Where Visions turn to Tunes
Our references
eThe reference list 1997-2007 downloaden (PDF)
Ian Anderson
Jack Bruce
David Clayton-Thomas
Bobby Kimball
Steve Lukather
Peter Maffay
Chris Thompson
Al Di Meola
Steve Khan
Mike Stern
Michael Brecker
Randy Brecker
Bill Evans
Pino Palladino
Anthony Jackson
Victor Bailey
Chaka Khan
Joshua Kadison
Nik Kershaw
Phil Collins
Lionel Richie
Sabrina Setlur
Chris de Burgh
Greg Lake
Scott McKenzie
David Knopfler
Peter Frampton
Jon Lord
Eric Burdon
Gary Brooker
Bonnie Tyler
Orange Blue
No Angels
Jeanette
Piero Mazzocchetti
Gil
Juliette
Guru
Paul Young
Paul Carrack
Nick van Eede
Weather Girls
Johnny Logan
Midge Ure
Alannah Myles
Robin Gibb
Howard Jones
Roger Chapman
Roger Hodgson
Jennifer Rush
This is what the musicians say about working with Leslie Mandoki and his team:
Lionel Richie
”We are here in the studio with Leslie, who is an incredible producer and writer.…our collaboration came out very good. Good quality! I love it. We’ll be back!”
Phil Collins
“We understood each other perfectly with producer Leslie Mandoki in Tutzing. He is also a drummer like me. And again on “Brother Bear”. I know he went through great pains to translate my lyrics into the best possible meaning as a fellow drummer. He knows the importance of the rhythm of a thing. He understands what it’s like to be a producer and an artist. He was very supportive. He’s a good man.”
Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull)
“Leslie is the master-chief in the “kitchen“, mixing all these exotic spices and mystical musical infl uences together. He is a great musician and it’s very rare that you get good musicians and good record producers in the same person. The performance is, what Leslie is looking for, I guess. He is the mastermind – we just turn up for work.“
Jack Bruce (Cream)
“These guys (Leslie & Laszlo) have a very sophisticated, personal way of writing, and it always fi ts perfectly. What I additionally have with Leslie is the discipline to be myself and that really helps. Leslie is a very warm person, but I think his great talent is the vision that he has…he actually can hear who’s going to be doing what, how it’s gonna be realised. That’s a great talent to have. The one who comes to my mind, the greatest person who had that kind of talent was Duke Ellington that I can think of.”
Steve Lukather (Toto)
“Leslie is like the Hungarian Quincy Jones. He has become a friend of mine and I want to work with him – anytime he wants me to play, I’m there!“
Bobby Kimball (Toto)
“This is good musicianship here and I think these guys are some of the most incredible writers. Anytime this crowd of people gets together, I know it’s gonna be a big event, because all of them are absolutely Top of their game. …and I know that a little piece of my heart will be there forever. Park Studios, it’s way different from everything I have been in. They are always upgrading everything everyday, so it’s state of the art and in such a beautiful area.”
Peter Maffay
"This project is coached very, very well....it's a really excellent virtue of Leslie's that he is able to bring so many people together, link them in a project and make something beautiful of it."
Joshua Kadison
”The thing is, you have to realise, we’re talking about making a record with Leslie Mandoki – so you have to forget about where it is. Yes, he has got a world class studio, he has got everything that goes along with being an international, legendary record producer! I found Leslie and Leslie found me. We connected soul to soul.“
Chaka Khan
“I’ve been able to get back together with some of the guys I haven’t played with in some years. We’ve come together in a good way for one beautiful purpose and this is what this project means to me. It’s what I live for. It is needed more that different guys from different walks of music come together and fuse. I felt perfectly at home doing this project.“
Nik Kershaw
“I’ve always dreamed of playing together with all these guys of the jazz scene like Michael Brecker, Anthony Jackson and it’s great that I can do it on Leslie’s albums. It’s brilliant to be part of a project with all these guys on it.“
Michael Brecker
“It’s really good music, brilliant writing. I especially like the sophisticated harmony structure and also his highly intellectual, poetical lyrics.…this music really comes alive as a result of Leslie and Laszlo composing and arranging with specifi c musicians in mind…”
Randy Brecker
“The music was very well thought out and not easy to play. We played their arrangements, which were very diffi cult, but very well written. We gave some input, told them what we thought about the arrangements but basically, everything was written, and expertly written, by the Mandoki Group. Also, the other people were very well conceived, all very well thought out by Leslie himself, which is a very big compliment, I think. He is a very excellent musician.”
Bill Evans
“Leslie has us do our style, play what we play, combines it with other infl uences, with other kinds of music and creates interesting music that I don’t think has any category sometimes. He sort of pushes the boundaries of pop-music and it’s nice to be a part of a project that has such a great feel to it, with musicians who take it to the highest level.“
Al Di Meola
“The wonderful world of Leslie and Laszlo as a writing and production team has been a remarkable story! This story carries itself into the heart of their musical vision. A musical universe that embodies a cross section of pop and jazz icons. The rare assemblage of fi ne musicians has been extraordinary on their projects throughout the years, and more important is the extreme warmth of mutual admiration and friendship that prevails! Thanks for letting me in and adding to the continued creative process that I have wholeheartedly enjoyed! Working with Leslie was really a pleasure. To keep the balance was really Leslie’s job. You know, I hardly work with anybody else. It’s his concept, and I’m landing with what I do on the ground of what he’s doing. So, a lot has to be said to Leslie Mandoki’s personality, and how he can bring everybody together. That’s a great testament to his ability to produce, you know. Great producers pull people together, and he has done that.”
Donovan
“I thank you sincerely for keeping the integrity of my classic song “Atlantis”. I value your production and consider you a major producer talent in our industry. Thank you for the new version of the song bridging over my music from the Beatles generation to the VIVA generation of “No Angels”.”
Pino Palladino
“To play and record with them is good. It’s an honour, you know. They use great musicians, and so when they ask you to play on the album, it’s a compliment.“
David Clayton-Thomas
“We didn’t come here to do this for the money. It was the ideal, it was to work in this beautiful studio, which is state-of-the-art, and to work with Leslie. From the fi rst album it was apparent that these guys are operating on a very high level: Production, musicianship, compositions – all world class. I was immediately attracted to the melodies, Leslie’s and Laszlo’s compositions are pure, elegant and memorable, just a joy to sing. What I enjoy most is the meaningfulness, politically, socially and otherwise – of the Mandoki lyrics. These are really gifted guys and the fi nest musicians on the planet perform with them. It’s really an honour to record in such fi ne company.”
Anthony Jackson
“I love not only the music they make, but also the way they make it. It’s challenging and a lot fun. It’s good to be a part of it and it’s like a family. Where good music is what’s important, and it’s good music here. It is also very rare that I can work with a producer who really pushes it to the limit, wanting to create exceptionally good music. Leslie is one of those fortunate combinations, what the English call a “muso” producer. So it’s gratifying to work for a producer like Leslie, even if you have to fl y over the Atlantic Ocean to come here to be able to do that.“
