Robert Sargeant (20 November 1947 – 13 July 2021) was a British musician and record producer.

Life and career

Born in

North Shields North Shields ( ) is a town in the borough of North Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, England. It is north-east of Newcastle upon Tyne and borders nearby Wallsend and Tynemouth. The population of North Shields at the 2021–2022 United Kingdom cens ...

, Sargeant played keyboards in various local bands before joining regional R&B band the Junco Partners in 1966. He left in 1970 to become a studio musician in London, and in the early 1970s played live with Mick Abrahams,

Al Stewart Alastair Ian Stewart (born 5 September 1945) is a British singer-songwriter and folk-rock musician who rose to prominence as part of the British folk revival in the 1960s and 1970s. He developed a unique style of combining folk-rock songs wi ...

, and the band Curved Air, appearing on the band's album '' Airborne'' (1976). In the summer of 1974, Sargeant began working on a solo album, ''First Starring Role'', and met

Mick Ronson Michael Ronson (26 May 1946 – 29 April 1993) was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session musici ...

who "was immediately impressed with Bob as both a songwriter and a performer". The

soft rock Soft rock (also known as light rock or mellow rock) is a form of rock music that originated in the late 1960s in the United States and the United Kingdom which smoothed over the edges of singer-songwriter and pop rock, relying on simple, mel ...

album was recorded at

Trident Studios Trident Studios was a British recording facility, located at 17 St Anne's Court in London's Soho district between 1968 and 1981. It was constructed in 1967 by Norman Sheffield, drummer of the 1960s group the Hunters, and his brother Barry ...

, with Ronson co-producing it with Sargeant and Dennis Mackay. It features a number of well-known musicians such as

Herbie Flowers Brian Keith "Herbie" Flowers (19 May 1938 – 5 September 2024) was an English musician specialising in bass guitar, double bass and tuba. He was a member of groups including Blue Mink, T. Rex and Sky and was also a prolific session musician. ...

, Walt Monaghan, Mike Garson and

Cozy Powell Cozy Powell (born Colin Trevor Flooks; 29 December 1947 – 5 April 1998) was an English drummer who made his name with major rock bands and artists such as The Jeff Beck Group, Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group, Gary Moore, Graham Bonnet, B ...

. All the songs were written, arranged and sung by Sargeant, who also played electric guitars, keyboards and various percussion. It was released on 16 May 1975 on

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...

and three singles were also released, but it found little success.Biography by Jason Ankeny, ''Allmusic''
Retrieved 9 March 2022 He became a regular producer of sessions on

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...

's radio shows on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

in the late 1970s and 1980s, especially on

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

and new wave acts, including

Joy Division Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...

the Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...

Stiff Little Fingers Stiff Little Fingers are a Northern Irish punk rock band from Belfast. They formed in 1977 at the height of the Troubles, which informed much of their songwriting. They started out as a schoolboy band called Highway Star (named after the Deep P ...

Gang of Four The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes due to th ...

Wire file:Sample cross-section of high tension power (pylon) line.jpg, Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample d ...

, and

Dexys Midnight Runners Dexys (known as Dexys Midnight Runners from 1978 to 2011) are an English pop rock band from Birmingham, with soul music, soul influences, who achieved major commercial success in the early to mid- 1980s. They are best known in the UK for their ...

. He also produced several successful records for bands including the Fall ('' Live at the Witch Trials''), the Ruts,

the Monochrome Set The Monochrome Set are an English post-punk/ new wave band, originally formed in London in January 1978. The most recent line-up consists of Bid, Andy Warren, Athen Ayren and Stephen Gilchrist. History Original band: 1978–1985 The Mono ...

, and the Beat. For the Beat, he produced three successful albums and several hit singles including " Tears of a Clown", "

Mirror in the Bathroom "Mirror in the Bathroom" is a single by the British ska band the Beat, released as a single in 1980 from their debut studio album '' I Just Can't Stop It''. It reached number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and consequently was their highest chart ...

", and "

Can't Get Used to Losing You "Can't Get Used to Losing You" is a song written by Doc Pomus, Jerome "Doc" Pomus and Mort Shuman, first made popular by Andy Williams in a 1963 record release, which was a number-two hit in both the US and the UK. Twenty years later, British ba ...

". Later in the 1980s, Sargeant worked successfully as a producer for Haircut 100,

A Flock of Seagulls A Flock of Seagulls are an English new wave band formed in Liverpool in 1979. The group, whose best-known line-up comprised Mike Score, Ali Score, Frank Maudsley and Paul Reynolds, hit the peak of their chart success in the early 1980s. I ...

the Specials The Specials, also known as the Special AKA, were an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, J ...

the Undertones The Undertones are a rock band formed in Derry, Northern Ireland in 1974. From 1975 to 1983, the Undertones consisted of Feargal Sharkey (vocals), John O'Neill (rhythm guitar, vocals), Damian O'Neill (lead guitar, vocals), Michael Bradle ...

, the Damned,

the Woodentops The Woodentops are a British rock band that enjoyed critical acclaim and moderate popularity in the mid-1980s. History The band formed in 1983 in South London with an initial lineup of Rolo McGinty (vocals, guitar, formerly of the Wild Swans ...

, and many more. His final successes came in the late 1980s with the band Breathe, for whom he produced the hit singles " Hands to Heaven" and " How Can I Fall?".Clive Young, "Bob Sargeant, Top Post-Punk/New Wave Producer, Passes", ''Mix Online'', 14 July 2021
Retrieved 9 March 2022 Sargeant also made a habit of playing on the records he produced, particularly the

marimba The marimba ( ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the mari ...

in the 1980s. A notable example of this is on " Love Plus One" by Haircut One Hundred. His activities after the early 1990s were less prominent. He died in

Kilburn, London Kilburn is an area in North West London, North West London, in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden, London Borough of Brent, Brent and the City of Westminster. Kilburn High Road railway station lies 3.5 miles (5.6 km) n ...

, in 2021, at the age of 73.Funeral notice: Bob Sargeant, ''Evening Chronicle Newcastle'', 17 July 2021
Retrieved 9 March 2022

Selected production credits

* ''24 Hours'' – The Transmitters (1978) * '' Live at the Witch Trials'' – The Fall (1979) * '' The Crack'' – The Ruts (1979) * ''Frustration Paradise'' – The Carpettes (1979) * ''Jellied Eels to Record Deals'' – The Buzzards (1979) (only "Baby If You Love Me Say Yes If You Don't Say No") * '' Strange Boutique'' –

The Monochrome Set The Monochrome Set are an English post-punk/ new wave band, originally formed in London in January 1978. The most recent line-up consists of Bid, Andy Warren, Athen Ayren and Stephen Gilchrist. History Original band: 1978–1985 The Mono ...

(1980) * '' I Just Can't Stop It'' – The Beat (1980) * ''Q-Tips'' – Q-Tips (1980) * '' Wha'ppen?'' – The Beat (1981) * '' Pelican West'' –

Haircut One Hundred Haircut One Hundred (also Haircut 100) are a British pop group formed in 1980 in Beckenham, London, by Nick Heyward, Les Nemes and Graham Jones. In 1981 and 1982, the band scored four UK top-10 singles: " Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)" ...

(1982) * ''

Special Beat Service ''Special Beat Service'' is the third studio album by the British ska band the Beat, released on 1 October 1982 by Go-Feet Records. Like the rest of their material, it was released in the US under the name "the English Beat". It peaked at No. 3 ...

'' – The Beat (1982) * ''

Mummer Mummers were bands of men and women from the medieval to early modern era who (during public festivities) dressed in fantastic clothes and costumes and serenaded people outside their houses, or joined the party inside. Costumes were varied and mi ...

'' –

XTC XTC were an English rock band formed in Swindon in 1972. Fronted by songwriters Andy Partridge (vocals, guitars) and Colin Moulding (vocals, bass), the band gained popularity during the rise of punk and new wave in the 1970s, later playing ...

(1983) (only "Great Fire") * '' Paint and Paint'' – Haircut One Hundred (1984) * '' No Sense of Sin'' – The Lotus Eaters (1984) * ''Trapped and Unwrapped'' – Friends Again (1984) * '' Theodore and Friends'' – The Adventures (1985) (only "Send My Heart") * ''

Phantasmagoria Phantasmagoria (), alternatively fantasmagorie and/or fantasmagoria, was a form of horror theatre that (among other techniques) used one or more magic lanterns to project frightening images – such as skeletons, demons, and ghosts – typicall ...

'' – The Damned (1985) (only "

Grimly Fiendish "Grimly Fiendish" is a single by the English rock band the Damned, released on 18 March 1985. The band was offered a deal by a major label, MCA, and moved further in the direction of goth music under the influence of guitarist/keyboardist ...

") * ''Face Another Day'' – The Monroes (1985) * ''

Giant In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: ''wiktionary:gigas, gigas'', cognate wiktionary:giga-, giga-) are beings of humanoid appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''gia ...

'' –

The Woodentops The Woodentops are a British rock band that enjoyed critical acclaim and moderate popularity in the mid-1980s. History The band formed in 1983 in South London with an initial lineup of Rolo McGinty (vocals, guitar, formerly of the Wild Swans ...

(1986) * '' All That Jazz'' – Breathe (1987) * '' Ultra Modern Nursery Rhymes'' – Terry, Blair & Anouchka (1990) * ''Witness'' – Halo James (1990) * '' Peace of Mind'' – Breathe (1990) * ''Your Beauty'' – Grethe Svensen (1995) * ''Here We Go Love!'' – The Beat Starring Dave Wakeling (2018) (executive producer)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sargeant, Bob 1947 births 2021 deaths English record producers English keyboardists English male singer-songwriters English singer-songwriters People from North Shields Musicians from Tyne and Wear RCA Records artists