Terry Melcher died on November 19, 2004, at 62. His production work on the Byrds’ first two albums, Mr. Tambourine Man and Turn! Turn! Turn!, put him behind records that helped bring folk songs, electric guitars and close vocal harmonies into the pop charts. His career also connected the surf records of the early 1960s with the Beach Boys’ 1988 hit “Kokomo.”
Born in New York City on February 8, 1942, Melcher was the son of singer and actress Doris Day. He made early records under the name Terry Day before teaming with Bruce Johnston as Bruce & Terry. Their singles included “Custom Machine” and “Summer Means Fun.” The partnership gave Melcher experience on both sides of the microphone: he sang and made records while developing the production skills he would bring to other performers.
That studio judgment became central to the Byrds’ recording of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man.” Melcher brought in session musicians to accompany Roger McGuinn’s 12-string guitar, with McGuinn, David Crosby and Gene Clark supplying the vocals. McGuinn was the only Byrd to play an instrument on the single. In recollections published by Hi-Fi News, Melcher explained that he borrowed the bass-drum pattern from the Beach Boys’ “Don’t Worry Baby” and layered McGuinn’s guitar through overdubbing. The record’s ringing guitar texture came from a specific arrangement and recording process, with experienced players supporting the band’s voices.
The album around that single gave the Byrds room for their own writing, including Clark’s “I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better,” alongside the Dylan material. Melcher also produced their second album, Turn! Turn! Turn!, released later in 1965. Its title song drew on Pete Seeger’s adaptation of Ecclesiastes. Both “Mr. Tambourine Man” and “Turn! Turn! Turn!” reached No. 1 in the United States.
With Paul Revere & the Raiders, Melcher’s role expanded into a songwriting partnership with singer Mark Lindsay. Recalling their work in a 2011 interview published by Sundazed, Lindsay described Melcher suggesting that they try writing a single themselves. The result was “Good Thing.” The collaboration also produced “Him or Me – What’s It Gonna Be?” Lindsay remembered Melcher as an editor who could sharpen their material, and the two sang much of the backing vocals together. “Our voices just worked really well together,” Lindsay said.
The demands of the Raiders’ schedule affected how those records were made. Lindsay recalled that touring and the label’s appetite for new material left limited studio time. Melcher began cutting backing tracks with session players and bringing band members into the recordings afterward. It was a practical solution that also changed who played on the records.
Melcher returned to the Byrds for Ballad of Easy Rider in 1969 and the live-and-studio double album (Untitled) in 1970. He also resumed recording under his own name, releasing Terry Melcher in 1974 and Royal Flush in 1976.
His later work with the Beach Boys brought another major hit. Melcher produced “Kokomo” and shared its writing credit with Mike Love, John Phillips and Scott McKenzie. Featured in the film Cocktail, the song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1988.
