Roy Halee

Last updated
Roy Halee
Born
Roy Decker Halee

1934 (age 88–89)
Long Island, New York, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)record producer and audio engineer
Known forrecording engineer for Simon and Garfunkel
Children3 - Roy Halee Jr., Walter R. Halee, Laurie Halee Beyer [1] [2]
Parent(s)Roy Halee (father), Rebekah Cauble (mother)

Roy Decker Halee (born 1934) [3] is an American record producer and engineer, best known for working with Simon & Garfunkel, both as a group and for their solo projects.

Contents

Early life

He grew up on Long Island, New York. His father, also named Roy Halee, provided the singing voice for Mighty Mouse in late 1940s Terrytoons cartoons, as well as the voices of Heckle and Jeckle from 1951 through 1961. His mother, Rebekah Cauble, was a former stage actress with several Broadway credits. [4]

Career

Halee started working as a cameraman for CBS Television in the 1950s. He was also studying to be a classical trumpet player. [5]

He became an audio engineer for CBS Television, working on many shows and the top rated The $64,000 Question television quiz show. [5]

As television shows moved to the West Coast, he lost his job in a union dispute and layoff at CBS Television. He went to work for Columbia Records in New York as an editor and later as a studio engineer, working with Bob Dylan, including the first long-format radio single, "Like a Rolling Stone". [6]

After working with the Lovin' Spoonful, the Dave Clark Five and the Yardbirds, he began his partnership with Simon & Garfunkel. [6] He has also worked with other artists such as Barbra Streisand, [7] the Byrds, Journey (on their first album Journey), Willie Nile, Laura Nyro, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Mark-Almond Band and Blue Angel. Halee was named to the TEC Awards Hall of Fame in 2001.

Simon & Garfunkel

Halee discovered that the uniqueness of Simon & Garfunkel's vocal harmonies could only be achieved by recording both voices on the same microphone at the same time. [8] The song "Mrs. Robinson", from the 1968 album The Graduate , won him a Grammy Award. [6] Three more Grammy Awards followed for his work on the album Bookends , and the song "Bridge Over Troubled Water" in 1970. [6]

Halee is best known for producing several albums with Simon & Garfunkel. He is mentioned in their 1965 song "A Simple Desultory Philippic (or How I Was Robert McNamara'd into Submission)", written by Paul Simon. After the duo split up, he co-produced Simon's first solo album. Later, in 1985, Halee went with Simon to South Africa to record something new that, he said, "wasn't written yet, we were going with nothing, so it was a gamble. A lot of people thought we were nuts." It led to the Grammy Award-winning album Graceland . "I was having a ball recording these guys. For a guy from my background, everything was so organised generally. Here in the rawness of this, the earthiness, I was in seventh heaven." [9] After Graceland, Roy Halee continued travelling with Simon as an engineer, to Brazil and West Africa, for the album The Rhythm of the Saints , with "all congas, bass drums, bata...everything imaginable." [10]

Personal life

Halee has been married to his wife Katherine for 53 years. They have three children.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon & Garfunkel</span> American folk music duo

Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music groups of the 1960s, and their biggest hits, including the electric remix of "The Sound of Silence" (1965), "Mrs. Robinson" (1968), "The Boxer" (1969), and "Bridge over Troubled Water" (1970), reached number one on singles charts worldwide.

<i>Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.</i> 1964 studio album by Simon & Garfunkel

Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. is the debut studio album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Following their early gig as "Tom and Jerry", Columbia Records signed the two in late 1963. It was produced by Tom Wilson and engineered by Roy Halee. The cover and the label include the subtitle exciting new sounds in the folk tradition. Recorded in March 1964, the album was released on October 19.

<i>Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme</i> 1966 studio album by Simon & Garfunkel

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme is the third studio album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Produced by Bob Johnston, the album was released on October 24, 1966, in the United States by Columbia Records. Following the success of the re-release of their debut single "The Sound of Silence", Simon & Garfunkel regrouped after a time apart while Columbia issued their second album, a rushed collection titled Sounds of Silence. For their third album, the duo spent almost three months in the studio working on instrumentation and production.

<i>Bookends</i> (album) 1968 studio album by Simon & Garfunkel

Bookends is the fourth studio album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Produced by Paul Simon, Art Garfunkel and Roy Halee, the album was released on April 3, 1968, in the United States by Columbia Records. The duo had risen to fame two years prior with the albums Sounds of Silence and Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme and the soundtrack album for the 1967 film The Graduate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Simon</span> American singer-songwriter (born 1941)

Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter. One of the most celebrated artists of the twentieth century, Simon's career has spanned six decades. Born in New Jersey, Simon grew up in Queens, New York City, and developed an interest in rock music in his teens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Art Garfunkel</span> American singer (born 1941)

Arthur Ira Garfunkel is an American singer and actor who is best known for his partnership with Paul Simon in the folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Born in Forest Hills, Queens, New York, Garfunkel became acquainted with Simon through an elementary school play of Alice in Wonderland and sought a partnership. Their combined presence in music began in the 1950s, and throughout the 1960s, the duo of Simon & Garfunkel achieved great chart success with tracks such as "The Sound of Silence", "Mrs. Robinson", "Scarborough Fair", The Boxer and "Bridge over Troubled Water", whose title also served as the name of Simon & Garfunkel's final album in 1970. Simon & Garfunkel split for personal reasons, but the pair have occasionally reunited in the years since. Both Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon experienced success in solo careers in the years following the duo's breakup.

The 13th Annual Grammy Awards were held on 16 March 1971, on ABC, and marked the ceremony's first live telecast. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1970. The ceremony was hosted for the first time by Andy Williams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grammy Award for Record of the Year</span> Award presented by National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences

The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to sales or chart position." The Record of the Year award is one of the four "General Field" categories at the awards presented annually since the 1st Annual Grammy Awards in 1959.

