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ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: On things like ''Girls in Their Summer Clothes'' and ''Your Own Worst Enemy,'' you went for the more Spectorian production. Was there a moment when you guys broke out the glockenspiel and said, are we ready to go for this?
BRENDAN O'BRIEN: If somebody wants to compare what we did to Phil Spector — his records, I mean [Laughs] — I'll take that. Because hell, yeah! That's a language we all understand. Whenever you hear a really big sound, it harkens back to those spectacular, huge sounding records, And you want people to listen to something and be excited by it. Give 'em the bang for their buck. Listeners are pretty sophisticated. They understand if something sounds half-assed or not. And that's not to say that there's songs that we did or we haven't done in the past that are very stripped down and very simplified, because that's what those songs demanded. But some of these newer songs, because they were little three-and-a-half minute masterpieces — in my opinion — of Bruce's material, they demanded the whole treatment.
It sounds like there's some tympani on there.
That is actual tympani, my friend, yes. I do keep tympani and glockenspiel around my studio. [Laughs] And bells and all kinds of crap. That stuff's always around. So you can read into that whatever you want. I'm just looking for an excuse to use it, I guess. [Laughs]
With a lot of bands you produce, you don't get a chance to break those out.
It depends. I will say that a lot of times in making this record, there was a lot of just straight up laughing out loud. Just smiling. Pure joy. I really like the paradox of this material, that musically a lot of it is very uplifting and very driving, and lots of colors and textures. It makes you think of these memories…. They're set as pop songs. But some of the lyrics are not particularly [fun]. ''Your Own Worst Enemy,'' that's not a happy ending right there. That's a very deep, cutting song. I personally love the rub there, the difference there — the paradox.
You said Roy's piano is doing rhythm a lot, but the opening of ''I'll Work for Your Love'' is quintessentially him.
Yeah, to me, that's like a classic E Street opening. Classic. As a matter of fact, I remember when Roy was playing that, Nick DeVito, our engineer and a big Bruce fan, he goes ''Well, that sounds correct. That sounds right.'' [Laughs] It wasn't a deliberate thing. It's just, when he started doing it, that's just what these guys do! He's Roy Bittan, he plays in the E Street Band, that's how he starts songs.
Has there been any time during the recording where somebody worried that it sounded too much like the past?
I don't remember ever that really coming up. And my own opinion is, I'm dealing with an artist who's pretty secure in where he's at in his life and his career. And if something sounds a little like something he's done before, or if something reminds you of something he's done before, that's probably not a bad thing. I mean, I think all performers go through a period in their lives where they feel like they've got to not do that, or whatever. I mean, I've worked with lots of artists, and I've seen a lot of guys go through that, and it's a natural thing. I think he's at a spot that he's pretty at ease. Whatever's the most honest and real way we can present [the music], that's how we're doing it. And if things hearken back to another time or another record, well, he's made lots of records and he's a pretty identifiable guy, so I think that's sort of inevitable. And I'm a big fan of those records, so if I'm guilty of leaning that way a little bit, so be it. [Laughs]
This is a half-hour shorter than The Rising.
I do know the feeling at the time was, "Well, we haven't made a record together in God knows how long, and we're not really sure when we're gonna do this again. We're having a great time. Why are we trying to make it short?" [Laughs] This is a great band that hasn't recorded together in a very long time. And who knows? We didn't know how it was gonna be received. You never know. Luckily and happily, things have gone very well in the last five years. And they're having a great time performing together and they're all getting along, best I can tell. And Bruce is on a creative roll writing songs like nobody's business. So I think there's less pressure of that now. I think there's more of a feeling of, let's put together a great record and not worry about that part of it. It was just, that's how many songs we had, and we put 'em on the record.
There are fewer songs, and they're shorter, and they fade out sometimes just as an interesting solo is getting going. This time you were secure enough in the idea that it's okay to leave 'em wanting more, as the old show-biz maxim goes.
Well, I know that's how I feel. I feel that way 100 percent. I've heard more than a few people say, ''At the end of the song, I wish it would go on longer.'' I love hearing that. I love hearing somebody saying, ''Boy, I wish it was longer.'' Love that!
For more on Magic, read EW.com's interview with Springsteen's longtime manager and producer Jon Landau.
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