![\"Keith-Stegall-Issue-No25\"](\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/Keith-Stegall-Issue-No25.jpg\")
<\/h1>\n<\/h1>\nArtist, songwriter, producer\u2014he\u2019s seen success from all sides<\/b><\/p>\n
By Michael Gallant<\/b><\/p>\n
When it comes to country music, few producers have made as profound a mark as Nashville\u2019s Keith Stegall. The multitalented studio master has produced more than 20 platinum albums and sold more than 70 million records. His r\u00e9sum\u00e9 includes 50 No. 1 hits, four Country Music Association Awards, 10 Academy of Country Music Awards\u2014and the list goes on.<\/p>\n
Growing up in Louisiana, Stegall got an early taste for music from his father, who played steel guitar for 1950s country-rockabilly star Johnny Horton. The younger Stegall began performing at 8, and was touring in his teens before moving to Nashville. His early successes included co-writing Dr. Hook\u2019s 1980 hit \u201cSexy Eyes\u201d and landing a record deal with Capitol Records. Five years later Stegall had scored a stack of hits and a nomination by the ACM for Top Male Vocalist.<\/p>\n
Offstage, Stegall began spending time in the studio with other up-and-coming artists like Randy Travis and Alan Jackson. \u201cAlan and I started writing songs in 1986,\u201d says Stegall, \u201cwhich led to working on demos in the studio. Those resulted in a deal with Arista, and then a bunch of No. 1 hits and a bunch of records being sold.\u201d Stegall has produced every album that Jackson has released.<\/p>\n
The producer\u2019s discography now includes many superstars, from George Jones, Merle Haggard and Reba McEntire to Billy Ray Cyrus, Uncle Kracker and Zac Brown. \u201cWorking with Merle Haggard was a high point for me,\u201d recalls Stegall. \u201cHe is such an iconic figure.\u201d Stegall has also helped shape the careers of younger artists, like Craig Campbell and Chris Janson.<\/p>\n
Stegall is not only active in the studio but in the boardroom as well, co-founding the multidimensional music company Bigger Picture Group in 2009. \u201cBigger Picture is a hybrid that includes all the essentials in an artist\u2019s career from production to promotion to management to merch,\u201d he says. Stegall spoke to us about his business venture, applying lessons learned as an artist, and crafting hit after hit with the biggest names in country music.<\/p>\n
Describe your working relationship with Alan Jackson after so many records.<\/b><\/p>\n
You get a little like a married couple. We know the ins and outs of working together, and the ways we both think about and approach music. We can almost predict how the other is going to respond throughout the recording process, and that makes for an easier process overall. We\u2019ve also grown accustomed to the types of songs we\u2019re drawn to.<\/p>\n
How do you keep the music fresh?<\/b><\/p>\n
There\u2019s a certain side to what Alan does where you\u2019re always going to know it\u2019s Alan Jackson\u2014but we try to push the envelope, especially when it comes to outside songs we select. We can get away with some risks because Alan\u2019s been around for a while, but at the same time you can\u2019t go make a record that has him sounding like Hank Sr. and get away with it.<\/p>\n
What mic do you use with Alan?<\/b><\/p>\n
A Neumann U 87. It\u2019s a great mic and I\u2019ve used it on a bunch of projects I\u2019ve produced through the years, including George Jones. If you know anything about Neumann mics, you know that every one has its own unique character. The one I use has what I would call a 3-D quality. Just magical.<\/p>\n
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How do you approach tracking vocals?<\/b><\/p>\n
I was an artist, and what always bothered me most back then was having to punch in a line. Sometimes you get to a place psychologically where it takes forever to get just the right inflection, and to think where the line should be. Now when I work with singers, I produce vocals to get a performance, and then put a composite together after that. It\u2019s much easier to comp together a final take and give it flow, rather than punching the fire out of something.<\/p>\n
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How many times do you have an artist sing through?<\/b><\/p>\n
I try to get five performances. Obviously, by the end an artist is getting a little tired of singing the song, but we\u2019re not hammering it to death and losing the emotion and spontaneity.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Do you use session players?\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
I\u2019ve been in Nashville for 35 years, and I\u2019ve gotten used to the process of how records and demos are made here. There\u2019s an A-team of session musicians\u2014actually a couple of A-teams now, with more young players becoming part of a particular tracking corps. When I work with Alan, for instance, there\u2019s a particular group of musicians I\u2019ll employ. I try to draw on players that will complement what an artist does rather than sticking with any one group.<\/p>\n
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Do you try to achieve perfection?<\/b><\/p>\n
I\u2019m a big believer in the character of the records I make and the records that are my favorites to listen to. They\u2019re the ones with flaws, where things aren\u2019t perfect. I\u2019ve always believed that those were the magical records, so I try to stay away from the factory mentality as much as I can.<\/p>\n
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What if the artist is having a bad day?<\/b><\/p>\n
