The Gaffer: Dale “Opie” Skjerseth
Gordon Masson learns about The Gaffer's route to the top, ahead of what's looking like yet another stellar year.
Feature By Gordon Masson | 5 January 2026
From small town Minnesota to every corner of the world, production guru Dale “Opie” Skjerseth has been helping some of the biggest acts in music history achieve their liveperformance ambitions for 40-plus years.
There’s a moment in The Rolling Stones documentary, Olé Olé Olé, when the band is making its way to the stage before their performance to 500,000 people in Havana, Cuba, when they spot the production manager who has made the epic show a reality, prompting Mick Jagger to backtrack so he can give Opie a grateful hug.
“Havana was definitely a career highlight; I mean, you can’t get any higher,” states Opie. “The whole thing happened because of the principals of the Rolling Stones: the band wanted it, and we all jumped…
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