The JB List | Producer Bob Ezrin’s Greatest Hits

We originally ran this piece on producer Bob Ezrin back in November, but with the Ezrin-produced Fuego album by Phish due in a little more than a week, we figured it was time for a refresher on the man behind the boards of the LP.

Early this week Phish departed Atlantic City, where they finished an extremely successful fall tour, to head to Nashville. The band is currently in the studio with famed producer Bob Ezrin to lay down tracks from an album due next year tentatively titled Wingsuit. (ed. note –Wingsuit is now Fuego)

The Vermonters debuted 12 tracks under consideration for Wingsuit on Halloween in Atlantic City as this year’s “musical costume.” As per the Playbill that was handed out to fans, the band wanted to play the new songs to “get them dirty and mess them up a little before we record them.” One of the many surprises revealed on Halloween night is that Ezrin would produce the new Phish album. Bob Ezrin has a storied career in the music industry and we wanted to detail a number of his greatest efforts for this week’s B List.

Pink Floyd -The Wall

Yes, Ezrin co-produced one of the greatest albums in the history of rock with James Guthrie, David Gilmour and Roger Waters. Floyd’s eleventh album was released as a double-LP on November 30, 1979 and contains much-beloved songs such as “Comfortably Numb,” “Mother” and “Young Lust.” The album stemmed from a conversation Waters had with Ezrin and one of Ezrin’s friends at the end of the In The Flesh Tour about how Rog was feeling alienated on tour. The Wall sold over 23 million units in the 20th Century.

Alice Cooper -School’s Out

Cooper once referred to Ezrin as “our George Martin” as the producer lent his talents to a number of Alice’s studio works. School’s Out, released in 1972, is among Cooper’s greatest albums and the title track is still a staple of classic rock radio to this day.

Peter Gabriel -Peter Gabriel

When Peter Gabriel left Genesis he teamed with Ezrin to create his first solo album. Bob not only produced the album, which includes the autobiographical “Solsbury Hill,” but he also helped put together the team of musicians who perform on the album such as Robert Fripp and Tony Levin.

KISS -Destroyer

Following the massive success of KISS’s Alive live album, the band paired up with Bob Ezrin to create their fourth studio album –Destroyer. Bob helped the band create their first platinum album which contains such classic rock radio staples as “Detroit Rock City,” “Shout It Out Loud” and “Beth.”

Nine Inch Nails -The Fragile

While Ezrin didn’t actually produce Nine Inch Nails’ 1999 studio album The Fragile, he was brought in by front man Trent Reznor to provide “final continuity and flow.” The album went on to take Album Of The Year honors from SPIN and hit the charts at #1.

Lou Reed -Berlin

Lou Reed wanted to go in a totally different direction with his music following the commercial success of 1972’s Transformer LP. Ezrin produced 1973’s Berlin, which is a tragic rock opera that discusses many hard-hitting themes. Bob employed the use of many additional musicians such as an orchestra and horn section that are very “un-Lou-like.” The album scored the 344 slot on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums Of All-Time.

Pink Floyd -Momentary Lapse Of Reason

Ezrin and David Gilmour produced the first Pink Floyd album after the departure of Roger Waters. The 1987 release was recorded mainly on Gilmour’s house boat and has achieved quadruple platinum sales here in the U.S. “Learning To Fly” and “On The Turning Away” stand as the best material to come off the album.