David Foster

David Walter Foster, OC, OBC, record producer, composer, arranger, pianist (born 1 November 1949 in Victoria, BC). David Foster is one of the most commercially successful and influential pop music producers of all time. He has been called “the real king of pop,” the “master of bombastic pop kitsch” and “the Hit Man.” He is perhaps best known for his collaborations with Chicago, Barbra Streisand, Natalie Cole, Céline Dion, Whitney Houston, Josh Groban and Michael Bublé, and for the successful charity single “Tears Are Not Enough.”

He has produced such international No. 1 hits as “I Swear,” “The Glory of Love,” “The Power of Love,” “Un-break My Heart” and “I Will Always Love You.” Foster is a member of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame and the US Songwriters Hall of Fame. An Officer of the Order of Canada and a Member of the Order of British Columbia, he has won five Juno Awards and 16 Grammy Awards.

Foster’s multifaceted career has made him one of the most influential international figures in popular music. David Foster grew up in Victoria BC, with six sisters. Foster lived in Edmonton in 1969 and was mentored by Tommy Banks. He then lived briefly in Toronto, where he played for Ronnie Hawkins before returning to Vancouver to form the band Skylark with vocalist B.J. Cook and guitarist Doug Edwards. The band’s Wildflower was a Top 10 hit in Canada and the United States in 1972. In 1971, Foster went to Los-Angeles with Skylark and remained there following the group’s demise in 1973. He worked initially as a studio musician (for Michael Jackson, George Harrison, Rod Stewart and Barbra Streisand, among others) and an audition pianist. He was also the pianist for the stage version of The Rocky Horror Picture Show at Los Angeles’ Roxy Theatre and played with the band Airplay.

In 1979, Foster undertook a career as a record producer. He quickly became known for taking a hands-on role in the studio, often co-writing or arranging material. The first of Foster’s dozens of hit records as a producer and/or songwriter was the Earth, Wind & Fire smash hit “After the Love Is Gone” (1979). Some of the No. 1 hits he produced include “I Swear,” “Un-break My Heart,” “The Power of Love” and “Glory of Love” (co-written with Peter Cetera), Natalie Cole’s “Unforgettable,” Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” and Céline Dion’s “Because You Loved Me.”

In 1985, while living briefly again in Vancouver, he co-wrote and produced the hugely successful charity single “Tears Are Not Enough.” Other great successes for Foster as producer and/or writer during the 1980s and 1990s included Chicago’s “Hard to Say I’m Sorry,” “Hard Habit to Break,” and “You’re the Inspiration,” John Parr’s “St Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion)” and Olivia Newton-John’s “Twist of Fate,” all Top 5 hits on Billboard charts. These songs established Foster’s trademark, heavily produced middle-of-the-road (MOR) sound, which was tailor-made for mainstream pop radio.

The who’s who of stars for whom Foster has produced albums or songs, or has written songs or arrangements, includes Bryan Adams, Paul Anka, Andrea Bocelli, Michael Bolton, Toni Braxton, Mariah Carey, Cher, Chicago, Alice Cooper, Neil Diamond, Lara Fabian, Kenny G, Hall & Oates, Michael Jackson, Katherine Jenkins, Diana Krall, Gordon Lightoot, Madonna, Paul McCartney, Anne Murray, Payola$, Lionel Richie, Rod Stewart and Barbra Streisand. Foster also helped introduce Québécoise superstar Céline Dion to English-language audiences by coproducing Unison (1990), her first album in English.

Between 1979 and 2010, Foster received 16 Grammy Awards from 46 nominaUons, including six in 1985 alone. His chain of Grammy wins began with the award for Best R&B Song (1979, “Aher the Love Has Gone”), Best Cast Show Album (1982, Dreamgirls), Producer of the Year (1984, Chicago 17), and Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying a Vocal (1984, “Hard Habit to Break” and 1986, “Somewhere,” as recorded by Streisand).

