Bruce Swedien, the audio engineer and producer who worked with Quincy Jones to record and mix Michael Jackson’s Off The Wall, Bad, Dangerous, and of course Thriller — the best-selling album of all time — has died. His daughter confirmed the news on Facebook, announcing that he “passed away peacefully last night.” He was 86. His old collaborator Quincy Jones also paid tribute on social media, writing:

I am absolutely devastated to learn the news that we lost my dear brother-in-arms, the legendary Bruce Swedien. There are not enough words to express how much Bruce meant to me…He was without question the absolute best engineer in the business, & for more than 70 years I wouldn’t even think about going into a recording session unless I knew Bruce was behind the board. Along with the late great Rod Temperton, we reached heights that we could have never imagined & made history together. I have always said it’s no accident that more than four decades later no matter where I go in the world, in every club, like clockwork at the witching hour you hear “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” “Wanna Be Starting Something,” & “Thriller.” That was the sonic genius of Bruce Swedien, & to this day I can hear artists trying to replicate him. I’m going to miss your presence every single day “Svensk”, but I will cherish every moment we shared together laughin’, lovin’, livin’, & givin’…Rest In Peace my brother.

Swedien became successful in 1962, earning the first of 14 Grammy Award nominations — he won five — for his work on Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons’ “Big Girls Don’t Cry.” In addition to Michael Jackson, he also recorded and mixed for artists including Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney, Diana Ross, Donna Summer, Chaka Khan, Barbra Streisand, Jennifer Lopez, and Roberta Flack, Herbie Hancock, Duke Ellington, Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, and Count Basie.

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