Here is the wire story.
Michael
Legendary Canadian record producer and former Fanshawe College professor Jack Richardson died Friday, those close to him have told The Free Press.
Richardson had been in frail health and died at University Hospital on Friday night. He was 81.
Richardson came to London decades ago after a stellar career producing hit records for such stars as The Guess Who, Alice Cooper and Bob Seger.
He was chair of the industry advisory board for the Music Industry Arts Project at Fanshawe College in the late 1970s. In 1985 he became the audio production instructor for the MIA program at the college.
The Junos and CARAS recognized his leading role in Canadian music by naming the producer of the year award The Jack Richardson Producer of the Year award in 2002.
After success in Toronto as a musician and work in advertising, Richardson turned to rock and roll in the 1960s.
In 1968, with Allan Macmillan, Ben McPeek and Peter Clayton, he founded Nimbus 9 Productions and signed as their first artist, The Guess Who. In 1972 he designed and built Nimbus 9's Soundstage Recording Studio at Toronto.
During this time, Richardson worked as a record producer and took the helm for dozens of albums for Canadian, American and international acts including The Boss Brass, Poco, Christopher Ward, Rough Trade, The Association, Badfinger, The Toronto Chamber Orchestra, The Brecker Brothers, Hagood Hardy and the Canadian Brass.
Of his 14 albums for The Guess Who, 11 were Canadian gold, five were Canadian platinum with five gold and three platinum records in the United States. His records with Alice Cooper and Seger also achieved gold and platinum status in Canada and the U.S. Richardson produced 27 Billboard charted singles and more than 20 Billboard charted albums and has received 38 gold and platinum awards.In 1986 the CARAS/Juno, Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award was presented to him. Richardson is a member of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the London Music Hall of Fame. SOCAN presented Richardson with its Special Achievement Award in 1988. In 2003, Richardson was awarded the Order of Canada.
London documentary filmmaker Bruce Carter's 2002 film Adventures in Rock aka Adventures in Rock and Roll told Richardson's Jack Richardson as the man who almost single-handedly built the Canadian rock and roll scene starting in the mid 1960s. Featured in the documentary are ex-Guess Who stars Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings, Alice Cooper, and producers Bob Ezrin and Phil Ramone, who talk about his influence on their careers. (Cummings plays the RBC Theatre at the John Labatt Centre on Saturday night).
In London, Richardson is recognized by the Jack Richardson Music Awards, the city's only not-for-profit celebration of its musical excellence. Richardson agreed to let organizers use his name and encouraged their education programming. He appeared at several JRMA events over the years. Richardson attended the 2011 JRMA gala at the London Music Hall on April 10. He was greeted with a standing ovation and honoured by performers and fans all evening. Richardson signed autographs and chatted with a new generation of London music scenesters that night after the formal ceremonies had ended.
