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Bibliography 2003 (or go to Anti)

  1. Lanois Gets His Own Licks. The Gazette (concert review)
  2. Ben Rayner (Columnist), Toronto Star (concert review)

 

Biography

Bio by Alan Light for SXSW, March 2003

Canadian Encyclopedia of Pop has a brief biography of Daniel Lanois

Born September 19, 1951, Hull, Quebec, Canada.

Called "the most important record producer to emerge in the Eighties" by Rolling Stone, Daniel Lanois has drawn kudos for his work with U2, Peter Gabriel, and Bob Dylan. Like his sometime collaborator Brian Eno, Lanois has shown a flair for delicate, atmospheric touches, both in producing material for other musicians and in his own projects as a composer and recording artist. Stressing emotional vibrancy over the technical aspects of making albums, Lanois has recorded in such unlikely settings as castles and dairy barns in his efforts to elicit honest, spontaneous performances. The results of this visceral approach have ranged from the soaring intensity of his Grammy-winning coproduction (with Eno) of U2's The Joshua Tree to the moody, understated passion of Lanois' solo efforts.

Lanois' French-Canadian parents were both musically inclined: His mother sang, and his father (and grandfather) played fiddle. When they separated in 1963, Lanois moved with his mother to a suburb of English-speaking Hamilton, Ontario, where he learned to play guitar and began playing gigs with various Canadian artists. In 1970 Lanois set up a home studio with his brother Robert; ten years later, after working with numerous local musicians, they opened Grant Avenue Studio in Hamilton.

Lanois' break came in 1979 when Eno, who was beginning to break ground with his starkly dreamy "ambient music," did some recording at his studio. The chemistry between Eno and Lanois in their instrumental experiments came to commercial fruition when Eno was tapped to produce an album for U2. For that effort, 1984's The Unforgettable Fire, Eno enlisted Lanois as coproducer. The results impressed another pop star, Peter Gabriel, who asked Lanois to coproduce his soundtrack to the 1984 film Birdy. Gabriel and Lanois again shared production credit for 1986's So and 1992's Us, Gabriel's most successful albums. Lanois continued to work with U2 as well, coproducing 1987's The Joshua Tree with Eno and serving as principle producer for 1991's Achtung Baby, which earned him another Grammy. In addition, Lanois earned praise for coproducing with Robbie Robertson the singer's eponymous solo debut in 1987 and, in 1989, for his work at the boards on Bob Dylan's Oh Mercy and the Neville Brothers' Yellow Moon.

In 1989 Lanois released Acadie, his debut as a singer/songwriter. The album was received enthusiastically by critics, as was its 1993 successor, For the Beauty of Wynona. So far, though, the quirky radiance of Lanois' songs hasn't proved as accessible to pop fans as the work of his celebrated clients.

The above essay was copied from The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll: Completely Revised and Updated, edited by Patricia Romanowski and Holly George-Warren. A Rolling Stone Press Book. 1995. ISBN: 0-684-81044-1. Pages 566-567.

