From the Vaults: Gary Tanin
Regular readers of these FTVs will no doubt recognize the name Gary Tanin. Having name checked him enough times to enshrine his name in the WOAS FM Hall of Fame (if and when we get around to establishing one), it seemed that a proper introduction was well past due. Gary (and his work with his enterprise, Daystorm Music), was recently featured in Shepherd Express – Milwaukee’s Alternative News Source (November 7, 2024). The article by Gary’s old friend David Luhressen filled in a lot of the blanks about Tanin’s long career in the music business. That was enough of a push to get the ball rolling for me to tell you more about him.
My introduction to Gary Tanin and Daystorm Music almost did not happen. We receive a lot of music submissions when artists and producers send us new music. There are times when the volume of stuff in the old mailbag gets a bit overwhelming. While we make an effort to respond to all contacts and air all submissions, once in a while one slips between the cracks. Our long collaboration with Datolite Music in Los Angeles is a good example. When we first made contact with Lindsay Tomasic (the owner of Datolite Music), it happened because the word ‘Datolite’ is commonly associated with copper. Datolite is widely collected by those who hunt for that well known Copper Country commodity that answers to the chemical symbol ‘Cu’. I thought there had to be a local connection so I emailed Datolite when another musician I was researching mentioned they had played with Lindsay in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Tomasic’s name seemed somewhat familiar so when we finally began emailing back and forth, the pieces finally fell together. Lindsay hails from Houghton (Dodgeville, actually) and eventually left this area for Ann Arbor and later moved on to California. It hit me like a flash – she had previously sent me the eponymous album by her band Trees and we had been spinning it for some time. Our increased communications eventually led to Trees appearing at the Porcupine Mountain Music Festival. They also have made numerous appearances at the Ontonagon Theater of Performing Arts including a matinee for the students from the Ontonagon Area Schools. When the WOAS FM West Coast Bureau was still in L.A., Lindsay, Elizabeth (from the WCB) and I even managed to ‘do lunch’. We met at The Newsroom when I was on one of my inspection visits there we and had a great visit. All of these opportunities arrived because she had been kind enough to send us a copy of the Trees album even though I had not requested it.
In Gary’s case, he also made first contact when he sent us an album by a band called The Young Revelators (2015’s All I See). In a follow up email, he asked if we received it and if we had previewed it. I dug through my ‘get to these as soon as I have time’ mail pile and there it was. I wrote back that, “Yes, we do have it and no, I have not had a chance to preview it yet but I will ASAP.” Once the case was cracked open and I listened to it, it was on the air. It was a great CD so a quick email back to Gary confirmed we were now airing All I See at which point he asked if I would be willing to write a short review of the album. Reviewing new music in this space has been a constant thread for me so I told him, “Sure, I will give it a shot.” Over the past decade, I have been privileged to preview many new Daystorm Music releases (Peggy James, Jack Spann, Michael Kessler Jim Eanelli, and (former member of The BoDeans) Sam Llanas’s new single I Am Not A Robot that was released on 12-13-24 (to mention a few). While Gary and I have gotten to know each other a bit discussing music via emails, the Shepherd Express article, as I mentioned earlier, filled in a lot of pieces in the Gary Tanin puzzle that I had not known.
Luhrssen tells his readers that Gary Tanin’s 55 year career in the music biz began in earnest in 1967. With the inner city of Milwaukee experiencing a riot that summer, the then 15 year old Tanin traveled via bus from his parent’s West Side home to TPI Studio located at 27th and Fon du Lac. The studio was owned by Elmo Griffin and was home to soul acts like Vic Pitts and the Cheaters. With a riot going on and a white kid dropping in unannounced at a Black-owned studio, Luhrssen says, “[Gary] summoned up his courage” to be there under the circumstances.
Tanin explained he found Griffin smoking a cigar with his feet propped up on a green Army surplus office desk. “I’d like to record a record,” Tanin told him. With a smile on his face, Griffin replied, “You’ve got the gall to come here and ask to make a record.” Griffin continued after a pause, “Well, I’ll give you a chance.” When one is 15 and has a passion for music, there are very few things that can block one’s path forward. One must just take the first step as Gary did when he landed a recording contract with Odessa Records.
Gary spent the early 1970s apprenticing as an audio engineer at ARCO recording studios while attending the University of Wisconsin – MIlwaukee. His chosen field of study was the Art and Science of Audio Recording and Production (what else?). By the mid-70s he had released a self-produced concept album (Otto and the Elevators) that garnered critical acclaim. The 1980s found Tanin working as a computer programmer for the Milwaukee-based defense contractor Astronautics. Gary’s experience with ARPANET (the military precursor to what would become the internet) at Astronautics would further fuel his interest in electronic media. He also wrote software reviews for the Computer Musicians Coalition. According to Luhrssen, “[Gary’s] experience with Arpanet, ARP synthesizers, and the birth of music software gave him a vision for where music – and the world – was headed.”
