David Baker

Take all the somewhat extended loft jazz jams of the '70s and '80s and add them up. Then, add onto that some extended recording sessions by Parliament, George Clinton, and other P-Funk spin-offs. Add onto that all the hours that the Moody Blues spent in the recording studio putting together their series of masterpieces, cheesy and profound. Some may be turning gray already at the prospect of the time accumulated so far, but this isn't over. Now, factor in many live recording sessions that have taken place at clubs in New York City, usually stretched over six hours per night times three or four nights in a stretch. Adding all this up, or simply looking at all his recording credits, the obvious question is whether David Baker had time left to exist outside the recording studio. The man who is said to have worked on more than 2,000 recording sessions came from a family that was knee-deep in the music business. His grandfather was a salesman for Columbia back in the '20s, and Harry Baker, the engineer's father, had his own business installing large hi-fi systems in Atlanta. From age six, David Baker would come along on these jobs. He was soon making amateur recordings of anything he could and learning how to edit tape. In his teens, Baker coordinated sound for the Atlanta Arts Festival. In 1965, at the age of 20, he undertook a fascinating and historic project of field recording events in the ongoing civil rights movement, ranging from registration drives to church hall meetings. Baker has commented that these recordings had an enormous influence on his career as a musical engineer. This work is part of the Movement Soul album, distributed by the Library of Congress. In the late '60s, Baker became involved with the Vanguard label and Apostolic Studios in New York City,...