John Kalodner
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

John David Kalodner is a retired American A&R (
artists and repertoire 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 ...
) executive.


History

John David Kalodner was born in
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
; he was a writer and photographer at ''Concert'' magazine. Then by 1972 he became a photographer for various record labels, as well as becoming a freelance music writer and photographer for ''
The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', often referred to simply as ''The Inquirer'', is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded on June 1, 1829, ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is the third-longest continuously operating da ...
''. He wanted to be in the record industry; he was first noticed and hired as a publicist in 1974 by
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 ...
executive Earl McGrath.Cathy Genovese
John David Kalodner: Senior Vice-President of A & R, Sanctuary Records Group


September, 2004. Retrieved 2016-12-28.
His initial role at Atlantic was as a writer and photographer continuing to review concerts on the weekend for the ''Inquirer'' and commuting from
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
. Kalodner was headhunted as the first A&R executive for
David Geffen David Lawrence Geffen (born February 21, 1943) is an American film producer, record executive, and media proprietor. In music, he co-founded Asylum Records with Elliot Roberts in 1971 before founding Geffen Records in 1980, DGC Records in 1 ...
's new label
Geffen Records Geffen Records (formerly The David Geffen Company from 1980 to 1992 and Geffen Records Inc. from 1993 to 2004) is an American record label, founded in late 1980 by David Geffen. Originally a music subsidiary of the company known as Geffen Pi ...
in 1980, where he worked with
Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
, White Zombie, Madness,
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 ...
,
Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...
, Wang Chung,
Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
, and
Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...
. Kalodner brought
Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician and producer who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin. Page began his career as a studio session musician in Lo ...
and
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 ...
to success as solo artists and was responsible for the musical collaboration Coverdale•Page as well as the formation of supergroup
Damn Yankees ''Damn Yankees'' is a 1955 musical comedy with a book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop, music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The story is a modern retelling of the Faust legend set during the 1950s in Washington, D.C., d ...
. Kalodner also placed songs on soundtracks of films including ''
Top Gun ''Top Gun'' is a 1986 American action drama film directed by Tony Scott and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, with distribution by Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was written by Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr., and was inspired ...
'' and '' Footloose''. He followed
Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...
to
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...
in the 1990s, where he also worked with
Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...
,
Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...
, Journey, Manowar,
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
,
Heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...
,
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...
,
Joe Satriani Joseph Satriani (born July 15, 1956)Prato, Greg"Joe Satriani – Music Biography, Credits and Discography". ''AllMusic''. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved May 28, 2014. is an American rock music, rock guitarist, composer, and songwriter. Early in hi ...
,
Steve Vai Steven Siro Vai ( ; born June 6, 1960) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and producer. A three-time Grammy Award winner and fifteen-time nominee, Vai started his music career in 1978 at the age of eighteen as a Transcription (music), transc ...
,
Ted Nugent Theodore Anthony Nugent (; born December 13, 1948) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and political activist. He goes by several nicknames, including Uncle Ted, the Nuge, and Motor City Madman. Nugent initially gained fame as the le ...
,
REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon), or simply REO, was an American Rock music, rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial suc ...
, Mars Electric, and the Black Crowes among others. Kalodner considered that the best example of his contribution to an artist's success was his role in Aerosmith's 1993 ''
Get a Grip ''Get a Grip'' is the eleventh studio album by American rock band Aerosmith, released in April 1993 by Geffen Records. ''Get a Grip'' was the band's last studio album to be released by Geffen before they returned to Columbia Records. ''Get a ...
'' album, for the reasons that "... first of all, I made them rerecord the whole record completely. Second of all, I made them write with all these different people. They were very resistant. The record is an interesting eclectic record with... five hit singles, very rare in music, and Bruce Fairbairn produced it... I got Brendan O'Brien to mix it, who became a giant producer... for all those reasons... of course, it sold like twenty million copies worldwide." Kalodner's unique role was underlined by the fact that he is usually credited on albums for simply being himself. The phrase "John Kalodner: John Kalodner" originated with Foreigner's 1978 ''
Double Vision Diplopia is the simultaneous perception of two images of a single object that may be displaced in relation to each other. Also called double vision, it is a loss of visual focus under regular conditions, and is often voluntary. However, when occ ...
'' album, when the album's producer,
Keith Olsen Keith Alan Olsen (May 12, 1945 – March 9, 2020) was an American record producer and sound engineer, who worked with Magnum, Rick Springfield, Fleetwood Mac, Ozzy Osbourne, Grateful Dead, Whitesnake, Pat Benatar, Heart, Santana, Saga, For ...
, was wondering how to credit Kalodner's involvement with the band and the album. In keeping with the double vision theme, Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones came up with idea of doubling Kalodner's name. Kalodner retired from the music business in 2006.Melinda Newman
Kalodner looking forward with an eye on past
''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'', July 8, 2006, p. 47. Retrieved 2016-12-30.
Until late 2005, he had been the senior vice-president of A&R at Sanctuary Records Group. He then sold most of his industry awards and RIAA record plaques to Scott Roderick, the president of Rock-N-Roll Warehouse, donating the proceeds to the City of Hope cancer research center. Matt Wake
A&R Legend John Kalodner Talks Aerosmith and Why Rock Won't Reach the Masses Again
''
LA Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. The paper covers music, arts, film, theater, culture, and other local news in the Los Angeles area. ''LA Weekly'' was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin (among others), ...
'', June 16, 2016. Retrieved 2016-12-26.
In 2014, he was inducted into the Rock Radio Hall of Fame, in the "Visionary" category.The New Los Angeles Music Awards
Certificate Award - John Kalodner
Retrieved 2017-01-07.