A good example of ‘where music and the world were headed’ can be found in the album Sublime Nation from 1994. Gary and Milwaukee guitarist Jerry Harrison (Talking Heads, Modern Lovers) collaborated on the album, part of which was recorded in Tanin’s living room. At the time he told Luhrrsen: “Part of me feels I’m on a mission. [With Sublime Nation] Jerry and I wanted to prove the technology is there to make a product that matches industry standards at home, on a budget a lot of people could afford. Technology has burst out of the container.”
Tanin and Harrison used a DAT recorder, a sequencer, and other easily obtained equipment to record the CD’s basic tracks. Harrison would add overdubs to the CD while keyboardist Junior Brantley (formerly from the band Short Stuff) downloaded his parts via a telephone line from his home in Las Vegas. Music distribution was a different game in 1994 so Tanin sold Sublime Nation via his website and an on-line music catalog. At the time, he prophetically told Luhrrsen, “Eventually the record industry will be musician-to-consumer. Record distribution as we know it will be out and the big labels are scared.” Gary didn’t mention he also foresaw musicians sharing tracks and making albums without being in the same place (or even on the same continent) as has become the norm for many artists. He was certainly on the cutting edge of the new industry standards.
Gary’s ealy interest in electronics started with HAM radio. He later began working for Elmo Griffin at his TV repair shop, Colortronics. Gary said, “Elmo showed me that if you have the courage of your convictions, and by being kind and good, you can get good things done in life.” TPI engineer Ed Sokol showed Tanin the ropes of working with their two-track Ampex studio. The famed Muscle Shoals studio in Sheffield, Alabama produced many classic 60s soul discs using similar equipment. The lessons Gary learned at TPI followed him when he began recording for the Vera label at Arco Studios. He had just turned 17 and was working as an apprentice engineer at the four-track studio. He recalled, “At Arco they needed a record label imprint for local artis, so they asked me to handle that business.” Tanin recorded tracks at Arco that would appear on is first solo album, Love Changes All (1972).
Working at Arco also put Gary in touch with musicians who would later play on his pop-rock album Otto & The Elevators in 1975. Among them were members of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (earning extra cash cutting commercials for Boston Store and WTMJ-TV). Kronos Quartet violinist John Sherba also contributed to the album. Canadian composer Edmund Assaly arranged the strings. Assaly knew Beatles’ producer George Martin which certainly made an impression on a young man entering the same field of musical enterprise. With a little outside help, a promotional campaign for Otto & The Elevators garnered a lot of local press while the album also collected accolades.
Tanin’s career as a producer-engineer has found him working on a host of albums with talented musicians including Todd Rundgren keyboardist Roger Powell, David Bowie accompanist Jack Spann, Sam Llanas, The BoDeans, and fusion guitarist Daryl Stuermer (Phil Collins and Genesis guitarist). Local musicians like The Young Revelators, Dick Eliot, Jayne Taylor, Jim Eanelli, Victor DeLorenso (Violent Femmes), and Peggy James have all benefited from his expertise. Tanin’s connections extend beyond the United States with his music being released in Japan on Mouse Records and Hard Disk International. RockIt Records handles the distribution of Gary’s music in the U.S. The Wisconsin Area Music Industry (WAMI) organization named Tanin the Producer of the Year in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2010.
The 2010s kept Gary on the move with a host of projects. An abbreviated discography includes work with Sam Llanas (4 A.M. (The Way Home) (2011), 4 / 5 Live (2013), The Whole Night Thru (2014), and Return of the Goya (2018)), Jack Spann (Time, Time, Time, Time, Time (2016), Beautiful Man from Mars (2017), Propaganda Man (2019), David Fitzpatrick (Parachutes in Hurricanes (2018)), and a compilation of his own work entitled Natural Selection (2010). Tanin also released a 40th Anniversary edition of Otto and the Elevators in 2013.
Beginning in 2016 with The Young Revelators CD, I have been honored to preview albums by Jack Spann, Sam Llanas, Peggy James, and Jim Eanelli as well as some specialty projects Gary worked on with groups like Locate Your Lips. Along with his production duties, Tanin is a gifted writer in his own right and he has offered me many helpful tips on reviewing albums and artists. Dare we use the ‘R word’ to describe Gary Tanin’s career (the ‘R-word’ being Renaissance Man)? Absolutely! Hearing stories about his association with the likes of David Bowie’s longtime producer Tony Visconti extends his music career far beyond the confines of his native Milwaukee. When I found out about his friendship with Tony Visconti, I kiddingly told my evening DJs, “Hey, if I know Gary and Gary knows Tony Visconti, I am only two steps away from knowing David Bowie!” (and yes, it was said very tongue in cheek).
Here is to the new year and our anticipation of hearing more great music from Gary Tanin and Daystorm Music. The track record of what he has already shared with WOAS-FM hints that he will have a lot more to share with us in the future. In fact, I picked up my station mail just before posting this article and found another mailer from Gary. I can’t wait to crack it open!
Top Piece Video: Jack Spann promotional video for his song Fear or Loyalty