Unsung Producer: Erik Jacobsen
American producer Erik Jacobsen crafted some of the most beautiful and strange music of the mid 60´s San Francisco. A forming member of Lovin´ Spoonful, Jacobsen moved from New York to San Francisco and further developed his cutting- edge production techniques. Summer in the City and Daydream being fine examples of his skills that defined an era and predicted a possible future.
Erik Jacobsen was born in Oak Park, near Chicago. A descendant of Norwegian settlers who migrated from Larvik, a small town on the east coast of Norway – home of electronic music pioneer and composer Arne Nordheim and a string of fine jazz musicians including pianist Bugge Wesseltoft and drummer Audun Kleive.
Originally a bluegrass musician, he didn´t see a future with the form. After hearing the Beatles in a jukebox joint, he changed direction and moved to Greenwich Village in New York with the goal of becoming a record producer. The melodic bass playing introduced by Paul McCartney and Motown bass player, James Jamerson inspired him in search of new ways of expression. His producing style included tape looping and cut n´paste techniques.
Taking their name from a British fighter aircraft, Sopwith Camel released two albums between 1967 and 1973. The incredible “Fazon” from the Sopwith Camel´s last album “The Miraculous Hump Returns from the Moon» is a fine example of his abilities to sculpt in sound. The saxophone double tracking is just a wonderful idea that would anticipate a future vision of the Eventide harmonizer still a decade apart.
By 1967, Erik Jacobsen had moved to San Francisco and produced Tim Hardin and fellow Spoonful member John Sebastian. Another great example of his production skills is the Norman Greenbaum 1969 album “Spirit in the Sky” that could possibly have been the-one-album that triggered the Motown a/r staff enough to pay him a visit inviting Jacobsen to start working for the label. This was around the same time that Norman Withfield developed his psychedelic soul sound.
Jacobsen also produced The Charlatans that included Dan Hicks, composer of the gorgeous “I Scare Myself” later appearing on Thomas Dolby´s 1984 album The Flat Earth. Regular Flowworker readers may also recognize Compass Point guitarist, Barry Reynolds hidden classic album I Scare Myself. These types of songs that appear and reappear every now and then in different versions, finding new audiences.
Jan Bang
10 Kommentare
Henning
The Lovin‘ Spoonful was by far my favorite band in those days. It was a wild a bit surrealistic thing they did from a lot of great sources. I was totally into it. I loved especially the clarinet of Zalman Yanovsky. „Summer In The City“ is a piece for eternity.
Michael Engelbrecht
Well, i’d like to day i had other favourite bands in that time (the Kinks on No. 1, the Beatles on No. 2), but SUMMER IN THE CITY was a magic song. And here’s my story with it:
It was a summer in the sixties, when the seventies were already casting a few shadows backwards, a glimpse of times gone by, the first jukeboxes, leather-bound single albums in our little Kirchhörde world. In 1967, Conny was an older teenager and he had the biggest collection of singles. Whenever I came round to his house, he liked to put on The Small Faces, and all the things that new kids liked to dream about flashed up for a moment.
Once, I fell into a deep trance seconds later when Conny played ‘Summer In The City’ by The Lovin‘ Spoonful, fresh from the single pressing plant. It was probably one of the first songs that made me realise how enchanting the everyday sounds of a big city could be. The first riff, the melody, John Sebastian’s voice.
I begged Conny to lend me the single for a day, I didn’t say I wanted to listen to it endlessly. Eventually he gave in and I had to promise to deliver it to him the following day at 5pm sharp. That wasn’t a problem, or a small one. I was so blown away by the song that I thought, in a time when we were all crossing borders, it would be no problem to keep this heavenly song a little longer.
