Los Angeles, CA, October 23, 2024, The Los Angeles and Orange County Audio Society (LAOCAS) announces that Bill Schnee, a multi-Grammy-winning, multi-platinum producer, engineer, mix master, and Author will receive the 5th Annual George and Carolyn Counnas Innovation Award.
Bill will receive the Innovation Award at the LAOCAS 31st Annual Gala on Sunday, December 8, 2024, from 11 to 4 PM
Location: DoubleTree by Hilton Buena Park 7000 Beach Blvd, Buena Park, CA 90620
Dress is Holiday Casual
Won Grammys for Steely Dan's Aja and Gaucho
Bill has been personally nominated 11 times for Best Engineered Recording and has won twice for Aja (1977) and Gaucho (1981), both from Steely Dan. Those two multi-platinum releases add to a harvest of hits that includes 95 gold records, 55 platinum projects, and over 75 top twenty singles. Schnee has also won an Emmy Award for Best Sound Mixing for a Variety Special “Unforgettable, with Love” by Natalie Cole, as well as a Dove Award.
Bill has worked on over 600 albums in a highly decorated career that spans over five decades. Bill has engineered and hit gold or platinum payoffs with an extremely wide variety of artists that include Three Dog Night, Barbra Streisand, Neil Diamond, Rod Stewart, Chicago, Steely Dan, Natalie Cole, The Jacksons, Marvin Gaye, Dire Straits, Ringo (with all the Beatles), Barry Manilow, Carly Simon, Michael Bolton, George Benson, The Pointer Sisters, Bette Midler, Amy Grant, and Whitney Houston, including Whitney’s mega-single “I Will Always Love You”.
Switching to his producer role, Schnee also mined precious metal on multiple projects with Huey Lewis and the News, Boz Scaggs, Pablo Cruise, and Joe Sample.
Launched Sheffield Records and
Direct to Disc audiophile recordings
Schnee was instrumental in launching Sheffield Lab Records and the modern era direct-to-disc audiophile recordings when in 1973 he engineered Lincoln Mayorga & Distinguished Colleagues – The Missing Linc, Volume III. In 1975 he produced and engineered the Thelma Houston and Pressure Cooker album, I’ve Got the Music in Me. These audiophile albums were recorded in real-time directly to the phonograph record cutting lathe. Schnee went on to produce several more of the direct-to-disc albums, including James Newton Howard and Friends, The Drum Record, and The Track Record.
For thirty-five years, Bill operated his own recording facility in North Hollywood – Schnee Studio – that he built from the ground up. It boasted a large live recording room with a very unique acoustical sound, a custom-made recording console, custom tube mic pre-amps, and an extensive collection of vintage tube microphones. It is still widely regarded as one of the finest recording rooms in Los Angeles.
Bill currently resides in Franklin, Tennessee with his wife Sallie where he continues his incredible career.
Bill's memoir "Chairman at the Board"
The Soundtrack of a Generation
Bill’s adventures expanded in 2021 when his memoir titled “Chairman At The Board” was released by Rowan and Littlefield. Written for anyone who loves music and records, his book takes the reader behind the curtain for an up close and personal tour of what making records is really like.
Available on Amazon. Buy Here
From Bill Schnee's Personal Collection for the Gala Raffle!
- Win an autographed copy of Bill's new book “Chairman At The Board”
- Lincoln Mayorga and Distinguished Colleagues (the first Sheffield D to D album) signed by Lincoln
- Steely Dan UHQR (45 r.p.m.) albums Aja and Gaucho (autographed by Bill) Compliments of Chad Kassem, Acoustic Sounds
- Thelma Houston and Pressure Cooker - Brand New! (autographed by Bill)
- James Newton Howard and Friends - Brand New! (autographed by Bill)
- The Sheffield Track Record - Brand New! (autographed by Bill)
Est. Value: $1000 Thank you, Bill Schnee, Winner of the 2024 Innovation Award.
Bill will be available to sign books and albums at the Gala.
Audiophile USA Records will have many of Bill's albums on sale at the Gala.