Bibliography 1994-1997

  1. Lanois Scores A Hit. Graham Verdon. Rough Cut. http://www.roughcut.com/main/drive2.html. April 11, 1997.
  2. Outside the ballpark.(Emmylou Harris's eccentric 1995 album, 'Wrecking Ball')(Backbeat)(Interview) Alanna Nash. Stereo Review, April 1996 v61 n4 p88(1).
  3. Wrecking Ball. - (sound recording reviews) Susan Richardson. Rolling Stone, Nov 16, 1995 n721 p110(1).
  4. Camilla. - (movie reviews) Brian D. Johnson. Maclean's, Nov 28, 1994 v107 n48 p86(2).
  5. Daniel Lanois finds his own voice. (producer and musician). Steve Pond. Rolling Stone, Sept 30, 1993 n666 p24(2).
  6. For the Beauty of Wynona. - (sound recording reviews) Paul Evans. Rolling Stone, May 27, 1993 n657 p49(1).
  7. For the Beauty of Wynona. - (sound recording reviews) Bill Milkowski. Down Beat, May 1993 v60 n5 p46(2).
  8. For the Beauty of Wynona. - (sound recording reviews) Nicholas Jennings. Maclean's, April 12, 1993 v106 n15 59(1).
  9. Lanois plumbs the depths of 'beauty' on 2nd album. (musician Daniel Lanois) Melinda Newman. Billboard, April 10, 1993 v105 n15 p12(2).
  10. For the Beauty of Wynona. - (sound recording reviews) Jay Cocks. Time, March 22, 1993 v141 n12 p76(1).
  11. Until the End of the World. (Original soundtrack) - (sound recording reviews) Parke Puterbaugh. Stereo Review, March 1992 v57 n3 p74(2).
  12. Achtung Baby. - (sound recording reviews) Elysa Gardner. Rolling Stone, Jan 9, 1992 n621 p50(1).
  13. Simple twist of fate; a chance encounter helped Chris Whitley break through. David Wild. Rolling Stone, Sept 5, 1991 n612 p15(3).
  14. Home production. (musicians Daniel Lanois, Don Was, Jerry Harrison) Kim Neely. Rolling Stone, June 14, 1990 n580 p123(1).
  15. Live! And the Ass Saw the Angel. Melody Maker [GMEM] Vol: 66 Iss: 15 Apr 14, 1990 p: 21
  16. Acadie. - (record reviews) Josef Woodard. Down Beat, April 1990 v57 n4 p34(2).
  17. LIVE! Daniel Lanois. Melody Maker [GMEM] Vol: 66 Iss: 8 Feb 24, 1990 p: 20
  18. Daniel Lanois. Melody Maker [GMEM] Vol: 66 Iss: 5 Feb 3, 1990 p: 18-19
  19. Yellow Moon. - (record reviews) David Fricke. Rolling Stone, Dec 14, 1989 n567568 p212(1).
  20. Chairman of the boards. (Daniel Lanois) Michael Goldberg. Rolling Stone, Nov 30, 1989 n566 p39(1).
  21. Lanois Broadens Horizons with Solo Work. Billboard [GBIL] Vol: 101 Iss: 42 Oct 21, 1989 p: 71
  22. Albums: Daniel Lanois. Melody Maker [GMEM] Vol: 65 Iss: 42 Oct 21, 1989 p: 38
  23. Lanois Is Out of the Control Room. Billboard [GBIL] Vol: 101 Iss: 40 Oct 7, 1989 p: 40
  24. Oh Mercy. - (record reviews) Anthony DeCurtis. Rolling Stone, Sept 21, 1989 n561 p115(2).
  25. Yellow Moon. - (record reviews) Gene Santoro. The Nation, April 24, 1989 v248 n16 p571(2).
  26. Albums: Brian Eno, Roger Eno, Harold Budd, Daniel Lanois. Melody Maker [GMEM] Vol: 64 Iss: 43 Oct 22, 1988 p: 44.
  27. A musical magician at the controls. (record producer Daniel Lanois) Nicholas Jennings. Maclean's, March 14, 1988 v101 n12 p66(2).
  28. Robbie Robertson. - (record reviews) David Browne. High Fidelity, March 1988 v38 n3 p73(2).
  29. Robbie Robertson. - (record reviews) Steve Simels. Stereo Review, Feb 1988 v53 n2 p180(1).
  30. Daniel Lanois. (record producer) (interview) James Henke. Rolling Stone, Dec 17, 1987 n515-16 p93(3).
  31. So. - (record reviews) Marcel Dumont. High Fidelity, Sept 1986 v36 p78(2).
  32. Hybrid. - (record reviews) John Diliberto. Down Beat, March 1986 v53 p32(2).
  33. U2: the unforgettable fire. - (sound-recording reviews) Mark Peel. Stereo Review, Feb 1985 v50 p61(1).
  34. The unforgettable fire. - (sound-recording reviews) Wayne King. High Fidelity, Dec 1984 v34 p95(2).

 

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