VAN HALEN Rising Author GREG RENOFF Talk's Band's Transition From Sunset Sound To 5150 Studios, Why 1984 "Is Such A Good Album"
July 19, 2021, 3 years ago
The clip below features Van Halen / Ted Templeman author Greg Renoff discussing the band moving to Eddie Van Halen's home studio to record and how, with no time limitations, they could work on the 1984 album longer. Greg also discusses producer Ted Templeman's thoughts, feelings and worries when moving to the home studio after tracking five albums at Sunset Sound.
In an April 2020 episode of the 80’s Glam Metalcast, author Greg Renoff talked about his new book, Ted Templeman - A Platinum Producer's Life In Music. The book is a great read for all music buffs, with classic stories of Templemans’s work with bands like Van Halen, Aerosmith and the BulletBoys.
During the interview, found below, Renoff reveals:
- Templeman’s favorite Van Halen song is “Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love”. He sees it as the definitive Van Halen song.
- Templeman didn’t think “Jump” would fit with Van Halen’s catalogue at first. He thought it was too keyboard-driven and too much of a left turn for the band.
- Templeman hated the idea of Van Halen breaking up. He did everything in his power to stop it from happening. Even though he thought there was no of replacing the original Van Halen, he thought it was amazing to work with the Eat 'Em and Smile Band. He thought the musicianship was off the charts.
- Templeman’s sister pushed him to go check out the BulletBoys. He was impressed and got them signed to Warner Brothers. To this day, he is very proud of the mix and big powerful sound of that album.
Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer’s Life In Music takes us into the studio during the recording sessions for the biggest songs of his career, including #1 hits like “Black Water” by the Doobie Brothers and “Jump” by Van Halen. Along the way, Ted recounts the behind-the-scenes dramas that engulfed both massively successful acts, as well as the inner workings of his professional and personal relationships with some of the most talented and successful artists in rock music history, including Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Eric Clapton, Lowell George of Little Feat, Sammy Hagar, Michael McDonald, Linda Ronstadt, Carly Simon, and David Lee Roth and Edward Van Halen of Van Halen.
Ted Templeman is a Grammy-winning producer whose hitmaking work for Warner Bros. Records has generated worldwide sales approaching 100 million albums.
Greg Renoff was born in the Bronx, grew up in New Jersey, and now lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He is the author of Van Halen Rising: How a Southern California Backyard Party Band Saved Heavy Metal. His writing has appeared in Guitar World, LA Weekly, and Vulture, and he and his work have been profiled in Salon, Maxim, and the Boston Herald.