Best known as the longtime producer of R.E.M., Scott Litt began his career during the late '70s, engineering recordings from Ian Hunter and Carly Simon. His production debut was the dB's' 1982 effort Repercussion, followed a year later by Chris Stamey's It's a Wonderful Life. Litt then returned to engineering duties for several years, going back to producing in 1986 with Matthew Sweet's Inside and Beat Rodeo's Home in the Heart of the Beat. His breakthrough project was R.E.M.'s 1987 commercial smash Document; overnight, Litt was among the most sought-after producers in all of alternative rock, and his dance card quickly filled up with albums from the Woodentops (Wooden Foot Cops on the Highway), Reckless Sleepers (Big Boss Sounds) and, most notably, Patti Smith (her comeback effort Dream of Life). In 1988, he reunited with R.E.M. for Green, and continued to steer the band as they became one of the most popular artists in the world, helming classic LPs including Out of Time and Automatic for the People. Concurrently, Litt worked on records from the Indigo Girls (their eponymous 1989 debut), the Replacements (their 1990 swan song All Shook Down), Juliana Hatfield (1993's Become What You Are), and Nirvana (1994's posthumous MTV Unplugged in New York). ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi