Under The Milky Way

I meant to post a few days ago about the sad passing of producer / engineer Greg Ladanyi, who apparently fell to his death shortly before a concert he was set to work on September 29th. Ladanyi's name appeared on many albums that I purchased in the 80's, including Fleetwood Mac's Behind The Mask, Don Henley's first two solo albums and Jackson Browne. Not to mention his work with Toto including on the immortal Toto IV. Ladanyi's work was marked by a smooth, tasteful sensibility. While reading one of his obituaries I was surprised to learn he had worked with The Church on the album that included a really great song, "Under The Milky Way".

Most producer / engineers don't get as much recognition as the artists they work with, in Ladanyi's case I feel his input played a factor on some of my favorite tunes on either a technical or aesthetic level. He didn't appear to be an "in your face" producer like say David Foster or Nile Rodgers where you hear 30 seconds and immediately knew who worked on it. As I type this, Toto's "Africa" popped up on my IPOD a song Ladanyi mixed. The "behind the scenes" people can make or break a project, I personally love the layered sound to Toto IV including how some of the piano from the demo is inserted into "Africa". In any case, another sad passing in music, to pay some respect here's The Church's hit that Ladanyi worked on "Under The Milky Way".