Peter Michael Sullivan (28 September 1933 – 17 November 2020) was a British record producer, active mostly during the 1960s, and most often associated with records by

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer *Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...

and Engelbert Humperdinck.

Biography

By the late 1950s, Sullivan was working at the

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...

as assistant to producer

Wally Ridley Walter John Ridley (28 February 1913 – 23 January 2007) was a British record producer and songwriter. Primarily associated with traditional pop music especially in the 1950s, he produced hit records by Alma Cogan, Max Bygraves, Ronnie Hilton ...

. Ridley allowed Sullivan to take charge of

recording session A studio recording, or a recording session is any recording made in a studio, as opposed to a live recording, which is usually made in a concert venue or a theatre, with an audience attending the performance. Studio cast recordings In the case o ...

s by a

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

group,

Johnny Kidd and the Pirates Johnny Kidd & the Pirates (known simply as The Pirates after their reunion) were an English rock band led by singer/songwriter Johnny Kidd. Their musical journey spanned the late 1950s to the mid-1960s, during which they achieved considerabl ...

, in 1960, and, working with engineer Malcolm Addey, Sullivan produced "

Shakin' All Over "Shakin' All Over" is a song originally performed by Johnny Kidd & the Pirates. It was written by leader Johnny Kidd, and his original recording reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in August 1960. The song is sometimes credited to Frederi ...

", which became a hit single in the UK. Sullivan left HMV in 1962 and joined

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

as a producer. There, he produced records by

Kathy Kirby Kathy Kirby (born Catherine Ethel O'Rourke; 20 October 1938 – 20 May 2011) was an English singer. She is best known for her cover version of Doris Day's " Secret Love" and for representing the United Kingdom in the 1965 Eurovision Song C ...

Lee Curtis and the All-Stars Lee Curtis and the All-Stars were an English beat group from Liverpool. They were contemporaries and briefly local rivals of the Beatles in the early 1960s. Led by Peter Flannery, who used the stage name Lee Curtis, other group members includ ...

, and Bern Elliott and the Fenmen, before discovering Scottish singer

Lulu Lulu may refer to: Companies * LuLu, an early automobile manufacturer * Lulu.com, an online e-books and print self-publishing platform, distributor, and retailer * Lulu Hypermarket, a retail chain in Asia * Lululemon Athletica or simply Lulu, a C ...

and producing her debut hit " Shout". Although the details of their first contact are disputed, Sullivan was also one of the first to recognise the recording potential of Welsh singer

, then known as Tommy Scott. In late 1964, Sullivan produced Tom Jones' single, "

It's Not Unusual "It's Not Unusual" is a song written by Les Reed and Gordon Mills, first recorded by a then-unknown Tom Jones, after it had first been offered to Sandie Shaw. He intended it as a demo for her, but when she heard it she was so impressed with ...

", insisting that a

brass section The brass section of the orchestra, concert band, and jazz ensemble consist of brass instruments, and is one of the main sections in all three ensembles. The British brass band, British-style brass band contains only brass and percussion instrume ...

be used in the arrangement. The song became a number one hit on the UK Singles Chart in March 1965, launching Jones' career. Sullivan continued to produce Tom Jones' records in the 1960s, including "

What's New Pussycat? ''What's New Pussycat?'' is a 1965 screwball comedy film directed by Clive Donner, written by Woody Allen in his first produced screenplay, and starring Allen in his acting debut, along with Peter Sellers, Peter O'Toole, Romy Schneider, Capuc ...

", "

Green, Green Grass of Home "Green, Green Grass of Home", written by Claude "Curly" Putman Jr., and first recorded by singer Johnny Darrell in 1965, is a country song made popular by Porter Wagoner the same year, when it reached No. 4 on the Country chart. It was also re ...

", and "

Delilah Delilah ( ; , meaning "delicate";Gesenius's ''Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon'' ; ) is a woman mentioned in the sixteenth chapter of the Book of Judges in the Hebrew Bible. She is loved by Samson, a Nazirite who possesses great strength and serves as t ...

". He also produced the UK number one hit by Engelbert Humperdinck, "

The Last Waltz ''The Last Waltz'' was a concert by the Canadian-American rock group the Band, held on American Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. ''The Last Waltz'' was advertised as the Band's "farewell concert a ...

", and records by

Solomon King Solomon King (born Allen Verner Levy; August 13, 1930 – January 20, 2005) was an American 1960s and 1970s popular music singer. He is best remembered for his 1968 British hit single, "She Wears My Ring", which charted in 40 countries. Ear ...

Jim Capaldi Nicola James Capaldi (2 August 1944 – 28 January 2005) was an English singer-songwriter and drummer. His musical career spanned more than four decades. He co-founded the progressive rock band Traffic in 1967 with Steve Winwood with whom he c ...

, and

Demis Roussos Artemios "Demis" Ventouris-Roussos ( ; , ; 15 June 1946 – 25 January 2015) was a Greek-Egyptian singer, songwriter and musician. As a band member, he is best remembered for his work in the progressive rock music act Aphrodite's Child, but as a ...

, among others. Decca Records - U.K. Singles Discography (1963-1969), ''Sixties Beat''
Retrieved 29 April 2019 Peter Sullivan, ''45cat.com''
Retrieved 29 April 2019 In 1965, together with

George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the "fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the Beatle ...

, Ron Richards and John Burgess of EMI, Sullivan helped set up

Associated Independent Recording Associated Independent Recording (AIR) is an independent recording company founded in London in 1965 by record producers George Martin, John Burgess (record producer), John Burgess, Ron Richards (producer), Ron Richards, and Peter Sullivan (rec ...

(AIR), one of the earliest independent record production companies. George Martin commented in 1971: "I know I could not make records as well as Peter Sullivan in his particular field–every one of Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdinck’s records required a special skill that he had. Equally, I know he could not have coped with the Beatles. We are complementary. We give each other something the other lacks and needs and, most important of all, we like each other." Sullivan later lived and worked as a music consultant and record producer in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

.
He died in November 2020 from leukaemia, at the age of 87.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, Peter 1933 births 2020 deaths British record producers