DON DIXON

by Jason Ankeny
Best known among the key producers to emerge from the American underground's jangle pop movement of the early '80s, Don Dixon also enjoyed a cult following as a solo performer. A native of North Carolina, he dwelled in relative obscurity for well over a decade as a member of the little-known Arrogance before attracting his first significant notice around 1983 after co-producing with Mitch EasterR.E.M.'s landmark debut LP, Murmur. Subsequent work on Chris Stamey's It's a Wonderful Life, the Windbreakers' Terminal, andTommy Keene's Run Now solidified his reputation among jangle pop aficionados, and in 1985 Dixon recorded his solo debut, Most of the Girls Like to Dance But Only Some of the Boys Do, a further affirmation of his love of classic pop melodies and spiky, Nick Lowe-inspired wordplay. After producing wife Marti Jones' Unsophisticated Time, he released his second solo effort, Romeo at Juilliard, in 1987 and the live Chi-Town Budget Showa year later. After 1989's EEE, Dixon's recording career went into mothballs for several years and he returned to producing, helming efforts for the Smithereens, Richard Barone, and James McMurtrybefore finally releasing Romantic Depressive in 1995. Another lengthy hiatus preceded the early 2000 release of The Invisible Man and its 2001 follow-up, Note Pad #38. Entire Combustible World in One Small Room followed in summer 2006.
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