Then Mr. Cooder noticed something else: When he burned a copy of the album using Apple’s iTunes software, it sounded fine. He didn’t know why until one of his younger engineers told him that the default settings on iTunes apply a “sound enhancer.†(It’s in the preferences menu, under “playback.â€) Usually, that feature sweetens the sound of digital music files, but Mr. Cooder so liked its effect on his studio recordings that he used it to master — that is, make the final sound mixes — his album. “We didn’t do anything else to it,†he said.
7 thoughts on “How Does Ry Cooder Use iTunes?”
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Shows that you can teach old dogssome new tricks.
Yes, recycling & innovation go together very well.
Other example.
When, in the summer 2005 travelling all around in Canada, I discovered something interesting. Over there a company recycles old tires ( autobaden) into shilfers ( dakpannen). Those shilfers look exactly like the ( in Canada) omni present wooden ( ” ceder wood “) shilfers, however they happen to have a much longer useful life , more sustainable. The company offers a garanty for 20 years.
Canada has shilfers?!
Okay … have 2 look that up now.
Phew – got it – not via my Merriam-Webster Dictionary but via my handy-dandy Gilgonzo 5000 Context-Parser Alien Implant: they’re called “shakes” &/or “shingles” by us wacky Canucks, FYI.
As 4 sweetening, well — kflmph & grmph!
Big hairy woot – they’ve been doing that w/ nearly all major label artists since way back in those swinging soulless 70’s … it strikes me as sort of unfair that the mixing console rarely gets an album credit, considering how often its “creative input” now matches or exceeds that of the shiny happy spud/s on the CD cover.
But hey.
As an recording engineering student here in Los Angeles, I am a bit disturbed by this.
I cannot see any fathomable value in mastering through iTunes. I think that ol’ Ry has either gone very insane, very deaf, or gotten very lazy. I just hope other groups (like clap your hands say yeah) don’t think that if mr. Cooder is doing this, it might just be a good idea. I hope it never comes to the point where I can say I could possibly be replaced by iTunes.
Relax, iTunes might work for Chicken Skin style tunes, presumably it is just the naked recording sans mastering but we’ll still need you to fix Britney’s voice and double track Hetfield’s inspiring guitar solos.
Hey, Ry, how much for one meatball?
Thanks, Paul, for the reassurance. I’m glad to know I’ll still be needed to fool people into believing anyone anywhere has any talent anymore. :)