Grammy-winning producer to the stars Andrew Watt started his career working with a who’s who of the pop world, including the likes of Justin Bieber, Shawn Mendes, and Camila Cabello.
However, the super-producer took a turn down a more rock-oriented lane when he was approached by Ozzy Osbourne for 2020’s Ordinary Man – the Black Sabbath legend’s first studio album as a solo artist in ten years at the time. Four days later, Ozzy had already announced that he was working on its follow-up, 2022’s Patient Number 9, with Watt once again at the helm.
“Rock is something that I love – it’s the music that speaks to me the most,” Watt confesses in a new interview with Guitar World. “But as I found my way into this business, I had these gigs playing for amazing pop artists and ended up writing their songs, and that became my footing and the thing that I was doing – making pop music that had guitar in it.
“When the Ozzy thing came around, I was so excited at the chance to do it, but also kind of doubting myself. Like, these aren’t the records I really make. But with the push and love and guidance from both Duff McKagan and Chad Smith, who were friends at that point, they were like, ‘Come on man, you gotta make this. Of course you can do it. It’s everything you love.’”
Indeed, Ozzy’s endorsement led to a host of other rock-fueled albums from Watt, including Eddie Vedder’s Earthling, Iggy Pop’s Every Loser, Pearl Jam’s Dark Matter, and the Rolling Stones’ Hackney Diamonds.
Speaking about his approach to producing rock records that pay homage to each of these artists’ incredible rock legacies, while giving them a more contemporary twist, he said, “Once we started making music, I kind of felt that confidence and that became the blueprint. For the Iggy album, we just kind of made music and then Iggy chose the tracks he liked and sang to them.
“Then that led me into working with bands that I love, like Pearl Jam – they’re the best live band there is. And obviously the Stones are everyone’s favorite rock band. Getting to sit in the room with those guys and just record a band doing their thing, keeping it really live, became really important to me and just my favorite thing in the world to do.”
However, Watt has never forgotten the legend that nudged him in a more guitar-fueled direction. As he puts it, “It all started with Ozzy. He and Sharon were the first ones to believe that I could make them a great rock album.”
Watt recently talked about his experiences working with another rock behemoth – a certain Beatle who showed him how to play a widely beloved Beatles song.
