Soundbreaking: Stories from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music

Description

Take a fascinating peek behind the curtain at how music is made within the studio in this immensely entertaining series. The two segments presented here focus, respectively, on the role of the music producer (the late George Martin gets major props) and how magnetic tape and multi-tracking revolutionized how we hear popular music. While interviews with producers like Martin, Brian Eno and Quincy Jones, and musicians, such as Paul McCartney, Roger Waters and Annie Lennox get into the nuts-and-bolts of what goes on in recording sessions and how the producer and musicians work together, where the series excels is in the many stories relating notable moments in pop history. These include Martin recalling his introduction to the young, raw Beatles and how they grew in sophistication with each new LP; Waters and Roger Daltrey talking about how the Beatles with their 1967 album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, utterly changed rock music by taking advantage of studio techniques and making a record that could never be duplicated on stage; and Tom Petty describing the offhand way he and producer Jeff Lynne wrote and recorded his Top 10 hit “Free Fallin’.” Adding to the series’ pleasures is archival footage, which includes late Sun Records honcho Sam Phillips reminiscing about his discovery that shook the world, Elvis Presley, and guitarist/technical wizard Les Paul and his vocalist wife Mary Ford demonstrating his new, multi-track technique. The entire eight-part series airs this November on PBS. Here is a chance to whet your appetite for more. —Pam Grady

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