I\u2019ll say, \u201cCome in here a minute. How are you feeling? How\u2019s your throat?\u201d If they say that they\u2019re feeling tired or tight, I\u2019ll usually call it a day, tell them to get some rest, give it a shot tomorrow. That\u2019s much better than spending hours frustrating an artist who may have just gotten in from the road after singing the night before. It\u2019s always better to fold the tent when that starts happening and take a break.<\/p>\n
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How does your background as a musician guide you in the studio?<\/b><\/p>\n
It allows me to be empathetic when I\u2019m working with artists. I know what it\u2019s like to be out on the floor in front of a mic, listening to somebody give you direction. I\u2019m always very conscious of that and make sure I choose my words carefully. The goal when working with great artists is to get the most out of their abilities, so I stay away from negativity. A great artist might be one take away from having the performance of a lifetime, but if you give him or her the wrong information or say something that throws off the confidence level, you can tip over the apple cart. I keep that in mind and try to stay positive. It\u2019s also important to remember that these people are not construction workers out there building a house. They\u2019re truly artists, and my job is to help them create art.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
What was your approach to the Zac Brown Band?<\/b><\/p>\n
From the beginning, what made that band unique was the gut-string guitar that Zac plays. That was a hook unto itself, in the same way that Willie Nelson hooks his whole sound around his own gut-string guitar. You don\u2019t hear that a lot. When we did The Foundation<\/i>, we tried a couple of guitars and agreed to stick with the gut string. There\u2019s something magical about it, and it\u2019s been consistent, a common thread through all of his records even though he\u2019s played a lot of electric as well. That guitar sound is identifiable on \u201cChicken Fried\u201d and lots of his other hits.<\/p>\n
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How was it working with Merle Haggard?<\/b><\/p>\n
It was an amazing experience. A big part of it is trying not to look like a completely bumbling fan and stay in charge as the record producer. I had the same experience with George Jones. If you\u2019re working with your musical heroes it\u2019s best to relax and try to have a good time. If you can just get over the fact that you\u2019re not dreaming and accept that this is really happening, hang your thumb in the air and go with it.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
How do you discover artists?<\/b><\/p>\n
I get music sent to me by so many people, even established songwriters who want to be artists. The big thing for me is going into a club and seeing somebody play. That\u2019s what ignites me. When I saw the Zac Brown Band for the first time, there was some magic going on up on the stage, and the audience felt it. It was the same with Craig Campbell and Chris Janson. I was moved by what was happening behind the microphone. Putting on a great show is how you attract fans\u2014and producers\u2014these days. Being good at performing is a big piece of the puzzle that has to be there for success.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Tell us about Craig Campbell.<\/b> Craig is cut from the cloth of the neo-traditionalist movement. He\u2019s an incredibly talented singer and songwriter. The process of producing him is free-flowing and fun, mainly because he\u2019s just so good. Chris Janson, on the other hand, is a bit of a wild card. I like describing him as Hank [Williams] Sr. meets Mick Jagger. Craig and Chris are on opposite ends of the spectrum\u2014neo-traditionalist versus cutting edge.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Who was Bigger Picture\u2019s first artist?<\/b><\/p>\n
We started back when the first Zac Brown Band album came out. We put together a promotional staff, and though Zac was part of Atlantic Records at that point, we joint ventured with them on the first couple of albums. Then we took that concept a step further and started finding acts with whom we believed in becoming 50-50 partners. It\u2019s pretty forward thinking. We try to be there for every piece of what an artist needs to make a career work. We work hand in hand with our artists, not against them, because we\u2019re all striving for a common goal together.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KEITH STEGALL Artist, songwriter, producer\u2014he\u2019s seen success from all sides By Michael Gallant When it comes to country music, few producers have made as profound a mark as Nashville\u2019s Keith Stegall. The multitalented studio master has produced more than 20 platinum albums and sold more than 70 million records. His r\u00e9sum\u00e9 includes 50 No. 1 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3844],"tags":[837,6188,6164,6007,3821,2296,4467],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9294"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9294"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9294\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9296,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9294\/revisions\/9296"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9294"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9294"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9294"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}