Inside the Studio – Conversations with Michael Omartian

While you may not be familiar with Michael Omartian, you might be familiar with Rick Beato and his informative YouTube interviews. Recently, he interviewed Michael, or “Omar,” where Rick dubbed him “Steely Dan’s Secret Weapon.” Yes, he is the guy playing keys on “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number” and a hundred other hits (including, for instance, “We Are The World”). Omar is also a multi-platinum and multiple GRAMMY^® and Dove award-winning monster record producer.

Originally from Evanston, IL, Omar moved to Los Angeles, CA, in 1967. He eventually broke into the studio scene, playing keys in various sessions, and the rest is history—playing led to arranging, and the arranging led to producing.

By the mid-80s, he had risen to be one of the first call record producers in L.A., working with Christopher Cross, Rod Stewart, Whitney Houston,
Sir Cliff Richard, Peter Cetera, Amy Grant, Michael Bolton, Donna Summer…
the list goes on and on.

With a 91-page credit list on AllMusic.com,
Michael Omartian has contributed his talents (producer, composer, arranger, artist or musician) to albums that have collectively sold more than 350,000,000 copies worldwide—that’s three 350 million! Omar is also the first record producer to chart #1 hits in three consecutive decades.

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Omar on a number of projects over the years in Nashville, Indiana, London (Abbey Road) and most recently at Royal Studios in Memphis, TN, on singer Marcus Scott’s latest project.

I figured Omar would be a great person to talk with for the vocal recording issue since he has worked with dozens of talented singers throughout his career. I sat down with Omar in his home outside of Nashville.