ARE WE STILL ROLLING STUDIOS DRUGS AND ROCK N ROLL ONE MAN'S JOURNEY RECORDING CLASSIC

Recording studios are the most insulated, intimate and privileged sites of music production and creativity. Yet in a world of intensified globalisation, they are also sites which are highly connected into wider networks of music production that are increasingly spanning the globe. This book is the first comprehensive account of the new spatialties of cultural production in the recording studio sector of the musical economy, spatialities that illuminate the complexities of global cultural production. This unique text adopts a social-geographical perspective to capture the multiple spatial scales of music production: from opening the "black-box" of the insulated space of the recording studio; through the wider contexts in which music production is situated; to the far-flung global production networks of which recording studios are part. Drawing on original research, recent writing on cultural production across a variety of academic disciplines, secondary sources such as popular music biographies, and including a wide range of case studies, this lively and accessible text covers a range of issues including the role of technology in musical creativity; creative collaboration and emotional labour; networking and reputation; and contemporary economic challenges to studios. As a contribution to contemporary debates on creativity, cultural production and creative labour, Cultural Production in and Beyond the Recording Studio will appeal to academic students and researchers working across the social sciences, including human geography, cultural studies, media and communication studies, sociology, as well as those studying music production courses.

Paul Thompson offers an alternative take on the romanticized and mythologized process of record-making. Side A illustrates how creativity arises out of a system in action, and introduces the history, culture, traditions and institutions that contribute to the process of commercial record production. Side B demonstrates this system in action during the central tasks of songwriting, performing, engineering and producing. Using examples from John Lennon, David Bowie, Tupac Shakur, Björk, Marta Salogni, Sylvia Massy and Rick Rubin, each chapter takes the reader inside a different part of the commercial record production process and uncovers the interactive and interrelated multitude of factors involved in each creative task.

A gritty, one-of-a-kind backstage account of the world’s greatest touring band, from the opinionated music journalist who was along for the ride as a young reporter for Rolling Stone in the 1990s ONE OF THE TOP FIVE ROCK BIOGRAPHIES OF THE YEAR—SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR—KIRKUS REVIEWS A book inspired by a lifelong appreciation of the music that borders on obsession, Rich Cohen’s fresh and galvanizing narrative history of the Rolling Stones begins with the fateful meeting of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards on a train platform in 1961—and goes on to span decades, with a focus on the golden run—from the albums Beggars Banquet (1968) to Exile on Main Street (1972)—when the Stones were at the height of their powers. Cohen is equally as good on the low points as the highs, and he puts his finger on the moments that not only defined the Stones as gifted musicians schooled in the blues, but as the avatars of so much in our modern culture. In the end, though, after the drugs and the girlfriends and the bitter disputes, there is the music—which will define, once and forever, why the Stones will always matter. Praise for The Sun & The Moon & The Rolling Stones “Fabulous . . . The research is meticulous. . . . Cohen’s own interviews even yield some new Stones lore.”—The Wall Street Journal “[Cohen] can catch the way a record can seem to remake the world [and] how songs make a world you can’t escape.”—Pitchfork “No one can tell this story, wringing new life even from the leathery faces of mummies like the Rolling Stones, like Rich Cohen. . . . The book beautifully details the very meaning of rock ’n’ roll.”—New York Observer “Masterful . . . Hundreds of books have been written about this particular band and [Cohen’s] will rank among the very best of the bunch.”—Chicago Tribune “Cohen, who has shown time and time again he can take any history lesson and make it personal and interesting . . . somehow tells the [Stones’] story in a whole different way. This might be the best music book of 2016.”—Men’s Journal “[Cohen’s] account of the band’s rise from ‘footloose’ kids to ‘old, clean, prosperous’ stars is, like the Stones, irresistible.”—People “You will, as with the best music bios, want to follow along on vinyl.”—The Washington Post “A fresh take on dusty topics like Altamont and the Stones’ relationship with the Beatles . . . Cohen takes pilgrimages to places like Nellcôte, the French mansion where the Stones made Exile on Main Street, and recounts fascinating moments from his time on tour.”—Rolling Stone “On the short list of worthwhile books about the Stones . . . The book is stuffed with insights.”—San Francisco Chronicle

