Kevin Keith Beamish is a Canadian-born American record producer, sound engineer, songwriter and mixer. Born in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, Canada, he became a naturalized American citizen at the age of nine. Classically trained on woodwind instruments, he secured a recording deal for his band "The Weathervane" by the age of 16. Crystal Recording Studios hired him to be a studio assistant; short for make coffee, answer the phones and stand in the studio all day and night, learning and helping. His entrance into recording was while assisting on Cisco Kid by War, and offering a few lines to help them when they were stuck. Their songs were long, cascading jams and they were short on lyrics. Beamish added a few ideas, naively. Told quickly by a manager (after they used a few words he suggested), to never mention it again; when Beamish asked how he would be credited. This was a quick study on the publishing business and perils of the business. During this time at Crystal,

The Miracles The Miracles (later known as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles from 1965 to 1972) were an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1955. They were the first successful recording act for Motown Records and are considered one of the most ...

were recording and he mixed his first number one, worldwide, #1 Record " Love Machine". It would catapult him into being one of the top recording engineers and producers for 30 years. "Love Machine" is a 1976 number-one single recorded by Motown group The Miracles, taken from their album ''City of Angels''. This single was one of two Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 hits recorded by The Miracles with

Billy Griffin William L. Griffin (born August 15, 1950) is an American singer and songwriter. He replaced Smokey Robinson as the lead singer of the Miracles in 1972. Biography Griffin was born and raised in West Baltimore, Maryland. He attended Garrison Juni ...

as lead vocalist; the other is 1973’s "Do It Baby". Griffin had replaced Miracles founder and lead singer

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. He was the founder and frontman of the pioneering Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he ...

as lead singer in 1972. The song features a growling sound by Miracles tenor

Bobby Rogers Robert Edward Rogers (February 19, 1940 – March 3, 2013) was an American musician and tenor singer, best known as a founding member of Motown vocal group the Miracles from 1956 until his death. He was inducted, in 2012, as a member of the Mira ...

. Kevin Beamish produced and engineered

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 ...

’s No. 1 album ''

Hi Infidelity ''Hi Infidelity'' is the ninth studio album by American rock band REO Speedwagon, released on November 21, 1980, by Epic Records. The album became a big hit in the United States, peaking at number one on the ''Billboard 200'', spending 15 weeks ...

'' and sang parts on the hit single " Keep on Loving You", with 15 million albums and four million singles sold worldwide. Beamish produced five of REO's catalog. Beamish produced and engineered/mixed

Jefferson Starship Jefferson Starship is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1974 by a group of musicians including former members of Jefferson Airplane. Between 1974 and 1984, they released eight RIAA certification, gold or Music rec ...

's '' Winds of Change'' (1982),

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

’s ''

Crusader Crusader or Crusaders may refer to: Military * Crusader, a participant in one of the Crusades * Convair NB-36H Crusader, an experimental nuclear-powered bomber * Crusader tank, a British cruiser tank of World War II * Crusaders (guerrilla), a C ...

'' (1984) and Y&T's '' Contagious'' (1987). He started producing heavier rock such as

Keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

Leatherwolf Leatherwolf is an American heavy metal band formed in Huntington Beach, California in 1981. They split up in 1992, but reunited in 1999. The group is also nicknamed the "Triple Axe Attack" for pioneering the use of a 3-guitar lineup in heavy m ...

, and into the 1990s with

Contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") is any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It comprises goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes of the leg ...

and

Michael Schenker Group The Michael Schenker Group (often abbreviated as MSG) is an English hard rock band, formed in London in 1979 by former Scorpions and UFO guitarist Michael Schenker. After the release of their second live album, 1984's '' Rock Will Never Die'', ...

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beamish, Kevin Living people American record producers Canadian emigrants to the United States Anglophone Quebec people People from Montreal Year of birth missing (living people)