The Song vs. The Production

I was talking with a manager friend of mine the other day. He was telling me how important the sonic quality of an album is, and how a great album has to have unique production. After listening and thinking about this idea I asked him two questions. “How long do you think an album with horrible songs and great production would last?” After thinking about it he said, “Not very long.” I then asked, “what about an album with amazing songs and not so great production?” He agreed an album like that would have a much greater chance for longevity.


Every great album has to have great songs. This sounds like an obvious statement, but far too much time and money is spent each year trying to cover up bad songs with cool production. These albums may do well for a while, but in the long run they will be lost all in the music biz buzz.


I once heard this concept related to a property of land. Imagine the actual lot is like the song, and the house built on the lot is everything else, the production, the mix job, the cool guitar effect on the second verse, etc. You should be able to replace the house with a new one, and still have a solid foundation. The role of the producer is like the grounds keeper. We make sure the grass is green, the soil is fresh, and the lot is flourishing.


They say that a great song can stand on its own. I know producers and A&Rs who listen to demos sent to them on the worst set of speakers they can find. I think this is a fantastic idea! Truly great songs will be able to shine through the worst recordings. This is why above all, we as producers should always be pushing the artist’s songwriting.


As I talked about in a previous blog, the first thing an artist has to figure out is their statement, what they have to say to the world. Once that is accomplished, the songs are their way of getting that message out, and it’s your job to make sure that message is clear.


Now let’s go out and do something that matters.


-Barrett