Page 84 - Blues Festival Guide Magazine 2018

Producing Music:
Producing Music:

Capturing the
Capturing the

Essence of a Sound
Essence of a Sound

The guitar work of Tommy Castro.
Photo by Claire Henderson

Michele Lundeen, Blues Festival eGuide Editor My life’s passion – my heart and soul – has been
and known musically as the “Queen of Steam,” singing. When I felt it was finally time to do an album, I
has glimpsed into the world of producing music: needed help with the recording process and flushing out
some of my arrangements. I reached out to musician and
producer Johnny V Vernazza, an award-winning guitarist
(Elvin Bishop, Norton Buffalo) that I respected. I couldn’t
have made a better decision.
As my producer, Johnny V connected me with some
really fabulous, professional musicians I may have never
met, as well as a seasoned engineer and studio he’d
already vetted. In the studio, he helped me communicate
with the musicians to streamline some of the arrangements
and direct parts for them during recording. He also worked
closely with the engineer to get the best sound for what I
was looking for.
I was concerned about my limited budget and possibly
giving up too much of my artistic control. However, having
an experienced producer to guide me during the process
really paid off. A guiding hand in the studio, and the
bonus: my album Song Inside Me was born. For more, see
michelelundeen.com.

In this article, we take a closer look at what a music
producer does – the skills needed, the details of the
job, how they view the producing process – and
Michele Lundeen, “The Queen of Steam.” Photo by Jeff Beeler maybe even the secret to making a hit.

82 Blues Festival Guide 2018