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...
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2013
Classic Track: “King of the Road,” Roger Miller
It’s hard to remember back to a time when Nashville’s vaunted Music Row was really just a couple of studios and music publishing houses...
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...
2012
Classic Tracks: INXS’s “Need You Tonight”
With "Need You Tonight," INXS wrote a hit, and had the help of an all-star production team with Chris Thomas and Bob Clearmountain to...
2012
Classic Tracks: Bill Withers, “Ain’t No Sunshine”
Bill Withers said that “Ain’t No Sunshine,” was inspired the toxic relationship of an alcoholic couple—an unlikely source for such a loving song, but...
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Classic Tracks: George Harrison’s “Got My Mind Set on You”
The last solo single by a Beatle to top the charts, George Harrison's "Got My Mind Set On You" was an anomaly in that...
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Classic Tracks: The Go-Go’s “Our Lips Are Sealed”
Nothing says 1980s L.A. like The Go-Go’s on the radio. Those sweet, bright, infectious songs were the perfect soundtrack for a sunny day
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Classic Tracks: Bonnie Raitt’s “Thing Called Love”
The late, great engineer Ed Cherney discusses the recording of Bonnie Raitt’s rambunctious, John Hiatt-penned commercial breakthrough, “Thing Called Love.”
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Classic Tracks: Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World”
A staple of Neil Young's live sets since 1989, "Rockin' in the Free World" remains as relevant as ever, simultaneously doling out catharsis and...
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Classic Tracks: Bruddah Iz’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World”
His full name was Israel Kamakawiwo’ole, but almost everyone called him “Iz” or “Bruddah Iz” (“Bruddah” being pidgin for “Brother”). A gentle giant who...
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Classic Tracks: Metallica’s “Enter Sandman”
Today, San Francisco Bay Area–based band Metallica are aptly called “The Monsters of Metal.” But that wasn’t always the case. After finding their hometown...
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Classic Tracks: The Smiths’ “What Difference Does It Make?”
The Smiths made quite an impression when their first album was released in 1984, bringing great guitars back to the synth-drenched New Wave era.
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Classic Tracks: Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”
While largely seen as a novelty hit, "Don't Worry Be Happy" was an undeniable smash, eventually winning Grammys for Song of the Year, Record...
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Classic Tracks: The Pretenders’ “Don’t Get Me Wrong”
Recording The Pretenders' second post-classic-lineup album took multiple studios in multiple countries, but Bob Clearmountain and Bruce Lampcov captured the collection's biggest hit in...
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Classic Tracks: Patti Smith’s “Gloria”
It's one of the most haunting openings of any debut album. Soft, almost mournful piano and bass set up a slow rhythmic foundation. Then...
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Classic Tracks: The Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian”
The Bangles' "Walk Like an Egyptian" is a fun, frothy track, but its journey to the top of the charts was not, according to...
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Classic Tracks: Talking Heads’ “Road to Nowhere”
Written in the same creative cycle as songs for 'True Stories,' "Road To Nowhere" marked a return to Americana for the group
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Classic Tracks: Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side”
Engineer Ken Scott talks in detail about the recording of Lou Reed’s 1973 hit “Walk on the Wild Side”
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Classic Tracks: Classics IV’s “Traces”
Cover-band mates cum pop stars: As old as rock itself, this dream, born from endless hours spent woodshedding hits of the day, can come...
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Classic Tracks: Barry Manilow’s “Copacabana”
The tale of Lola the showgirl may be tragic, but it's also a disco classic; here's how the dark and the light were mixed...
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Classic Tracks: Tears for Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”
"Everybody Wants to Rule the World’ was so simple and went down so quickly, it was effortless," says producer Chris Hughes.
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Classic Tracks: Sinéad O’Connor’s “Nothing Compares 2 U”
Sinéad O’Connor took a forgotten album track by The Family—that just happened to be written by Prince—and turned it into one of the biggest...
2007
Classic Tracks: John Cougar Mellencamp’s “Pink Houses”
Early one summer morning in 1983, a 32-year-old John Mellencamp, dba John Cougar, drove himself home to Bloomington, Ind., from the Indianapolis airport.
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Classic Tracks: Elvis Costello & The Attractions’ “Pump It Up”
Conceived during a night of "assisted insomnia," Elvis Costello's "Pump It Up" has become a signature song for the artist, with its erudite wordplay...
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Classic Tracks: The Romantics’ “What I Like About You”
Sometimes the rock 'n' roll myth of using music to get out of a dead-end life actually comes to pass—much as it did for...
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Classic Tracks: Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power”
Potent to this day, the sonic assault of Public Enemy's "Fight The Power" mirrored the frustration and energy of its lyrics.
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Classic Tracks: En Vogue’s “My Lovin’ (You’re Never Gonna Get It)”
Painstakingly built in the studio—except for the lyrics, written nearly on the fly—En Vogue's "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)" is an RnB...
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Classic Tracks: David Crosby’s “Laughing”
At the dawn of the 1970s, David Crosby was on top of the rock world, as 'If I Could Only Remember My Name' and...
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Classic Tracks: Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight”
The story behind Phil Collins' classic "In The Air Tonight" and arguably the most famous drum fill of all-time.
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Classic Tracks: Van Morrison’s “Moondance”
Legendary engineer Elliot Scheiner and others look back at capturing Van Morrison's most famous album, Moondance.
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Classic Tracks: Paul McCartney’s “Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey”
Only an artist with the confidence and musical genius of Paul McCartney could write a song with 12 sections and make it a hit.
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Classic Tracks: The Mamas & The Papas’ “California Dreamin'”
"Lou Adler said it best when he said to me, ‘Bones, it's not a ham sandwich and a cheese sandwich; it's a ham and...
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Classic Tracks: The Doobie Brothers’ “What a Fool Believes”
No one was more surprised than Michael McDonald when the song he wrote for the Doobie Brothers, “What a Fool Believes,” earned Grammys for...
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Classic Tracks: The 5th Dimension’s “Aquariaus/Let the Sunshine In”
The 5th Dimension's smash hit that ended up being the best-selling single of 1969 was taken from two songs at opposite ends of the...
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Classic Tracks: Bruce Springsteen’s “The River”
Take a deep dive into The River, and how 16 months of sessions resulted in Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band's classic.
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Classic Tracks: Kim Carnes “Bette Davis Eyes”
Well-respected as a songwriter for hire, Kim Carnes hit it big with someone else's song...which originally sounded like a beer-barrel polka until Val Garay...
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Classic Tracks: The Police’s “Every Breath You Take”
Stewart Copeland and Hugh Padgham recall the turmoil and frustration that led to capturing the Police's classic.
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Classic Tracks: The Rolling Stones’ “Start Me Up”
Engineer Chris Kimsey salvaged “Start Me Up" from the Some Girls sessions, and this time, everything clicked.
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Classic Tracks: Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game”
Between that brooding, melancholy, impossibly romantic voice and languorous guitar, how could "Wicked Game" not become a hit?
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Classic Tracks: Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass’ “A Taste Of Honey”
Legendary engineer Larry Levine was so crucial to Herb Alpert's era-defining "A Taste of Honey" that it literally wouldn't have been recorded if not...
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Classic Tracks: The Staples’ “Respect Yourself”
“Respect Yourself” was released as a single in the fall of 1971, reaching #2 on the R&B charts and #12 on the pop charts.
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Classic Tracks: Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love”
Tom Dowd recalls recording "Sunshine Of Your Love" as an exercise in "protecting" Ginger Baker's drums from Eric Clapton's Marshall stacks.