Trivial pop song, by
Iggy & the Stooges.
One of the songs that, among other things (see below), shows that a good producer makes all the difference. The guitar riff is a trivial three-chord progression; the drums, bass and vocals are primitive, almost clumsy. But it has tremendous power. How to capture this power on record?
Double track the parts? Crank up the echo? Plaster away the silence with sound, the way American producers like to do?
Listen closely. This producer doesn't take from the silence, but instead, enlarges it. The echo doesn't filll the sound up, it adds space, the atmosphere of an empty swimming pool or football stadium. A soft tambourine adds a touch of fuzziness to create more depth. in the far background, a piano drones on a single chord stressing the harmonics of the guitar chords, making it seem as if they are echoed off a mountain wall. The result is a magnificent empty space; the guitar plows through it like a chainsaw and Iggy's voice assumes a haunting intensity.
In this case, the producer was John Cale.
Other producers who make all the difference:
Bob Ezrin, Brian Eno, George Martin.