Bob Both

Bob Both (born 1952) is an American recording engineer and record producer, best known for his work with James Brown in the 1970s. Both was born in Bloomfield, New Jersey, the son of a carpenter. Inspired by The Beatles, he learned to play the guitar at age 11 and started his first band in the 8th grade. He also started writing songs and making simple recordings on a home tape recorder by age 14. Throughout high school Both continued writing songs and playing in bands. When he graduated from high school he attended The Ridgewood School of Art and studied to become a commercial artist. In his second year of school his strong interest in music led him to quit art school and search for a job in the music business. At age 19, armed with nothing little more than a letter of recommendation from one of his art teachers, he landed a job as A&R assistant to Peter K. Seigel at Polydor Records, NYC. There Both learned the basics of record production from Seigel and the fundamentals of record mastering from Bob Ludwig who was a mastering engineer at Sterling Sound. He also began to develop his engineering skills producing mixes for James Brown. In 1972, he became James Brown's recording engineer, A&R director and production supervisor. He worked on 11 of Brown's albums including the number one hits "Get on the Good Foot", "The Payback", "My Thang" and "Doing It to Death" with Fred Wesley & the J.B.s (Brown's backup band). Both also recorded records for artists signed to Brown's production company including Hank Ballard, Maceo Parker, Lyn Collins, Bobby Byrd, Vicki Anderson and others. Both left Brown in 1977 and opened his own studio, Twain Recording, in New Jersey. He has done recordings for thousands of bands in the New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania areas such as Stephanie White & The Philth Harmonic, The Antics], The Insomniacs, Bonjee, The Disconnects, Crazy & The Brains, Mythology, Dan Sheehan Conspiracy and many others.. Both has also had years of experience recording