Foster also won Juno Awards as Producer of the Year in 1985 for Chicago 17 and in 1986 for the soundtrack of St Elmo’s Fire. In total, he has received more than 20 Juno nominations. He shared the 1986 Canadian Country Music Association Songwriter(s) of the Year award with Charles Goodrum and Jim Vallance for the Anne Murray hit “Now and Forever.” Foster’s domination of pop music sales continued beyond the 1990s, with several additional Grammys for record and album of the year and as producer and arranger: in 1991 for Unforgettable, sung by Natalie Cole; in 1993 for the soundtrack for The Bodyguard; in 1993 and 1996 for recordings by Dion and Cole. Further Grammys came in 2007 and 2010 for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album (both recorded by Michael Bublé). Foster has also contributed
songwriUng for the Broadway musicals Hot Feet (2006) and The Boy from Oz (2003–04). In 2006,
he appeared on American Idol as a mentor.

David Foster is founder of the David Foster Foundation. The David Foster Foundation provides financial support to Canadian families with children in need of life-saving organ transplants. In addiUon to helping families with their non-medical expenses, the FoundaUon strives to increase public awareness and educaUon about the importance of becoming a registered organ donor in Canada and the United States.

The David Foster Foundation is a non-profit charitable organization that for the past 37 years has assisted over 1,400 families with children in need of major organ transplants and provided much-needed dollars in direct family support. In 2006, the Foundation became a national organization, expanding to help families across Canada. The Foundation works in collaboration with transplant teams across Canada to provide support for children up to and including their 18th birthday year once they are listed for pediatric transplant to post-operative checkup. Awards

Juno Awards

• Producer of the Year (Chicago 17) (1985)
• Producer of the Year (St Elmo’s Fire Soundtrack) (1986)
• Instrumental ArUst of the Year (1986)
• Instrumental ArUst of the Year (1987)
• Instrumental ArUst of the Year (1989)
• Inductee, Canadian Music Hall of Fame (1998)
• Humanitarian Award (2019)

Grammy Awards

• Best Rhythm & Blues Song (“Aher the Love Has Gone,” Earth, Wind & Fire) (1979)
• Best Cast Show Album (Dreamgirls: Original Broadway Cast Album) (1982)
• Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s) (“Hard Habit to Break,” Chicago) (1984)
• Producer of the Year, Non-Classical (1984)
• Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s) (“Somewhere,” Barbra Streisand) (1986)
• Record of the Year (“UnforgeWable,” Natalie Cole and Nat King Cole) (1991)
• Album of the Year (UnforgeLable: With Love, Natalie Cole) (1991)
• Producer of the Year, Non-Classical (1991)
• Record of the Year (“I Will Always Love You,” Whitney Houston) (1993)
• Album of the Year (The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album, various arUsts) (1993)
• Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s) (“When I Fall in Love,” Céline Dion and Clive Griffin) (1993)
• Producer of the Year, Non-Classical (1993)
• Album of the Year (Falling into You, Céline Dion) (1996)
• Best Instrumental Arrangement with Accompanying Vocal(s) (“When I Fall in Love,” Natalie Cole and Nat King Cole) (1996)
• Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album (Call Me Irresponsible, Michael Bublé) (2007)
• Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album (Crazy Love, Michael Bublé) (2010) BMI Film and TV Awards
• Most Performed Song from a Film (“Glory of Love,” The Karate Kid Part II) (1987)
• Film Music Award (The Secret of My Success) (1988)
• Most Performed Song from a Film (“I Have Nothing,” The Bodyguard) (1994)
• Special Recognition (“The Olympic Tribute Award”) (1997)
• Special Recognition (2002 Winter Olympics) (2002)
• Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics (“Aren’t They All Our Children,” The Concert for World Children’s Day), Primetime Emmy Awards (2003)
• Inductee, Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame (2007)
• Inductee, US Songwriters Hall of Fame (2010)
• Diamond Jubilee Medal, Governor General of Canada (2012)
• Star, Hollywood Walk of Fame (2013)