Ah yes... Mister Kearney Barton. He's a producer, a knob ninja who knows how to tape dance (didn't see THAT one comin', didja?)... and maybe could be even considered a... REVOLUTION! Well... okay, so he didn't invent birth control pills or galvanized steel, BUT in the '60s, his studio, Audio Recording, was where most every band that was a rock 'n' roll some-BODY from the Northwest got recorded (the Wailers, Don & the Goodtimes, the Frantics)! 'Course, he also did work for occasional outta towners like the Standells. Right, anyway, the "what it 'tis" that makes Barton's work so damn remarkable is the LOUDNESS he could get on tape. Effected "compression" never seems to apply. Barton's work is kinda like Phil Spector's in that he squeezes each sound, audibly, into his productions, but unlike Spector, Barton don't overlap to get "bigness," he just lets it ALL go, tape a-rollin'. The Sonics are obviously the best example of a "savage young Kearny Barton" production. Indeed, he's partly responsible for them.... I like to think it's what he didn't tell 'em that counts!!! Didn't nobody turn NOTHIN' down! You know what I mean, too, IF in this age of digital and "solid state," you've had the pleasure of hearin' a K.B.-produced 45 spun on a MONO (single speaker) tube hi-fi, with a ceramic mono cartridge. There's lots of rules for "proper" projection, I know... but HONESTLY... you'd almost mistake the band to be playing in the ROOM with you. It's stunning. Hell, even with all the woo-ha regarding the BANDS he recorded, turns out K.B. won't be about ONE band or style. Barton applied his practices to alla his work... fucking CHURCH groups were recorded for MAXIMUM overdrive as well. He's still recording too. However, if you pay him a visit, beware of his "unconventional" means of storage... evidently the studio is kinda confused. I understand the rooms are lined with old busted equipment, stacks of newspapers, and recording tape. But I hear he's very affordable.