Ed Cobb
Encyclopedia
Ed Cobb was a musician
, songwriter
and record producer
, most notably during the 1950s and 1960s.
group the Four Preps
, from its discovery in 1956 until he left the group in 1966, three years before it disbanded.
His greatest claim to fame was that he wrote the northern soul
hit "Tainted Love
" for Gloria Jones
, which Soft Cell
reworked into one of the biggest pop hits of the 1980s.
After his performing career ended, Cobb became fully focused on work as a record producer and sound engineer, which he had already begun doing by the Four Preps' breakup. He became involved with acts such as the Standells
, the Lettermen
, the Chocolate Watch Band, the Piltdown Men
, Fleetwood Mac
, Steely Dan
, and Pink Floyd
. Cobb also wrote
song
s for many of his acts, most famously 1966's "Dirty Water
" for the Standells
, 1964's "Every Little Bit Hurts
" for Brenda Holloway
, and 1965's "Tainted Love".
Through his producing and engineering career, Cobb earned thirty two gold and platinum records
, and three Grammy Award
nominations.
In his private life, Cobb was a champion horse breeder, and, for a short while, served as president of the Idaho Racing Commission.
Cobb died of leukemia
on September 19, 1999, in Honolulu
, Hawaii
, at the age of 61.
noted:
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, most notably during the 1950s and 1960s.
Career
Cobb was a member of the popPop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
group the Four Preps
The Four Preps
The Four Preps are an American popular music male quartet. In the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the group amassed eight gold singles and three gold albums...
, from its discovery in 1956 until he left the group in 1966, three years before it disbanded.
His greatest claim to fame was that he wrote the northern soul
Northern soul
Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...
hit "Tainted Love
Tainted Love
"Tainted Love" is a song composed by Ed Cobb, formerly of The Four Preps, which was originally recorded by Gloria Jones in 1965. It attained worldwide fame after being covered by Soft Cell in 1981, reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart, and has since been covered by numerous groups and...
" for Gloria Jones
Gloria Jones
Gloria Richetta Jones is an American singer and songwriter from Los Angeles, California. She recorded the 1964 northern soul song, "Tainted Love", later a hit for the British synth-pop duo, Soft Cell. She was the girlfriend of glam rock artist Marc Bolan of the band T...
, which Soft Cell
Soft Cell
Soft Cell are an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. They consist of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The duo is most widely known for their 1981 worldwide hit version of "Tainted Love" and platinum debut Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret...
reworked into one of the biggest pop hits of the 1980s.
After his performing career ended, Cobb became fully focused on work as a record producer and sound engineer, which he had already begun doing by the Four Preps' breakup. He became involved with acts such as the Standells
The Standells
The Standells are a garage rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in the 1960s, who have been referred to as the "Godfathers of Punk Rock", and are best known for their 1966 hit "Dirty Water," now the anthem of several Boston sports teams.-The 1960s:...
, the Lettermen
The Lettermen
The Lettermen are an American male pop music vocal trio. The Lettermen's trademark is close-harmony pop songs with light arrangements. The group started in 1959...
, the Chocolate Watch Band, the Piltdown Men
The Piltdown Men
The Piltdown Men were a rock and roll instrumental studio group from Hollywood, California, featuring two lead saxophones.They were the brainchild of Ed Cobb and pianist Lincoln Mayorga of the Four Preps, and their records were issued on the Capitol label. Their name was inspired by the Piltdown...
, Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac are a British–American rock band formed in 1967 in London.The only original member present in the band is its eponymous drummer, Mick Fleetwood...
, Steely Dan
Steely Dan
Steely Dan is an American rock band; its core members are Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. The band's popularity peaked in the late 1970s, with the release of seven albums blending elements of jazz, rock, funk, R&B, and pop...
, and Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
. Cobb also wrote
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s for many of his acts, most famously 1966's "Dirty Water
Dirty Water
"Dirty Water" is a song first recorded by the California rock and roll band The Standells in 1966 and composed by their producer, Ed Cobb. It is considered a classic of garage rock.-Description:...
" for the Standells
The Standells
The Standells are a garage rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in the 1960s, who have been referred to as the "Godfathers of Punk Rock", and are best known for their 1966 hit "Dirty Water," now the anthem of several Boston sports teams.-The 1960s:...
