Thom Panunzio

Thom started his career in 1974 at the Record Plant Studios NYC, working with John Lennon. After becoming a staff engineer at the Record Plant, and later at The Hit Factory, Thom has been at the center of the music business since.

Thom Panunzio is a music producer and engineer.

Having teamed up early with Jimmy Iovine, together they would go on to make records for decades. Thom worked with Andrew Loog Oldham on The Rolling Stones’ Metamorphosis in 1975, and later that year worked with Bruce Springsteen on Born to Run. In 1978 he worked with Patti Smith on Easter, while simultaneously working again with Springsteen on Darkness on the Edge of Town. (Thom is prominently featured in the documentary The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town.) Thom has also produced, engineered and mixed legendary artists such as Bob Dylan, U2, Stevie Nicks, Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Motörhead, Deep Purple, Aerosmith, The Who, Iggy Pop, Joan Jett, David Bowie, Tom Petty, Paul Butterfield and more. Thom’s experience also includes the making of motion picture soundtracks, such as Road House and Rattle & Hum. Thom also worked as the live musical producer for the Farmclub.com series, which featured performances by everyone from Dr. Dre and Eminem to No Doubt and The Wu Tang Clan.

Thom’s talents transcend the artistic and also include solid technological expertise. He helped design The Hit Factory studios for the Germano family in New York, as well as A&M Studios (now Henson Recording Studios) in Los Angeles. Later, he helped design the Interscope/ Geffen/ A&M studios where he also created The Thom Thom Club.

In 2003, Thom joined Universal Music Group as Executive Senior VP, and Head of A&R for Geffen Records where he has oversaw the careers of Nelly Furtado, Weezer, The Pussycat Dolls, Rise Against and many others on the Interscope/ Geffen/ A&M roster. He also served as the musical producer for all the live music for American Idol (Season 10).