Robin Millar
Encyclopedia
Robin John Christian Millar CBE
(born 18 December 1951, Hyde Park Corner
, Westminster
, London
) is an English
musician
, songwriter
and record producer
.
at St George’s Hospital, which is now The Lanesborough
Hotel, Hyde Park Corner. He attended Enfield Grammar School
from 1963–70 and then read law at Cambridge University from 1970-73.
and artist, putting out records
with Atlantic
and WEA and working with ex-Velvet Underground singer Nico
. He found his niche as a record producer
in the early 1980s when he started Power Plant Studios. Power Plant became the most fashionable haunt of the London 1980s music scene. After working with post punk band
Weekend in 1982, his breakthrough came in 1984 with seven consecutive Top 10 album
s; including Eden
by Everything but the Girl
, Working Nights by Working Week
, and especially the multi-platinum
selling Diamond Life
by Sade
.
Later he produced albums by Fine Young Cannibals
(Fine Young Cannibals
), Colin Hay
(Looking for Jack
), Big Country (The Seer), Patricia Kaas
(Je te dis vous
), Kane Gang
, Bhundu Boys
and Randy Crawford
amongst others. Millar arranged
the music
for the film
, And Now... Ladies and Gentlemen... Millar's song "Rich and Poor", co-composed with Colin Vearncombe, was recorded
by Randy Crawford
on her 1989 album, Rich and Poor. His 2003 solo
album, Kiss and Tell was released by the Nujaz record label
.
Millar has worked as producer, arranger, musician, songwriter and mixer, with Sting, Eric Clapton
, John Mayall
, Chrissie Hynde
, Alison Moyet
, Brand New Heavies
, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
, Sir Willard White
, Mick Hucknell, Elvis Costello
, Peter Gabriel
, Françoise Hardy
, Catherine Deneuve
and Malcolm McLaren
. His productions have sold over 55 million copies worldwide and have been awarded 150 platinum, gold and silver awards. They have won every major music award including Grammy
and Brit Awards.
He is also a champion for vulnerable people and was awarded the 2002 Windrush Award for this work. He has made campaigning records and produced fund-raising concerts as Patron for UNICEF, UNHCR, Oxfam, Nimibian Freedom Fighters, Chilean Solidarity and Oxfam. He is a long-time trustee of The Vietnamese Boat Peoples' Appeal.
Millar trained as a recording engineer, classical and jazz musician and arranger, and has trained dozens of top engineers and producers, including Arctic Monkeys
producer Jim Abbiss
. He also works as a mentor and inspirational guide to FTSE business leaders and people in the public eye, with famous clients from the world of business, music and politics.
In 2005, he produced MP4
's version
of The Beatles
', "Can't Buy Me Love
".
Millar is a patron of The Music Producers Guild
, which he helped found
in 1987.
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2010 Birthday Honours.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 18 December 1951, Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner is a place in London, at the south-east corner of Hyde Park. It is a major intersection where Park Lane, Knightsbridge, Piccadilly, Grosvenor Place and Constitution Hill converge...
, Westminster
Westminster
Westminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
) is an English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
musician
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...
.
Early life
Millar was born with retinitis pigmentosaRetinitis pigmentosa
Retinitis pigmentosa is a group of genetic eye conditions that leads to incurable blindness. In the progression of symptoms for RP, night blindness generally precedes tunnel vision by years or even decades. Many people with RP do not become legally blind until their 40s or 50s and retain some...
at St George’s Hospital, which is now The Lanesborough
The Lanesborough
The Lanesborough is a 5-star hotel on Hyde Park Corner, Knightsbridge, central London, England. Operated by the American Starwood Hotels corporation, it is reputedly the most expensive hotel in London, the highest rate being up to £14,000 per night for the "The Lanesborough Suite". A 24-hour...
Hotel, Hyde Park Corner. He attended Enfield Grammar School
Enfield Grammar School
Enfield Grammar School is a boys' comprehensive school in Enfield Town in the London Borough of Enfield in north London.-History:Enfield Grammar School was founded on the 25th. May 1558...
from 1963–70 and then read law at Cambridge University from 1970-73.
