Michael Marquart (also known as Mike Marquart) is an American

singer-songwriter A singer-songwriter is a musician who writes, composes, and performs their own musical material, including lyrics and melodies. In the United States, the category is built on the folk- acoustic tradition with a guitar, although this role has ...

multi-instrumentalist A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays two or more musical instruments, often but not exclusively at a professional level of proficiency. Also known as woodwind doubler, doubling, the practice allows greater ensemble flexibility and mor ...

and producer, and founder of the musical project A Bad Think. He founded Windmark Recording

recording studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for Sound recording and reproduction, recording and Audio mixing, mixing of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home proje ...

s in

Virginia Beach Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the List of cities in Virginia, most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeaster ...

and

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. Marquart's studios have recorded many notable musical artists, including

Coldplay Coldplay are a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer and percussionist Will Champion, and manager Phil Harvey (band m ...

Jeezy Jay Wayne Jenkins (born September 28, 1977), known by his stage name Jeezy (or Young Jeezy), is an American rapper. He is credited, alongside fellow Georgia-based rappers T.I. and Gucci Mane, with pioneering the hip hop subgenre trap music for ...

J. Cole Jermaine Lamarr Cole (born January 28, 1985) is an American rapper and record producer. Born in a military base in Germany and raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Cole initially gained attention as a rapper following the release of his d ...

, YG,

Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and dancer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Prince of Pop", ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' honored him as the b ...

Pharrell Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973), also known mononymously as Pharrell, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and fashion designer. He first became known as one half of the music production duo ...

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...

, and

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, he was awarded the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music, becoming the first music ...

. In 2021, Marquart sold Windmark Recording to

Joie Manda Joie Manda is an American music executive and the Founder & CEO of Encore Recordings and Platinum Grammar. He's previously held executive positions with Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Def Jam Recordings, Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group ...

. As a record producer, Marquart has worked closely with many well-known musicians and producers, including

Teddy Riley Edward Theodore Riley (born October 8, 1967) is an American record producer, singer, and songwriter credited with the creation of the R&B and hip-hop fusion genre, new jack swing. Musical artists who utilized Riley's production and songwri ...

and

The Neptunes The Neptunes were an American record production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provided backing vocals and music video appearances on the duo's productions, while H ...

(an R&B duo consisting of

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and

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973), also known mononymously as Pharrell, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and fashion designer. He first became known as one half of the music production duo ...

). His albums have featured many notable musicians, including

Jeremy Stacey Jeremy Stacey (born 27 September 1963) is a British drummer and keyboard player. His early works included the 1990s band The Lemon Trees (with twin brother Paul Stacey on guitars, Guy Chambers and others) and Denzil (band), Denzil. He has also ...

Victor Indrizzo Victor Indrizzo (born September 23, 1967) is an American session musician, primarily known for playing the drums, as well as a songwriter and producer. Indrizzo was born in Freeport, Long Island, New York. He has toured, recorded and worked wit ...

Fernando Perdomo Fernando Jose Perdomo (born August 17, 1980) is an American musician and producer. He is asession bassist and guitarist. He is best known as one of the guitarists in the movie '' Echo in the Canyon'', where he backed up Jakob Dylan, Fiona Apple ...

, Paul Bryan,

Greg Leisz Gregory Brian Leisz ( ; born September 18, 1949) is an American musician. He is a songwriter, recording artist, and producer. He plays guitar, dobro, mandolin, banjo, lap steel and pedal steel guitar. Biography Leisz grew up in the garage ba ...

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, and

John Philip Shenale John Philip Shenale (often mentioned as Phil Shenale) is a Canadian composer, arranger, musician and producer based in Los Angeles. Background Shenale was born in Canada in 1951. His family relocated to the United States in the late-1950s. ...

Early life and career

Marquart grew up in the town of

Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin Fort Atkinson is a city in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, United States. It lies along the Rock River (Illinois), Rock River a few miles upstream from Lake Koshkonong. The population was 12,579 at the 2020 census. Fort Atkinson is the largest city ...

, where a neighbor taught him to play drums. As a teenager, he began playing drums in his first rock band, Wonderhorse. While attending college in Iowa studying

music theory Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...

, he joined the band Tokyo Rose. For a brief period in 1989, he played drums for the

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 ...

, recording a single with the band and supporting a 3-week tour. The following year, he recorded four songs with Canadian supergroup Alias. Wanting to pursue his own original music and spend more time with his family, Marquart moved to

, Virginia.

Windmark Recording

Marquart co-founded Windmark Recording, a Virginia Beach recording studio, with concert promoter Bill Reid, who later exited the partnership. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the studio served as an important recording space for

production duo of

and

, as well as

mixing engineer A mixing engineer (or simply mix engineer) is responsible for combining ("mixing") different sonic elements of an auditory piece into a complete rendition (also known as "final mix" or "mixdown"), whether in music, film, or any other content of a ...

Serban Ghenea Serban Ghenea () is a Canadian audio engineer and mixer. He has been nominated for a Grammy Award a total of 45 times and has won 21 times. Early life and education Ghenea was born in Romania, and in 1976 he moved to Montreal with his family. H ...

, working on projects including

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...

' ''

Britney Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. An influential figur ...

'' (2001),

's debut solo album, '' Justified'' (2002), and

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...

's debut solo single, " Work It Out". In 2005, Marquart sold the Virginia Beach studio to the Neptunes. In 2015, Marquart bought

Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III (born June 6, 1959) and Terry Steven Lewis (born November 24, 1956) are an American R&B/ pop songwriting and record production team. Their productions have received commercial success since the 1980s with var ...

