Mick Guzauski

Mick Guzauski (also "Mic Guzauski," and "Mick 'Mix Maestro' Guzauski") is a multi-platinum Mixing Engineer and sound engineer.

Guzauski's work spans a wide range of styles, including jazz, R&B, Latin, rock, pop, and easy listening. He won a 2002 Latin Grammy for Thalía's "Arrasando," four 2004 Latin Grammys for Alejandro Sanz's "No Es Lo Mismo" (including Best Engineered Album), and the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, for Eric Clapton's "Back Home." As of 2001, he had mixed 27 # 1 singles.^[1]

Early life

Guzauski grew up in Rochester, New York, where there were no commercial sound studios. In high school he put together his own studio in his parents' basement with equipment that he borrowed, built, repaired, and modified. He did pickup engineer work with Steve Gadd and Tony Levin, then students at the Eastman School of Music, and Lou Gramm, who soon hit it big with Foreigner.

Career

Around the same time, he met Chuck Mangione, an up-and-coming composer in Rochester, and engineered his recordings as well as mixed his live sound. When Mangione signed with A&M Records in 1975, he asked Guzauski to go to Los Angeles with him to engineer his new album, a recording with a 45-piece orchestra with a rhythm section and soloists at A&M studios. Guzauski engineered several albums for Mangione over the next few years.

1980s

In the early 1980s, Guzauski worked with Maurice White and Earth, Wind and Fire at the Complex (then George Massenburg Studios). Conway Studios in L.A. became his home base in the mid 1980s, where he engineered and mixed projects for Burt Bacharach, Dionne Warwick, Mister Mister, Madonna, Talking Heads, Johnny Mathis, Henry Mancini, Patti LaBelle, Stanley Clarke, George Duke, Quincy Jones, Michael Bolton, Kenny G, and Cher.

1990s on

In 1991, Walter Afanasieff asked him to mix a Michael Bolton record he was working on. Guzauski still does work for both of them. Afanasieff then hired him to mix a Mariah Carey album in 1993. Tommy Mottola, then CEO of Sony, liked his mixes and asked him to relocate to New York and work for him at Sony Studios. Guzauski accepted Mottola's offer, and worked on albums with Mottola at Sony and at Mariah Carey's home studio, doing mostly female ballads. He also mixed projects for David Foster, Babyface, Boyz to Men, and All-4-One.

In 2001, Guzauski worked with Michael Jackson to create 5.1-channel surround sound remixes of Thriller as well as all his other albums for release on the then new Super Audio CD format ^[1][2] yet despite numerous retries the artist never approved any of the mixes.^[3]

Current work

Guzauski now works from his 1,400-square-foot (130 m²) private studio, Barking Doctor Recording, located in the basement of his home (in Mount Kisco, New York, about 40 miles (64 km) north of New York City). The studio has 2 control rooms, and a small tracking/overdub room. Studio A is built around a Sony OXF-R3 Oxford mixing console and Pro Tools HD Xcel 3 system with Accel cards with 96 channels. Studio B is built around a Yamaha DM-2000 console and standard mixing outboard that he prefers: Eventide SP-2016's (for sparkly, long reverb on vocals, and on ballads), Manley, and GML EQ's, AMS's, EMT Plates, and the Sony 3348HR).

At Barking Doctor, he has mixed projects for Brian McKnight, Michael Jackson, Leann Rimes, Eric Clapton, The Corrs, BB King, Brandy, Marc Anthony, J Lo, Monica Naranjo, Michael McDonald, and Mariah Carey. Guzauski is currently working on projects for Clapton, Lara Fabian, Jessica Simpson, Zucchero, Leehom Wang, and Michael Bolton.

Emmy Award nomination

Guzauski was nominated in 2005 for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Variety or Music Series or Special or Animation, for his mixing for Eric Clapton in "Great Performances; Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival" (1972), along with Elliot Scheiner, Ed Cherney, and Neil Dorfsman.

Select discography

(E = engineer; M = mixer)

