Jonathan Hugh Quarmby (born 20 December 1961) is an English record producer and songwriter. He is the son of English architect Arthur Quarmby. Born in Huddersfield, England, Quarmby has worked with a range of artists across various genres.[1]

Early life and education

Jonathan Hugh Quarmby was born on December 20, 1961, in Huddersfield, to music teacher Jean, and architect Arthur Quarmby. Arthur Quarmby was a designer, author, thinker, and primarily working in modular plastics and earth-sheltered housing. Jonathan was educated at Holmfirth High School and Pocklington School, before studying architecture at the Sheffield University. With a passion for music, he became part of Sheffield’s vibrant music scene, eventually leaving architecture to pursue a music career.

Professional career

Sheffield

Quarmby began as a keyboard player, performing on Yazz’s album Wanted and touring with the band Floy joy. His transition to record production began with Barclay artists Fred de Fred. Quarmby then collaborated with Comsat Angels bass player Kevin Bacon at Axis Studio to write and produce Ephraim Lewis's album Skin for Elektra Records. This partnership (Bacon and Quarmby) went on to produce and write in a diverse range of music styles, including: electro as R&S artists Manna, Britpop with the Longpigs, and pop/soul with Light House Family. They received recognition for their contribution to reggae: Finley Quaye (Maverick a Strike) - for which Finley won the ‘Best Male’ Brit Award and Ziggy Marley (Fallen Is Babylon), for which they received the ‘Best Reggae AlbumGrammy award.[2]

London - RAK Studios

Relocating from Sheffield to London's RAK Studios in 2003, Quarmby and Bacon embarked on music production, including work with Primal Scream, Mew, the Sugababes, David Garrett, Plan B, The Pretenders, Richard Hawley, and Des'ree.

AWAL

In 2004, they founded the music company, AWAL, with Apple consultant Denzyl Feigelson. AWAL introduced new ideas into online aggregation, with its 30-day agreement and its data tracking and analysis tool, Buzzdeck. With offices in Sheffield and London, the business distributed over 3000 independent artists, including Arctic Monkeys, David Gray, and Madness. In 2012, AWAL was sold to Kobalt (who sold it to Sony in 2021 for $430,000,000). Jonathan, Kevin, and Denzyl were retained by Kobalt for two years.

Back to RAK

In 2014, Quarmby returned to RAK and focused on songwriting and production. Managed initially by Richard Antwi, he worked with Daley, Mahalia, and Jacob Banks, before achieving success with Benjamin Clementine, whose album At Least For Now won the Mercury Prize[3] in 2015. Quarmby co-wrote, produced, and mixed the album, and the track "Nemesis" is the theme to Apple’s drama, 'The Morning Show.’ As a writer, Quarmby collaborated with Lewis Capaldi, on the single Tough, Tiggs Da Author, co-writing, producing, and mixing much of the album Blame It On The Youts; produced Tom Walker's track Just You and I; co-wrote and produced the single and TV show theme by Mika It’s My House; and co-wrote four songs on the album Back From The Edge by James Arthur, including the title track and second single Safe Inside. They also produced half the album "Got It Covered,” for Children in Need. He produced and mixed eight tracks on Cian Ducroft's No. 1 Deluxe Album, Victory; co-wrote, produced and mixed 3 Eyes Open for GreenTea Peng - which appears on the album Greenzone 108; co-wrote, produced and mixed the album Child Of Sin by the Dutch artist Kovacs; produced and mixed an acoustic African album with Tiken Jay Fakoli; and produced an album for French singer Olivia Ruiz.

Globe Town Records

In 2018, Quarmby joined Globe Town Records, a label based in Hoxton, London, and worked there throughout and after the COVID-19 pandemic, with individuals including Tycho Jones, Tom Rasmussen, and Faisal Salah (Facesoul).

Discography

1990s

2000’s

2010s

2020s

References

  1. ^ "Arthur Quarmby - Google Search". Google.co.uk. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  2. ^ Lionbeat, Jean-Claude (14 January 2019). "Jonathan Quarmby". Medium. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  3. ^ Spierson, Pete (7 November 2019). "BBC Children in Need charity album pulled from No 1 race". BBC Children in Need. Retrieved 16 February 2025.

https://globetownrecords.com

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