Glenn Michael Lockett (July 1, 1951 – March 4, 2023), better known as Spot, was an American record producer best known for being the house producer and engineer for the influential independent punk record label SST Records.[1] He styled his name SPʘT, using all capital letters and adding a dot inside the O.[2]

Early life

Glenn Michael Lockett was born in the Los Angeles area to a white mother (maiden name Katz) and an African-American father on July 1, 1951.[3] With his older sister Cynthia, he was raised in upper-middle-class Hollywood.[3] Lockett's father Claybourne, known as Buddy to his soldier friends, had been a fighter pilot with the 100th Fighter Squadron in WW II,[4] an all-Black formation that was part of the Tuskegee Airmen.[5] Lockett moved from Hollywood to Hermosa Beach in the mid-1970s, where he met Greg Ginn while working at a vegetarian restaurant called Garden of Eden.[5] Lockett also freelanced for Easy Reader, authoring record reviews under the name Spot.[5][6]

Befriending Ginn, Spot was briefly bassist for Panic, the band which would soon become Black Flag.[5]

Career

Spot recorded, mixed, produced or co-produced most of SST's pivotal acts between 1979 and 1986. He is credited on albums by such notable bands as Black Flag,[1] Minutemen,[1] Meat Puppets,[1] Hüsker Dü,[1] Saint Vitus,[1] Misfits, and Descendents.[1] After leaving SST in 1986, Spot moved to Austin, Texas.[1]

Spot was an accomplished photographer[1] and published a book of his work titled Sounds of Two Eyes Opening.[7] In 2018, a gallery showing of his photographs was mounted at Pacific Coast Gallery in Hermosa Beach.[6]

Production and engineering discography

Death

Spot died on March 4, 2023, at Morningside Healthcare in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, where he was recovering from a stroke he had suffered three months earlier. He had been suffering from fibrosis since late 2021 and was awaiting a lung transplant prior to his stroke.[2][10]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Backer, Sam (November 9, 2018). "Behind the Sound Of American Punk". Red Bull Music Academy. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Corcoran, Nina (March 4, 2023). "SST Records Producer Glen "SPOT" Lockett Dies at 72". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Earles, Andrew (November 18, 2010). Hüsker Dü: The Story of the Noise-pop Pioneers who Launched Modern Rock. Voyageur Press. pp. 88–. ISBN 9780760335048. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
  4. ^ Holway, John (2000). Red Tail, Black Wings: The Men of America's Black Air Force. Yucca Tree Press. p. 166. ISBN 9781881325437.
  5. ^ a b c d Chick, Stevie (2011). Spray Paint the Walls: The Story of Black Flag. PM Press. pp. 33-36. ISBN 978-1-60486-418-2.
  6. ^ a b McDonald, Ryan (September 28, 2018). "Spot On: Exhibit of photos of South Bay from '70s and '80s highlights other side of legendary SST Records producer". Easy Reader. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  7. ^ Cosgrove, Ben (November 24, 2014). "Edge of the World: Photos of SoCal's Skate, Beach and Punk Scenes, 1969 – 1982". Time. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  8. ^ a b c Brodsky, Rachel (March 4, 2023). "Glen "SPOT" Lockett, Hardcore Producer, Dead At 72". Stereogum. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Sebastian, Matt (March 4, 2023). "SPOT — SST Records' producer for Black Flag, Minutemen, Hüsker Dü and more — has died". Slicing Up Eyeballs. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  10. ^ Williams, Alex (March 11, 2023). "Spot, Record Producer Who Captured the Fury of 1980s Punk, Dies at 71". The New York Times. Retrieved March 11, 2023.
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