Michael James (producer)

Michael James (producer)
Michael James (born Michael James Marchesano; February 1, 1962) is an American record producer, mixing engineer, guitarist, and former A&R executive. James has produced and/or mixed albums for New Radicals, Too Much Joy, Hole, L7, Maia Sharp, and A.J. Croce, among others.
Early life
James was born to Elizabeth (née Powers) and Roy Marchesano and raised in Spain. James' father was first tenor in the famous Doo Wop group the Chaperones, which gave James his first exposure to music. As a young child, his parents divorced and James lived for three years (along with his mother) with the Diablo Motorcycle Club. At age eleven, James' family moved to California to get away from the Diablos, but soon thereafter James' mother became addicted to drugs, and the lack of parental support left him homeless several times during his adolescence. At age nineteen, James was signed to his first record deal with Ear Movie Records, a label owned by Ethan James, but his early career stalled when Michael turned down a major label deal to attend UCLA on a full scholarship. Still, James' first single, "She Said Yes," recorded for $15 in studio time, was released in 1983 as part of the first volume of the Radio Tokyo Tapes. In 1985 James formed the band Waves of Grain with Luke Lohnes from The Last. The group released the critically acclaimed album "The West Was Fun" before dissolving. After college, James turned his attention back to music, working as an engineer at Radio Tokyo Studios in the 1980s and becoming the studio's chief engineer by 1990.
Mainstream success
James got his first big break producing Too Much Joy's second album "Son of Sam I Am," the first release on Irving Azoff's newly formed Giant Records. The following year, James produced and engineered L7's second album, "Smell the Magic", released on the Sub Pop label. This led to a relationship with Sub Pop, for whom James would later produce and engineer Hole's second single, "Dicknail" and The Reverend Horton Heat's "Speed Demon." James' successful early production work led to a brief side career as head of A&R for Warner Music Discovery.
When Discovery was folded into Warner Music Group, James further diversified his musical endeavors, creating the independent record label Alternator Records. He also continued mixing and producing records, amassing more than 100 credits in the period between 1994 and 1997. In 1998, James engineered and mixed the RIAA platinum certified debut album by New Radicals, "Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too", on which he also played electric guitar. James' involvement in the industry continued at a fast pace, including production and writing credits on A.J. Croce's 2000 album "Transit" and Maia Sharp's eponymous 2002 album.
Recent work
In 2009, James founded IndieProMix with Rob Chiarelli, which offers mixing services with engineers including James as well as David Kahne (Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks, The Strokes), Matt Forger (Michael Jackson), Tony Shepperd (Madonna, Whitney Houston, Take 6) and Nick Page (B.B. King, Fuel, Pete Yorn). James currently mixes and/or produces more than 250 songs a year, many for independent musicians, including Edwin McCain's "Mercy Bound," and Far's final album before disbanding, "At Night We Live", among others. Most recently the hit single 'Wild & Free' by Australian rock band Black Whiskey
Personal life
James' most prominent hobby is bicycle racing, and in 2002, at the age of 40, he was a member of the Mercury Cycling team. James has also been featured as a guest writer for Billboard magazine, writing articles warning of potential changes due to a lack of innovation in A&R and the music industry long before digital downloads and file sharing caused a sharp decline in record sales in the 21st century. In 1991, he married Irina Irvine, a former actress turned microbial ecologist. He is an adherent of the Baháʼí Faith.
