Jonathan Smeeton is a British lighting and production designer who was active in the UK from the late 1960s, and then in the US from late 1970s up to his retirement in 2018.
Smeeton started out in the UK underground scene in the late 1960s. By 1971, he had become involved with Hawkwind, using the alias Liquid Len and the Lensmen (a reference to the Lensman space opera books), and remained with them for seven years developing his craft. [1]
He was name-checked in the Genesis song "The Battle of Epping Forest" from Selling England by the Pound (1973), later going on to work for the band's singer Peter Gabriel:
And his friend, Liquid Len by name,
Of wine, women and Wandsworth fame
He's name-checked a second time in the same song : "And Liquid Len, with his smashed bottle men is lobbing Bob the Nob across the gob"
He retired from the business in April 2018, his last official show being for Diana Ross and the LA Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl in June 2018. [2] In 2018, he received the Parnelli Visionary Award. [3]
List of acts he has worked for:
Tommy Tutone is an American power pop band, known for its 1981 hit "867-5309/Jenny", which peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Though some people consider the band to be a one-hit wonder, they did reach the Top 40 the year before with "Angel Say No".
Kenneth Brian Edmonds, better known by his stage name Babyface, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He has written and produced over 26 number-one R&B hits throughout his career and has won 13 Grammy Awards. He was ranked number 20 on NME's 50 of The Greatest Producers Ever list.
Toni Michele Braxton is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. Braxton has won seven Grammy Awards, nine Billboard Music Awards, seven American Music Awards, and numerous other accolades. In 2011, Braxton was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. In 2017 she was honored with the Legend Award at the Soul Train Music Awards.
Sam Roy Hagar, also known as the Red Rocker, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He rose to prominence in the early 1970s with the hard rock band Montrose before launching a successful solo career, scoring a hit in 1984 with "I Can't Drive 55". He enjoyed further commercial success when he replaced David Lee Roth as the lead vocalist of Van Halen in 1985, but left in 1996. He returned to the band from 2003 to 2005.
Hall of the Mountain Grill is the fourth studio album by space rock band Hawkwind, released in 1974. It is regarded by many critics as a career highlight.
"Un-Break My Heart" is a song by American singer Toni Braxton for her second studio album, Secrets (1996). The song was written by Diane Warren and produced by David Foster. It was released as the second single from the album on October 7, 1996, through LaFace Records. The song is a ballad about a "blistering heartbreak" in which the singer begs a former lover to return and undo the pain he has caused. It won Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 39th Annual Grammy Awards in 1997. It has sold over 10 million copies worldwide and nearly 3 million in the United States alone, making it one of the best selling singles of all time.
James Merrill Brickman is an American pop songwriter, pianist and radio host. Brickman has earned two Grammy nominations for his albums Peace (2003) for Best Instrumental, and Faith (2009) for Best New Age Album. He won a Canadian Country Music Award, a Dove Award presented by the Gospel Music Association, and was twice named Songwriter of the Year by SESAC. Billboard lists 22 of his albums reaching No. 1 on the New Age chart, and 16 of his songs reaching Top 10 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Four of his albums were certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Montrose was an American hard rock band formed in 1973 and named after guitarist and founder Ronnie Montrose. The band's original lineup featured lead vocalist and frontman Sammy Hagar, who later found greater success as a solo artist and as a member of Van Halen. Rounding out the original foursome were bassist Bill Church and drummer Denny Carmassi. The band experienced moderate success before disbanding in early 1977. The 1973 debut album Montrose eventually proved to be an international sleeper hit, selling in excess of one million copies and attaining platinum status in 1986.
Tamar Estine Braxton is an American singer, songwriter and television personality.
The Braxtons are an American musical quintet consisting of singer Toni Braxton and her younger sisters, Traci Braxton, Towanda Braxton, Trina Braxton, and Tamar Braxton. Despite being commercially unsuccessful, the group's first single, "Good Life", led to oldest sister Toni's solo career. All five members reunited in 2011 to star in the WE tv reality television series Braxton Family Values alongside their mother, Evelyn Braxton.