The 11th Annual Grammy Awards were held on March 12, 1969. They recognized accomplishments of musicians for the year 1968.

<i>Graceland</i> (album) 1986 studio album by Paul Simon

Graceland is the seventh solo studio album by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was produced by Simon, engineered by Roy Halee and released on August 25, 1986, by Warner Bros. Records.

<i>Hearts and Bones</i> 1983 studio album by Paul Simon

Hearts and Bones is the sixth solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was released in 1983 by Warner Bros. Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridge over Troubled Water (song)</span> 1970 song by Simon & Garfunkel

"Bridge over Troubled Water" is a song by the American folk duo Simon & Garfunkel, released in January 1970 as the second single from their fifth studio album, Bridge over Troubled Water (1970). It was composed by Paul Simon and produced by Simon & Garfunkel and Roy Halee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Boxer</span> 1969 Simon and Garfunkel song

"The Boxer" is a song written by Paul Simon and recorded by the American music duo Simon & Garfunkel from their fifth studio album, Bridge over Troubled Water (1970). Produced by the duo and Roy Halee, it was released as a standalone single on March 21, 1969, but included on the album nine months later. The song is a folk rock ballad that variously takes the form of a first-person lament as well as a third-person sketch of a boxer. The lyrics are largely autobiographical and partially inspired by the Bible, and were written during a time when Simon felt he was being unfairly criticized. The song's lyrics discuss poverty and loneliness. It is particularly known for its plaintive refrain, in which they sing 'lie-la-lie', accompanied by a heavily reverbed snare drum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Mounsey</span> Musical artist

Rob Mounsey is an American musician, composer, and arranger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Can Call Me Al</span> 1986 single by Paul Simon

"You Can Call Me Al" is a song by American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the lead single from his seventh studio album, Graceland (1986), released on Warner Bros. Records. Written by Simon, its lyrics follow an individual seemingly experiencing a midlife crisis. Its lyrics were partially inspired by Simon's trip to South Africa and experience with its culture. Released in August 1986, "You Can Call Me Al" became one of Simon's biggest solo hits, reaching the top five in seven countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mrs. Robinson</span> 1968 single by Simon & Garfunkel

"Mrs. Robinson" is a song by American music duo Simon & Garfunkel from their fourth studio album, Bookends (1968). Written specifically for the 1967 film The Graduate, the song was released as a single on April 5, 1968, by Columbia Records. Produced by the duo and Roy Halee, the song was written by Paul Simon, who pitched it to movie director Mike Nichols alongside Art Garfunkel after Nichols rejected two other songs intended for the film. The Graduate's soundtrack album uses two short versions of "Mrs. Robinson"; a full version was later included on Bookends. The song was additionally released on the Mrs. Robinson EP in 1968, which also included three other songs from the film: "April Come She Will", "Scarborough Fair/Canticle", and "The Sound of Silence".

<i>Angel Clare</i> 1973 studio album by Art Garfunkel

Angel Clare is the debut solo studio album by Art Garfunkel, released on September 11, 1973. It is his highest-charting solo album in the United States, peaking at No. 5 on the Billboard 200, and includes his only US Top 10 hit as a solo artist, "All I Know". It also contained two other Top 40 hits, "Traveling Boy" and "I Shall Sing". It was produced by long-time Simon & Garfunkel producer Roy Halee, alongside Art Garfunkel.

<i>Scissors Cut</i> 1981 studio album by Art Garfunkel

Scissors Cut is the fifth solo studio album by Art Garfunkel released in August 1981 on Columbia Records. It was his second album to miss the US Billboard top 40 and his second album containing no US top 40 singles. The month following its release, Garfunkel would reunite with former partner, Paul Simon, for their famous 1981 Concert in Central Park.

<i>Bridge over Troubled Water</i> 1970 studio album by Simon & Garfunkel

Bridge Over Troubled Water is the fifth and final studio album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel, released in January 1970 on Columbia Records. Following the duo's soundtrack for The Graduate, Art Garfunkel took an acting role in the film Catch-22, while Paul Simon worked on the songs, writing all tracks except Felice and Boudleaux Bryant's "Bye Bye Love".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rebekah Cauble</span> American actress

Rebekah Earle Cauble, also known as Rhea Cauble and later as Rebekah Halee, was an American stage actress.

References

  1. ↑ Walter Halee
  2. ↑ Vilkomerson, Sara, "Countdown to Bliss: Roy Halee Jr. and Yvonne Miller", The New York Observer , April 4, 2005
  3. ↑ Robert Hilburn, Paul Simon - The Life, Simon & Schuster, 2019, p.59
  4. ↑ "Rebekah Halee, at 62; Ex-Broadway Actress". Newsday (Suffolk Edition). 1963-11-26. p. 22. Retrieved 2022-08-16– via Newspapers.com.
  5. 1 2 Jackson, Blair, "Interview: Roy Halee" Archived 2007-02-11 at the Wayback Machine , Mix magazine , October 1, 2001
  6. 1 2 3 4 Mix Foundation. 2001 Hall of Fame Inductee Roy Halee Archived 2008-07-04 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ "Roy Halee". October 2001.
  8. ↑ Zollo, Paul (5 December 2020). "Garfunkel: On Being Paul Simon's First Champion". American Songwriter. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  9. ↑ Marre, J., (Documentary, ISIS Productions/Daniel Television/Paul Simon 1997)
  10. ↑ Luftig, S., The Paul Simon Companion, Four Decades of Commentary, pp. 197–198 (Biography, Schirmer Books/Omnibus Press New York, 1997)
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.