In the Studio with Michael Jackson

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In the Studio with Michael Jackson Details

No one was closer to Michael Jackson at the height of his creative powers than Bruce Swedien, the five-time Grammy winner who, with Jackson and producer Quincy Jones, formed the trio responsible for the sound of Jackson's records – records that topped the charts and shook the world.Friend, co-creator, and colleague, Bruce Swedien was a seasoned recording engineer–plucked from a job at legendary Universal Audio in Chicago – when he began working with Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones on the soundtrack to The Wiz, and he was the master technician who gave the records their sound as the trio progressed to Jackson's greatest triumphs, Off the Wall and the iconic, history-making Thriller, which revolutionized music and video and fixed Jackson in culture as the King of Pop. In the Studio with Michael Jackson is the chronicle of those times, when everything was about the music, the magic, and the amazing talent of a man who changed the face of pop music – and culture – forever. In his laid-back style, Bruce Swedien offers anecdotes about being part of Quincy Jones' extended “family” and reveals the technical details of creating Michael Jackson's biggest-selling albums, as well as Bad, Dangerous, and HIStory.Including over 100 photos, In the Studio with Michael Jackson provides an insider's look that will thrill anyone interested in the nuts and bolts of hit making and the history of some of America's most influential music.

Reviews

Where's this book's editor? Nowhere, apparently.If you like Swedien's work do yourself a favor and do NOT read this book! You get 65 pages of mostly superficial information on the subject the book is supposed to cover. Then you also get more than 30 pages of his apprentices praises (did he (or us) really need it in book form?).You also get a lot of basic or shallow information on studio equipment with very little focus on the kind of public he wants to target. If it were a book for the curious non-initiated, then why write in the 10th line of the compressor explanation: "..and I think you already know enough about compressors and limiters to get you through a session"? If it were for the initiated, why explain what an equalizer is?He could have written about why he doesn't like compression. Or how he feels about the compression inherent to tape recording. Or how he goes about microphone choice and positioning for different instruments/emotional impacts. Or how he gets his recordings to sound controlled while not using compressors. Or if this is an attainable goal for someone who does not have the privilege of working with A-list session musicians. Or why he despises microphone mods while mentioning the he and Bernie Grundman both do not find "off-the-shelf technology solutions satisfactory". Etc, etc.Plus there are a lot of phrases that have been repeated in different parts of the book.Very sad indeed that Hal Leonard didn't give Mr. Swedien the support he needed in revising and editing this book.Two stars only because I love Swedien's recordings and there were a few enlightening lines here and there in this book.

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