Back Against the Wall is an album released in 2005 by Billy Sherwood in collaboration with a number of (mostly) progressive rock artists as a tribute to Pink Floyd's album The Wall. A year later, Sherwood followed it with the release of Return to the Dark Side of the Moon, a tribute to Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon.
"He Wasn't Man Enough" is a song by American singer Toni Braxton. It was written by Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, Fred Jerkins III, LaShawn Daniels, and Harvey Mason, Jr. for her third studio album, The Heat (2000), while production was helmed by the former. "He Wasn't Man Enough" is an uptempo R&B song that differs from Braxton's previous ballads. The song was released by LaFace Records on February 29, 2000, as the lead single from the album.
Traci Renee Braxton was an American singer, reality television personality, and radio personality.
Trina Evette Braxton-Scales is an American singer and reality television personality. She is the younger sister of R&B singing icon Toni Braxton. Trina had her first big break in music in 1992 as a founding member of the R&B group the Braxtons, formed with her sisters. After losing two members, The Braxtons released their only album, So Many Ways, as a trio in 1996 along with four singles: "So Many Ways", "Only Love", "The Boss", and "Slow Flow".
Daniel Martin Shea is an American record producer and composer who has worked with numerous artists including Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez, Janet Jackson, Santana, Barbra Streisand, Jessica Simpson. Sara Evans, Rob Thomas, Marc Anthony, Boyz II Men, Martina McBride, Kenny G, Ricky Martin, Bono, Mary J. Blige, R. Kelly, Robin Thicke, Toni Braxton, Babyface, Natalie Cole, Phil Collins, Luther Vandross, Michael Bolton, Lady Antebellum, Jim Brickman, Plácido Domingo, Grover Washington Jr., Al Jarreau, Kenny Loggins, Dusty Springfield, Daryl Hall, Boney James, New Kids on the Block, Rissi Palmer, Christina Milian, Jordan Pruitt, Thalía, Savage Garden, Clarence Clemons, and more. As producer, composer, and multi-instrumentalist, Dan Shea's albums have sold over 150 million copies worldwide.
Joel Selvin is an American San Francisco-based music critic and author known for his weekly column in the San Francisco Chronicle, which ran from 1972 to 2009. Selvin has written books covering various aspects of pop music—including the No. 1 New York Times best-seller Red: My Uncensored Life In Rock with Sammy Hagar—and has interviewed many musical artists. Selvin has published articles in Rolling Stone, the Los Angeles Times, Billboard, and Melody Maker, and has written liner notes for dozens of recorded albums. He has appeared in documentaries about the music scene and has occasionally taken the stage himself as a rock and roll singer.
Bruce R. Gaitsch is an American guitarist, composer, and producer. He is best known for working with notable bands and musicians such Chicago, Peter Cetera, Madonna, and Agnetha Fältskog as a session musician and songwriter. Gaitsch co-wrote the Madonna song "La Isla Bonita", an international #1 single that earned Gaitsch an award from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers in 1987. He has collaborated numerous times with fellow Chicago native Richard Marx whose career he was instrumental in launching.
Get the Blessing are a jazz rock quartet based in Bristol, England. The band formed in 2000 when Jim Barr and Clive Deamer (drums), who had played with Portishead, joined Jake McMurchie (saxophone) and Pete Judge (trumpet) over their appreciation of Ornette Coleman.
"Covercraft" is the eighth episode in the twenty-sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 560th episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Steven Dean Moore and written by Matt Selman. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 23, 2014.
Spell My Name is the ninth studio album by American singer Toni Braxton. It was released by Island Records on August 28, 2020. Her debut with the record label, following a short-lived stint with Def Jam Recordings on her eighth album Sex & Cigarettes (2018), Braxton assumed more control on Spell My Name, again taking a greater hand in writing and producing the material. Her collaborations included frequent collaborators Paul Boutin, Antonio Dixon, and Babyface as well as singers and songwriters Patrick "J. Que" Smith, Chris Braide, Dapo Torimiro, Soundz, H.E.R. and Missy Elliott.