Groovemaker of the Month:
Bobby Cavaness
About
Bobby:
Bobby Cavaness hails from Brooklyn, New York and East Orange, New Jersey. He relocated to California to pursue his dream of becoming a songwriter, where he met two members of The Sylvers in an elevator and auditioned for them on the spot. They were so impressed by that they introduced me to their older brother, Leon F. Sylvers.
Bobby is credited as a keyboard player or background singer on about 31 classic songs that Leon Produced, including Shalamar's "Take That To The Bank," "A Night To Remember," "Make That Move," and "Second Time Around," and "(This Is) For the Lover in You," and The Whispers' hits "It's A Love Thing" and "Keep on Lovin' Me."
Later, Bobby did a brief stint at Motown's Hitsville Studios in Los Angeles, working with a number of talented artists like Norman Whitfield, Jr., Kerry Ashby-Gordy. and Benny Medina. This work led to a position as the chief Staff Songwriter/Producer/Arranger/Programmer for Stevie Wonder's Writer's Quarters West - a production/songwriter developement facility.
After his position with Stevie Wonder's company ended, he began writing and producing for a number of artists, including Gladys Knight, Miki Howard,Ex-Girlfriend, Foreal, Tony, Toni, Tone, EnVogue, Mokensteph, Hami, Billy Porter, Regina Belle, Immature/IMx, Jon B., Klymaxx, Legacy, TYTE, Mood-Swing, Brown Eyed Soul, Ren Woods, Marium Endsley, and Kelly Mint.
Bobby's currently producing projects include artists KEPLYN, Shaya, John "Buddy" Hopkins, Jadamour, Chronicles, Digital Soul Sonic, and Tha' Nu Klick. He's also working on a solo instrumental CD called "City of Angels" and he's currently in talks to do a feature film score with a well-known producer/arranger.
A
few questions for Bobby:
1.
What are the qualities of a good producer?
That's a very good question. I think that it should be mandatory that a producer really get cozy with other genres. It really opens one's spectrums & possiblities for delivering A-1 quality material. But way before you can get to a good producer, you have to have a good song. I'm really glad & fortunate that I came up in this industry when I did. I believe that I am the last of just a few producer/writers that learned the craft of songwriting on a basic instrument. An instrument mind you that still requires one to use their imagination. To imagine with one's mind at the moment of creativity what either comes next in texture or sound scapes or instrument parts, if allowed can be so intriguing to say the least. On the other hand, modern technology has afforded us the opportunity to make digital master recordings for a fraction of the cost of analog records. But at the end of the day, no matter what technological gear you're working with, it's still only as good as the skillful tunesmith behind the boards. I'd have to say, learn as much as you can about that artist, what they want out of this. Learn as much as you can about different styles. It can really open up a lot of doors for you.
2. Give us a quick story or moment with an artist you've worked with in
the studio or otherwise.
I remember one time at a studio I had gotten pretty good at ping-pong. Well, a fellow musician friend challenged me to a game or two. Anyway he raised the stakes by saying each of us could get anyone else to play with us as a partner (as in a doubles game). I got Leon Sylvers to help me. Then, my opponent brought out his partner - Irene Cara. He knew I had a mad crush on her. The whole time, they were knockin' those balls upside my head. It was hilarious. Leon was so mad at me. My friend and Irene were crackin' up because we were losing to them in such a huge way. We gave them bragging rights for the next century and then some.
Bobby Cavaness MySpace Profile
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