February 2009

The first ever Awards ceremony aimed at recognising the skill and talents of music recording professionals attracted a host of stars and music industry VIPs when it took place last night at the prestigious Cafe de Paris in London. Organised by the Music Producers Guild (UK) and hosted by BBC 6 Music’s Nemone Metaxas, the Awards attracted over 300 people who turned out in force to celebrate the enormous contribution that recording professionals make to the success of the UK’s music industry.

Mike Howlett, chairman of the Music Producers Guild, says: “We hope that this event will become an integral part of the music industry calendar for many years to come. In launching these Awards our aim has always been to bring about greater awareness, both within the music industry and among the wider public, of the skills and talent involved in making great records. Audio professionals are positioned at the very heart of the music industry – we make the content that is the industry’s product – and it is important that we are acknowledged as vital and key contributors.”

The top award for Producer of the Year – which also earned its winner a BRIT Award for Best Producer – went to Bernard Butler, who worked with Duffy on her debut album Rockferry.

Another award recipient was Brian Eno, who attended the ceremony to collect The Joe Meek Award for Innovation in Production. This was presented by Nick Moran, actor and director of the film Telstar, which told the story of the influential songwriter-producer Joe Meek in whose honour this award is named.

In total, 14 Awards were presented (see below for a full list of winners). Many of those recognised for their achievements over the past 12 months were cheered on by the artists they have worked with.

Producer of The Year - sponsored by the BPI: Bernard Butler
Nominees: Bernard Bulter; Brian Eno; Steve Mac

Recording Engineer of The Year – sponsored by Prism Sound: James Towler
Nominees: Haydn Bendall; James Towler; Markus Dravs


Best Mix Engineer – sponsored by Digidesign: Cenzo Townshend
Nominees: Andy Bradfield; Cenzo Townsend; Tom Elmhirst

Best Mastering Engineer – sponsored by SADiE: Ray Staff
Nominees: John Davis; Ray Staff; Tim Young

Best International Producer of the Year – sponsored by RAK Studios: Danger Mouse (AKA Brian Burton)
Nominees: Danger Mouse (AKA Brian Burton); Mark Ronson; Robert John ‘Mutt’ Lange

Best Live Album of The Year (08) – sponsored by Shure: Girls Aloud – Tangled Up
Nominees: David Gilmour - Live In Gdansk; Girls Aloud - Tangled Up; Nephu Huzzband - Live In London

UK Album of The Year (08) – sponsored by Cream Recording Studios: Elbow – Seldom Seen Kid
Nominees: Coldplay - Viva La Vida; Duffy – Rockferry; Elbow - Seldom Seen Kid

UK Single of The Year (08) – sponsored by Discovering Arts: Elbow – One Day Like This
Nominees: Duffy – Mercy; Elbow – One Day Like This; Radiohead – Nude

The Joe Meek Award for Innovation In Production – sponsored by Music Producers Guild: Brian Eno
Nominees: Brian Eno; Bjork; Mark Ronson

Best Re-mixer – sponsored by CMU: Calvin Harris
Nominees: Calvin Harris; Dan Turner; Gareth Jones

Best Newcomer – sponsored by Deep Recording Studios: Paul Epworth
Nominees: Dan Hulme; Paul Epworth; Steve Booker

Best Studio – sponsored by TL Audio: British Grove Studios
Nominees: Abbey Road; AIR Lyndhurst; British Grove Studios

Unsung Hero – sponsored by Alchemea: Andy McBride
Nominees: AndyMcBride; Crispin Murray; Xavier Stephenson

Music Producers Guild Special Recognition Award: Chris Blair

Pictured: TL Audio's Sarah Yule with Best Studio Winner David Stewart of British Grove Studios

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