Bob Ezrin facts for kids

Robert Alan Ezrin (born March 25, 1949) is a famous Canadian music producer and keyboardist. He is well-known for working with many big music stars. Some of these include Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, and Peter Gabriel.

Bob Ezrin's career in music has lasted for over six decades. He has continued to produce music into the 21st century. He has worked with newer bands like Deftones and Thirty Seconds to Mars. Ezrin has won three Juno Awards, which are big music awards in Canada. In 2011, he received a special award at the SOCAN Awards in Toronto. On December 29, 2022, he was named an Officer of the Order of Canada. This is one of the highest honors a civilian can receive in Canada.

Early Life and Education

Bob Ezrin was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on March 25, 1949. He grew up in the Forest Hill area of Toronto. He finished school at the University of Toronto Schools in 1967.

Music Production Career

Bob Ezrin is a very busy person in the music world. He works as a record producer, an arranger (someone who organizes music), and a songwriter. He is also involved in digital media, live shows, movies, TV, and theater.

Working with Famous Artists

Ezrin has helped create music for many major artists. These include Pink Floyd, Phish, Alice Cooper, KISS, Deep Purple, Lou Reed, Taylor Swift, and Peter Gabriel. He even recorded the first demo songs for a Toronto band called Max Webster.

Alice Cooper and KISS

Alice Cooper, another famous musician, has called Ezrin "our George Martin". George Martin was a famous producer for The Beatles. Ezrin started working with Alice Cooper in 1971 on the album Love it to Death. Their teamwork led to the number one album Billion Dollar Babies in 1973. This was after the success of School's Out. Alice Cooper became one of the biggest music acts in the world.

Even after Alice Cooper's band broke up, Ezrin kept working with him. In 1975, Ezrin produced Cooper's album, Welcome To My Nightmare. Ezrin was more than just a producer for Cooper. He also helped write songs, arrange music, and played instruments.

Ezrin also produced the very popular KISS album Destroyer in 1976. He helped write and played piano on the song "Beth". He produced two more albums for KISS: Music from "The Elder" and Revenge. He is still good friends with the band members today.

Pink Floyd and Other Bands

Bob Ezrin has worked with the legendary band Pink Floyd many times. He helped produce their albums The Wall, A Momentary Lapse of Reason, and The Division Bell. He also helped write some of their songs, like "The Trial" and "Learning to Fly".

In 1988, Ezrin produced the album In the Spirit of Things for the band Kansas. He also received credit for writing some songs on that album.

Recent Projects

In May 2009, Ezrin helped produce a special concert at Madison Square Garden. It was called The Clearwater Concert and celebrated the 90th birthday of musician Pete Seeger. Many famous artists performed, including Bruce Springsteen and Dave Matthews. Ezrin also helped produce the TV broadcast of the event.

Since 2010, Ezrin has worked on many projects. He co-produced Peter Gabriel's album Scratch My Back. He also produced songs for Canadian singer K'naan and pop star Fefe Dobson. He reunited with Alice Cooper to work on Welcome 2 My Nightmare. Ezrin also mixed albums for artists like Taylor Swift and The Darkness.

In 2012, Ezrin remixed KISS's Destroyer album. He also produced albums for 2Cellos and Deep Purple. Bob worked with the band Phish on their albums Fuego (2014) and Big Boat (2016). He also worked with Andrea Bocelli on Sì, which became Bocelli's first number one album in both the UK and USA.

Ezrin also produced a big live and TV show to reopen the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. It featured bands like Green Day and U2.

Other Activities

Starting Companies

In 1993, Ezrin helped start a computer software company called 7th Level. This company made educational and fun computer games, including some based on Monty Python.

In 1999, he co-founded Enigma Digital, a company that provided internet radio. It was later sold to Clear Channel. Ezrin also became the vice-chairman of Clear Channel Interactive.

Ezrin is also a co-founder and vice chairman of Wow Unlimited Media. In 2009, Ezrin helped start the Nimbus School of Recording Arts in Vancouver. His goal was to teach new engineers and producers in a hands-on way.

Helping Others (Philanthropy)

Ezrin is very involved in helping others. He is on the board of the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation. This group helps music programs in US schools by giving them musical instruments. He also helps MusiCounts, which provides instruments to Canadian school music programs.

He also co-founded Music Rising with The Edge from U2. This group helps save the music culture in the Gulf Coast region after hurricanes in 2005.

In 2010, Ezrin helped bring together the Young Artists for Haiti group. Fifty Canadian artists recorded a song called "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan. They changed the lyrics to be about Haiti. The money raised from the song, over US$2 million, went to help victims of the Haiti earthquake.

