions, between 1954 and 2003. He was consid ...

Early work

Botnick engineered Love's first two albums, and co-produced their third album, '' Forever Changes'', with the band's singer-songwriter, Arthur Lee. He also is listed as the one of two recording engineers on the 1965 Curtis Amy LP ''The Sounds of Broadway - The Sounds of Hollywood'' - said to have been released in 1965, although it also has been said to have been released earlier. The LP back cover liner notes, written by Curtis Amy, formally thank Bruce Botnick for his work on the recordings.

The Doors

Botnick audio engineered the Doors' studio recordings starting with their first album in 1966. In November 1970 he took over production of The Doors' '' L.A. Woman'' album, their last with lead singer Jim Morrison, after the band's long-serving producer Paul A. Rothchild fell out with the band over the album's direction. According to Robby Krieger it was Botnick's idea to record the album at the Doors rehearsal space where they were more comfortable and used to the sound, rather than at a more costly recording studio.

Additional work

Botnick has a credit as assistant engineer on

' '' Let It Bleed'' album. He later produced

's first two albums, ''

'' in 1977 and '' Life for the Taking'' in 1978. Botnick also produced two albums for Paul Collins' rock group The Beat, including 1979's ''The Beat'' and 1982's ''The Kids Are The Same''. He also co-produced

Kenny Loggins Kenneth Clark "Kenny" Loggins (born January 7, 1948) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His early songs were recorded with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1970, which led to seven albums recorded with Jim Messina (musician), Jim Mess ...

’ 1982 album, '' High Adventure''. Botnick had a long-running association with film composer

as his scoring mixer. Botnick first met Goldsmith on 1979's '' Star Trek: The Motion Picture'' and they worked together on most of Goldsmith's film projects - numbering over 100 - from the 1980s through to Goldsmith's death in 2004. He also engineered at least two of Lonnie Mack's late-1960s Elektra albums, and is credited as Re-Recording Mixer for the movie Gremlins. Was the producer and mixing engineer of the 1972 album Rising by the band Mark-Almond.

References

External links

*
Interview on ''Forever Changes'' album

Bruce Botnick Interview
at NAMM Oral History Collection (2017) American audio engineers Grammy Award winners Living people 1945 births Place of birth missing (living people) Record producers from Los Angeles {{US-record-producer-stub