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Producer Shel Talmy, who worked with David Bowie, The Kinks and The Who, dies at 87 | Ents and Art News

Harry November 15, 2024

Producer Shel Talmy, who worked with David Bowie, The Who and The Kinks in their early years, has died at the age of 87.

Alec Palao, who worked with the American record producer, said he died peacefully in his sleep “due to complications from a stroke” at his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

In a statement he wrote before his death and published Wednesday, Talmy said: “I’ve had a good run and I’m glad it’s lasted this long. I’m also glad to be told I have a legacy that will last even longer.”

“I look forward to meeting some of you reading this in the future, but LOL, don’t rush to get here, I’m not going anywhere!”

In the same statement, his representatives said Talmy wanted fans to read his final words “with your favorite ST production of your choice running in the background.”

Talmy made his name producing some of The Kinks’ hits in the 1960s; these include Youreal Got Me, Tired Of Waiting For You, Sunny Afternoon and Waterloo Sunset.

He later produced The Who’s My Generation, which became both a hit single and album.

Talmy also worked on some of the first recordings featuring Bowie.

Born in Chicago in 1937, Talmy came to England from the US during a summer visit in 1962, where he secured a position at Decca Records, claiming to have worked with The Beach Boys.

Paying tribute to the filmmaker, Palao said: “Shel Talmy was truly a one-off production.

“Even the briefest survey of the most important pop and rock records of the 1960s would have to include something Shel produced, and that in itself is an incredibly meaningful legacy.”