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What they do as a band - to be able to almost turn rock into jazz without sounding jazzy and take these beautiful music adventures – is brilliant.
-Terry Manning on Widespread Panic
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Photo by Lynn Goldsmith
AT: Did the band share any goals with you coming into the project?
Domingo 'Sunny' Ortiz at Compass Point
By Lynn Goldsmith |
TM: It's a funny story. Normally when I work with a band, you fly to them or they fly to you and you meet somewhere. You see if you're simpatico in some way. You do it to see if you can get along and work together or if it just won't work. And then you go into pre-production. You set up a rehearsal and go through the songs, refining them and rearranging them, and then you go into the studio to record. Sometimes there's an A&R person there from the label watching you work, holding a pad and a pen in their hands, and telling you that you can do this and you can't do that.
This wasn't like that at all. I knew Dave, and we knew we got along quite well, so we knew we could work together. But that's only one-sixth of the band, and this is a very democratic band. Everyone has their own input, as they should, especially when they're all worthy of it. In this case, I didn't even meet anyone else in the band until they came down here to record.
It's always somewhat nerve-wracking, but from knowing Dave and the kind of human being that he is, not just a musician, I knew that he wouldn't be working with a bunch of goofballs or assholes. I had that assurance, and that's a pretty big thing. But I was still a bit nervous. Our first meeting was the day before we were supposed to start recording, so I wanted to make sure it went well. (Laughs) Do we meet at the studio and then I just start rolling? I actually went out to the house where they were all staying and just sat around and talked with them.
George McConnell at Compass Point
By Lynn Goldsmith |
I did have most of the songs that we recorded beforehand. JB sent me a CD of almost all of the songs in either a live or demo setting by regular mail to the Bahamas right before Christmas. Two things here: the Bahamian postal service, which is very reliable but works on island time, and the holidays, which really slow down the service. I started sweating it a bit right around New Year's when I hadn't gotten it and called to see about maybe FedExing another one, but it got here with a few days to spare. I immersed myself in it immediately. I lived them 16 hours a day and thought about how I'd like to look at each song. When we met the day before we started recording, we were able to sit down at a nice, calm breakfast and talk through the songs and about our general philosophies. I told them my philosophy in general in a perfect world was to work with the group and to get the best the group can do - not to come in and be dogmatic and order people around. I like working sympathetically to try and achieve the best that everyone can do.
I explained that and they told me their viewpoint on how they were approaching it, and we all seemed to be on the same wavelength. We got along on a personal level right away. Once I demeaned them a time or two and they figured out that I wasn't going to bow down to them, we were good. (Laughs) We made fun of each other a time or two, and everyone was ready to go.
AT: Was there anything new that you learned about the band during the sessions that you didn't know before?
Dave Schools at Compass Point
By Lynn Goldsmith |
TM: That's a hard question. The only answer I can really give is that as good as I thought everyone was coming in, I was underestimating them. That's across the board. There was more there than I thought there was, and I saw a lot. It's a rare rock band to have this much chops.
AT: One of the criticisms of Panic's previous studio albums is that they all sound very similar. As a producer, where do you draw the line between the Panic signature sound and trying to shake things up or try something different?
TM: Ahhhhhh... Slippery slope question.
AT: I'm not asking this question to elicit a criticism of any of their previous producers' work. I just want to know where you're coming from.
TM: Yeah, I know. First off, I highly admire and respect the work that's been done before. In fact, Til the Medicine Takes is in my car right now. It's one of the few albums that I listen to for pleasure. I love that record. "Bears Gone Fishin" is one of my favorite rock songs. I love it. I love that track. I certainly didn't want to get away from something I loved. But it's a different day, a different year, and a slightly different group in many ways. I wanted to pay tribute to what's been done but through our own vision and to put our stamp on it. That's a tough one...
AT: Now that you've reached the end of the sessions, do you feel that the goals that you and the band set out to accomplish with this record were met?
TM: I think so. The things that I wanted to do when I heard the demos have been done for the most part. You're never a hundred percent in meeting your goal. After all, you are dealing with music that philosophically is based on improvisation, so when things happen, you don't want to scream "Cut!" 'cause it's not in the plan. That's not the way this band works. Certainly things came up in the course of recording that led us in different directions, but I think the philosophical view that I had is there. As far as I can tell, and they may tell you differently, we all got along very well and had very similar tastes as far as what we wanted to do and what needed to be left out. I'm pleased with the way it came out. In fact, I think it's their best album ever.
For more of Andy Tennille's Widespread Panic adventure in the Bahamas please check out his Harp Magazine feature.
JamBase | Bahamas
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