Shel Talmy was born on August 11 1937 in Chicago. From an early age he had an interest in music and how it was made. He was 13 years old when he appeared on the television version of Quiz Kids. After graduating high school Shel Talmy worked for ABC Television for a brief time. Afterwards he began working at Conway Studios Los Angeles, where he learned to use three-track recording equipment. He produced his first single after only three days at Conway Studios Los Angeles, "Falling Star" by Debbie Sharron. He also worked with the surf band The Marketts, The Castells, and Rene Hall and Bumps Blackwell.
It was in the summer of 1962 that Shel Talmy went to the United Kingdom for what was supposed to be a five-week vacation. He took only a small amount of money with him and he thought he might earn more as an independent music producer while he was on vacation. He signed to Decca Records, where he produced such acts as The Bachelors and Chad & Jeremy.
It was in 1964 that Shel Talmy produced what would be his breakthrough single, "You Really Got Me" by The Kinks. The song went to no. 1 in the United Kingdom and no. 7 in the United States. It also proved to be highly influential. Shel Talmy would produce several more songs for The Kinks, including their hits "All Day and All of the Night," "Tired of Waiting for You," "Till the End of the Day," "Dedicated Follower of Fashion," "Sunny Afternoon," and "Waterloo Sunset."
The Kinks' song "You Really Got Me" so impressed Pete Townshend of a band called The High Numbers that it inspired his song 'I Can't Explain." He played the song for Shel Talmy in hopes that he would produce it. Shel Talmy agreed and it became the first song he produced for The Who, as The High Numbers became known. "I Can't Explain" proved to be The Who's first hit in the United Kingdom, going to no. 8 on the singles chart. He also produced their next hit, "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere," which also hit the top ten of the British singles chart. Shel Talmy went onto produce The Who's singles "My Generation," "A Legal Matter," "The Kids Are Alright," and "La La La Lies." He also produced The Who's debut album, My Generation.
Shel Talmy would also produce the hit singles "Friday on My Mind" by The Easybeats, "Just Like a Woman" by Manfred Mann, "A Summer Song" by Chad & Jeremy, and "(If Paradise) Is Half as Nice" by Amen Corner. While in Britain he produced songs for such other artists as David Bowie, The Creation, Roy Harper, Pentangle, The Fortunes, and many others. He was also part of the music department of the horror movie Scream and Scream Again (1970).
By the early Seventies Shel Talmy was producing fewer records. During the Seventies he would still do some remarkable work as a music producer, producing records, for Follow the Buffalo, The Damned, Eddie Phillips, Small Faces, Ralph McTell, and Band of Joy. Shel Talmy returned to the United States in 1979. Although he worked less on producing records, he still served as a producer for such artists as Sorrows, Jon and the Nightriders,and Fuzztones. He more recently produced records for Hidden Charms and Strangers in a Strange Land.
Shel Talmy was quite simply a music legend. He was a pivotal figure in the British Invasion, producing some of its best known songs, from "You Really Got Me" to "My Generation" to "A Summer Song." He also played an important role in the careers of The Kinks and The Who. Arguably he was essential to the development of the subgenre power pop having produced such songs as "You Really Got Me" and "I Can't Explain." While perhaps best known for the work he did with such rock artists as The Kinks, The Who, and The Creation, he also worked in other genres. He produced songs for the folk group Pentangle and folk rock artist Roy Harper. Shel Talmy had an enormous impact on music that will continue to be felt for years to come.
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