Biography
Tom Moulton launched his multifaceted career—as remix pioneer, journalist, producer, mastering engineer, and Dance Music Hall of Fame inductee—near the end of the 1950s by purchasing 45s for the jukebox maker Seeburg. He later moved through sales and promotion roles at the King label, then RCA and United Artists, before exiting those positions over pervasive dishonesty and corruption.
While working in modeling he connected with a colleague who owned real estate on Fire Island, the resort south of Long Island, New York. There he observed large groups of gay white men dancing to soul records; when the resident DJ struggled to sustain the energy on the floor, Moulton felt compelled to try his hand. He created an extended reel-to-reel set designed for nonstop dancing, and the mix gained traction at the Sandpiper, another Fire Island venue, although his schedule allowed only a handful of such projects.
Most tracks at the time ran roughly three minutes, prompting Moulton to seek longer versions suited to dancefloors. Mel Cheren of Scepter supplied the master for Don Downing’s “Dream World,” already released as a single; Moulton lengthened it and inserted an extended instrumental passage that heightened its dramatic impact. Shortly afterward, his remixing reputation solidified through B.T. Express’ “Do It (‘Til You’re Satisfied)” and the Moment of Truth’s “Your Love,” after which he began writing the Disco Action column for Billboard, debuting on October 26, 1974—often covering titles on which he had worked.
The year 1975 proved pivotal: Moulton wove the three opening tracks of Gloria Gaynor’s Never Can Say Goodbye into a seamless medley while also handling dozens of other remixes, among them South Shore Commission’s “Free Man,” B.T. Express’ “Peace Pipe,” and Van McCoy’s From Disco to Love album. Countless additional tracks from the disco era bear his hand, some uncredited, including Double Exposure’s “Ten Percent,” the Trammps’ “Disco Inferno,” Andrea True Connection’s “More More More,” Ecstasy, Passion & Pain’s “Touch and Go,” Grace Jones’ “La Vie en Rose” (which he also produced), and MFSB’s “Love Is the Message.” In 1979 he produced two full-length Casablanca releases, Loose Change and the self-titled TJM.
Although his remixing pace eventually diminished, Moulton continued accepting projects into the 2010s and built a parallel career as a mastering engineer. Soul Jazz gathered a selection of his work on the 2006 compilation A Tom Moulton Mix, named after the credit that frequently appeared on his 12-inch singles; four years later Harmless issued the four-disc Philadelphia International Classics: The Tom Moulton Remixes.
While working in modeling he connected with a colleague who owned real estate on Fire Island, the resort south of Long Island, New York. There he observed large groups of gay white men dancing to soul records; when the resident DJ struggled to sustain the energy on the floor, Moulton felt compelled to try his hand. He created an extended reel-to-reel set designed for nonstop dancing, and the mix gained traction at the Sandpiper, another Fire Island venue, although his schedule allowed only a handful of such projects.
Most tracks at the time ran roughly three minutes, prompting Moulton to seek longer versions suited to dancefloors. Mel Cheren of Scepter supplied the master for Don Downing’s “Dream World,” already released as a single; Moulton lengthened it and inserted an extended instrumental passage that heightened its dramatic impact. Shortly afterward, his remixing reputation solidified through B.T. Express’ “Do It (‘Til You’re Satisfied)” and the Moment of Truth’s “Your Love,” after which he began writing the Disco Action column for Billboard, debuting on October 26, 1974—often covering titles on which he had worked.
The year 1975 proved pivotal: Moulton wove the three opening tracks of Gloria Gaynor’s Never Can Say Goodbye into a seamless medley while also handling dozens of other remixes, among them South Shore Commission’s “Free Man,” B.T. Express’ “Peace Pipe,” and Van McCoy’s From Disco to Love album. Countless additional tracks from the disco era bear his hand, some uncredited, including Double Exposure’s “Ten Percent,” the Trammps’ “Disco Inferno,” Andrea True Connection’s “More More More,” Ecstasy, Passion & Pain’s “Touch and Go,” Grace Jones’ “La Vie en Rose” (which he also produced), and MFSB’s “Love Is the Message.” In 1979 he produced two full-length Casablanca releases, Loose Change and the self-titled TJM.
Although his remixing pace eventually diminished, Moulton continued accepting projects into the 2010s and built a parallel career as a mastering engineer. Soul Jazz gathered a selection of his work on the 2006 compilation A Tom Moulton Mix, named after the credit that frequently appeared on his 12-inch singles; four years later Harmless issued the four-disc Philadelphia International Classics: The Tom Moulton Remixes.