• Yolanda Adams: Mountain High...Valley Low (1999, M)
• After 7: Reflections (1995, M)
• Christina Aguilera: Mi Reflejo (2000, M), I Turn to You (2000, E/M), Christina Aguilera (1999, M)
• Anastasia: Pieces of a Dream (2005, M)
• Marc Anthony: Mended (2002, M), You Sang to Me (2000, M)
• Tina Arena: Souvenirs (M), In Deep (1997, M)
• Babyface: Everytime I Close My Eyes (1996, M), The Day (1996, M)
• Backstreet Boys: Millennium (1999, M)
• The Bee Gees: Love Songs (2005, M), Still Waters (1997, M)
• Michael Bolton: 'Til the End of Forever (2005, M), Timeless: The Classics Vol. 2 (1999, M), All That Matters (1997, M), The One Thing (1993, M), Time, Love & Tenderness (1991,M)
• Boys II Men: Ballad Collection (2000, M), Extras (1999, M), II (1994, M)
• Brandy: Never Say Never (1998, M)
• Toni Braxton: Un-Break My Heart: The Remix Collection (2005, M), Secrets (1996, M)
• Jim Brickman: Valentine (2002, M), Destiny (1999, M), Visions of Love (1998, M), Picture This (1997, M), Gift (1997, M)
• Sarah Brightman: Harem (2003, M)
• Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas DualDisc (2005, M), Charmbracelet (2002, M), #1s (1998, E/M), Butterfly (1997, M)
• Ray Charles: Thanks for Bringing Love Around Again (2002, E)
• Cher: Chronicles (2005, M), Heart of Stone (1989, E)
• Eric Clapton: Back Home (2005, M), Me and Mr. Johnson (2004, M), One More Car, One More Rider (2002, M), Reptile (2001, M), Riding With the King (2002, M), Pilgrim (1999, M)
• Stanley Clarke: If This Bass Could Only Talk (1988, M), Hideaway (1986, M)
• Natalie Cole: Snowfall on the Sahara (1999, M), Everlasting (1987, E/M)
• Earth, Wind & Fire: Love Songs (2004, E), Essential Earth, Wind & Fire (2002, E), Millennium (1993, M), Powerlight (1983, E/M)
• Warren Hill: Life Thru Rose Colored Glasses (1998, M), Shelter (1997, M), Truth (1994, M), Devotion (1993, E/M)
• Patti LaBelle: Flame (1997, M), Burnin' (1991, M), Be Yourself (1989, E/M), Winner in You (1996, E)
• Jennifer Lopez: Jenny From the Black] (2002, M), I'm Gonna Be Alright/Alive (2002, M), On the 6 (1999, Remixing/M)
• Chuck Mangione: Fun and Games (1979, E), Children of Sanchez (E/M/editing), Feels So Good (1997, E), Chase the Clouds Away (1975, E)
• Brian McKnight: U Turn (2003, M), Superhero & More (2002, M), Superhero (2001, M), Anytime (1997, M)
• Laura Pausini: From the Inside (2002, M)
• Prince: Best of Prince (2006, E/remixing), Hits 2 (1993, E), Hits 1 (1993, remixing), Controversy (1981, E)
• Return to Forever: The Anthology (2008, remixing, M)
• LeAnn Rimes: You Light Up My Life: Inspirational Songs (1997, M)
• Smokey Robinson: One Heartbeat (1997, M), Intimate (1999, M)
• Jessica Simpson: Sweet Kisses (1999, M), Irresistible (2001, M)
• Britney Spears: In the Zone (2003, M)
• Barbra Streisand: Emotion (1984, E), Till I Loved You (1988, E/M), Higher Ground (1997, M), Duets (2002, M)
• Talking Heads: True Stories (1986, mixing assistant), Best of Talking Heads: Once in a Lifetime (1992, M), Talking Heads Brick DualDisc (2005, M), True Stories DualDisc (2006, M)
• Vanessa L. Williams: Sweetest Days (1995, M), Star Bright (1996, M), Next (1997, E/M), Greatest Hits: The First Ten Years (1998, M)
• The Yellowjackets: Live Wires (1991, E/M), Like a River (1992, E/M), Run for Your Life (1993, E), Collection (1995, E/M), Priceless Jazz (1998, E)

Filmography

• Firstborn (1984) (music mixer)
• Asterix and the Big Fight, aka "Astérix et le coup du menhir" (1989) (music mixer)
• Hard to Kill (1990), starring Steven Seagal (music score mixing)
• Love Hurts (1991), starring Jeff Daniels (music recording engineer)
• Out for Justice (1991), starring Steven Seagal (music mixer) (music recordist)
• Diary of a Hitman (1991), starring Forest Whitaker (music mixer)
• Eric Clapton: Live in Hyde Park (1997; TV) (5.1 surround mixer)
• How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998), starring Angela Bassett (music mixer; music recordist)
• Marc Anthony: The Concert from Madison Square Garden (2000; TV) (sound mixer)
• Eric Clapton: One More Car, One More Rider – Live on Tour 2001 (2002; V) (5.1 surround mixer)
• Eric Clapton: Sessions for Robert J (2004; V) (sound mixer)
• "Great Performances"
  • Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival (2004; TV episode) (sound mixer)
  • Cream Reunion Concert (2005; TV episode) (sound mixer)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Paul Verna (May 1, 2001). "Interview with Mick Guzauski". Mix Online. http://mixonline.com/mag/audio_mick_guzauski/. Retrieved July 7, 2009. 
2. ^ Kevin Becka (June 1, 2006). ""Mix Interview: Mick Guzauski"". Mix Online. http://mixonline.com/recording/interviews/audio_mick_guzauski_2/. Retrieved July 7, 2009. 
3. ^ Roger Friedman (July 23, 2001). "First Jackson Effort Rejected, New One Not Ready". Fox News. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,30233,00.html. Retrieved July 7, 2009. 

External links

• Studio Expresso profile
• Full Discography
• Discogs profile
• IMDB entry
• Barking Doctor studio
• Mix Masters: Platinum Engineers Reveal Their Secrets for Success, Chapter 4: Mick Guzauski, Secrets from the Top of the Charts, 2003, by Maureen Droney

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