Milton Theodore Okun (December 23, 1923 – November 15, 2016) was an American

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestra ...

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Music * Conductor (music), a person who leads a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra. * ''Conductor'' (album), an album by indie rock band The Comas * Conduction, a type of structured free improvisation ...

, singer and founder of Cherry Lane Music Publishing Company, Inc. Okun transformed the careers of a dozen or more major U.S. artists who under Okun's tutelage became some of the most successful musical acts of the

1950s The 1950s (pronounced nineteen-fifties; commonly abbreviated as the "Fifties" or the " '50s") (among other variants) was a decade that began on January 1, 1950, and ended on December 31, 1959. Throughout the decade, the world continued its re ...

1960s File:1960s montage.png, Clockwise from top left: U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War; the Beatles led the British Invasion of the U.S. music market; a half-a-million people participate in the 1969 Woodstock Festival; Neil Armstrong and Bu ...

, and

1970s File:1970s decade montage.jpg, Clockwise from top left: President of the United States, U.S. President Richard Nixon doing the V sign#The V for Victory campaign and the victory-freedom sign, V for Victory sign after his resignation from office fo ...

. A special on PBS alludes to Okun as one of the most influential music producers in history. His career lasted over 50 years, from the folk revival to the twenty-first century. He created arrangements or produced for many popular groups and artists such as

Peter, Paul and Mary Peter, Paul and Mary was an American folk group formed in New York City in 1961 during the American folk music revival phenomenon. The trio consisted of tenor Peter Yarrow, baritone Paul Stookey, and contralto Mary Travers. The group's repe ...

;Ramone, Phil; Granata, Charles L. (2007). ''Making records: the scenes behind the music.'' Hyperion, The

Chad Mitchell Trio The Chad Mitchell Trio, later known as The Mitchell Trio, were an American vocal group who became known during the 1960s. They performed traditional folk songs and some of John Denver's early compositions. They were particularly notable for perf ...

; The Brothers Four;

John Denver Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor, activist, and humanitarian whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singe ...

; and

Miriam Makeba Zenzile Miriam Makeba (4 March 1932 – 9 November 2008), nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, songwriter, actress, and civil rights activist. Associated with musical genres including Afropop, jazz, and world music, she w ...

.Bronson, Fred (2003). ''The Billboard book of number 1 hits,'' Billboard Books, In 1968 he interviewed many American folksingers and published the songs they chose in ''Something to Sing About!''Okun, Milt (1968). ''Something to sing about: the personal choices of America's folk singers.'' Macmillan Company, At the height of Okun's career, a critic wrote, "Of all producers, Milton Okun's range is the widest, from

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, Conducting, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded Plácido Domingo discography, over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, ...

to the Muppets." Conductor for

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an internat ...

, arranger and producer of Peter, Paul and Mary, the man who brought John Denver to stardom and produced his most loved hits, Okun also founded Cherry Lane Music, the music publishing company for Elvis and DreamWorks among many other household names. Okun died on November 15, 2016, at the age of 92.

Honors

In 2008, Okun won the Abe Olman Publisher Award at the

Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the he ...

ceremony. Milton T. Okun published his memoir, ''

Along the Cherry Lane Milton Theodore Okun (December 23, 1923 – November 15, 2016) was an American arranger, record producer, conductor, singer and founder of Cherry Lane Music Publishing Company, Inc. Okun transformed the careers of a dozen or more major U.S. a ...

'', on June 13, 2011.

Discography

Okun was part of the folk quartet

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and also recorded several albums of his own in the 1950s. *''Natural Acoustic band (1971) learning to live and Branching in RCA Every Inch a Sailor'' (Stinson SLP65) *''I Sing of Canada'' (Stinson SLP71) *''Adirondack Folk Songs And Ballads'' (Stinson SLP82) *''America's Best Loved Folk Songs'' (Baton BL 1203/Warwick 2011) *''Merry Ditties'' (Riverside RLP 12-603) *(with Ellen Stekert) ''Traditional American Love Songs'' (Riverside RLP 12-634) *''Goin’ Down to Town'' (Epic) by The Skifflers; later edited and re-released as ''Hootenanny with the Skifflers'' (Columbia HL7307) and ''Folk Songs'' (Perfect Records) *''Everybody Sing! Volume 3 – Songs for Seniors'' (Riverside RLP 1420)

Books

*1968: ''Something to Sing About: the personal choices of America's folk singers''. New York: Macmillan Company *''New York Times Great Songs of the Sixties'' (as editor) *''New York Times Great Songs of ABBA'' (as editor) *''Great Songs of the Seventies'' (as editor) *''New York Times Great Songs of Lennon and McCartney'' (as editor; also wrote introduction) *''The Compleat Beatles'' (as editor) *''Twin Peaks'' (as editor) *'' Along the Cherry Lane: Tales from the life of the music industry legend, producer, arranger, and publisher Milton Okun'' (as told to Richard Sparks) – 2011 :
Review
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BookHounds

References

External links

Milton Okun interview
via

Charlie Rose Charles Peete Rose Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American former television journalist and talk show host. From 1991 to 2017, he was the host and executive producer of the talk show '' Charlie Rose'' on PBS and Bloomberg LP. Rose also co- ...

Milt Okun via Cherry Lane Music Publishing Co., Inc.Milt Okun interview
via Artistshouse Music
Milt Okun Interview
NAMM Oral History Program (2006) {{DEFAULTSORT:Okun, Milt 1923 births 2016 deaths American conductors (music) American male conductors (music) American music arrangers Record producers from New York (state) 21st-century American memoirists Jewish American musicians John Denver Musicians from Brooklyn New York University alumni Oberlin College alumni Singers from New York City