The legends behind the sound

190 legends of recorded music: the engineers, producers, rooms, machines and happy accidents behind the sounds we still chase.

The engineers

• Walter Murch: Film editor and the first "sound designer"
• Tom Dowd: Atlantic Records engineer
• Glyn Johns: Engineer for the Stones, the Who, Led Zeppelin
• Bob Ludwig: Mastering engineer
• Geoff Emerick: Beatles engineer
• Rudy Van Gelder: Jazz engineer
• Bruce Swedien: Engineer for Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson
• Bob Clearmountain: Mix engineer
• Al Schmitt: Capitol Studios engineer
• Dave Pensado: Mix engineer and teacher
• Steve Albini: Recording engineer, Electrical Audio
• Eddie Kramer: Engineer for Jimi Hendrix
• King Tubby: Inventor of dub
• Scott Burns and Morrisound: Tampa, Florida
• Ben Burtt: Sound designer, Star Wars

The producers

• Tony Visconti and the Eventide H910: Producer, and the first Harmonizer
• Delia Derbyshire: BBC Radiophonic Workshop
• Wendy Carlos: Synthesist and composer
• Teo Macero: Columbia producer for Miles Davis
• Joe Meek: Independent producer, Holloway Road
• Conny Plank: Krautrock producer
• Rick Rubin: Producer, co-founder of Def Jam
• DJ Premier: Producer, Gang Starr
• The Bomb Squad: Hank Shocklee and Public Enemy
• Dr. Dre and G-Funk: Producer, The Chronic
• Lex Luger: Producer, Waka Flocka Flame and Rick Ross
• Zaytoven: Atlanta producer
• Young Chop and Drill: Chicago producer
• 808Melo: London producer
• Frankie Knuckles: The Godfather of House
• Larry Levan: Paradise Garage, New York
• Denniz PoP and Cheiron: Stockholm producer
• Seo Taiji and Boys: The start of modern K-pop
• Teddy Park: YG and The Black Label producer
• Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis: Flyte Tyme, Minneapolis
• Teddy Riley: Inventor of new jack swing
• Timbaland: Producer for Aaliyah and Missy Elliott
• Lee "Scratch" Perry: Black Ark studio, Kingston
• DJ Playero: San Juan mixtapes
• Luny Tunes: Producers of "Gasolina"
• Emilio Estefan: Miami producer
• Fela Kuti and Tony Allen: The makers of Afrobeat
• Don Jazzy: Mo' Hits and Mavin Records
• Thomas A. Dorsey: Father of gospel music
• T Bone Burnett and O Brother: Producer of the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack
• E.T. Mensah: The King of Highlife
• Wiley and Grime: East London producer
• Owen Bradley and Chet Atkins: The Nashville Sound
• Egyptian Lover: Uncle Jamm's Army, Los Angeles
• DJ Quik: Compton producer and rapper
• DJ Mustard: Los Angeles producer
• DJ Toomp and Shawty Redd: Atlanta producers
• SpaceGhostPurrp: Raider Klan, Miami
• King Sunny Adé: Jùjú bandleader
• Machito and Mario Bauzá: Afro-Cuban jazz
• Sergio George: Salsa producer
• A.B. Quintanilla III: Producer for Selena
• Lee Soo-man and SM: Founder of SM Entertainment
• Bang Si-hyuk: Founder of Big Hit
• Park Jin-young: Founder of JYP Entertainment
• El General: Spanish reggae from Panama
• Tainy: Puerto Rican producer
• Sly & Robbie: The Riddim Twins
• Chris Blackwell: Founder of Island Records
• Marshall Jefferson: Chicago house producer
• Larry Heard: Mr. Fingers, Chicago
• The Belleville Three: Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson
• Madlib: Stones Throw producer
• Giggs and Road Rap: Peckham, South London
• Axl Beats and Brooklyn Drill: London producer
• DJ Spanish Fly: Memphis tape pioneer
• J Dilla: Detroit producer
• Nujabes: Tokyo producer

The gear

• Rupert Neve: Console and preamp designer
• The Teletronix LA-2A: Optical leveling amplifier, designed by Jim Lawrence
• Bill Putnam: Engineer, studio builder, father of the modern console
• The 1176 Limiter: FET limiter by Bill Putnam
• The Fairchild 670: Variable-mu tube limiter, designed by Rein Narma
• The Pultec EQP-1A: Passive tube EQ by Pulse Techniques
• The SSL 4000 Console: Solid State Logic, founded by Colin Sanders
• Saul Walker and API: Designer of the 2520 op-amp and the 550 EQ
• Georg Neumann and the U47: Microphone maker
• Ernie Seeler and the SM57/SM58: Shure engineer
• The Shure SM7: Broadcast dynamic microphone
• The Electro-Voice RE20: Broadcast dynamic microphone
• The Roland TR-808: Drum machine, a commercial flop that took over
• The Roland TR-909: Drum machine, led by Tadao Kikumoto
• The E-mu SP-1200: Sampling drum machine
• The Fairlight CMI: Sampler by Peter Vogel and Kim Ryrie
• The Yamaha DX7: FM synthesizer
• Bob Orban and the Optimod: Broadcast processor designer
• The Technics SL-1200: Turntable
• The EMT 140 Plate: Plate reverb, EMT of Germany
• The Lexicon 224: Digital reverb, algorithms by David Griesinger
• The TASCAM Portastudio: Four-track cassette recorder

