A well-respected audio professional has recently passed away, leaving friends and family saying goodbye. Geoff Turner, born April 9, 1939, laid to rest on Oct. 8, 2006 from Leukemia.
 The late Geoff Turner. |
by Jim Norris
A well-respected audio professional has recently passed away, leaving friends and family saying goodbye. Geoff Turner, born April 9, 1939, laid to rest on Oct. 8, 2006 from Leukemia.
Geoff is survived by his wife Jean, sister Jean Anderson, brother-in-law Ed Hand, many nieces and nephews, as well as close friends, Henri and Julie Lorieau and Joe and Marie Vassallo.
Hailing from Manchester, England, Geoff was Master Control for ABC Television. He also owned his own studio and worked with many British bands in the late ’50s-early ’60s such as The Hollies, Cliff Richard, and The Beatles. In 1963 he moved to New York, NY where he recorded Joan Baez, Buffy St. Marie, Country Joe and the Fish, Tina Turner, and many more.
He moved to Vancouver, BC around 1972 when he met Brian “Hoot” Gibson. They became partners in a newly formed company Griffiths Gibson Productions, later named Griffiths, Gibson & Ramsay Prod. Ltd. They soon built their own recording studio: The Little Mountain Sound Co. Here he recorded artists from around the world, including Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, Metallica, Bryan Adams, Motley Crue, Olivia Newton-John, Loverboy, and more. Gibson says that this was one of Geoff’s biggest contributions to the pro audio world, as Little Mountain Sound put Vancouver on the “international stage” as a major recording centre.
“Geoff strove for excellence, and instilled that passion in those who worked for him,” says Gibson. He adds that as a result of his dedication, the studio became the training ground for some of today’s top engineers, including Bob Rock and Mike Frasier. He was also inspirational to the early careers of John Vrtacic (The Wearhouse, The Armoury), Gary Osborne (Sonotechnique), Ron Vermeullen (The Warehouse), and David Hudson (Little Mountain Sound, BC Tel, EMI Studios 301 Australia, Alcatel).
In 1976 Geoff left Little Mountain Sound to pursue his dream of building his own studio, Pinewood Studios, which is still in operation. Both Little Mountain Sound and Pinewood Studios allowed the talented musicians of Vancouver to grow and flourish without leaving the city. Professional Sound included Pinewood Studios in a cover feature in its June 2001 issue where writer Martin Huhn wrote, “The philosophy of Turner is not to chase technology, but to methodically plan and use it well.”
Warren Carr, who has known Geoff and his wife for 25 years, agrees that Geoff was a huge part of the recording and sound industry in Vancouver. “In fact, it’s safe to say that in many ways Geoff laid the foundation and when Little Mountain appeared in Vancouver Geoff and the quality of that facility put us on the international map.”
Gary Osborne worked with Geoff from 1973-1976 at Little Mountain Sound. He comments that Geoff contributed greatly to Vancouver’s reputation of excellence in music recording and film/TV sound. “Many are the actors, musicians, producers, technicians, and others who benefited from Geoff’s skill at the mixing console and expertise in our industry.”
Bob Buckley is a composer and had an office in Little Mountain Sound from the time it was built. “I knew Geoff as a studio designer and as a sound engineer and also as a very good friend,” says Buckley. “Geoff was a brilliant engineer and designed world-class studios, but it was more the feeling of ‘family’ that he created with Jean that I will remember.” He adds that the studios were great places to work because of the wonderful atmosphere that Geoff and Jean created.
Randy Kiss worked with Geoff for about 18 years at Pinewood Studios. He comments that Geoff had loyal staff for long periods of time. “I believe that is a testament to Geoff’s integrity and stature in both the personal and professional aspects of the industry. He fostered a real team environment and shared his wealth of knowledge generously.” Kiss advises that Geoff worked in post-production for audio, film, and television with early credits including: the Tom Jones Show and 21 Jump Street. “He had a significant impact on the ability of sound editors, post-production mixers, Foley artists, and other audio post specialists to earn a living in Vancouver.” Kiss adds that he finds it quite difficult to do justice to Geoff’s accomplishments, as there are more than he is aware of.
On Saturday, Dec. 9, there was a memorial service held at The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia. Gibson says that this was the perfect place to celebrate Geoff’s life. “Either directly or indirectly, technically or creatively, Geoff Turner left his footprint on hundreds of lives, so we’re expecting a large, joyful number of participants to share their memories.” Additional comments about Geoff can be found at http://www.legacy.com/can%2Dvancouver/Obituaries.asp.
For more information, contact: Pinewood Recording Studios Ltd., (604) 924-1256. |
Gifts For
Audio Professionals at Music Books Plus
