04.10.12
Sludge in the Seventies: Tom Werman
The 80’s, too.
Here is an interesting interview with Tom Werman. He produced many straight hard rock acts who turned into big sellers and arena draws, mostly by dint of singles which charted off the projects he did with them.
Werman says he fell into the work, never having a career plan. He also tells the interviewer he saw himself as a pop guy, making records he liked to hear. The industry, because he worked with Ted Nugent, saw him as a hard rock producer.
This served those he worked with well. When Werman stopped producing Ted Nugent, Howard stopped getting on the radio.
Indeed, the only stuff from Howard’s back catalog that gets played today is the material produced by Tom Werman.
Werman also did the big sellers for Cheap Trick, Twisted Sister, Poison and Molly Hatchet.
One of the more interesting excerpts is on Mother’s Finest, one of his non-successes:
“A mostly black rock ‘n’ roll band with two white guys – people didn’t know what to think of them. They were tight, rocked hard, and man, did they love Led Zeppelin, which is what they sounded like – a very funky version of Zeppelin.
“I tried to bring a commercial sensibility to them, a pop side to go with their funk and hard rock. But the record stiffed. Radio just didn’t take to it. The official line I was given from the label was, ‘It slipped through the cracks,??? which meant it was too white for black radio and too black for white radio.
“Even so, I think they were ahead of their time. I’m very proud of this album.???
One of the tracks produced by Werman, surely a hoot to do, was “Mickey’s Monkey,” a conversion of the Smokey Robinson & the Miracles’ hit into Led Zeppelin’s “Custard Pie.” It’s here.
Funny as hell with the rip of LZ, it shoulda been huge.
I still have most of the Werman-produced records.
The profile of the man is here.