Musical career
After gaining his law degree, Millar moved into the music industry initially as a guitaristGuitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
and artist, putting out records
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
with Atlantic
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
and WEA and working with ex-Velvet Underground singer Nico
Nico
Nico was a German singer, lyricist, composer, musician, fashion model, and actress, who initially rose to fame as a Warhol Superstar in the 1960s...
. He found his niche as a 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...
in the early 1980s when he started Power Plant Studios. Power Plant became the most fashionable haunt of the London 1980s music scene. After working with post punk band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
Weekend in 1982, his breakthrough came in 1984 with seven consecutive Top 10 album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
s; including Eden
Eden (Everything but the Girl album)
Eden is the debut album by Everything But The Girl, released in 1984. It contains their first UK Top 30 entry, the #28 hit "Each and Every One"...
by Everything but the Girl
Everything but the Girl
Everything but the Girl was a two-person English band, formed in Hull during 1981, consisting of lead singer and occasional guitarist Tracey Thorn and guitarist, keyboardist, and singer Ben Watt . They are currently inactive although vocalist Tracey Thorn hinted that they may reform someday...
, Working Nights by Working Week
Working Week (band)
Working Week were a British jazz-dance musical ensemble, active in the 1980s and 1990s.Working Week were formed in 1983 by guitarist Simon Booth and saxophonist Larry Stabbins, who were previously in post punk outfit Weekend...
, and especially the multi-platinum
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,...
selling Diamond Life
Diamond Life
-Personnel:*Sade Adu – vocals*Andrew Hale – keyboards*Stuart Matthewman – guitar, saxophone*Paul S. Denman – bass*Paul Cooke – drums*Terry Bailey – trumpet*Pete Brown – assistant engineer*Tom Coyne – remastering*Martin Ditcham – percussion...
by Sade
Sade (band)
Sade is a British smooth jazz band that formed in 1983, named for Nigerian lead singer Sade Adu. Their music features elements of R&B, soul, jazz, and soft rock....
.
Later he produced albums by Fine Young Cannibals
Fine Young Cannibals
Fine Young Cannibals were a British band formed in Birmingham, England, in 1984, by bassist David Steele and guitarist Andy Cox , and singer Roland Gift...
(Fine Young Cannibals
Fine Young Cannibals (album)
Fine Young Cannibals is an album released in 1985 by the band of the same name.The success of their UK #8 debut single "Johnny Come Home" did not continue with the next single, "Blue", which languished at #41 in the UK. The version of "Blue" on the original vinyl LP and cassette was re-mixed for...
), Colin Hay
Colin Hay
Colin James Hay is a Scottish-Australian musician, who made his mark during the 1980s as lead vocalist of the Australian band Men at Work, and later as a solo artist.- Early life and Men at Work :...
(Looking for Jack
Looking for Jack
Looking for Jack is the 1st solo album by former Men at Work lead singer Colin Hay, released in 1987. .At an acoustic performance at Melbourne's Prince of Wales Hotel on 13 June 2007, Hay described the genesis of the title track. Watching a gig, he saw Jack Nicholson standing by the mixing desk. he...
), Big Country (The Seer), Patricia Kaas
Patricia Kaas
Patricia Kaas is a French singer and actress.Kaas is a very successful French-speaking singer, with an International following...
(Je te dis vous
Je te dis vous
Je te dis vous is the name of an album recorded by the French singer Patricia Kaas. It was released in 1993 and achieved a huge success in many countries.-Background and writing:...
), Kane Gang
Kane Gang
Kane Gang were a Blues rock trio from North East England that had a few UK hits and two U.S. hits in the 1980s. Named after the movie, Citizen Kane, the trio recorded for the indie record label, Kitchenware, that was also home to Prefab Sprout.-Career:...
