JS : Welcome to Old Mill Road Recording , Josiah ! Let ’ s start at the beginning . Where were you born ?
JG : I was born and raised in Manhattan . I grew up about six blocks from where I live now , right by Riverside Park . That ’ s where my kids go sledding or play in the playgrounds , and where I take my dog , Leonardo , in the mornings , and have him run around all in the same place . I like to say my life is like a John Irving novel . I ’ m right back where I started .
JS : Were your parents musically inclined ?
JG : My mom could play a little bit of piano , and they both really appreciated music . I ’ m the byproduct , for better or worse , of two college professors with doctoral degrees from Columbia University . They met as students there and stayed in the neighborhood , and that ’ s where me , my twin brother , and my younger brother were born and raised . But I went to concerts and theater , and I had a lot of exposure to many of the cultural offerings of New York City growing up .
JS : You ended up attending Johns Hopkins University , where you earned a B . A . in Humanities and Art History . How did you end up going from general humanities and art history into the music industry ?
JG : I ’ ve always been interested in and just fascinated with technology : Audio technology , movie projectors , radios , tape recorders , TVs , and things like that . I always loved gadgetry . I played around with things in high school , and even before then , I was trying to figure out how things worked . When I ultimately got to college , there was a radio station , and I had the opportunity to work with equipment , to learn from a lot of people , and to learn from my mistakes . I was fortunate to be able to take a couple of classes — very informal stuff — at the Peabody Conservatory of Music , which is in Baltimore , and is now part of Hopkins . Back then , it wasn ’ t . Between my junior and senior years , I lucked into a job at a studio as an apprentice . I was barely an assistant . I was emptying ashtrays and hoping they didn ’ t screw up the lunch order that I called in , because I would be the one that got blamed for that . I met some people that I still am in touch with now , and I finished up college . I didn ’ t land a job at that studio after college , but there was a studio up the block that they recommended . And I just walked in , and I got hired on the spot as an assistant . About three months into working there , my boss , who was the chief engineer and owner , got up out of his chair and just walked out of the room . I thought , “ Well , I guess I should just sit down and keep going .” The various artists in the room were great musicians like Rob Mounsey , Jeremy Wall , and this Japanese sax player named “ Sleepy ” Matsumoto . They were like , “ All right — now Josiah is doing this .” It was just one of those things . Like I tell people , if you are handed an opportunity , try your best to run with it and not drop the ball . That ’ s how a lot of it happened for me . You have to take the initiative .
JS : One of the things that you have to learn when you are starting off is when to lead and when to follow — and how to read the room . What were some of the other early lessons that you learned that helped you in terms of advancing your skills as an engineer , as well as your understanding of how to work with artists ?
JG : This fellow , Jack Malken , who ran Secret Sound , used to say , “ When you ’ re sitting behind the console , you ’ re 1 / 3 technician , 1 / 3 musician , 1 / 3 politician .”
JS : I like that .
JG : That ’ s the three-cornered hat that you ’ re wearing . I teach that phrase to every newbie I work with , and I always say , “ I can teach you the technical stuff you need to know , but bedside manner , being aware of what ’ s going on , reading the room , and all of those things , that has to come from you .”
JS : We ’ re going to talk about your career within the music industry in general , but you ’ ve been with Saturday Night Live for over 30 years . Correct ?
JG : This is my 32nd season there .
JS : How did the job come about ?
JG : It came about through another show called Night Music , or Sunday Night , which was hosted by Jools Holland and David Sanborn , who just passed away . The show was kind of SNL turned inside out , in that it was mostly music , maybe a little talk or sketch piece . It was an hour long , and it was on tape , so there was still the same amount of craziness and pressure and whatnot , but it was produced through Broadway Video , and Lorne Michaels was the Executive Producer on it . And there was a lot of cross-pollination between the SNL crew and Night Music . Unbeknownst to me , there were a couple of people who had talked me up to this gentleman , Stacey Foster . He hired me for Night Music . He was an editor at Broadway Video before he became
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