Dawn ot the DAW tells the story of how the dividing line between the traditional roles of musicians and recording studio personnel (producers, recording engineers, mixing engineers, technicians, etc.) has eroded throughout the latter half of the twentieth century to the present. Whereas those equally adept in music and technology such as Raymond Scott and Les Paul were exceptions to their eras, the millennial music maker is ensconced in a world in which the symbiosis of music and technology is commonplace. As audio production skills such as recording, editing, and mixing are increasingly co-opted by musicians teaching themselves in their do-it-yourself (DIY) recording studios, conventions of how music production is taught and practiced are remixed to reflect this reality. Dawn of the DAW first examines DIY recording practices within the context of recording history from the late nineteenth century to the present. Second, Dawn of the DAW discusses the concept of "the studio as musical instrument" and the role of the producer, detailing how these constructs have evolved throughout the history of recorded music in tandem. Third, Dawn of the DAW details current practices of DIY recording--how recording technologies are incorporated into music making, and how they are learned by DIY studio users in the musically--chic borough of Brooklyn. Finally, Dawn of the DAW examines the broader trends heard throughout, summarizing the different models of learning and approaches to music making. Dawn of the DAW concludes by discussing the ramifications of these new directions for the field of music education.

The playback of recordings is the primary means of experiencing music in contemporary society, and in recent years 'classical' musicologists and popular music theorists have begun to examine the ways in which the production of recordings affects not just the sound of the final product but also musical aesthetics more generally. Record production can, indeed, be treated as part of the creative process of composition. At the same time, training in the use of these forms of technology has moved from an apprentice-based system into university education. Musical education and music research are thus intersecting to produce a new academic field: the history and analysis of the production of recorded music. This book is designed as a general introductory reader, a text book for undergraduate degree courses studying the creative processes involved in the production of recorded music. The aim is to introduce students to the variety of approaches and methodologies that are currently being employed by scholars in this field. The book is divided into three sections covering historical approaches, theoretical approaches and case studies and practice. There are also three interludes of commentary on the academic contributions from leading record producers and other industry professionals. This collection gives students and scholars a broad overview of the way in which academics from the analytical and practice-based areas of the university system can be brought together with industry professionals to explore the ways in which this new academic field should progress.

Take a deep dive into the innovative recording history of Led Zeppelin, in this newest addition to the fan-favorite All the Songs series. Fifty years after their first practice in a Soho basement, Led Zeppelin continues to fascinate new generations of listeners. While their legendary back-stage debauchery has been written about extensively in other books, All the Songs is all about the music, detailing the studio magic and inspiration that made all nine albums go platinum, including Led Zeppelin IV which was certified x23 platinum and has sold more than 37 million copies worldwide. Studio stories will include their productive time at Headley Grange in Wales, a poorly-heated former poorhouse where they recorded parts of Led Zeppelin III, Led Zeppelin IV, Houses of the Holy and Physical Graffiti. And how the first album was recorded in three weeks but their second took six months, done while the band was on a world tour. They carried the masters of the recording session in a steamer trunk wherever they went. Out of these chaotic sessions came the "Whole Lotta Love," which was finished in New York with Hendrix engineer Eddie Kramer helping create the psychedelic middle part, as well as "The Lemon Song," which was cut live in the studio. Page worked feverishly with Kramer to mix the LP on a primitive 12-channel Altec board in a two-day span. Fans will also learn the genesis of their lyrics, the inspiration for their album covers, the instruments used, and the contributions of engineers such as Andy Johns, who helped create the iconic drum sound on "When the Levee Breaks" by recording Bonham at the bottom of a stairwell.