, Bhundu Boys
Bhundu Boys
The Bhundu Boys were a Zimbabwean band that played a mixture of chimurenga music with American rock and roll, disco, country, and pop influences...
and Randy Crawford
Randy Crawford
Randy Crawford is an American jazz and R&B singer. She has been more successful in Europe than in the United States, where she has not entered the Billboard Hot 100 as a solo artist...
amongst others. Millar arranged
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
the music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
for the film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, And Now... Ladies and Gentlemen... Millar's song "Rich and Poor", co-composed with Colin Vearncombe, was recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
by Randy Crawford
Randy Crawford
Randy Crawford is an American jazz and R&B singer. She has been more successful in Europe than in the United States, where she has not entered the Billboard Hot 100 as a solo artist...
on her 1989 album, Rich and Poor. His 2003 solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
album, Kiss and Tell was released by the Nujaz record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
.
Millar has worked as producer, arranger, musician, songwriter and mixer, with Sting, Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
, John Mayall
John Mayall
John Mayall, OBE is an English blues singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, whose musical career spans over fifty years...
, Chrissie Hynde
Chrissie Hynde
Christine Ellen "Chrissie" Hynde is an US musician best known as the leader of the rock/new wave band the Pretenders. She is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist, and has been the only constant member of the band throughout its history.-Early life and career:Hynde is the daughter of a part-time...
, Alison Moyet
Alison Moyet
Alison Moyet , is an English singer, songwriter and performer noted for her bluesy voice.Her UK album sales have reached a certified 2.3 million, with 800,000 singles sold, all in the UK, where all seven of her studio albums and three compilation albums have charted in the Top 40 UK Album Chart,...
, Brand New Heavies
Brand New Heavies
The Brand New Heavies are an acid jazz and funk group formed in 1985 in Ealing, a suburb of London, England.-Biography:The Brand New Heavies began in the 1980s as an instrumental acid jazz group called Brother International....
, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
, Sir Willard White
Willard White
Sir Willard Wentworth White, OM, CBE is a Jamaican-born British bass-baritone.-Early life:He was born into a poor but supportive Jamaican family in Kingston. His father was a dockworker, his mother a housewife. White first began to learn music by listening to the radio and singing Nat King Cole...
, Mick Hucknell, Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
, Françoise Hardy
Françoise Hardy
Françoise Madeleine Hardy is a French singer, actress and astrologer. Hardy is an iconic figure in fashion, music and style. She is married to the singer and movie actor Jacques Dutronc.-Biography:...
, Catherine Deneuve
Catherine Deneuve
Catherine Deneuve is a French actress. She gained recognition for her portrayal of aloof and mysterious beauties in films such as Repulsion and Belle de jour . Deneuve was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in 1993 for her performance in Indochine; she also won César Awards for that...
and Malcolm McLaren
Malcolm McLaren
Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English performer, impresario, self-publicist and manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls...
. His productions have sold over 55 million copies worldwide and have been awarded 150 platinum, gold and silver awards. They have won every major music award including Grammy
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...
and Brit Awards.
He is also a champion for vulnerable people and was awarded the 2002 Windrush Award for this work. He has made campaigning records and produced fund-raising concerts as Patron for UNICEF, UNHCR, Oxfam, Nimibian Freedom Fighters, Chilean Solidarity and Oxfam. He is a long-time trustee of The Vietnamese Boat Peoples' Appeal.
Millar trained as a recording engineer, classical and jazz musician and arranger, and has trained dozens of top engineers and producers, including Arctic Monkeys
Arctic Monkeys
Arctic Monkeys are an English indie rock band. Formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield, the band currently consists of Alex Turner , Jamie Cook , Nick O'Malley and Matt Helders...
producer Jim Abbiss
Jim Abbiss
Jim Abbiss is a British music producer, best known for his work on records including Arctic Monkeys' Mercury Music Prize winning debut album, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, Ladytron's Witching Hour, Sneaker Pimps' debut Becoming X, Editors' debut The Back Room, Kasabian's...
. He also works as a mentor and inspirational guide to FTSE business leaders and people in the public eye, with famous clients from the world of business, music and politics.
