Soundbreaking is a new series on PBS that looks at how music goes from an idea to fully realised track, starting this week with the role of the producer.
The producer’s job is to help take the recording artist’s raw song or idea and turn it into something special and hopefully a hit as well!
Some producers are enablers happy to just help the band or singer get a sound they already know they want. Others are much more pro-active and can really shape the sound of an album or single. Perhaps the real magic happens when a band and producer compliment each other perfectly and something really special is the result.
The show takes a look at the very different styles of producers like Rick Rubin, Dr. Dre, George Martin and Sam Phillips.
Martin had a huge impact on the Beatles when they recorded with him at Abbey Road Studios and Dr. Dre is has legendary status in the world of hip hop.
Rick Rubin has worked with the likes of Tom Petty and Johny Cash, being instrumental in the reinvention of Cash in the 1990s.
There are interviews with the recording artists who have worked with these influential producers and of course, some great music.
Watch Soundbreaking – The Recording Artist at 10 PM on PBS.