Worship Musician Magazine May 2021 | Page 135

in New York , and his mentor was none other than the nuclear-physicist-turned-recording engineer , Tom Dowd ! Check him out ...
I ' m so thankful that I got to know Al and to be able to share the impact he ' s had on the world as a person and a music producer / engineer . I was able to sign Al to a book deal for his autobiography , Al Schmitt on the Record : The Magic Behind the Music for Hal Leonard . We paired Al with his dear friend , Maureen Droney ( Executive Director of The Recording Academy P & E Wing ), to help capture his life story in print . And , I was able to help Al write his other book entitled , Al Schmitt on Vocal and Instrumental Recording Techniques . I ' ve been working on new content with Al and a group of his METAlliance contemporaries : Chuck Ainlay , Niko Bolas , Frank Filipetti , George Massenburg , and Elliot Scheiner . Working so closely in the publishing and music worlds , you can ' t help but get close to those who share the same passion as you .
Al simply did not slow down . He was as sharp and vibrant the day he died as he was 20 years ago .
I feel so fortunate to be able to testify to the fact
that Al Schmitt was a tremendously important
professional and a truly genuine and caring
With 20 Grammy Awards , 2 Latin Grammy Awards , and a Lifetime Achievement Grammy from the Recording Academy Trustees in 2006 , Al was the most highly awarded music engineer . He also was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2014 where the President / CEO of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce designated August 13 as “ Al Schmitt Day ” in Hollywood .
Al Schmitt lives on through a lifetime of musical creation at the highest level ! Such a personal and professional inspiration might not come along again in the music world . With Al ’ s passing , there ’ s a rip in the fabric of music . I feel so fortunate to have worked with Al and to have been able to call him my friend !
Al ' s profound love for all animals tells you everything about his kind and loving heart . He was a caring and loyal friend . And , his love for his wife , Lisa , seemed boundless !
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Al was an anomaly . When he was seven years old , he started taking the subway into midtown Manhattan by himself , every weekend , to hang out with his uncle Harry , who was a successful studio owner ( Harry Smith Recording at 2 W . 46th ). He helped set up and clean up around the studio for sessions with artists like Art Tatum , Bing Crosby , the Andrew Sisters , Kate Smith , Orson Wells , and on and on . It is particularly interesting that Harry Smith Recording was the first studio to open in NYC , so Al was the first seven-year-old kid to even have a chance to grow up in a studio . Les Paul was uncle Harry ' s best friend , was at the studio every weekend , and was like an uncle to Al . These were Al ' s musical , professional , and personal influences who helped him learn the studio ropes until he went into the Navy at the age of 17 .
After getting out of the Navy as a cryptologist , Al got his first gig at Apex Recording Studios
person . And here is further testimony from a
Young Al Schmitt with his sister , Doris .
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