In 2005, he produced MP4
MP4 (band)
MP4 is a rock band made up of four British Members of Parliament.-Members:It was founded as MP3 in 2004 by Pete Wishart on keyboards, Ian Cawsey on bass guitar and vocals, and Greg Knight on drums...
's version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
', "Can't Buy Me Love
Can't Buy Me Love
"Can't Buy Me Love" is a song composed by Paul McCartney and released by The Beatles on the A-side of their sixth British single, "Can't Buy Me Love"/"You Can't Do That".-Interpretation:...
".
Millar is a patron of The Music Producers Guild
The Music Producers Guild
The Music Producers Guild promotes and represents all individuals in the music production and recording professions. It is a professional organisation that embodies collective and individual creative contributions to the production and recording of all genres of music and media related...
, which he helped found
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
in 1987.
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2010 Birthday Honours.
Production credits
In addition to those listed above, Millar's work as a record producer includes credits on the following:-- Hope and Glory - Tom Robinson BandTom RobinsonTom Robinson is an English singer-songwriter, bassist and radio presenter, better known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson Band...
- Wonderful LifeWonderful Life (Black album)Wonderful Life is the debut album of English singer Black, released on August 31, 1987. It peaked at #3 on the UK Albums Chart in September of that year.-Track listing:All songs written by Colin Vearncombe unless otherwise noted...
- Black - Nouveau Monde - Pierre Schott
- ParisParis (Malcolm McLaren album)Paris is a double-CD by Malcolm McLaren released in 1994.-Disc one:# "Mon Dié Sénié" – 4:30# "Walking With Satie" – 4:03# "Père Lachaise" – 3:41# "Miles And Miles Of Miles Davis" – 2:04# "Jazz Is Paris" – 5:15# "Rue Dauphine" – 3:26...
- Malcolm McLarenMalcolm McLarenMalcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English performer, impresario, self-publicist and manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls... - Mickey Hart's Mystery Box - Mickey HartMickey HartMickey Hart is an American percussionist and musicologist. He is best known as one of the two drummers of the rock band the Grateful Dead. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from September 1967 to February 1971, and from October 1974 to August 1995...
- Urban World Music - HiroshimaHiroshima (band)Hiroshima is an American jazz fusion/smooth jazz band formed in 1974 by Sansei Japanese American Dan Kuramoto , Peter Hata , June Kuramoto , Johnny Mori , Dave Iwataki and Danny Yamamoto...
- Singles Collection - The BluebellsThe BluebellsThe Bluebells were a Scottish pop group in the 1980s.-Career:The Bluebells performed jangly guitar based pop not dissimilar to their Scottish contemporaries Aztec Camera and Orange Juice. They had three Top 40 hit singles in the UK, all written by guitarist and founder member Bobby Bluebell - "I'm...
- In T.R.O.U.B.L.E. Again - Vic GodardVic GodardVic Godard is a British singer-songwriter formerly of the punk group Subway Sect. He is now a solo performer.-Biography:Born Vic Knapper in Mortlake c.1959, Godard was raised in Barnes....
- Ive Mendes - Ive Mendes
- Sound of the Style Council - The Style CouncilThe Style CouncilThe Style Council were an English band, formed in 1983 by the ex-The Jam singer and guitarist Paul Weller, with keyboardist Mick Talbot. The permanent line-up grew to include drummer Steve White and Weller's then-wife, vocalist Dee C. Lee. Other artists such as Tracie Young and Tracey Thorn also...
- Sungrooves - Mark Riva
- In The House - Dimitri from ParisDimitri from ParisDimitri from Paris is a French music producer and DJ of Greek origins. His musical influences are rooted in 1970s funk and disco sounds that spawned contemporary house music, as well as original soundtracks from 50s and 60s cult movies such as Breakfast at Tiffany's, La Dolce Vita and The Party,...
- Shev and the Brakes - Shev and the Brakes
- To Touch You - Tyrone Berkeley
- "My Favourite Town" - POLA