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Member Number: 8443
Don Was (born Don Fagenson on September 13, 1952 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American musician and a music and record producer.
Fagenson graduated from Oak Park High School in the Detroit suburb of Oak Park, then attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor but dropped out after the first year. A journeyman musician, he grew up listening to the Detroit blues sound and the jazz music of John Coltrane and Miles Davis.
Using the stage name "Don Was," he formed the group Was (Not Was), which made several albums in the 1980s before disbanding in 1993. However, the group has reunited for performing and recording, with two new albums scheduled to be released in 2007. A jazz album, "Forever Is A Long Long Time" was released by his group, Orchestra Was, in 1996.
Don Was has earned his greatest recognition as a highly successful record producer and has produced for numerous artists including Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, George Clinton, Randy Newman, Carly Simon, Paul Westerberg, Kris Kristofferson, Bob Seger, Glenn Frey, Iggy Pop, Khaled, Stevie Nicks, Solomon Burke, Travis Tritt, Brian Wilson, Roy Orbison, Waylon Jennings, B.B. King, Jackson Browne, Ziggy Marley, Al Green, Garth Brooks, Ringo Starr, Lyle Lovett, Joe Cocker, Willie Nelson, Elton John, Jaguares, and several albums for Bonnie Raitt including her Nick of Time album that won the 1990 Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Was has worked with such bands as the The B-52's, Barenaked Ladies, The Black Crowes, The Presidents of the United States, Hootie and The Blowfish and others. He served as music director and/or consultant for several motion pictures such as Thelma and Louise, The Rainmaker, Hope Floats, "Phoenomenon", "Tin Cup", "Honeymoon in Vegas", "8 Seconds", "Switch", "The Freshman", "Days of Thunder", "Michael", "Pret-a-Porter", "Boys On the Side", "Toy Story" and "The Paper".
In 1995, Don Was earned a Grammy Award for Producer of the Year. In 1997, he directed and produced a documentary, "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times", about former-Beach Boy Brian Wilson. The film debuted at The Sundance Film Festival and won the San Francisco Film Festival's Golden Gate Award. Mr. Was received the British Academy Award (BAFTA) for Best Original Score in recognition of his compositions for the film "Backbeat".
He is the father of Eve 6 drummer Tony Fagenson.
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