I got my start as an engineer at Capitol Records in Hollywood (the “stack of records” building or “stack of pancakes” building, depending on your hunger factor). There I was able to work with a variety of talent, including Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Famer, Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band, R&B legend Frankie Beverly & Maze, the joker himself, Steve Miller, as well as, pop tunesmith Richard Marx, and the very leggy Tina Turner.
I was exposed to lots of classical recording there, did a jazz album with the late Tony Williams, and got my first taste of film and TV work. I apprenticed under Wally Traugott to learn the lost art of vinyl disk mastering and was asked to join the A&R department as a staff producer. About that same time, I engineered and co-produced the “Like A Rock” album for Bob Seger and the debut album for Richard Marx.
After a similar gig at MCA Records for 2 years, I went freelance and never looked back. I’ve had the pleasure of working on diverse projects, including several projects with Grammy Award winner, Melissa Etheridge, mixing for Cake, and been involved on several of Christopher Guest’s movies, including “Waiting For Guffman”, “Best In Show”, and “A Mighty Wind” If you don’t blink, you can see me doing my best roadie imitation in the film, alongside the movie’s music producer and long-time partner-in-crime and friend of mine, CJ Vanston.
I’ve been lucky enough to have been able to work with many talented artists and welcome the opportunity to broaden that horizon. Feel free to contact me if I can engineer, produce, mix, or master your next project. I particularly enjoy working with the underdog who has something to prove.
- David Cole
(The partial discography can be found here)