Don Gehman was among the most successful producers of the 1980s and 1990s, his rich heartland sound most familiar to audiences through his collaborations with
John Cougar Mellencamp and
Hootie & the Blowfish. A native of Lancaster, PA, as a teen he began playing bass in a local rock band, and upon learning to set up the group's PA system his interest in technology continued to grow. During the early '70s,
Gehman worked as a live sound tech for superstars including
James Brown,
Loggins & Messina,
Blood, Sweat & Tears,
Chicago, and
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. With
Stephen Stills' 1976 LP
Illegal Stills he received his first production credit, but after the album's release, he instead accepted an engineering job at Miami's Criterion Studios, where in the years to follow he worked on recordings from
Barbra Streisand,
Robin Trower,
Firefall, and
McGuinn, Clark & Hillman.
Gehman's lengthy affiliation with
Mellencamp -- then known simply as
John Cougar -- began in 1980, when he engineered the singer's self-titled fourth LP. Two years later, he agreed to produce
Mellencamp's
American Fool, the breakthrough effort that launched the smash hits "Hurts So Good" and "Jack and Diane." The record's blockbuster success earned
Gehman a Grammy nomination, and began an extended collaboration that saw
Mellencamp emerge among the decade's most respected artists -- with
Gehman at the helm, albums including 1983's
Uh Huh, 1985's
Scarecrow, and 1987's
The Lonesome Jubilee were not only best-sellers but also critical favorites. Projects like
Brian Setzer's 1985 solo debut,
The Knife Feels Like Justice, and
R.E.M.'s superb 1986 album
Lifes Rich Pageant also earned
Gehman critical kudos, and established him among the most respected producers in the industry.
Although
Mellencamp's
The Lonesome Jubilee earned
Gehman another Grammy nod, the two parted company after its release, and the producer moved on to helm material from other heartland rockers including
Bruce Hornsby (
A Night on the Town),
Tom Cochrane (Victory Day), and
Treat Her Right (
Tied to the Tracks). He kept a low profile during the early years of the 1990s, but in 1994
Cracked Rear View, the major-label debut from the unheralded
Hootie & the Blowfish, gradually went from grassroots hit to international phenomenon, in the process selling over 12 million copies on the strength of hits including "Hold My Hand," "Let Her Cry," and "Only Wanna Be with You." Two years later
Gehman reunited with
Hootie for the follow-up,
Fairweather Johnson, and followed with productions for
Better Than Ezra (
Friction Baby) and
Nanci Griffith (
Blue Roses from the Moons). ~ Jason Ankeny