Producer and artist manager Greg Ladanyi, whose company oversaw the careers of groups like Type O Negative, passed away this morning after sustaining a severe head trauma while on tour with one of his acts in Greece.
Ladanyi, 57, was in the country touring with Anna Vissi, whose Greek album Apagorevmeno was his latest completed project. Before Vissi’s Friday night show in Cyprus, the producer slipped and fell off of a ramp leading up to the stage, striking his head.
He was immediately rushed to the hospital where he remained in critical condition over the weekend.
Although Vissi went on to perform the show, various reports in the Greek press say she's taking Ladanyi’s death hard because the two were extremely close.
Ladanyi’s name is familiar to many as the man who helmed hit albums for a variety of artist in the ’70’s and ’80s, including Jackson Browne (six albums, including “Running on Empty,” “Hold Out,” and “Lawyers in Love”), Toto (four albums, including “Toto IV”), Don Henley (three albums, including “Building the Perfect Beast”), Fleetwood Mac (“Fleetwood Mac Greatest Hits,” “Behind the Mask”), The Church (“Starfish”), Jeff Healey (“See the Light”) and Jaguares (“Bajo el Azul de Tu Misterio”). He was working with Vissi to put the finishing touches on an English album at the time of his death.
The producer’s efforts netted him a Grammy Award in 1982 for “Toto IV,” as well as a nomination for Producer of the Year for Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer” and a Latin Grammy Award nomination for Jaguares “Best Rock Album.”
Besides Vissi (who was a contestant in the 2006 Eurovision song contest), Ladanyi’s company Maple Jam Music also managed a number of well known artists, including Hollywood Undead, Mothers Anthem and Taryn Manning.
Maple Jam was founded in 2004 as a multi-platform company that could work with artists to develop their careers on several levels. A statement from the company says it will “continue to move forward, keeping Greg Ladanyi’s legacy alive.”
Details on a private memorial service are forthcoming.