Tributes have been paid to producer, Jack Douglas, who has died aged 80.
Douglas, who made albums for household names like John Lennon, Aerosmith, and Patti Smith, passed away earlier this week (May 11). The news was confirmed via a Facebook post. No cause of death was announced at the time of writing.
“He passed away peacefully on Monday night,” a post. “As many of you who follow him know, he produced great music, and lived a colorful life. We know that he touched many of your lives; we would love to hear more about that in the comments. He will be missed".
Prior to his glamourous career as a rock music producer, Jack Douglas started out as a folk singer, where he worked as a songwriter for Robert Kennedy's senatorial campaign in 1964.
He went on to graduate from New York's Institute of Audio Research as part of its first graduating class. Having started as a janitor at the Record Plant, Douglas worked his way up to become an engineer, contributing albums from Alice Cooper, Miles Davis, Cheap Trick and more.
Douglas also went on to befriend Beatles legend, John Lennon, having worked on his 'Imagine' album, as well as Lennon and Yoko Ono's record 'Double Fantasy' in 1980, as well as it is intended follow up, 'Milk and Honey' prior to Lennon's tragic death in December that year.
The producer also got close to Aerosmith, after Alice Cooper's producer, Bob Ezrin, who encouraged him to become a producer. This saw Douglas work on Aerosmith's second album, 'Get Your Wings', as well as Cooper's 'Muscle of Love'.
He also contributed to Aerosmith's albums throughout the 1970s, which all went on become multi platinum, including ‘Get Your Wings’ (1974), ‘Toys in the Attic’ (1975), ‘Rocks’ (1976) and ‘Draw The Line’ (1977).
Following news of Douglas' passing, tributes have been paid to the music producer, including Patti Smith, Yoko Ono, and Aerosmith.
Aerosmith, who famously hailed Douglas as the "sixth member" of the band, wrote: “We are mourning the loss of Jack Douglas, the legendary producer whose talent and passion shaped our sound and changed our lives. Jack was a brilliant artist and collaborator who inspired us in profound ways and left an indelible mark on the entire music industry. We celebrate his life and epic career and feel so privileged to have known him and to benefit from his remarkable skill and friendship. We are heartbroken for his family, but find comfort in knowing how much he loved his life and work. We are so proud and grateful to be part of his legacy".
We are mourning the loss of Jack Douglas, the legendary producer whose talent and passion shaped our sound and changed our lives. Jack was a brilliant artist and collaborator who inspired us in profound ways and left an indelible mark on the entire music industry. We celebrate… pic.twitter.com/fBOEFXFiov
— Aerosmith (@Aerosmith) May 13, 2026
Paying tribute to Douglas on Instagram, Patti Smith wrote: “This is expressing gratitude to Jack Douglas for all that I learned and experienced working on PSG’s Radio Ethiopia with him. I am so sad at his passing and send my condolences to his loved ones”.
View this post on Instagram
Elsewhere, Yoko Ono added: "Rest in Peace, Jack Douglas”.
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See more tributes below.
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I write this through tears.
Jack Douglas was my greatest mentor, one of my closest friends, and family to all of us.
For three months Jack and I lived in Scituate making an Aerosmith album together. Every morning we’d make the 25 minute drive to the studio while he told stories… pic.twitter.com/sEQIbmbhcg— Produce Like A Pro (@ProduceLikeAPro) May 12, 2026
