Al Schmitt
engineer & producer
Al Schmitt was a recording engineer and producer legend who worked with many of the greatest musical artists over a career spanning seven decades. He passed away on April 26th, 2021, one week after his 91st birthday. His family, his friends, and his colleagues will never forget the tremendous impact that he had in their lives.
We miss you Al.
1 Star on the hollywood walk of fame
23 Grammy Awards
160 Gold and Platinum Albums
a legacy in music
Scanning Al Schmitt’s discography - which takes a long time, by the way - it’s tough to settle on a singular high point. His decades of award-winning work read like a trip through musical history. Up one aisle you’ll find Frank Sinatra, Henry Mancini, Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, and Miles Davis; up another, you’ll bump into Jefferson Airplane, Jackson Browne, Neil Young, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Kenny Rogers and Steely Dan. Round a corner and you’ll encounter Barbra Streisand, Natalie Cole, Madonna, and Quincy Jones mingling with Michael Jackson, Diana Krall, Melody Gardot, and Paul McCartney. The artists who worked with Al have shaped and defined the music of generations.
Few within the music industry who have overseen more culture-defining artistic moments. Winner of 21 Grammy Awards, 2 Latin Grammys, and a Trustees Grammy for Lifetime Achievement, Al helped artists garner an astounding 160 gold and platinum albums. His recordings play today, not just in America but around the world, and they will be playing for a long time still. It is truly difficult to imagine an America that does not bear the musical fingerprints of one of its most important engineering and producing talents. Recognizing that talent, Al Schmitt was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2015. Fittingly, his star is right in front of the iconic Capitol Records building where he recorded so many hits, and where he continued to work until mere months before his passing.
