The Jamaican music industry has lost another pioneer with the passing of veteran studio engineer Sid Bucknor, who died of cancer at the St Charles Hospital, Ladbroke Grove in London on Sunday.

Bucknor, who migrated to the UK in 1970, was one of the early innovators responsible for the evolution of Jamaican music from ska to reggae. The artistes on whose music the producer/songwriter has left his indelible mark include Bob Marley and the Wailers, Toots and the Maytals, Alton Ellis, John Holt, Ken Boothe and Bob Andy to mention a few.

Some of his finest recording projects were done at such studios as Studio One, Channel One, Dynamics, Federal, Treasure Isle, Harry J, Randy’s King Tubbys, Joe Gibbs among otherrs.

A short tribute by close friend, guitarist Cecil Smith stated that Sid Bucknor was a musical giant whose contribution to Jamaican music cannot be overlooked.

“Sid (Bucknor) was a giant in the music business. He was instrumental in the development of the Jamaican music sound, ska, rock steady and reggae. He was a great studio engineer, producer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of the music alongside the musicians of the time and pioneered new ways and techniques of capturing the feel and spirit of the music. His contributions to Jamaican music cannot be overlooked,” Smith noted.

According to Smith, much the industry success can be directly attributed to Bucknor’s creative genius and pioneering style. Sid Bucknor was described as “a very patient teacher who was always happy to pass on his knowledge and skills to anyone wishing to learn”.

Sid reportedly worked with all of the greats in the Jamaican music industry.

“He recorded and mixed Catch a Fire, Burning and Natty Dread for Bob Marley and the Wailers. He also recorded, mixed and produced songs with Toots and the Maytals, Desmond Dekker, Alton Ellis, BB seaton, Ken Boothe, John Holt, Bob Andy. Before migrating to England in 1970, where he contined to spread the sound of reggae, he worked at Dynamics, Federal, Studio One, Channel One, Treasure Isle, Harry J, Randy’s King Tubbys and Joe Gibbs’ studios,” the release concluded.

Timberland & Busta in the studio vibing…

wow i wish i was in there….

look at how he put all the sounds together in the end, and the guys started to write a sick tune….

Average median salary is around $45,000 a year. This is going to vary depending on the city and who you work with. On the top end however you have producers making over $1 Million a year. (Master P made around $56 Million Dollars last year) But let’s be serious here, the chances of a you as Music Producer making that much money a year aren’t that good. However with the internet and computers making it easier and easier for Home Grown Music Producers to reach an ever growing audience, things seem to be looking up for music producers.As it states on YourBeats.com, a popular music production community and resource, “In Today’s Music Industry It’s the Producer and Engineer That Counts!” That is in fact a real statement.

The music producer is the guy or girl that does most all of the work for the artist. They chop edit and lay effects on vocals. Advise artist on how to improve or what sounds good and bad. They often times create the entire track themselves. It is not a coincidence that tracks put out by Timberland or Pharell are consistently hits. It’s that they have music production down to a science. That coupled with an underlying love for music keeps them popping out hit after hit.

If you are interested in becoming a producer it would be worth your time to hop over to Moster.com and do a search for Music Producer and see what various titles and salaries come up. I would also consider the schools that are available, many like Full Sail will guarantee you a job after graduation. Be sure to check out our page on music production schools, that showcases some of the best schools for would be music producers in the United States.