Ben Mink

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Ben Mink is a Canadian songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer.

1 Biography
2 Career
3 Awards
4 External links

[edit] Biography

Born on January 22, 1951 in Detroit, Michigan of Polish parents, Mink was raised in Cleveland (Ohio) until his family moved to Toronto, Canada when he was 11. He plays several string instruments (guitar, violin and mandolin) and is an award-winning music producer.

[edit] Career

Mink is best-known as a long-time collaborator with Canadian singer k.d. lang. He has played on and produced several of her albums, which often combine her voice with lush string arrangements.

He began playing in bands in Toronto clubs when he was 18. In 1985 he met lang and their collaboration began. Before then Mink was a member of the bands Stringband, FM and CANO. Mink played the electric violin on the Rush song "Losing It" found on 1982's Signals as well as guitar parts on My Favorite Headache, a solo project of Rush's lead singer Geddy Lee in 2000. More recently he has also produced albums for the Barenaked Ladies, and Inuit singer Susan Aglukark.

[edit] Awards

In 1990 Mink was co-nominated with lang for a Grammy for Best Country Song for "Luck In My Eyes". In 1993 he and lang won a Juno Award for Best Songwriter of the Year, and continuing his partnership with her a year later in 1994 they won another Juno for Producer of the Year for lang's song "Just Keep Me Moving" on "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues."