Bernie Grundman is the mastering engineer who taught half of Los Angeles how to make a lacquer breathe. No fairy dust, just physics and taste. He cut his teeth at Contemporary Records in 1966 before A&M came calling. I followed him from 1968 to 1984 running A&M's mastering department, where his cuts powered 70s staples by Earth, Wind & Fire (1973), the Carpenters (1974) and Steely Dan's "Aja" (1977). In the early 80s he helped shape Prince ("Dirty Mind" 1980; "Purple Rain" 1984) and Michael Jackson's "Thriller" (1982). Post-1984, at Bernie Grundman Mastering, he kept bridging vinyl and digital, even crossing into hip-hop with Dr. Dre's "The Chronic" (1992), and later opened a Tokyo studio in 1997.

Bernie Grundman Wiki