Veteran producer, ‘Spongebob’ composer from Upstate NY dies at 72

By Bob Merlis | Variety Entertainment News Service
Andy Paley, a veteran producer and musician who worked with a wide range of artists including Brian Wilson, the Ramones, Madonna, Jonathan Richman, Elton John, Deborah Harry, NRBQ and many others, died following a brief battle with cancer, a rep confirms to Variety. He also worked extensively in film and television, composing scores and writing songs for such top animated series as “SpongeBob SquarePants,” “Ren & Stimpy,” “Digimon” and others. He was 72.
He was described by Wilson as “the most frighteningly talented person that I’ve met and the greatest musical genius I’ve come across in many years… maybe my whole life.”
Most recently, he and Tom Kenny — picture, above right, with Paley — who voices the Spongebob character, toured as Tom Kenny & the Hi-Seas, the16-piece rock and soul band.
A native of the Albany area of upstate New York, Paley began playing music even before his teen years, at a 7-year-old writing “The Porcupine Song,” which was recorded by children’s music performer Tom Glazer. He was a drummer for local bands before moving to Boston in the early ’70s, where he formed Catfish Black. Soon renamed the Sidewinders, the band included future members of The Modern Lovers, including Jerry Harrison, who would go on to become a member of Talking Heads. They were joined by Billy Squier and relocated to New York where they played Max’s Kansas City and signed to RCA Records with Lenny Kaye producing. After the Sidewinders broke up, Paley played on sessions and performance dates with Elliott Murphy, Patti Smith and Jonathan Richman, for whose later recordings Paley would serve as producer.
With his younger brother Jonathan, he formed the popular power-pop combo the Paley Brothers, whose unusual milieu — they opened for both Patti Smith and Shaun Cassidy — may have played a role in their limited popularity. They recorded a single for Sire Records that produced by Jimmy Iovine (which preceded their 1978 debut album) and appeared in the Ramones’ film “Rock ‘N’ Roll High School.”
After the duo split, Paley became a staff producer at Sire Records, where he produced Brian Wilson’s eponymous 1988 solo album, co-writing several songs. In his later career, he worked extensively in film and TV music, including the soundtracks for “Dick Tracy,” “A Walk on the Moon,” “Wild Orchid,” “A Rage in Harlem” and the score for Showtime’s “The L Word.”
Tom Kenny commented, “My friendship with Andy and our collaboration — writing songs and my fronting the band that he formed — is one of the greatest true joys I’ve ever experienced. He possessed not only encyclopedic knowledge of all pop music — especially rock ‘n’ roll and girl group — but was also astoundingly astute when it came to art and literature.”
Paley is survived by his wife Heather Crist Paley, whom he married in 2010, and Jackson and Charlie – their twin sons who were born in 2012. He also leaves three sisters, Sarah, Brewster and Debby and brother Jonathan Paley.
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