SANTA BARBARA BOWL
Legendary sound engineer and musician Alan Parsons will lend his support and expertise to the Santa Barbara Bowl
Santa Barbara, CA, June 6, 2016 – Legendary sound engineer and musician Alan Parsons has agreed to lend his support to the Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation by becoming the newest member of the Bowl’s Honorary Board of Directors. Alan’s breadth of music industry experience along with his commitment to Santa Barbara and his love of the Bowl, align with the Bowl’s mission as it continues to grow into a model facility with respect to music, education, and sustainability.
Parsons, winner of eleven Grammy nominations, is best known for his extensive work, including his role as assistant sound engineer on Abbey Road, the 11th studio album by the Beatles, principal engineer on Pink Floyd’s influential album The Dark Side of the Moon, and producer of many popular albums with The Alan Parsons Project.
“The Santa Barbara Bowl is one of the most prestigious venues in America,” said Parsons. “I have regularly attended concerts there by everyone from James Taylor to the Scorpions. I am absolutely delighted to accept an Honorary Board position that has been so generously offered to me. I’m looking forward to supporting Bowl endeavors particularly with my sound recording and production knowledge.”
The Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation is a not-for-profit 501-c-3 organization that strives to make the Bowl the leading outdoor performing arts center in the country. The Foundation benefits from strong volunteer involvement and community leadership, and the addition of Alan Parsons to the Honorary Board will help pave the way for another generation of supporters.
In addition to his work on Abbey Road, Parsons went on to work with Paul McCartney and The Hollies, among many others. But it was his contribution as engineer on Pink Floyd’s classic Dark Side of the Moon that gained him world attention and led to successes as a producer — notably with Pilot’s Magic, John Miles’ Highfly and Steve Harley’s (Come Up And See Me) Make Me Smile. He also produced the hugely successful Year of the Cat album with Al Stewart and two albums with American progressive rock band Ambrosia.
In 1975 he met Eric Woolfson, who not only became his manager, but joined forces with Alan as a songwriting and performing partner for what became known as The Alan Parsons Project. The band’s debut album, Tales of Mystery and Imagination, based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe, paved the way for a signing to Clive Davis’ newly launched Arista label and a string of hit albums, namely I Robot (1977), Pyramid (1978), The Turn of a Friendly Card (1980), Eye in the Sky (1982), Ammonia Avenue (1984), Vulture Culture (1985), Stereotomy (1986) and Gaudi (1987).
Today, Alan has come full circle and is back in his role as producer and engineer both at his own Santa Barbara studio and other studios internationally. He tours on a regular basis, and recently produced Grand Ukulele, Jake Shimabukuro’s album, which reached number two on Billboard’s World Albums chart.
“It’s an honor to have Alan Parsons join our Honorary Board of Directors,” said Rick Boller, executive director for the Bowl. “Alan brings a unique set of industry, performing and production knowledge and history to the Board, and will look forward to his contribution.”
