His career began as a Brill Building songwriter in the 1960s. His first number one record as a songwriter and producer was "My Boyfriend's Back" by The Angels followed by other hits like “Hang On Sloopy” by The McCoys, and "I Want Candy" by The Strangeloves, of which Gottehrer was a member. In 1966, he formed Sire Records with Seymour Stein, which played a crucial role in the rise of New Wave, and went on to launch the careers of Blondie, Madonna, The Ramones and Talking Heads. His career continued as producer for The Go-Go's 1981 debut album, Dr. Feelgood, Richard Hell, The Bongos, and Moonpools & Caterpillars first release with a major, 1995's "Lucky Dumpling". In 2013, The Orchard was described as "the biggest digital music distributor on the planet".