' Flyte Tyme West studio complex in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

to create a new Windmark Recording, with his daughter Samantha managing the studio and his son Mikey helping with operations. Windmark's Santa Monica studio recorded many notable musical artists, including

, YG,

, and

. ^] In 2021, Marquart sold Windmark Recording to

music executive A music executive or record executive is a person within a music company, in particular, a record label who works in senior management and makes executive decisions over the label's artists. Their role varies greatly but in essence, they can over ...

and Encore Recordings founder

A Bad Think

In the mid 2000s, Marquart founded the musical project A Bad Think. The project's self-titled debut album was released in 2006, and earned a nomination for Best Rock Album of the Year at the ''Hollywood Music Awards''. Marquart released the second A Bad Think album, ''Simple Rhymes'', in 2009 followed by ''Sara Lee'' (2010), ''Medicine'' (2012), ''Sleep'' (2014), and ''Don't Forget Us'' (2015). A Bad Think's seventh studio album, released in 2016, is ''The Tragic End of a Dreamer'', which blends diverse musical genres ranging from

ambient Ambient or ambiance or ambience may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Ambiancé'', an unreleased experimental film * ''Ambient'' (novel), a novel by Jack Womack Music and sound * Ambience (sound recording), also known as atmospheres or backgr ...

Southern rock Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music and a genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country and blues, and is focused generally on electric guitars and vocals. History 1950s and 1960s: origin ...

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

, and

New Age music New-age is a genre of music intended to create artistic inspiration, relaxation, and optimism. It is used by listeners for yoga, massage, meditation, and reading as a method of stress management to bring about a state of ecstasy rather than tra ...

. The album features Paul Bryan (bass),

(pedal steel guitar),

(singer), and

(composer). ''The Savior'', released in April 2019, includes the single "Feel Me." In November 2019, the album received a

Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

nomination for

Best Immersive Audio Album The Grammy Award for Best Immersive Audio Album (until 2018: ''Best Surround Sound Album'') was first awarded in 2005, as the first category in a new "Surround Sound" field. This field currently holds the Best Immersive Audio Album award as its ...

. The release of ''Lifelike'' (2021) was accompanied by a 20-minute documentary, ''Lifelike: The Making of An Album in

Dolby Atmos Dolby Atmos is a surround sound technology developed by Dolby Laboratories. It expands on existing surround sound systems by adding height channels as well as free-moving sound objects, interpreted as three-dimensional objects with neither horiz ...

''. A Bad Think's tenth studio album, ''X'', was released August 19, 2022 in Dolby Atmos. Produced by

Dave Way Dave Way is a Grammy Award winning American producer, mixer and audio engineer based in Los Angeles, California, United States. He has worked with Fiona Apple, Sheryl Crow, Kesha, Pink, Iron And Wine, Fall Out Boy, Al Green, 21 Pilots, Yebba, Vic ...

, ''X'' was the project's first release mixed by

Bob Clearmountain Bob Clearmountain (born Chiaramonte, January 15, 1953) is an American mixing engineer and record producer, best known for his work with major acts, including Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Roxy Music, Pretenders, and Bryan A ...

in Dolby Atmos and stereo. In 2023, Marquart collaborated with drummer

Matt Chamberlain Matthew Chamberlain (born April 17, 1967) is an American session drummer, record producer and songwriter. He has played with various artists, including Pearl Jam, Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, David Bowie, Tori Amos, Morrissey, The Wallflow ...

, bass player Dan Rothchild, guitarist Kirk Hellie, keyboardist Phil Shenale and other musicians to record ''Short St.''. Marquart, Clearmountain, and Way reunited to create, mix and produce the album in Dolby Atmos and stereo. On May 10, 2024, Marquart released A Bad Think's album, ''Cottonwood'', in Dolby Atmos on all streaming platforms and ImmersiveAudioAlbum.com.

Discography

*''Screwtop Wine'' (1995) *''A Bad Think'' (2006) *''Simple Rhymes'' (2009) *''Sara Lee'' (2010) *''Medicine'' (2012) *''Sleep'' (2014) *''Don't Forget Us'' (2015) *''The Tragic End of a Dreamer'' (2016) *''The Savior'' (2019) *''Lifelike'' (2021) *''X'' (2022) *''Short St.'' (2023) *Cottonwood (2024)

Personal life

Marquart is married to Winnie Johnson-Marquart. Together, they have a son and a daughter, Samantha, with whom Marquart co-founded Windmark Recording's Santa Monica location in 2015. Marquart currently spends half his time living and working in Los Angeles, California, and the other half in Virginia Beach, Virginia. His home studio in

Malibu, California Malibu ( ; ; ) is a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, about west of downtown Los Angeles. It is known for its Mediterranean climate, its strip of beaches stretching along the Pacific Ocean coa ...

is called "The Barn". Constructed using wood salvaged from the

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre and Urban park, public park in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in the United States by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018 and was listed on ...

, originally constructed in the 1920s, The Barn was recognized with the ''Outstanding Creative Achievement – Studio Design Project'' award at the ''33rd NAMM TEC Awards''.

References

External links

* *
Michael Marquart Interview
at NAMM Oral History Library (2021) {{DEFAULTSORT:Marquart, Michael American male singer-songwriters American multi-instrumentalists American rock guitarists Living people Record producers from Wisconsin A Flock of Seagulls members

Early life and career

Windmark Recording

A Bad Think

Discography

Personal life

See also

References

External links