Bill Putnam

Milton Tasker "Bill" Putnam (February 20, 1920 – April 13, 1989) was an American audio engineer, songwriter, producer, studio designer, and businessman. He has been described as "the father of modern recording". He was the inventor of the modern recording console and is recognized as having been a key figure in the development of the postwar commercial recording industry.

Former colleague Bruce Swedien described Putnam's achievements:

"Bill Putnam was the father of recording as we know it today. The processes and designs which we take for granted — the design of modern recording desks, the way components are laid out and the way they function, console design, cue sends, multitrack switching — they all originated in Bill's imagination."