I've always gone down the road less traveled, but now I do it even more aggressively." Recording and production Īfter returning from his vacation, Saadiq started writing and recording The Way I See It, which took four months. He said of Rubin's visit and advice to him as a solo artist, "He told me to never box myself in. Label executive Rick Rubin visited Saadiq's home studio and was impressed by his material there. Before recording The Way I See It, Saadiq signed to Columbia Records. So the difference this time is that I took a more focused route." As a part of Tony! Toni! Toné! during the late 1980s and 1990s, Saadiq had incorporated influences from the music of Motown in his songwriting for the group. I realised that, though you can hear it in many of the records I've done throughout my career, I'd never paid 100% attention to going in that direction before. He recounted the experience in an interview for Blues & Soul, saying that "I was like 'Wow, maybe I should tap into this vibe, because it's actually what I LOVE!'. While vacationing in the Bahamas and Costa Rica in 2008, Saadiq observed people there listening to classic soul music and was inspired to pursue it as a musical direction for his next album. Brungardt increased his engineering output, and in 2007, Saadiq enlisted him to engineer and mix English singer Joss Stone's studio album Introducing Joss Stone, which Saadiq produced. They also studied the 2006 book Recording the Beatles together and had an interest in the knowledge of recording gear by engineers and technicians for English rock band the Beatles. The two shared a fascination with historic recording techniques and equipment. Brungardt interned at Blakeslee Recording Company, Saadiq's North Hollywood recording studio, and eventually became his principal sonic partner on projects. He was introduced to audio engineer Charles Brungardt through production and songwriting team Jake and the Phatman, who had worked on Ray Ray. An exemplary release of the classic soul revival at the time, it garnered Saadiq a newer, more diverse audience as he toured extensively in support of the album, performing concerts in the US, Europe, and Asia.Īfter independently releasing his second studio album Ray Ray in 2004, Raphael Saadiq continued working as a producer, composer, and instrumentalist on other recording artists' music. The album received mostly positive reviews from critics and was nominated for the 2009 Grammy Award for Best R&B Album. It also performed well in European countries such as France, where it charted for 51 weeks. Initially overlooked by consumers, The Way I See It charted steadily on the Billboard 200 and became a sleeper hit, selling 282,000 copies in the United States by 2011. The album's title reflects his singular vision for the music, while the packaging is fashioned after the musical eras that inspired Saadiq, evoking dramatic and colorful LP covers by artists such as the Temptations and Ray Charles.
RAPHAEL SAADIQ ASK OF YOU HIGHER LEARNING SCENE SERIES
Saadiq, whose lyrics mostly deal with romantic subject matter, described it as a series of love songs about music and remaining faithful to it despite trends. Instead, they experimented with older recording techniques in an attempt to recreate the Motown music aesthetic of the 1960s, producing a traditional soul album that emphasizes upbeat hooks and draws on the Motown Sound and Philadelphia soul styles. Saadiq and Brungardt disregarded their previous experience in recording production while making The Way I See It. In 2008, the singer returned from a vacation that had inspired him to pursue classic soul music and recorded The Way I See It primarily at his North Hollywood studio with Brungardt. He developed a creative partnership with their colleague, audio engineer Charles Brungardt, who shared Saadiq's fascination with historic recording techniques and equipment. Prior to signing with Columbia, Saadiq had independently released his 2004 album Ray Ray, recorded with the songwriting and production duo Jake and the Phatman. It was released on September 16, 2008, by Columbia Records – his first for the label. The Way I See It is the third album by American R&B singer, songwriter, and producer Raphael Saadiq.
0 kommentar(er)
