Gary Usher

Gary Usher
Gary Usher
Birth name	Gary Lee Usher
Born	December 14, 1938; Los Angeles, California; United States
Died	May 25, 1990 (aged 51); Los Angeles, California; United States
Genres	Rock and roll, surf music
Occupation(s)	Songwriter, record producer
Years active	1960s–1990
Associated acts	The Beach Boys, The Byrds, Dick Dale, The Hondells, Sagittarius;
Website	www.garyusher.com

Gary Lee Usher (December 14, 1938 – May 25, 1990) was an American rock musician, songwriter, and record producer who worked with numerous California acts in the 1960s, including the Byrds, the Beach Boys, and Dick Dale. Usher also produced fictitious surf groups or hot rod groups mixing studio session musicians with his own troops (Chuck Girard, Dick Burns and others). These bands include the Super-Stocks, with the hot-rod song "Midnight Run", and the Kickstands.[1]

Death

Usher died of lung cancer at his home in Los Angeles, California at the age of 51.[2]

Selected discography

Production

Go Little Honda (1964, The Hondells)
Hondells (1964, The Hondells)
Hit City '65 (1965, The Surfaris)
It Ain't Me, Babe (1965, The Surfaris)
In Action (1966, Keith Allison)
An Esoteric Qabalistic Service (1966, Rev. Ann Davies with the Builders of the Adytum Choir)
Gene Clark with the Gosdin Brothers (1967, Gene Clark)
Younger Than Yesterday (1967, The Byrds)
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy Is Spreading (1967, The Peanut Butter Conspiracy)
Of Cabbages and Kings (1967, Chad & Jeremy)
The Great Conspiracy (1967, The Peanut Butter Conspiracy)
Present Tense (1968, Sagittarius)
The Ark (1968, Chad & Jeremy)
The Notorious Byrd Brothers (1968, The Byrds)
Waiting for the Electrician or Someone Like Him (1968, The Firesign Theatre)
Sweetheart of the Rodeo (1968, The Byrds)
Wackering Heights (1972, The Wackers)
Going Public (1977, Bruce Johnston)
Sanctuary (1984, Celestium)

Songwriting

"409" (1962, The Beach Boys)
"Lonely Sea" (1962, The Beach Boys)
"Ten Little Indians" (1962, The Beach Boys)
"In My Room" (1963, The Beach Boys)
"Beach Party" (1963, Frankie Avalon)
"Mag Wheels" (1963, Dick Dale and the Del-Tones)
"We'll Run Away" (1964, The Beach Boys)
"Comin' On Too Strong" (1965, Wayne Newton)
"The Truth Is Not Real" (1968, Sagittarius)
"The Blue Marble" (1969, Sagittarius)
"Don't Give In to Him" (1969, Gary Puckett & The Union Gap)
"(Friend)Ships" (1971, Gary Usher)
"Sanctuary" (1983, Celestium and later Laura Branigan and the J-Pop artist Reimy)
"Let's Go To Heaven In My Car" (1986, Brian Wilson) (Note - Gary Usher's son, Gary Usher Jr., plays the guitar solo.)
"Let's put the Fun back in Rock'n Roll"(1986 co-written with Joseph Nicoletti jr.-ascap)- Recorded by Frankie Avalon, Fabian & Bobby Rydell "The Golden Boys of Rock"

References

David N. Howard -Sonic Alchemy: Visionary Music Producers and Their Maverick Recordings 2004 -147685209X "Ever since Usher's early surf and hot rod days, he had been creating fictitious studio groups such as the Super-Stocks and the Kickstands, imaginary bands to sate the hungry surf and hot rod record-buying audience."
"Gary Usher; Co-Writer of Beach Boys Hits". Los Angeles Times. 2 June 1990.

External links

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[1] David N. Howard -Sonic Alchemy: Visionary Music Producers and Their Maverick Recordings 2004 -147685209X "Ever since Usher's early surf and hot rod days, he had been creating fictitious studio groups such as the Super-Stocks and the Kickstands, imaginary bands to sate the hungry surf and hot rod record-buying audience."

[2] "Gary Usher; Co-Writer of Beach Boys Hits". Los Angeles Times. 2 June 1990.