Joseph William Tucci (born 1953),[1] known under his alias Eric Matthew, is an American record label owner, record producer, engineer, songwriter and guitarist, previously involved in the New York post-disco scene of the early 1980s.
Biography
Tucci originally performed at weddings, bar mitzvahs and parties in the New York metropolitan area with his friends. Then, after producing a demo with fellow band member Gary R. Turnier, he landed a record deal with indie label SAM Records, owned by Sam Weiss, which by then had major label Columbia as their distribution company.[2] Essentially a minimal rock combo with musical influences ranging from deep funk, pop, jazz to disco, the band, named Gary's Gang by Turnier and Tucci, consisted of a saxophonist, a trombonist, a flautist, a percussionist, and keyboardists. The second album, Keep on Dancing, performed well on the music charts, peaking at #27 on the Billboard R&B Albums and #42 on the Billboard 200.[3] This accomplishment led Tucci to establish his own record label and produce other artists. His productions included "Reach Up" by Toney Lee (on his own label) and the album Redd Hott by Sharon Redd (for Prelude Records). With Gary Turnier he produced records like Tracy Weber's "Sure Shot," Sinnamon's "Thanks to You," and Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde's "Genius Rap" in his garage.[4]
Tucci[5] is married and has three daughters.[6] His musical influences include 1960s pop and the "zaniness of the later Beatles albums."[4]