, 1964's "Every Little Bit Hurts
Every Little Bit Hurts
"Every Little Bit Hurts" was originally a 1964 hit single for Motown soul singer Brenda Holloway, written by Ed Cobb.Though she was against recording the song again , she reluctantly recorded the song and the label released it in the summer of the year...
" for Brenda Holloway
Brenda Holloway
Brenda Holloway is an American singer and songwriter, a recording artist for the Motown label during the 1960s...
, and 1965's "Tainted Love".
Through his producing and engineering career, Cobb earned thirty two gold and platinum records
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
, and three Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominations.
In his private life, Cobb was a champion horse breeder, and, for a short while, served as president of the Idaho Racing Commission.
Cobb died of leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
on September 19, 1999, in Honolulu
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, at the age of 61.
Songs
Cobb wrote, or co-wrote the following songs, most notably recorded by the artistsMusician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
noted:
- "Barracuda" – The StandellsThe StandellsThe Standells are a garage rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in the 1960s, who have been referred to as the "Godfathers of Punk Rock", and are best known for their 1966 hit "Dirty Water," now the anthem of several Boston sports teams.-The 1960s:...
- "Brontosaurus Stomp" – The Piltdown MenThe Piltdown MenThe Piltdown Men were a rock and roll instrumental studio group from Hollywood, California, featuring two lead saxophones.They were the brainchild of Ed Cobb and pianist Lincoln Mayorga of the Four Preps, and their records were issued on the Capitol label. Their name was inspired by the Piltdown...
- "Dirty WaterDirty Water"Dirty Water" is a song first recorded by the California rock and roll band The Standells in 1966 and composed by their producer, Ed Cobb. It is considered a classic of garage rock.-Description:...
" – The Standells - "Every Little Bit Hurts" – Brenda Holloway, The Small FacesThe Small FacesThe Small Faces were an English rock and roll band from East London, heavily influenced by American rhythm and blues. The group was founded in 1965 by members Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones, and Jimmy Winston, although by 1966 Winston was replaced by Ian McLagan as the band's...
, George ClintonGeorge Clinton (funk musician)George Clinton is an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and music producer and the principal architect of P-Funk. He was the mastermind of the bands Parliament and Funkadelic during the 1970s and early 1980s, and launched a solo career in 1981. He has been cited as one of the foremost...
, The Spencer Davis Group, The ClashThe ClashThe Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
, Alicia KeysAlicia KeysAlicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano... - "I'll Always Love You" – Brenda HollowayBrenda HollowayBrenda Holloway is an American singer and songwriter, a recording artist for the Motown label during the 1960s...
- "No Way Out" – The Chocolate Watch Band
- "Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White" – The Standells, later covered by Minor ThreatMinor ThreatMinor Threat was an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1980 and disbanded in 1983. The band was relatively short-lived, but had a strong influence on the hardcore punk music scene, both stylistically and in establishing a "do it yourself" ethic for music distribution and...
, The OutletsThe OutletsThe Outlets were a 1980s Boston rock band, consisting of David Alex Barton on vocals, his brother Rick Barton on lead guitar, Mike White on bass and Walter Gustafson on drums.-History:...
and The VaccinesThe VaccinesThe Vaccines are an English indie rock band who formed in West London in 2010. The band's debut album, What Did You Expect from the Vaccines?, was released through Columbia Records on 14 March 2011 and reached number 4 in the UK Album Chart. They are currently the biggest selling new band of 2011.... - "Tainted LoveTainted Love"Tainted Love" is a song composed by Ed Cobb, formerly of The Four Preps, which was originally recorded by Gloria Jones in 1965. It attained worldwide fame after being covered by Soft Cell in 1981, reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart, and has since been covered by numerous groups and...
" – originally recorded by Gloria JonesGloria JonesGloria Richetta Jones is an American singer and songwriter from Los Angeles, California. She recorded the 1964 northern soul song, "Tainted Love", later a hit for the British synth-pop duo, Soft Cell. She was the girlfriend of glam rock artist Marc Bolan of the band T...
in 1965 (it did not chart); significantly reworked by Soft CellSoft CellSoft Cell are an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. They consist of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The duo is most widely known for their 1981 worldwide hit version of "Tainted Love" and platinum debut Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret...
and released in 1981. It became a #1 hit in 17 countries and remains one of the most enduring pop songs of the 1980s
External links
- Ed Cobb mini-biography at the IMDb websiteWebsiteA website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...