By George Petersen

PRE-PRODUCTION IS ONE OF THOSE ESSENTIAL PARTS of making the recording process more efficient. These days, that usually entails selecting the patches, samples and loops you’re planning to use and may be edit some MIDI sketchpad sequences to get them just right. But when you’re working with a solo singer/guitarist/songwriter, the “pre-production” stage is probably a little different.

Such was the case when my studio/label partner JJ Jenkins and I discovered RJ Hutchinson. Actually, we didn’t really “discover” him–any more than Christopher Columbus discovered America, as RJ existed well before we ever heard him. But heard him we did–in of all places, at one of those “open mic” nights at a local bar. There were a lot of people signed up to perform–some admittedly more talented than others–but RJ had something that was magic and writes amazing songs on the level of a James Taylor or Gordon Lightfoot. You don’t run across people like this everyday, so after hearing him perform at some other venues, we decided to do his album on my Jenpet Records label (www.jenpet.com).

RJ doesn’t have a band–no problem–in fact, sometimes that’s even better, because he has the flexibility to perform with other players or do amazing one-man shows. He can play solo to support the album, which is a lot easier than maintaining and touring four or five other players—and he sounds great either way. But before cutting any tracks, RJ brought in his friend and sometime songwriting collaborator, pianist David Kaff (probably best known as the keyboardist in SPINAL TAP) and we assembled a studio band, with RJ on guitar, myself on drums, Jenkins on organ and Walter Bush on bass.

So for the past few weeks, we’ve actually been REHEARSING (yeah, I know that’s something people rarely do before recording) and working out arrangements, carefully adding to the tunes without changing their character. The cool part of this is actually working the songs out in a collaborative environment with everybody contributing to the whole. I think too often, people go the “auteur” route in recording, but the whole process is a lot more fun when you’re on a team.

Besides working with RJ, one of the real delights is Kaff, who’s a brilliant player in his own right and keeps us entertained between tunes with a million stories about his life on the road with a zillion Brit bands during the late ’60s and ’70s. I’ll have to sit him down one of these days and get some of these (at least the printable ones) on tape for blog or podcast…

Rehearsing–what a concept!

SPEAKING OF SPINAL TAP…

It seems the boys are back together for a reunion set at London’s Wembley Stadium during the “Live Earth: The Concerts for a Climate in Crisis” 24-hour worldwide music event slated for 7/7/07. To help promote the event, Rob Reiner and the Tapsters put together a very funny 14-minute mockumentary clip, at www.liveearth.msn.com. Check it out!

When not working on Mix stuff, George Petersen records and performs with the SF Bay Area-based rock band ARIEL. Check ‘em out at www.jenpet.com.

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