Terry had just returned from Sausalito, where she'd been making an album. She had to spend an extra week there because she hated the mix the producer had lazily produced, and so she had to mix it herself.
"Do you know how to do that?" I wondered. When you make a record, all the different instruments play separately on separate tapes called "tracks." At the end, these tracks are mixed so that the bass guitar isn't too loud and the vocals are clear. This is done on a horrible panel with dials, buttons, knobs, and red lights. I just couldn't imagine Terry mixing.
"How did you learn how to mix?"
"I learned because I had to," she said grimly. "This whole damn album has been like pulling teeth. Every time I try and get them to do something, I have to throw a fit to have it be right. They were even going to pick my songs."
Text: Eve Babitz on Ronee Blakley (alias Terry Finch) in “Slow Days, Fast Company,” 1977.
Pictured: Ronee Blakley in the Muscle Shoals recording studio, 1975.
