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MICHIGAN MIMIC |
JUNE,
2000 |
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BRIANBERT - THE NEXT
"MOTOWN" |
BY ROBERT DENNIS |
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| In a 1999 Interview about Brianbert Music
Company, Boris Maximoff of the PBS Show "The World" summed up the revived
Bianbert company as "If the Motown hit-producing recipe worked once, it may
just work again." |
| Motown, in the mid 1960's became the largest independent record company
in the world, capturing 10% of the "hit singles" market. Boris says it did it by
a "process ...[that] is basically industrial,
remarkably similar to an assembly line. Somehow, the folks who ran Motown back then
managed to take the techniques developed by Ford, and apply them to music - look at the
product, either a car or a hit song, as a series of components, and make sure they are
produced reliably, to a high standard." The real "Motown" is a
process. |
| Several persons who were part of the process are teaming up to re-instate
its use to get hit. The process very much fits today's music. The person
working the hardest is Robert Bateman , a Motown veteran from the very early days and is
joined by an early associate, studio owner, Barret Strong. Both Bateman and Strong,
had platinum hits in the 60's with Motown, and both know the "Motown" process
that it took to create that success. |
| The Motown hit making process began with the "Track".
Producers would work out a rhythm, cord changes and bass line and record it with little or
no idea of the melody or lyrics that would eventually be applied to that track.
After the track was completed, songwriters would compose melody and lyric content to that
track. |
| As I walked around "Studio Bee" in Southfield Michigan, two of
the control rooms were busy with track production. An engineer/producer was in
control room B recording tracks. Another producer was in the rehearsal studio
playing tracks for the newest Brianbert recording artist, Estilo.
The artist was freestyling to the tracks and Robert Bateman was observing.
Being from Motown in the 60's I immediately recognized the industrial process invented at
Motown in the 60's being used. I realized that with today's rap and hip hop music,
the old "start with the track" formula worked very well. |
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Copyright © 2000, by
Robert Dennis, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED |
USE OF THIS ARTICLE SUBJECT TO USER AGREEMENT |
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