Brendan O'Brien

Brendan O’Brien (born June 30, 1960 in Atlanta, Georgia) is a record producer, mixer, and engineer.

At 14 he was the guitarist for the Atlanta-based cover band Pranks. In the late 70s he moved on to writing, performing and recording with the Samurai Catfish band. In the 1980’s following the breakup of the Catfish he worked in the studio with many local artists including the Indigo Girls and The Downtown Executives, and played bass with The Georgia Satellites for a short time. His studio career was launched by the success of the first Black Crowes album, Shake Your Money Maker, which he engineered and played guitar and bass.

With wife Robin and children Jackie, Allie, and Hannah, he left his home base of Atlanta in the early ‘90’s to pursue his career in Los Angeles. He began working at Geffen Records under Rick Rubin, producing bands like Stone Temple Pilots and Pearl Jam. O’Brien returned to Atlanta in 1991.

In the mid 90’s he became vice president of Epic Records and Epic imprint 57 Records. He has won two Grammys. He also played a Hammond organ for Bob Dylan's appearance on MTV Unplugged. In 1995 he joined Pearl Jam and Neil Young on keyboard for the Mirrorball tour across Europe.

Presently, 14 of his albums produced have reached #1 in America on the Billboard Hot 200 Charts.

Albums produced

• Call of the Wild - The Swinging Richards (1985)
• Doug - The Coolies (1988)
• You - Uncle Green (1990)
• The Big House of Time - Anne Richmond Boston (1990)
• Undertown - Right as Rain (1990)
• What an Experiment His Head Was - Uncle Green (1991)
• Love Songs for the Hearing Impaired - Dan Baird (1991)
• Stop! Look & Listen - Right as Rain (1991)
• Follow for Now - Follow for Now (1991)
• Johnny Law - Johnny Law (1991)
• Down Fall the Good Guys - Wolfsbane (1991)
• Core - Stone Temple Pilots (1992)
• Book of Bad Thoughts - Uncle Green (1992)
• Jackyl - Jackyl (1992)
• Let It Rock: The Best of the Georgia Satellites - The Georgia Satellites (1993)
• Vs. - Pearl Jam (1993)
• Dynamite Monster Boogie Concert - Raging Slab (1993)
• Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Volume 3 - Bob Dylan (1993)
• Dogman - King's X (1994)
• Necktie Second - Pete Droge (1994)
• Purple - Stone Temple Pilots (1994)
• Vulture - 3 lb. thrill (1994)
• Vitalogy - Pearl Jam (1994)
• 100% Fun - Matthew Sweet (1995)
• Vulture - 3 lb. Thrill (1995)
• Deadly Nightshade - The Deadly Nightshades (1995)
• Mirror Ball - Neil Young with Pearl Jam (1995)
• Point - Ernie Dale (1995)
• Unshaven: Live at Smith's Olde Bar - Billy Joe Shaver (1995)
• Buffalo Nickel - Dan Baird (1996)
• Eventually - Paul Westerberg (1996)
• Evil Empire - Rage Against the Machine (1996)
• Find a Door - Pete Droge and the Sinners (1996)
• No Code - Pearl Jam (1996)
• Tiny Music... Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop - Stone Temple Pilots (1996)
• Blue Sky on Mars - Matthew Sweet (1997)
• Resigned - Michael Penn (1997)
• Spacey & Shakin' - Pete Droge (1997)
• Yield - Pearl Jam (1998)
• Dangerman - Dangerman (1998)
• No. 4 - Stone Temple Pilots (1999)
• Issues - KoЯn (1999)
• The Battle of Los Angeles - Rage Against the Machine (1999)
• Bachelor No. 2 - Aimee Mann (2000)
• Conspiracy Of One - The Offspring (2000)
• Shangri-La Dee Da - Stone Temple Pilots (2001)
• Drops of Jupiter - Train (2001)
• Tragic Show - Brand New Immortals (2001)
• Waste of Skin - Spike 1000 (2001)
• The Flying Tigers - Flying Tigers (2002)
• Future Shock - Sinisstar (2002)
• Jinx - Quarashi (2002)
• Great Ocean Road - Ether (2002)
• lovehatetragedy - Papa Roach (2002)
• The Rising - Bruce Springsteen (2002)
• Flooze - Your Name Here... (2002)
• My Private Nation - Train (2003)
• Splinter - The Offspring (2003)
• The Thorns - The Thorns (2003)
• A Crow Left of the Murder - Incubus (2004)
• Alive at Red Rocks - Incubus (2004)
• Drive - Graham Colton Band (2004)
• Welcome to the North - The Music (2004)
• Devils and Dust - Bruce Springsteen (2005)
• Rebel, Sweetheart - The Wallflowers (2005)
• All the Stars and Boulevards - Augustana (2005)
• Shine - Trey Anastasio (2005)
• For Me, It's You - Train (2006)
• Revelations - Audioslave (2006)
• Light Grenades - Incubus (2006)
• One Man Revolution - The Nightwatchman (2007)
• The Sun and the Moon - The Bravery (2007)
• Libertad - Velvet Revolver (2007)
• Magic - Bruce Springsteen (2007)
• The Fabled City - Tom Morello: The Nightwatchman (2008)
• Sweat It Out - The Pink Spiders (2008)
• No Regrets - Set it Off (2008)
• Black Ice - AC/DC (2008)
• Working on a Dream - Bruce Springsteen (2009)
• Monuments and Melodies - Incubus (2009)
• Crack the Skye - Mastodon (2009)
• Billy Talent III - Billy Talent (2009)
• Killswitch Engage - Killswitch Engage (2009)^[1]
• Backspacer - Pearl Jam (2009)^[2]
• TBA - Aerosmith (2009)^[3]
• TBA - My Chemical Romance (2010) ^[4]

