WCA #330 with Bill Schnee - Love of Radio, Grammy’s, Dad Jokes, Faith, The R Word, and The Chairman at the Board

Working Class Audio

My guest today is Bill Schnee who is an internationally renowned producer, engineer, and mix master. He has over 125 Gold and Platinum records and 50 top twenty singles and is known as an engineer’s engineer. Bill has worked on dozens of Grammy-nominated and winning albums, and has been personally nominated 11 times for The Best Engineered Album category, winning twice for Steely Dan’s Aja and Gaucho. He also has won an Emmy Award for Best Sound Mixing for a Variety Special and a Dove Award. In his 50+ year career, Bill has found success in every musical genre, from Pop to Rock to R&B to Gospel to Country. Bill talks to us from Blackbird Studios in Nashville where we have a great conversation I think you’ll enjoy.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Growing up In Phoenix
• Love of Radio
• Early Record Deal
• Quitting College
• Law School
• Parents Approval
• San Francisco
• Discovering Audio
• Working with Hired Guns
• Keeping Musicians Happy
• Recording Drums
• Working with Singers
• High Profile Artists
• Shyness
• Faith
• Peers
• AL Schmitt
• The Gift of Balancing
• Putting Family First
• Disagreements
• Differences in Record Making
• Nashville vs. Los Angeles
• Money Management
• Chairman at the Board
• Grammy’s and Dad Jokes
• Records That Don’t Get Promoted
• The R Word

Matt's Rant: Expanding your DAW skills

Links and Show Notes

• Bill's Site: https://www.billschnee.com/
• Bill's Book: https://amzn.to/326cjBj
• WCA on Instagram: @working_class_audio
• Go Ad-Free! https://glow.fm/workingclassaudio/
• Connect with Matt on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattboudreau/
• Current sponsors & promos: https://bit.ly/2WmKbFw
• Working Class Audio Journal: https://amzn.to/2GN67TP

Credits:

• Guest: Bill Schnee
• Host: Matt Boudreau
• WCA Theme Music: Cliff Truesdell
• Announcer: Chuck Smith
• Editing: Anne-Marie Pleau & Matt Boudreau
• Additional Music: The License Lab