TALES FROM PRODUCER X

So many changes have taken place in the radio universe that we thought it would be great to hear from someone who has one foot in the glory days past and one in the constantly evolving present. That was the start of the idea for this series of posts titled "TALES FROM PRODUCER X". X may want to be opinionated from time to time so, no names and not too much personal info will be given out. Let's kick it off with some basics.

BAG: What can you tell us about your radio career?

X: I'm lucky enough to say it's been a long one and still going. I'd rather not say how long or talk about the markets I've worked in. Let's say I've worked in markets big and small and worked in different formats.

BAG: Been around long enough to remember carts?

X: Yeah. I miss carts because they were the perfect size for throwing. They were kinda like production director throwing stars. I always thought that's why they were made obsolete. Too many sales people with concussion by cart.

BAG: So you've been a spot producer.

X: Sure. I started out that way like everybody did. Cranking out spots and pulling swing shift for jocks on vacation.

BAG: Ever want to be on the air instead of production?

X: That's a definite no. Being trapped on the air with the same music everyday and the same 5 kids calling on the phone was torture. You had a stack of liner cards and the PD would always say, don't READ the liner cards...be creative. Then at your aircheck, he would hate whatever you did. The stuff he liked the best was when you practically read the card verbatim. Nuts.

Bag: So production was easier for you?

X: Not easier, just more satisfying. Time didn't exist in the prod studio. I would be in there for hours trying to make a creative commercial with a two track machine and some old jazz records. I didn't care. It was fun and even after a 12 hour day I felt energized if I did something creative.

BAG: What about that frustration you mentioned earlier?

X: Oh, the salespeople? That's the eternal struggle of good and evil. Art vs. commerce I guess. We were both wrong. What I was doing wasn't really art and what they were doing wasn't really business. I hated that they would go home and watch soaps, then come back and hand in an order late to air the next day. Ok, not everyone did that but, it did happen. Then there's the classic move. They would photocopy a yellow pages ad for the client, staple it to the order and write, "be creative" on it. I always imagined myself turning into the Incredible Hulk when I would see that.

BAG: Do you think it's better now?

X: I'm not sure. It's just different. A lot more salespeople write copy now. Production people used to do a lot of it but, there's no time anymore. It's too bad because I think salespeople don't enjoy writing copy but prod people kinda do. It's another creative process.

BAG: So, did you do imaging early in your career as well?

X: We didn't call it imaging back then. I don't even remember when the term imaging started. You were either a spot guy or promo guy. A lot of people, including me, did both since a lot of stations didn't have aggressive production yet. CHR was always the exception. Of course, with an analog 4 track, you couldn't handle a huge promo/sweeper load anyway. You'd never sleep. I remember doing slip cue music edits on 4 track. Sounds crazy and stupid now. You really respected the people who were good at it because it was like using the force. We all respected killer blade editing too. Now I think even blind and deaf people can edit pretty well on a daw.

Let's stop there for this first post. We'll keep this series going as long as Producer X wants to talk to us. Got a question for Producer X? Leave it in the comments.