Albums mixed

• Rhino Bucket - Rhino Bucket (1991)
• Blood Sugar Sex Magik - Red Hot Chili Peppers (with Rick Rubin) (1991)
• Hollywood Town Hall - The Jayhawks (1992)
• Jackyl - Jackyl (1992)
• Get a Grip - Aerosmith (1993)
• 14 Songs - Paul Westerberg (1993)
• Shame - Brad (1993)
• Superunknown - Soundgarden (1994)
• No Code - Pearl Jam (1996)
• Interiors - Brad (1997)
• Follow the Leader - Korn (1998)
• Fallout - The Mayfield Four (1998)
• Yield - Pearl Jam (1998)
• Significant Other - Limp Bizkit (1999)
• Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water - Limp Bizkit (2000)
• No Name Face - Lifehouse (2000)
• Spiritual Machines - Our Lady Peace (2000)
• Binaural - Pearl Jam (2000)
• An Education in Rebellion - The Union Underground (2000)
• Trust No One - Dave Navarro (2001)
• Riot Act - Pearl Jam (2002)
• Stanley Climbfall - Lifehouse (2002)
• Lost Dogs - Pearl Jam (2003)
• Results May Vary - Limp Bizkit (2003)
• truANT - Alien Ant Farm (2003)
• Vulture Street - Powderfinger (2003)
• rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003) - Pearl Jam (2004)
• Wire - Third Day (2004)
• All the Stars and Boulevards - Augustana (2005)
• Out Of Exile - Audioslave (2005)
• A Crow Left of the Murder - Incubus (2004)
• Light Grenades - Incubus (2006)
• White Noise - The Living End (2008)
• Working on a Dream - Bruce Springsteen (2009)
• Ten - Pearl Jam (2009)
• Backspacer - Pearl Jam (2009)

Albums engineered

• In the Spirit of Things - Kansas (1988)
• Theme from Venus - Love Tractor (1989)
• Danzig II: Lucifuge - Danzig (1990)
• Shake Your Money Maker - The Black Crowes (1990)
• Blood Sugar Sex Magik - Red Hot Chili Peppers (1991)
• Nobody Said It Was Easy - The Four Horsemen (1991)
• Hollywood Town Hall - The Jayhawks (1992)
• The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion - The Black Crowes (1992)

DVDs mixed

• Single Video Theory - Pearl Jam (1998)
• Midnight Moon - Train (2001)
• Alive at Red Rocks - Incubus (2004)
• Live In Cuba - Audioslave (2005)

References

External links

• Allmusic entry
• Photographs of Brendan O'Brien as a young guitarist