The inventions

• Harry F. Olson and the RCA 44: RCA engineer, ribbon microphone pioneer
• Don Leslie: Inventor of the rotating speaker
• Bob Moog: Synthesizer pioneer
• Roger Linn: Drum machine and MPC designer
• Ray Dolby: Inventor of Dolby noise reduction
• Alan Blumlein: EMI engineer, inventor of stereo
• Harvey Fletcher and Wilden Munson: Bell Labs researchers
• Les Paul: Guitarist and multitrack pioneer
• Ross Snyder and Sel-Sync: Ampex engineer
• Jack Mullin and Bing Crosby: The men who brought tape to America
• Ken Townsend and ADT: Abbey Road engineer
• Homer Dudley and the Vocoder: Bell Labs engineer
• Pierre Schaeffer: Father of musique concrète
• Bebe and Louis Barron: Electronic music pioneers
• Charley Douglass's Laff Box: The laugh track
• Spring Reverb: Hammond and Fender
• Tape Echo: Mike Battle's Echoplex and Roland's Space Echo
• Pro Tools: Peter Gotcher and Evan Brooks of Digidesign
• MIDI: Dave Smith and Ikutaro Kakehashi

The instruments

• Bartolomeo Cristofori: Inventor of the piano, Florence
• The Ludwigs and the Drum Kit: William F. and Theobald Ludwig
• George Beauchamp's Frying Pan: The first electric guitar pickup, with Adolph Rickenbacker
• Leo Fender: Telecaster, Precision Bass and Stratocaster
• Seth Lover's Humbucker: Gibson engineer
• Charlie Christian: Electric guitar pioneer
• Paul Bigsby and Merle Travis: An early solid-body electric guitar
• Laurens Hammond: Inventor of the Hammond organ
• Harold Rhodes: Inventor of the Rhodes electric piano
• Adolphe Sax: Inventor of the saxophone
• The Dopyera Brothers and the Dobro: Resonator guitar inventors
• The Banjo's West African Roots: From gourd lutes to bluegrass
• The Martin Dreadnought: C.F. Martin & Company
• Leon Theremin: Inventor of the theremin
• The Mellotron: Tape-replay keyboard, after Harry Chamberlin
• Jim Marshall: Marshall amplifiers

The rooms

• The Capitol Studios Echo Chambers: Hollywood, designed with Les Paul
• Gold Star Studios: Hollywood, Dave Gold and Stan Ross
• Motown's Hitsville U.S.A.: Detroit, 2648 West Grand Boulevard
• Sun Studio and Sam Phillips: Memphis, 706 Union Avenue
• Columbia 30th Street Studio: New York, a former church
• Sound City and the Neve 8028: Van Nuys, California
• Headley Grange Stairwell: Led Zeppelin, engineered by Andy Johns
• Chess Records: Chicago, Leonard and Phil Chess
• Clement "Coxsone" Dodd and Studio One: Kingston, Jamaica
• Fania Records: New York, Johnny Pacheco and Jerry Masucci
• The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section: Alabama, the Swampers

On the air

• Alan Freed: DJ who spread "rock and roll"
• Jack L. Cooper: Pioneering Black radio DJ, Chicago
• George D. Hay and the Grand Ole Opry: WSM radio, Nashville
• Wolfman Jack: Border blaster DJ
• Frankie Crocker: WBLS, New York
• Mr. Magic's Rap Attack: Early hip-hop radio, New York
• Funkmaster Flex: Hot 97, New York
• John Peel: BBC Radio 1
• Tom Donahue: Free-form FM radio, San Francisco
• Casey Kasem: American Top 40
• Radio Caroline: Pirate radio from the sea
• Rinse FM: London pirate station, founded by Geeneus and Slimzee

The techniques

• Robert Johnson's Corner: San Antonio session
• Phasing on "Itchycoo Park": George Chkiantz at Olympic Studios
• DJ Kool Herc: Bronx DJ, the merry-go-round
• Clyde Stubblefield's "Funky Drummer": James Brown's drummer
• Roger Troutman's Talk Box: Zapp
• DJ Screw: Houston, chopped and screwed
• Memphis Rap Tapes: DJ Paul and Juicy J, Three 6 Mafia
• Daft Punk's Bedroom: Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo
• Sidechain Pumping: French house and Eric Prydz's "Call on Me"
• The Dem Bow Riddim: Steely & Clevie and Shabba Ranks
• "Oh Happy Day" in a Church: The Edwin Hawkins Singers
• One Mic, the Whole Band: Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys
• Earl Scruggs: Banjo player, Scruggs style
• Doc Watson: Flatpicking guitarist
• Grandmaster Flash: The Quick Mix Theory
• U-Roy and Toasting: Jamaican sound system DJ
• Drift Phonk: Kordhell and the TikTok era
• Wizkid on "One Dance": Afrobeats goes global
• Amapiano's Log Drum: Johannesburg townships
• Jack Foley: Universal Studios
• The Wheaties Jingle: Often called the first radio jingle
• The Birth of the Podcast: Adam Curry, Dave Winer and Ben Hammersley
• The Sliding 808: Drill's signature bass
• The CALM Act: US law on loud ads
• EBU R128: European loudness standard

Happy accidents

• Strawberry Fields and Varispeed: George Martin and Geoff Emerick
• Gated Reverb: Hugh Padgham and Phil Collins
• Grady Martin's Fuzz: Nashville session guitarist
• Link Wray's "Rumble": Guitarist
• Backwards Tape on "Rain": John Lennon at home
• Tony Iommi's Fingertips: Black Sabbath guitarist
• The TB-303 and Acid: Phuture, Chicago
• Auto-Tune on "Believe": Andy Hildebrand, Mark Taylor and Brian Rawling
• "Under Me Sleng Teng": King Jammy and Wayne Smith
• Marley Marl's Snare: Producer, Juice Crew
• Larry Graham's Slap Bass: Sly and the Family Stone
• Grand Wizzard Theodore: Inventor of the scratch