Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The Cyrkle’s “Red Rubber Ball”
An U.S. folk trio managed by Brian Epstein and named by John Lennon, The Cyrkle had a hit on its hands with "Red Rubber...
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Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Randy Newman’s “Sail Away”
Randy Newman's "Sail Away" is a classic that probably couldn't get airplay today.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Prince’s “Kiss”
Charged with turning a half-written Prince demo into a full-fledged track, David Z went to sleep one night and woke up to find Prince...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Dire Straits’ “Money for Nothing”
A stinging critique of the 1980s even as they happened, Dire Straits' "Money For Nothing" had a lengthy genesis, as related here by engineer...
2013
Classic Track: The Chambers Brothers, “Time Has Come Today”
Not too many people these days know about the Chamber Brothers, but when their first Columbia album, The Time Has Come, was released in...
2013
Classic Tracks: Rick Springfield’s “Jessie’s Girl”
Whether you label it power-pop, rock or AOR, Rick Springfield's "Jessie's Girl" is a classic mix of a memorable hook, taut storytelling and producer...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Genesis’ “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway”
It's not surprising that decades down the line many people don't realize that Peter Gabriel was once a driving member of Genesis—an effort that...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The O’Jays’ “For the Love of Money”
"For the Love of Money" had interesting audio trickery in it, most famously the ghostly refrain of "Money, money, money" blowing through the song...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Neil Sedaka’s “Breaking Up Is Hard to Do”
Neil Sedaka shares how he made a smash out of four tracks and a vocal he taught the background singers while driving them to...
Music Production
Classic Tracks: Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons’ “Rag Doll”
The song, inspired by a experience during an excruciatingly long traffic light at New York City's Eleventh Avenue, became a crucial hit for The...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Jennifer Warnes’ “First We Take Manhattan”
Jennifer Warnes, bassist Roscoe Beck and engineer Billy Youdelman share how the unlikely Leonard Cohen cover—and the album around it—came to be a hit.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Charlie Rich’s “Behind Closed Doors”
“To me, those Charlie Rich sessions were so special,” recalls engineer Lou Bradley.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'”
“You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'” was one of the most perfectly realized examples of the “Wall of Sound” technique that Phil Spector refined.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Fine Young Cannibals’ “She Drives Me Crazy”
The sublime studio concoction of "She Drives Me Crazy" involved a trip to Minneapolis, that signature falsetto and an unmistakable snare hit known to...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The Band’s “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”
Decades later, it's difficult to put into words just how bold and fresh and affecting those opening lines were in 1969.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Blue Oyster Cult’s “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper”
Blue Oyster Cult talks about recording "(Don't Fear) The Reaper," keeping the vibe of the original demo...and that SNL "More Cowbell" skit.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Ray Parker Jr.’s “Ghostbusters”
You know the movie and you know the classic track, but do you know how the song really came to be?
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Talking Heads’ “Psycho Killer”
While it started as a songwriting exercise inspired by Alice Cooper, "Psycho Killer" became the New Wave standard-bearers' calling card.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Bow Wow Wow’s “I Want Candy”
Bow Wow Wow's cover of "I Want Candy" centers around the Burundi Beat and explosive bass, but the secret ingredient behind its guitar...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The Edgar Winter Group’s “Frankenstein”
Edgar Winter bought a new ARP 2600 at Manny's Music in New York City so he could be more mobile onstage; what happened next...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Warren Zevon’s “Werewolves of London”
When Warren Zevon emerged in the midst of L.A.'s vibrant singer/songwriter scene in the mid-'70s, he was like a breath of...well, strange air.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Tower of Power’s “What Is Hip”
Tower of Power was a funky downtown combination of soul, jazz and rock powered by a virtuoso rhythm section, and "What Is Hip" was...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Randy Travis’ “Forever and Ever, Amen”
It’s a simple song with a simple message, but thanks to Travis’ pitch-perfect, unmistakable voice delivering the clever lyrics and easy melody, it was...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Three Dog Night’s “Mama Told Me (Not to Come)”
Take a deep dive into the 1970 recording sessions that produced Three Dog Night's breakthrough hit, “Mama Told Me (Not to Come.)”
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Luther Vandross’ “Here and Now”
“When Luther played me the demo," says Marcus Miller, "it was obvious that it was already a hit.”
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The Turtles’ “Happy Together”
If Disneyland is the happiest place on Earth, then Happy Together is the happiest song on Earth.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The Angels’ “My Boyfriend’s Back”
“Those kids were amazing!” says producer Richard Gottehrer. “We decided to get them into the studio as quickly as possible."
2014
Classic Tracks: The Dream Academy’s “Life in a Northern Town”
Every once in a while, a song comes totally out of left field, far away from the mainstream, and for some inexplicable reason becomes...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Don McLean’s “American Pie”
Maybe you had to be there. But in the summer and fall of 1971, it seems that everyone was talking about Don McLean's...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid”
In the fall of 1970, Black Sabbath mounted an aural assault on the music world with the release of their second album, Paranoid. Creating...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Patsy Cline’s “Crazy”
No one could touch her. Her voice was one of the most ravishing instruments ever recorded.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Minnie Riperton’s “Lovin’ You”
What's the secret sauce of the classic ballad? Bird song.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Pat Benatar’s “Love Is a Battlefield”
“If we would have been making that record today...I maybe would have screwed that all up. It would never have been the same record.”
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll”
"We recorded all these songs that were pretty good, but I didn't hear any hits," Kolotkin remembers.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Rickie Lee Jones’ “Chuck E.’s In Love”
In the spring of 1979, Rickie Lee Jones' "Chuck E.'s in Love" appeared like an oasis in a desert of disco and arena rock....
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Christopher Cross’s “Ride Like the Wind”
Michael Omartian first encountered Cross’s music at a Wednesday morning A&R meeting, where all the Warner Bros. producers sat around a table, listened and...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Mötley Crüe’s “Girls, Girls, Girls”
"I knew 'Girls, Girls, Girls'—the song—was a hit from the first time I heard it," says producer Tom Werman.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Elvis Presley, ‘Burning Love’
It's one of Elvis' best-known songs, but "Burning Love" nearly wasn't recorded by The King.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Merle Haggard’s “Mama Tried”
Country music legend Merle Haggard recounts how he came to record the massive hit, "Mama Tried."
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: Jennifer Warnes’ “Right Time Of The Night”
“Right Time of the Night,” released in 1976, was all about firsts—and it was no easy gig for producer Jim Ed Norman.
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The Doors’ “Riders on the Storm”
“When we first recorded ‘Riders on the Storm,’ it was a nice, light song—but when we got into mixing it is when it all...
Classic-Tracks
Classic Tracks: The Fireballs’ “Sugar Shack”
In August 1958, George Tomsco was facing a dilemma that many high school graduates face: what should he do with the rest of his...