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Friday, November 26, 2004

Terry Melcher, a Shaper of Calif. Surf Sound, Dies

Entertainment - Reuters
Reuters
Terry Melcher, a Shaper of Calif. Surf Sound, Dies

Sun, Nov 21, 2004
Add to My Yahoo! Entertainment - Reuters

By Sarah Tippit

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Reuters) - Terry Melcher, a producer, composer and songwriter who worked with the Beach Boys and helped shape the '60s era California surf music sound, has died, according to his publicist. He was 62.

Melcher, son of actress-singer Doris Day (news), also produced several hits for the Byrds including "Mr. Tambourine Man."

Melcher died Friday at his Beverly Hills home after a long battle with cancer, publicist Linda Dozoretz told Reuters on Sunday.

Day was in Carmel on Sunday and unavailable for comment. "She and Terry were extremely close and close in age because she was 17 when she had him," Dozoretz said.

"They were amazing together. There wasn't a day that went by when Terry wasn't involved with one of his mother's projects," she said.

Born Terry Jorden, Melcher was the son of Day and her first husband, Al Jorden. He was later adopted by Day's third husband, Martin Melcher, and took his name.

He began his career as "Terry Day," capitalizing on his mother's famous name. However he later became known in his own right, singing background tracks, writing lyrics, playing the piano, composing, and producing.

Melcher teamed with future Beach Boy Bruce Johnston in the early 1960s. The duo eventually formed the group the Rip Chords, who recorded the 1964 hit "Hey, Little Cobra."

He also wrote songs with Bobby Darin and Randy Newman (news). But it wasn't until the mid-1960s, when he joined Columbia Records as a producer, that he made his mark on the California sound.

He was instrumental in helping craft the Byrds' groundbreaking fusion of rock and folk and produced several of the group's hits including their versions of Bob Dylan (news)'s "Mr. Tambourine Man" and Pete Seeger's "Turn, Turn, Turn."

Melcher also co-wrote the hit "Kokomo" for the Beach Boys. The song, used in the movie "Cocktail," was nominated for a Golden Globe in 1988 for best original song.

During his career Melcher also worked with Paul Revere and the Raiders, Taj Mahal, Ry Cooder (news), Glen Campbell, Gram Parsons and the Mamas and the Papas, among others.

Melcher later worked more frequently with his mother. From 1968 to 1972, he served as the executive producer of her "The Doris Day Show" on CBS. He also co-produced "Doris Day's Best Friends," which ran in the 1980s, Dozoretz said.

Melcher is survived by his mother, his wife, Terese, and one son, Ryan.
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Producer-Songwriter Terry Melcher Dies
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041121/ap_en_mu/obit_melcher

Entertainment - AP Music
AP
Producer-Songwriter Terry Melcher Dies

Sun Nov 21, 8:55 AM ET
Add to My Yahoo! Entertainment - AP Music

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - Terry Melcher, a record producer and songwriter who aided the careers of Ry Cooder (news), the Byrds and the Beach Boys, has died, his publicist announced Saturday. He was 62.

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AP Photo
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Melcher, the son of actress Doris Day (news), died Friday night at his Beverly Hills home after a long battle with melanoma.

Melcher co-wrote the hit song "Kokomo" for the Beach Boys. The song was used in the movie "Cocktail" and was nominated for a Golden Globe in 1988 for best original song. He also performed on the Beach Boys album "Pet Sounds."

In the early 1960s, Melcher began singing as a solo act and later paired with future Beach Boy Bruce Johnston to form the group Bruce & Terry. The pair had several hits, then went on to form the Rip Chords, which recorded the 1964 hit "Hey, Little Cobra."

In the mid-1960s, Melcher joined Columbia Records as a producer. Working with the Byrds, he produced their top-selling version of Bob Dylan (news)'s "Mr. Tambourine Man" and other hits, including "Turn, Turn, Turn."

Melcher also produced hit songs for Paul Revere and the Raiders and worked with Gram Parsons, the Mamas and the Papas, and Ry Cooder.

He served as the executive producer of his mother's CBS show, "The Doris Day Show," from 1968 to 1972 and co-produced her mid-1980s show, "Doris Day's Best Friends."

Melcher also helped run his mother's charitable activities, including the Doris Day Animal Foundation.

In 1969, his name became linked with the grisly Charles Manson murders.

Melcher once rented the home where actress Sharon Tate and a group of her friends were murdered by Manson followers. Rumors circulated that Melcher, who knew Manson, was the real target because he had turned Manson down for a record contract.

Los Angeles police discounted the rumors. Melcher had since moved to Malibu, and police established that Manson knew of his new address.

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