Hal Willner’s Vanishing, Weird New York

Hal Willner in his Manhattan studio. He has produced music for performers as disparate as Lou Reed and the Armadillo String Quartet. Credit Andrew White for The New York Times

Hal Willner was new in New York, working as an assistant to a record producer named Joel Dorn, when Mr. Dorn called him aside after a session one night. “You’re not going home yet, baby,” Mr. Willner remembered his boss telling him. It was 1974. Mr. Dorn had produced enormously successful records for Bette Midler and Roberta Flack, and experimental jazz albums that Mr. Willner loved.

We’re going out, Mr. Dorn told Mr. Willner. Do not tell your parents.

“We go to the Regency and Redd Foxx opens the door in a robe and underpants sticking out,” Mr. Willner said, slipping into a Redd Foxx imitation. “‘Come on in. Hey, squirt. I’m Redd. This is Billy Eckstine.’” Mr. Willner, who has been sober for 20 years, tapped an espresso pod on his chair arm and continued in his Redd Foxx voice. “‘And this is pharmaceutical cocaine. Yeah, respect the pharmaceutical cocaine.’”

Mr. Willner was 18. Mr. Foxx told an off-color joke about elephant poo.


Hal Willner, welcome to New York.

read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/08/nyregion/hal-willners-vanishing-weird-new-york.html