Inside my Music Production Analysis Cheat Sheet(Become a member before I close the cart TONIGHT) I spend a lot of time on three things.

I call them the 3 pillars of production.

They are:

• Songwriting and structure
• Arrangement and instrumentation
• Production and engineering

It all breaks down into these things.

But you could also say that they're a pyramid of production.

Because in the end, it comes down to the song.

The catchy melody that'll end up being doubled and harmonized and effected in the mixing phase?

It was still catchy before all that processing and arrangement.

So let me offer this advice whenever you're working on your next production, whether you're self-producing or working with a band.

Before you start thinking about all the cool gear you can use to get a great sound, sit down and listen to the songs you're going to record.

• Do the songs speak to you? Can you relate to the meaning of the song and does the melody really sound catchy?
• Is there anything you would change? Try to think like an outsider looking in. Is the song in its current form the best it can be or is there room for improvement?

It reminds me of a story my friend Steven told me. He's a producer here in town and he was doing a cool project with this singer/songwriter.

He told me,

"What we thought was the chorus during pre-production ended up being the pre-chorus. When we were 80% through the session we had to re-track drums because she wrote a new chorus which changed everything."

Even though they thought they had a chorus, they ended up with something much better because they delayed the session for the sake of the song.

Learning to spot weak points in a song is an invaluable skill to have as a producer. One of the best ways to learn those critical listening skills is to listen to the popular productions of the past.

When I asked my readers a while ago what they thought was the most helpful way to learn more about music production and engineering, one answer rose above all others.

Analyzing popular productions.

So I created something I truly believe you will learn from.

Invest in some critical listening skills and learn from the popular productions throughout history.

Come enjoy the music with me here:

www.audio-issues.com/mp-strategies​