I did the interview with Blake Mills here at your house last summer. It was great to meet him. I think I missed you by a little bit.
They're like my two other sons.
Blake and Shawn Everett?
Yeah. Blake has been coming here every day for 14 years, since he was 16 years old. Shawn knocked on my door 11 years ago and said, "I just moved here from Canada today. In case you need an engineer, here I am." So we went into my studio. I just liked him immediately. He was the most charming, irresistible guy. I said, "I'm starting a Pete Yorn album. Come by tomorrow." And he was here every day for ten years. What a talent. I mean, the two of them. In fact, Blake is so much like my son, he lives with my daughter. They are two really exceptional guys.
They're making some great records in an era where people aren't necessarily making those kind of immersive albums anymore.
Their standards are very high. Their expectations are very high. I would even say the two of them occupy a very lofty place, in terms of their combination of ability and vision. They're really gifted guys.
Obviously with Shawn and Blake you've taken on this mentor role. Is that something you've done with other people?
A lot of people.
You seem to enjoy that.
I love it more than I can say. I've had this room for 31 years. The people who have been my assistants or engineers have stayed in my life; one of them was a young guy who moved out here from Las Vegas almost 30 years ago. He had no real skills, but he was a wonderful guy with great taste and ambition. He used to do remixes of everything we would do every night. Initially they were quite awful. They got better and better, and then they got really good. I took a job at a record company, so I closed down the studio for a year. He called me one day and said, "You know, I got this call. This little company wants to release my music. Would you read this contract and go through it with me?" I did, and he became the biggest electronic artist in America, with a band called The Crystal Method. That was Ken Jordan, and he was here for four or five years. Joey Waronker was here for a while; a wonderful guy. Jonathan Melvoin, tragically his story ended badly, but he was here for a while. Susan Rogers [Tape Op #117] was my engineer for many years.
We just interviewed her!
I love Susan. She is an extraordinary talent with an extraordinary mind. How lucky was I to meet her! There are some other people… that's a long-winded answer to your question. Yes, I love that role. Someone did that for me very early on, a guy named Jack Nitzsche. I was very lucky when I was in my early twenties to spend every day with Jack, for three or four years. I understand the value of that role.
Was that as a player with Jack, or an engineer?
As a guitarist, an arranger, and kind of a presence. He was extremely generous to me. Jack might be the great unsung hero of the rock age. His contribution is mighty.
He was a legend.
He was a nut, but I just loved him. And he introduced me to so many people, and to such great music.
You started the studio, Zeitgeist, 31 years ago. You were one of the first people to build a studio in your house in Hollywood back then.
I remember when I put it up, there were about seven of us that I knew of. Michael Boddicker, Steve Vai, and, shortly thereafter, Jeff Porcaro, and Chas Sandford, plus one or two other guys. Unfortunately, one of us, who will remain nameless, made the mistake of printing color brochures for his home studio and leaving them in big studios to solicit work. To which the association of studios in town said, "Fuck this," and shut down the home studios. But one guy was very kind to me, as well as helpful and protective. That was Allen Sides [Tape Op #106], from whom I initially bought my equipment to build my studio. He was just as kind to me as a guy could be. I worked without interruption – I was lucky.
I remember reading about that home studio crackdown. You managed to stay under the radar?
I'll tell you what, I never rented my studio out. It was always my own. In fact, I think the only person I've ever rented it out to, if you can use that phrase, is Blake. He and Shawn continued to do projects here. They just finished a great album with Perfume Genius here. I was careful. The reason I built this room was to watch my kids grow up. I used to comp Johnny Rotten vocals with my two-year-old daughter, Z, in my lap. Alex, who's a professional artist now, had her first exposure to art with Edie Brickell scribbling on the console.
Some of your early success as a producer was with Michael Penn?