In other media

*Kalodner briefly appeared in a few
Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
s including the videos for "
Let the Music Do the Talking ''Let the Music Do the Talking'' is the first of three studio albums by The Joe Perry Project, released in 1980. It was the band's most successful, selling approximately 250,000 copies in the United States. The title track was later re-recorded ...
", "
Dude (Looks Like a Lady) "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)" is a song by American rock band Aerosmith. It was released as the lead single from the band's ninth studio album '' Permanent Vacation'' in 1987. The song was written by lead singer Steven Tyler, lead guitarist Joe P ...
", " The Other Side", " Eat the Rich", " Blind Man", and "
Pink Pink is a pale tint of red, the color of the Dianthus plumarius, pink flower. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, p ...
". He was dressed as a bride in the "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)" video as a private joke, because he almost always dresses entirely in white. *Kalodner can be seen in Aerosmith's '' The Making of Pump'', giving criticism and advice on the material the group presented to him for the album. *Kalodner appeared in the " Flaming Moe's" episode of ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'', which featured Aerosmith. *Kalodner also made a cameo appearance in the video game '' Revolution X'' as the face of the sphinx in the Middle East level. Interestingly, the main characters in ''Revolution X'' are none other than Aerosmith themselves and at the time, Aerosmith was still with
Geffen Records Geffen Records (formerly The David Geffen Company from 1980 to 1992 and Geffen Records Inc. from 1993 to 2004) is an American record label, founded in late 1980 by David Geffen. Originally a music subsidiary of the company known as Geffen Pi ...
during their ''Get a Grip'' tour. *Kalodner appeared in videos for the band Jackyl with whom he worked in the early 1990s. *Kalodner appeared as the judge in
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 ...
's "
I Can't Drive 55 "I Can't Drive 55" is the lead single and first track from Sammy Hagar's eighth studio album '' VOA'' in 1984. Perpetuated by a very successful music video, it became a concert staple that continued throughout Hagar's tours as a member of Van H ...
" music video. *Kalodner is credited for an edit of the
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
song "Higher Power" on Boston's Greatest Hits album. *Kalodner appeared on the cover of GPS' (a band featuring ex-
Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
band members) 2006 album ''Windows to the Soul'' as sitting in front of a TV. *Kalodner appeared in the Wang Chung music video for " To Live and Die in L.A.". *Kalodner appeared in the 2012 ''
American Masters ''American Masters'' is a PBS television series which produces biographies on enduring writers, musicians, visual and performing artists, dramatists, filmmakers, and those who have left an indelible impression on the cultural landscape of the U ...
''
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
television documentary entitled ''Inventing David Geffen''.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kalodner, John American music industry executives Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Businesspeople from Philadelphia