Posted by Jonathan Adler:
Sunday Song Lyric:
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2007_09_02-2007_09_08.shtml#1188740099
Today's [1]NYT Magazine profiles noted record producer Rick Rubin who
Sony has put in charge of Columbia Records in an effort to
reinvigorate their music business. Though for much of his career Rubin
produced hard core metal and some rap albums, he has also achieved
notice for his work with Tom Petty and the Dixie Chicks (and received
several Grammys for the latter). He produced the first Beastie Boys
album, and helped create Audioslave (and also produced a [2]well-known
criminal procedure fact pattern song).
One of the most interesting aspects of Rubin's career (at least to me)
was his work with Johnny Cash. Rubin virtually re-invented Cash,
helping reintroduce Cash to a new generation of listeners, with albums
that were stark and authentic. Among other things, Rubin encouraged
Cash to cover songs by artists outside of his oeuvre. Perhaps the most
notable of these was Cash's cover of Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt." As with
many of the Rubin-produced singles, Cash made the song his own
(something that was not lost on NIN's Trent Reznor once he heard the
song). A video of [3]the Cash version is here. A taste of the lyrics
is below.
I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real
The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything
What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know
Goes away in the end
You could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt
The original NIN version is [4]here.
References
1.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/02/magazine/02rubin.t.html?ex=1346385600&en=13e3933c3b59c9dd&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink
2. http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2004_12_19-2004_12_25.shtml#1103467626
3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmVAWKfJ4Go
4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgSWRicWIy4
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