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Hal Willner

Hal Willner (April 6, 1956 – April 7, 2020) was an American music producer working in recording, films, television, and live events.[1] He was best known for assembling tribute albums and events featuring a wide variety of artists and musical styles (jazz, classical, rock, Tin Pan Alley). Willner died during the COVID-19 pandemic from complications brought on by the virus.

Hal Willner

(1956-04-06)April 6, 1956

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.

April 7, 2020(2020-04-07) (aged 64)

New York City, New York, U.S.

Music producer

1970s–2020

Sheila Rogers

1

Early life[edit]

Willner was born in Philadelphia in 1956. His father and uncle were Holocaust survivors.[2] Willner moved to New York City in 1974 to attend New York University, but did not graduate.[2]

Career[edit]

In the late 1970s, Willner worked under record producer Joel Dorn, credited as associate producer on Leon Redbone's albums Double Time and Champagne Charlie,[3] and The Neville Brothers' Fiyo on the Bayou. Willner became the sketch music producer of Saturday Night Live in 1980, where he chose the music to be used in sketches for four decades.[2] From 1988 to 1990 he produced the TV program Sunday Night (later renamed Night Music), which was hosted by David Sanborn and presented musicians from a wide variety of genres.


Willner produced albums for Marianne Faithfull, Lou Reed, Bill Frisell, Steven Bernstein, William S. Burroughs, Gavin Friday, Lucinda Williams, Laurie Anderson, and Allen Ginsberg, among others. He produced a live tribute concert to Tim Buckley, that ultimately launched the career of Tim's son Jeff. He released one album under his own name: Whoops, I'm an Indian, which featured audio samples from 78 rpm records from the early-mid 20th century.


Following earlier stagings, in January 2010 Willner produced his pirate-themed concert event Rogue's Gallery for the Sydney Festival. The multinational cast included Marianne Faithfull, Todd Rundgren, Tim Robbins, Richard Strange, Gavin Friday, Anohni, Peter Garrett, Baby Gramps, David Thomas, Sarah Blasko, Katy Steele, Peaches, Glenn Richards, Liam Finn, Camille O'Sullivan, Kami Thompson, and Marry Waterson.[4]

(1981) Willner's first tribute album salutes Italian composer Nino Rota, and features interpretation of his music for Federico Fellini films by jazz musicians including: Wynton and Branford Marsalis; Carla Bley; Muhal Richard Abrams; Bill Frisell; Steve Lacy; and Jaki Byard; plus singer–songwriter Deborah Harry.[7][8]

Amarcord Nino Rota

That's The Way I Feel Now: A Tribute to (1984) features pop and jazz musicians including NRBQ, Steve Lacy, Dr. John, John Zorn, Donald Fagen, and Peter Frampton.

Thelonious Monk

(1985) features musicians ranging from Sting to Charlie Haden

Lost in the Stars: The Music of Kurt Weill

(1988) features performances of songs from Walt Disney movies by a large cast of artists ranging from Sun Ra to NRBQ, Michael Stipe, Ringo Starr, Yma Sumac and Ken Nordine

Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films

Weird Nightmare: Meditations on Mingus (1992) is a tribute to , featuring instruments designed and built by American composer Harry Partch, on loan from his estate. Performers include Bill Frisell, Vernon Reid, Henry Rollins, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Don Byron, Henry Threadgill, Gary Lucas, Bobby Previte, Robert Quine, Leonard Cohen, Diamanda Galás, Chuck D, Francis Thumm, and Elvis Costello

Charles Mingus

(1994) re-creation of the previous Weill tribute as a Canadian TV special directed by Larry Weinstein. A CD was issued including performances by Nick Cave and PJ Harvey. The list of performers on this recording is different from the list of performers on his previous Weill tribute. Some of those that are on both tributes, such as Lou Reed and Charlie Haden, provide new recordings of the pieces they contributed previously. Many of the songs included are the same, although the new recording tends toward more historical recordings (Lotte Lenya, Bertolt Brecht, and Weill himself), while the previous one tended toward more avant-garde tributes.

September Songs: The Music of Kurt Weill

(2003) another Larry Weinstein TV program. The CD includes performances by Rufus Wainwright, Debbie Harry, David Johansen, Eric Mingus and Sandra Bernhard

Stormy Weather: The Music of Harold Arlen

(2006) soundtrack for Lian Lunson's documentary film about Willner's Leonard Cohen tribute event Came So Far for Beauty

Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man

(2006) Double CD includes performers ranging from Bono to Van Dyke Parks.

Rogue's Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs, and Chanteys

The Harry Smith Project: Anthology of American Folk Music Revisited (2006). Recorded at Hal Willner's Harry Smith Project events in London (1999), Brooklyn (1999) and LA (2001), plus a DVD documentary.

(2013) is a compilation album of sea shanties and the follow-up to 2006's Rogue's Gallery.

Son of Rogues Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs & Chanteys

AngelHeaded Hipster : The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex (2020) is a compilation album that pays tribute to and his group T. Rex. Willner relates in the notes to the album that he was a fan of Bolan since the 1970s. Decades later, BMG approached Willner to produce a tribute album to Marc as a composer, and AngelHeaded Hipster is the result. The double CD and vinyl album includes performances by Kesha, Nick Cave, Joan Jett, Devendra Banhart, Lucinda Williams, Peaches, BORNS, Beth Orton, King Khan, Gaby Moreno, U2 and Elton John, John Cameron Mitchell, Emily Haines, Father John Misty, Perry Farrell, Elysian Fields, Gavin Friday, Nena, Marc Almond, Helga Davis, Todd Rundgren, Jesse Harris, Sean Lennon and Charlotte Kemp Muhl, Victoria Williams and Julian Lennon, David Johanson, and Maria McKee, with vocal contributions from Richard Barone, Jenni Muldaur, and Rolan Bolan. The album was released in September 2020, following Willner's death.

Marc Bolan

at IMDb

Hal Willner

The Office, production company

Evolution Music, production company

An article about Willner's spoken word recordings

Archived March 12, 2015, at the Wayback Machine

An interview with Willner

discography at Discogs

Hal Willner

Meyers, Mitch (May 25, 2018). . Variety.

"Bill Murray, Gina Gershon, Steve Buscemi Celebrate Bob Dylan at Birthday Tribute:The May 24 concert was produced by Hal Willner and held at New York's Town Hall"