Ezrin is also a past leader for the Los Angeles Mentoring Partnership and the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS). He is also on the board of the Canadian Journalism Foundation, which supports good journalism. As of 2022, Bob is also working as a climate activist in Canada.

Film and Television Work

Ezrin has appeared in TV shows and documentaries. In 1982, he hosted a TV show called Enterprise. He has also been interviewed often for documentary films and TV. Ezrin has created new shows for theater, TV, and live events. This includes Jay-Z's movie, Fade to Black. In 2012, Ezrin was in Artifact, a documentary about the music business.

He is also a co-producer for Melanie Doane's children's music TV series Ukulele U.

Awards and Recognition

Bob Ezrin has received many honors for his work. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in April 2004. In March 2006, he was inducted into the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame.

In 2011, Ezrin and Young Artist for Haiti won a Juno Award for "Single of the Year". He also received an "Outstanding Contribution" award at the Classic Rock Magazine Awards. In 2013, he received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto.

Also in 2013, The Royal Conservatory of Music named him an Honorary Fellow. In late 2022, Ezrin was named an Officer of the Order of Canada. This was for his work in music and entertainment, and for supporting music education, journalism, and environmental justice. In February 2025, Ezrin was named a recipient of the Governor General's Performing Arts Award.

Personal Life

Bob Ezrin is married to Janet Ezrin. He moved to Los Angeles in 1985 and became a US citizen in the 1990s. In 2025, he moved back to Toronto from Nashville. He started the process to give up his US citizenship. He told The Globe and Mail newspaper that his Canadian honors meant he had a responsibility to stand up for Canada.

Partial Discography

Here are some of the albums Bob Ezrin has worked on:

• 2Cellos: In2ition (2013) – producer and mixer
• Thirty Seconds to Mars: 30 Seconds to Mars (2002) – producer
• Aerosmith: Get Your Wings (1974) – executive producer
• Alice Cooper
  • Love It to Death (1971) – producer, co-writer, and mixer
  • Killer (1971) – producer, co-writer, and mixer
  • School's Out (1972) – producer, co-writer, and mixer
  • Billion Dollar Babies (1973) – producer, co-writer, and mixer
  • Welcome to My Nightmare (1975) – producer, co-writer, and mixer
  • Alice Cooper Goes to Hell (1976) – producer, keyboardist, co-writer, and mixer
  • Welcome 2 My Nightmare (2011) – producer, co-writer, and mixer
  • Paranormal (2017) – producer, composer, and mixer
  • Detroit Stories (2021) – producer, composer, and mixer
• Andrea Bocelli
  • Sì (2018) – producer and writer
• Bonham: The Disregard of Timekeeping (1989) – producer and mixer
• Deep Purple
  • Now What?! (2013) – producer, mixer and composer
  • Infinite (2017) – producer, mixer and composer
  • Whoosh! (2020) – producer, mixing, percussion, backing vocals and composer
  • Turning to Crime (2021) – producer, backing vocals, co-lead vocals
  • =1 (2024) - producer, mixing, backing vocals and composer
• Fefe Dobson: Joy (2010) – producer and mixer
• Peter Gabriel
  • Peter Gabriel (I) (1977) – producer and mixer
  • Scratch My Back (2010) – co-producer with Peter Gabriel
• Hanoi Rocks: Two Steps from the Move (1984) – producer and mixer
• Hollywood Vampires: Hollywood Vampires (2015) - producer and mixer
• Jane's Addiction: Strays (2003) – co-producer with Brian Virtue
• Kansas: In the Spirit of Things (1988) – producer and mixer
• Kiss
  • Destroyer (1976) – producer and mixer
  • Music from "The Elder" (1981) – producer and mixer
  • Revenge (1992) – producer
  • Destroyer: Resurrected (2012) – producer and mixer
• Lou Reed: Berlin (1973) – producer and mixer
• Phish:
  • Fuego (2014) – producer, mixer
  • Big Boat (2016) – producer, mixer
• Pink Floyd
  • The Wall (1979) – co-producer with David Gilmour and Roger Waters
  • A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987) co-producer with David Gilmour
  • The Division Bell (1994) – co-producer with David Gilmour
• Rod Stewart: Every Beat of My Heart (1986) – producer
• Taylor Swift: Speak Now World Tour Live (2011) – mixer for both the CD and DVD
• Young Artists for Haiti: "Wavin' Flag" single (2010) – producer

See also

In Spanish: Bob Ezrin para niños

• Music of Canada
• Canadian Music Hall of Fame