How do I start this but saying
what a hell of a session!
Legendary producer Bill Bottrell
called on my father (Jorge del
Barrio) again to do a
very cool project - Sheryl Crows
Hallmark Christmas CD.
Every time that phone rings and
it's Bill, Dad gets a huge
smile. Not because of
getting the gig, but because Bill is
very creative with his
production and that presents
challenges that my Dad thrives
on.
First, the songs. Though being
mostly covers, they where
arranged
very organically. Raw
musicianship and arrangements
made for a very creative sonic
canvas for dad to play off of.
So after a few calls to Bill to
get the vibe, it was time to put pencil to
paper for a tight deadline and a
LONG session to come.
Of
all the years I have been Hanging over my
Dads shoulder as his
protégé, it was a
blast to watch him work on
this particular project. He was pretty burnt
from back to back film projects
as an orchestrator and
conductor and getting to work
with Bill refreshed his
creativity with youth like
energy.
Like usual, Dad toiled with
direction and style of his
arrangements for Sheryl, but he seemed
to really nail it after the
first track; he was in the
groove. A few weeks
later the charts to all 8 songs
were were ready and
we were off to Capital Records
in Hollywood to do a one day TRIPLE
SESSION!
Yea, very unheard of in the
record business these days is a
session like that unless it's
classically oriented; but for a
mainstream artist, NEVER (unless
you're a MAJOR artist like
Sheryl Crow)!
The session started out real
mellow.
Bill and Dad never missed a step
in their relationship and
communications in the studio so
the session had a solid energy
to it.
Personally I have to say that
Bill is one of the most "at
ease" producers I have met and
creates a cool environment for
his sessions.
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