Erik Jacobsen is an American record producer, best known for his work in the 1960s with Tim Hardin, The Lovin' Spoonful, The Charlatans and Norman Greenbaum, and later with Tazmanian Devils and Chris Isaak.
In 1962 Jacobsen was the banjo player in bluegrass band, The Knob Lick Upper 10,000, with Dwain Story and Pete Childs. They performed at The Bitter End coffee house in New York City, where they were signed by manager Albert Grossman. They recorded two albums for Mercury Records, Introducing The Knob Lick Upper 10,000 (1962), and Work Out (1963), and were among the first folk and bluegrass artists to play Carnegie Hall.[1]
In 1964, after hearing The Beatles, Jacobsen quit the group, intending to form a new band which combined folk music with electric instruments. Returning to New York, he soon met John Sebastian, who had similar ideas, and they began jamming with other musicians, including Jerry Yester, Zal Yanovsky, Jesse Colin Young, Cass Elliott and Denny Doherty. Jacobsen produced various demos for different combinations of these musicians, prototypes of the folk rock style, some of which were issued on the 1966 Elektra album What's Shakin', and others on a 1999 compilation The Magic Circle. Jacobsen was also introduced to singer-songwriter Tim Hardin, began working as his manager, and produced his demos for Columbia Records.[2] The Lovin' Spoonful formed early in 1965, and Jacobsen won them a recording contract with Kama Sutra Records. Jacobsen produced all their early hits, including "Do You Believe In Magic", "Daydream" and "Summer in the City".
The Kama Sutra label also expanded its search for talent into California, and Jacobsen worked there with the label's signings, The Charlatans and Sopwith Camel. In 1968, he worked as producer with Norman Greenbaum, producing his first album and worldwide hit "Spirit in the Sky". In 1969, Jacobsen produced the left field #90 pop hit "Mill Valley" for Rita Abrams (as "Miss Abrams and the Strawberry Point School Third Grade Class") and produced a subsequent album for her in 1970.[3]
In 1980-1984 he produced two albums with the Tazmanian Devils on Warner Brothers records and in 1985 he produced the first album by Chris Isaak. He went on to produce all Isaak's subsequent albums up to 1998.