John S. Carter Jr. (June 14, 1945 – May 10, 2011), better known as simply Carter, was an American music producer, writer, arranger, instrumentalist, and

A&R man Artists and repertoire (or A&R for short) is the division of a record label or music publishing company that is responsible for scouting, financing, and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists and songwriters. It also acts as a l ...

. Carter was born the son of an oil wildcatter in

East St. Louis, Illinois East St. Louis, also known as ESTL, is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. It is directly across the Mississippi River from downtown St. Louis, Missouri, and the Gateway Arch National Park. East St. Louis is in the Metro East ...

."Passings: Bill Summers, John S. Carter, Ruth C. Cole".
''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' 24 May 2011. Retrieved 25 February 2012. His music career began in 1967 when he co-wrote "That Acapulco Gold" (a #70 hit on the ''Billboard Hot'' 100 chart) with Tim Gilbert of the Rainy Daze. Also with Gilbert, he co-wrote the lyrics to " Incense and Peppermints," a ''Billboard'' #1 hit by the

Strawberry Alarm Clock Strawberry Alarm Clock is a psychedelic rock band formed in 1967, originating in Glendale, California, a city about ten miles north of downtown Los Angeles. The band is best known for its 1967 hit single " Incense and Peppermints." Their music ...

. He first worked for

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

and was recruited to the A&R department of

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

. There he worked with

Bob Seger Robert Clark Seger ( ; born May 6, 1945) is a retired American singer, songwriter, and musician. As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded with the groups Bob Seger and the Last Heard and the Bob Seger System throu ...

(fostering his hit album '' Night Moves'') and the

Steve Miller Band The Steve Miller Band is an American rock music, rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1966. The band is led by Steve Miller (musician), Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals. The group had a string of mid- to late-1970s hit singles ...

during the periods of their commercial breakthroughs. He also signed

Sammy Hagar Sam Roy Hagar (born October 13, 1947), also known as the Red Rocker, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He rose to prominence in the early 1970s with the hard rock band Montrose before launching a ...

, Bob Welch and

The Motels The Motels are an American new wave band from Berkeley, California, that is best known for the singles " Only the Lonely" and " Suddenly Last Summer", each of which peaked at No. 9 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, in 1982 and 1983, respectively. ...

to Capitol, and co-wrote and produced some of their early output. Carter is credited with relaunching the career of

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...

in the 1980s. In 1983, despite opposition from within Capitol, Carter signed Turner and supported her throughout the recording of her first Capitol album, ''

Private Dancer ''Private Dancer'' is the fifth solo studio album by singer Tina Turner. It was released on May 29, 1984, by Capitol Records and was her first album released by the label. After a challenging start to her solo career after divorcing Ike Turner, ...

''—an album that ultimately involved eight different producers. Though many producers contributed to the album, it was Carter who produced the

title song Theme music is a musical composition which is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...

. The album went on to sell more than 20 million copies and made Turner a global superstar. He died of cancer on May 10, 2011, in

Palm Springs, California Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...

. Carter had a daughter in 1980 with his wife Jeannie named Crosby Carter. She followed in his footsteps and became an artist manager.

Production discography

* Horses - ''Horses'' (1969) *

- ''

Nine on a Ten Scale ''Nine on a Ten Scale'' is the debut studio album by American musician and songwriter Sammy Hagar, released in May 1976 by Capitol Records. It was his first release as a solo artist after his departure from Montrose in 1975. It was announced i ...

'' (1976) * Sammy Hagar - ''

'' (1977) * Bob Welch - ''

French Kiss A French kiss, also known as cataglottism or a tongue kiss, is an amorous kiss in which the participants' tongues extend to touch each other's lips or tongue. A kiss with the tongue stimulates the partner's lips, tongue and mouth, which are sens ...

'' (1977) * Sammy Hagar - ''

Musical Chairs Musical chairs, also known as Trip to Jerusalem, is a game of elimination involving players, chairs, and music. It is a staple of many parties worldwide. Gameplay A set of chairs is arranged in a circle with one fewer chair than the numbe ...

'' (1977) * Sammy Hagar - '' All Night Long/Loud and Clear'' (1978) * Bob Welch - ''

Three Hearts ''Three Hearts'' is the second solo album by rock musician and former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Bob Welch. Just like Welch's previous effort ''French Kiss'', ''Three Hearts'' was a commercial success. The album reached number 20 on the US char ...

'' (1979) *

- ''

Motels A motel, also known as a motor hotel, motor inn or motor lodge, is a hotel designed for motorists, usually having each room entered directly from the parking area for motor vehicles rather than through a central lobby. Entering dictionarie ...

'' (1979) * Bob Welch - '' The Other One'' (1979) * The Motels - '' Careful'' (1980) * Bob Welch - ''

Man Overboard "Man overboard!" is an exclamation given aboard a vessel to indicate that a member of the crew or a passenger has fallen off of the ship into the water and is in need of immediate rescue. Whoever sees the person fall is to shout, "Man overboar ...

'' (1980) *

Prism PRISM is a code name for a program under which the United States National Security Agency (NSA) collects internet communications from various U.S. internet companies. The program is also known by the SIGAD . PRISM collects stored internet ...

- '' All the Best From Prism'' (1980) * Deserters - ''Deserters'' (1981) * Prism - '' Small Change'' (1981) * Toni K. - ''La Bomba'' (1982) * Deserters - ''Siberian Nightlife'' (1983) * Prism - ''

Beat Street ''Beat Street'' is a 1984 American dance drama film featuring New York City hip hop culture of the early 1980s. Set in the South Bronx, the film follows the lives of a pair of brothers and their group of friends, all of whom are devoted to vari ...

'' (1983) * Sammy Hagar - '' Live 1980'' (1983) *

- ''

'' (1984)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, John S. 1945 births 2011 deaths A&R people American music industry executives Record producers from Illinois Deaths from cancer in California People from East St. Louis, Illinois Songwriters from Illinois Capitol Records