Selected discography
New Radicals – Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too – Guitar, Mixing, Engineering
Edwin McCain – Mercy Bound – Mixing
The Coronas – Dreaming Again (radio remix) – Mixing
The Coronas – Upcoming LP Release (CD & Vinyl) – Mixing
Maia Sharp – Change The Ending – Mixing
Valentino Is Dead – Mis-Adventures in Punk Rock – Mixing
Danielle LoPresti & Masses – Run With It – Writer, Guitar, Keyboards, Mixing,
Saucy Monky – Trophy Girl, Part 1 – Mixing
Far – At Night We Live – Mixing
Far – Deafening – Mixing
Far – If You Cared Enough – Mixing
Far – When I Could See – Mixing
Far – At Night We Live (7" remix) – Mixing
Overbreaker – Follow The Rabbit Down The Hole – Writer, Mixing
Butterfly Boucher – Another White Dash – Remix – Mixing, Keyboards
Butterfly Boucher – Soulback – Remix – Mixing, Guitar
A.J. Croce – Transit – Producer, engineer, Mixing, Guitar
Robben Ford – Blue Moon – Remixing
Robben Ford – Don't Deny Your Love: Remix – Mixing
Robben Ford – Indianola – Mixing
Maia Sharp – Maia Sharp – Mixing
Maia Sharp – Willing To Burn -Single – Remixing
Too Much Joy – Son of Sam I Am – Producer, engineer, Guitar, Keyboards
Too Much Joy – That's A Lie and Other Joy – Producer, engineer, Mixing, Keyboards
Too Much Joy – Besides – Producer, engineer, Mixing
Reverend Horton Heat – Speed Demon – Producer, engineer, Mixing
Hole – Dicknail – Single – Producer, engineer
Hole – Burn Black – Single – Producer, engineer
Hole – My Body The Hand Grenade – Producer, engineer
GPS – Window to the Soul – Mixing
Geraldine Fibbers – Live From Bottom of The Hill – Mixing
Chicago – Live From the Aerie Crown Theater, Remixing for DVD
Chicago – CD USA: America’s Party December 31, 2006 Surround – Mixing
Jane’s Addiction – The Gift (Movie) – Engineer
L7 – Smell The Magic – Producer, engineer, Mixing
L7 – American Society – Producer, engineer, Mixing
Jawbreaker – Busy – Single – Producer, engineer, Mixing
Jawbreaker – Whack & Blite EP – Producer, engineer, Mixing
Jawbreaker – Unfun – Producer, engineer, Mixing
Jawbreaker – Etc. – Engineer
Artificial Joy Club – Skywriting – Single – Remixing, producer, Guitar
Artificial Joy Club – Spaceman – Single – Remixing, producer, Guitar
Mike Finnegan, et al. – Organ-ized: An All – Star Tribute... – Mixing
Robert Hicks & Pete Rugolo – Textures In Hi-Fi -Producer, Mixing, A&R, Guitar
Robert Hicks – New Standards – Engineer, Mixing
Rob Laufer – Wonderwood – Producer, Mixing, A&R, Guitar
Sal's Birdland – Nude Photos Inside – Producer, Mixing, A&R
The Crash Poets – Big Bang Theory – Producer, Engineer, Mixing, Guitar
Danielle LoPresti & Masses – Outloud – Mixing, writer
Danielle LoPresti & Masses – 22 Mountains – Mixing
Danielle LoPresti – Dear Mr. Penis Head – Mixing, Executive Producer, writer, Guitar
South of Houston (SoHo) – Live & Learn – Producer, Mixing, writer, Guitar
Roy Ashen – Sugar and Gasoline – Producer, engineer, Mixing, writer, Keyboards
Brian Charles – Sadder Day Dreaming – Producer, engineer
Sylvia Juncosa – Nature – Engineer, Guitar
The Maxfield Rabbit – Evermore – Producer, writer, Guitar
Lisa Wong – Doin' My Thing – Engineer, Guitar
The Mystery Band – Insert Title Here – Engineer
Pitchfork – Eucalyptus / Saturn Outhouse – Producer, engineer
Pitchfork – Saturn Outhouse EP – Producer, engineer
Screaming Sirens – Voodoo – Engineer
The Painkillers – Intoxication Of Life – Writer
Zoo Story – Hey God – Mixing
Sean Hall – Thirst – Mixing, engineer, Guitar
The Invisible Man – The Invisible Man – Producer, engineer, Mixing, Guitar
Trash Can School – Sick Jokes and Wet Dreams – Producer, engineer, Mixing, Keyboards
Blend – Blend – Mixing
Julia Albert – More Real Than This – Producer, Mixing, engineer, Guitar, Keyboards, writer
Sean Hall – Oxygen – Producer, Mixing, engineer, Guitar Keyboards
Karisa Winett – Pound 4 Pound – Producer, Mixing, engineer, Guitar, Keyboards, writer
Brett Mikels – Deep Enough – Producer, Mixing
Various Artists – The Big One: S.F. & L.A. – Producer, Engineer, Mixing
Jabberwock – Southland – Producer, Mixing
Jabberwock – Letterbomb – Producer, Mixing, Guitar
Veneer – On That Note – Mixing
Wishnefsky – Sin Tax – Mixing, Guitar
Phunk Junkeez – What's The Time remix – Mixing
Black Whiskey - Wild & Free - Producer, Mixing
References
1962 births
American music industry executives
Record producers from New York (state)
Living people
People from Long Island
Guitarists from New York (state)
20th-century American guitarists