Shel Talmy, Kinks and Who Producer, Dead at 87

Shel Talmy, the rock producer known for recording hits with the Kinks and the Who, has died at the age of 87.

Talmy’s death was confirmed via his Facebook page, which noted the producer “passed away peacefully at home yesterday after suffering a stroke.”

Talmy prepared a message to his fans to be shared upon his death. In it, he thanked everyone who supported him over the years. “I’ve had a good run, and I am delighted it lasted as long as it did. I’m also delighted that I am told I have a legacy that will last even longer,” the producer wrote in part. “I look forward to meeting some of you in the future who are reading this, but LOL, don’t hurry to get here, I’m not going anywhere!”

Shel Talmy Was ‘Really Crucial’ to the Kinks’ Career

Born in Chicago in 1937, Talmy began his music career in the early ‘60s after relocating to Los Angeles. Still, it was another move that took his stock even higher. In 1962 he moved to London and quickly became part of the growing rock scene there.

After finding initial success working for U.K.’s Decca Records, Talmy connected with a new young, upstart group called the Ravens. The world would later know them as the Kinks.

“I wanted a rock n’ roll band,” Talmy recalled decades later. “I grew up with rock n’ roll, R&B. What I felt I could do [in the U.K.] was give an American sound to a really good rock n’ roll band, and I was on a constant lookout for rock n’ roll bands. I guess the Kinks were the first one I found that I thought were really sensational. They were not nearly as good then as they eventually wound up being.”

Talmy went on to produce the Kinks’ first five albums. His run with the band included such timeless hits as “You Really Got Me,” “All Day and All of the Night,” “Tired of Waiting for You,” and “Waterloo Sunset.” There remains some debate regarding his final album with the band, 1968’s Something Else by the Kinks, which reportedly featured tunes produced by both Talmy and Ray Davies.

In a tweet following Talmy’s death, Kinks guitarist Dave Davies called the producer a “sweet gentle soul” who was “really crucial to the beginning of our career.”

Shel Talmy’s Work With the Who

Pete Townshend, then an unknown guitarist in a band called the High Numbers, heard “You Really Got Me” and was captured by the track. The rocker contacted Talmy and asked if he’d be interested in producing his band. The High Numbers soon became the Who, and Talmy became integral to the group’s early sound.

Talmy produced the band’s debut album, 1965’s My Generation. With beloved tunes like “The Kids Are Alright” and the emphatic title track, My Generation set the Who on course for their legendary career.

“I had always felt that the so-called Who sound, on record at any event, was a good deal my creation,” Talmy later admitted. “And I don’t think that’s an ego trip. All you have to do is listen to the record they did before I was with them, the High Numbers record [“I’m The Face”/”Zoot Suit”], and compare the difference. And I certainly felt that after I stopped recording them, they weren’t being recorded nearly as well.”

Talmy’s career also featured hit songs with an array of other artists, including the Easybeats (“Friday On My Mind”), Chad & Jeremy (“A Summer Song”) and Dave Davies (“Death of a Clown”). The producer also worked with Small Faces and a pre-fame David Bowie, then going by his real name, David Jones.