Born in Wimbledon, England on September 21, 1947, Rupert Hine was a singer, songwriter, and producer. Best known for producing artists such as The Fixx, Tina Turner, Rush, Stevie Nicks, Underworld, Duncan Sheik, Howard Jones, Saga, Chris de Burgh, and others, Hine also managed to score a Top 10 hit in the UK with “The Lone Ranger” performed by his band Quantum Jump. Alongside his production work, he also managed to release a handful of critically acclaimed albums under his own name and three studio releases under the pseudonym Thinkman. Hine had started his career in the ‘60s as one-half of folk duo Rupert & David. By the early ‘70s, he had branched out on his own with a pair of ‘singer-songwriter’ albums that were unique and quirky: Pick Up a Bone (1971) and Unfinished Picture (1973). During this period, he began his production career working on albums by Kevin Ayers, Yvonne Elliman, and Jonesy.
In 1974, he joined together with some of his musical friends and formed the band Quantum Jump. The band released two albums – Quantum Jump (1976) and Barracuda (1977) – without much fanfare. The band’s song “The Lone Ranger” (from their debut album) became a surprise hit in 1979 and an album of new mixes of old tracks – Mixing – was released in 1979 to capitalize on the single’s success. By that time, the band had already split and Hine was an in-demand producer. He twiddled the knobs for several late ‘70s and early ‘80s albums by Camel, Murray Head, Anthony Phillips, After the Fire, The Fixx, Jona Lewie, Saga, and others. His next solo album, Immunity, found Hine embracing electronics and synthesizers, a direction he would pursue for the remainder of his career. His next solo album, Waving Not Drowning, was issued in 1982. His production worked amped up after the success of albums by The Fixx (Reach the Beach), Tina Turner (Private Dancer), Howard Jones (Human’s Lib), and Chris de Burgh (The Getaway). Hine released his next solo album, The Wildest Wish to Fly, in 1983.
In 1985, he was commissioned to produce and write songs for the soundtrack to the film Better Off Dead. On this album, he produced different artists including Thinkman, a ‘band’ name given to a solo recording of his own. Thinkman went on to release three albums: The Formula (1986), Life is a Full Time Occupation (1988) and Hard Hat Zone (1990). He continued producing albums for the likes of Bob Geldof, Underworld, Stevie Nicks, Rush and others. In 1993, he was part of Spin 1ne 2wo, a short-lived supergroup featuring Paul Carrack, Steve Ferrone, Tony Levin, and Phil Palmer. His final solo album, The Deep End, was released in 1994. Hine spent the rest of his career in production. In 2011, he was honored by the APRS (Association of Professional Recording Services) with a Sound Fellowship Award. Hine began to make innovative contributions to the music industry. With tech writer Alan Graham, Hine formed One-Click License (OCL), which was created to help overcome complex music licensing issues. Rupert Hine died at the age of 72 in Wilshire, England on June 4, 2020.