I had the ‘Bravo’ lying next to my bed, and was not pleased to read that The Kinks, my favourite band, had once again drunkenly attacked each other on stage. ‘Hot town, summer in the city / Back of my neck getting dirty and gritty / Been down, isn’t it a pity / Doesn’t seem to be a shadow in the city’. At some point in the afternoon, a guy named Uwe phoned me (I rarely had anything to do with him, he was the first to own ‘Hey, Joe’ by Jimi Hendrix) and he told me he had a surprise for me and that I should come to our football pitch.
When I got there, Uwe and Conny stepped out from behind a hedge and Conny punched me in the stomach so hard that I lost my breath and collapsed onto the ground. He reminded me of our agreement and when I got my breath back, I apologised. Now it was Uwe’s turn, and he hit me again with full force. I got scared and waited for my breath to come back. Then I ran off, which was crazy because they were older and could catch up with me at any time and continue beating me. Instead, a stone hit me on the temple and I fell to the ground screaming.
Blood flowed over my eyes and nose, and I don’t remember today which witness to the events made sure that I was hospitalised and received several stitches. The next day I put the single, wrapped in an envelope, in Conny’s letterbox. I only saw it from a distance afterwards, and then never again. I still had double images here and there, and even my ‘Pictures Of Lily’ were slightly blurred for a while.
(I translated this with deepl)
Michael Engelbrecht
Erik Jacobsen, i never heard about him, but obviously i heard some of those songs…. my little and true short story just demonstrates how life and music were entwined in those days, how intuitively and full of enthusiasm a lot of kids between 1965 and 1969 were drawn into a magic new world. What obviously could become dangerous sometimes😉
I am keen to read Jan Reetze’s book on Joe Meek he here announced a few days back. The first (or one fo the first what do I know?) English record produceer starting to see the studio as a field of experimentation. In his book YEAH YEAH YEAH – THE STORY OF POP MUSIC FROM BILL HALEY TO BEYONCÉ, chapter 8 is titled „Walk with me in Paradise Garden: Phil Spector and Joe Meek“ – he compares their very different, but highly innovative production styles, and reading these pages, made me even more curious to dive into Jan’s book about „the first Eno“ in regards to „treatments“ and „sound manipulation“ in the pop field.
Though the writer of that book, Bob Stanley (from St. Etienne) has a nice way to deliver history, the name „Erik Jacobsen“ is not mentioned on any page. A real „unung hero“! Music history, too, seems to be, to speak with another famous singer and composer – 😅 – a „history full of holes“!
Michael Engelbrecht
Listen to Fazon from Sopwith Camel HERE!
Jan Bang
Dear Michael,
looking forward to reading Jan´s book on Joe Meek. Curious to read thoughts on „I hear a new world“. what a phenomenal piece of recorded music this is.
JB
flowworker
Dear Jan B
I think Jan R’s book will only be in German. Or he proves me wrong.
M
Jan Reetze
Looks like I have to check out for him.
And alas!, for the time being my Joe Meek book will be in German only. There are biographies in English language, so I think another one wouldn’t make much sense. But one never knows — if an English publisher comes up, I wouldn’t say no, and I’m sure my German publisher would also be glad to give permission.
Henning
I wasn’t into singles. Fand ich zu blöd. Although, a few i had … first coming to my mind: „Hang on Sloopy“ by The McCoys (1965).
https://youtu.be/TlTKhPkZSJo?si=h1jE-syr71rDd6N7
And also a few singles by Bluessinger Big Bill Broonzy.
Henning
oh, and almost single from my other favorite that accompanied me through the sixties: Steve Winwood. It started with „Keep on Running“ (also 1965) by ThecSpencer Davis Group. Steve Winwood was 17 when it was recorded:
https://youtu.be/YrxHcSZBU38?si=Ga990tNM0GmYFsSz
flowworker
Keep on running, i remember so well … a good „mantra“ anyways dear Henning!
Singles for us young teenagers were a condensed form of life to come … and accessible with not much money in the pocket…🎡
my first and unforgettable single was rock m roll music by the Beatles and it was a chuck berry cover, exquiitely sung by John Lennon.. not that i knew who Berry was.