Some performers in the music world can get by splendidly with nothing more than a killer voice, some great management, or a spectacular stage show (or a combination of all of the above).
Then there’s the 7 artists listed below…
Blessed with a surfeit of talent either thanks to honing their craft through years of studious learning or their natural ability for taking to a new instrument like a duck to water, these prodigious musical talents fulfil the ‘Jack of All Trades’ billing, while entirely skipping the negative ‘Master of None’ suffix that follows.
The following seven albums are each a high-achieving example of the true musical auteur, records in which pretty much everything – from the recorded instruments, to the engineering, and production – is handled almost exclusively by the artist themselves. There might be a few exceptions, a few small extra parts and guest musicians here and there, but on the whole, each album can be attributed to being the sole product of the mutli-tasking maverick that put them together.
That kind of dedication and skill can take years, but you can speed up the process by taking part in the courses offered at the Australian Institute of Music in Melbourne. With a range of instrumental tuition and educating enrolled students in every part of the studio – from engineering to production and mixing – AIM provides the perfect springboard to becoming the next generation of musician who’ll take their place among the multi-tasking greats here.
Jack White – Blunderbuss
It was well established that the Detroit musician was more than just a dab hand at a variety of instruments before he finally got around to recording his first solo debut album in 2012. But Blunderbuss really puts an underline under the ‘solo’ part of his skills. Sure, the Detroit mainstay had slung axe, keys, and drums previously in a variety of bands, but Blunderbuss saw White spinning his hand at all that and more, as well as drawing from his many years behind the desk and enacting “100 different production styles on the record,” in his own words.
Sure there were a few guest spots here and there – a little fiddle from Lillie Mae Rische or bass from sidekick Jack Lawrence, for example – but it’s far more than the lion’s share that’s credited to White. Heck, even the production and distribution was handled by White’s own studio and label, Third Man Records. You can’t get much more auteur than that.
Gotye – Making Mirrors
On 2006’s Like Drawing Blood, Wally De Backer established himself as a hugely self-sufficient font of music magic, and for his blockbuster 2011 follow-up, Making Mirrors, he took those abilities even further. Gotye’s ream of credits across the album’s some 40 minutes includes everything from the typical (vocals, drums, guitar, bass, banjo, synthesizer) to the expansive (flute, dulcimer, organ, music box, bells) and a whole track dedicated to the Lowrey Cotillion organ (‘State Of The Art‘).
Of course, the starring parts are usually given to Gotye’s charming home-made loops and ear-grabbing found sounds – such as the opening guitar hook of the world-conquering ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’, originally performed by Brazilian muso Luiz Bonfa, who’s still raking in millions with half of the song’s royalties despite the little matter of him being deceased.
Trent Reznor – Pretty Hate Machine
You don’t have to be a hardcore fan by any means to know that Reznor basically is Nine Inch Nails. Ever since founding his industrial rock project in 1988, the producer-performer has been at the centre of every song – from arrangement to programming to finished product. While there’s been a roster of changing lineups and guests from the beginning, the NIN template was cast in a near-invincible mould for his first full-length: 1989’s Pretty Hate Machine.
Aside from a guitar part on ‘Sanctified’ (performed by one Richard Patrick), practically every sound and the way it is sculpted is the work of Reznor. It’s a testament to his abilities that Pretty Hate Machine, nearing its 25th anniversary this October, still sounds as fresh and devastatingly influential as it did the day ‘Head Like A Hole’ first assaulted speakers.
PJ Harvey – Uh Huh Her
For her sixth studio album, the fierce British matriarch decided on a ‘back to basics’ approach. That resulted in a purist approach which lasted two years and an ensemble featuring guitars, bass, piano, melodica, autoharp (and samples of seagulls squawking) all performed by Harvey herself, with final drum tracks and percussion duties going to Rob Ellis; but that’s not much on this sparse, reflective set. She also engineered, produced, and mixed Uh Huh Her, marking the first time she’d had complete sonic control (aside from the 1993 collection, 4-Track Demos).
The entire philosophy of the record is based on the phrase “all that matters is my voice and my story;” advice given to the songwriter by Elvis Costello.
Kevin Parker – Lonerism
On the stage, Tame Impala is a talented array of five musicians working their psych-rock synergy into lengthy jams and wild musical excursions. On record, Tame Impala is essentially frontman Kevin Parker’s solo project. Just like 2010 debut Innerspeaker, Lonerism is – as its title and many of its lyrical themes suggest – the singular work of Parker, as he recorded and tinkered in home studios in his native Perth and a Paris apartment (where he also produced then-muse Melody Prochet’s debut album as Melody’s Echo Chamber).
Aside from keys work from live ally Jay Watson (on ‘Apocalypse Dreams’ and ‘Elephant’), Lonerism is exclusively the product of the 27-year-old Aussie prodigy. Parker is already at work on album #3, and given his recent Michael Jackson cover and funk-disco dalliance, we can’t wait for the results – solo effort or otherwise.
Prince – 1999
Of all of music’s contemporary mavericks, the Purple One is one of the most notoriously controlling. Though many of his most successful moments have hinged on collaboration in some form or other (eg. The New Power Generation, or Wendy & Lisa’s input for Purple Rain). When all’s said and done however, there’s no denying that left to his own devices that Prince is more than capable of genius. His 1978 debut LP For You and 1980’s Dirty Mind both featured the Minnesota musician playing nearly every instrument, but his most famous multi-tasking effort was his 1982 masterpiece, 1999.
Listening back to the double album you might be tricked into thinking otherwise given the party-like atmosphere he creates with the leading title track (and its array of co-vocalists), but it’s all the homemade work of the then-30 year old maestro – with one key exception. The heroic, shredding solo on ‘Little Red Corvette’? That’s Dez Dickerson of Prince’s band, the Revolution, who he’d snubbed to make 1999.
Dave Grohl – Foo Fighters
The death of Kurt Cobain in April, 1994 not only marks the death of the grunge movement in the history books, it also signified the end of Grohl’s drumming career in Nirvana. Lost and forlorn, Grohl set about dealing with his grief in a series of songs on cassette demos that he shared privately with a number of close friends. Although originally a cathartic emotional outlet, those recordings were also a way for Grohl to have fun again – thus the foolish Foo Fighters moniker, which eventually stuck even as he went on to front one of the biggest bands in the world.
When it was released in 1995, Foo Fighters was even seen as a bit of a silly side-project – until people actually wrapped their ears around Grohl’s many accomplishments on breakout songs like ‘This Is A Call’ and ‘Big Me’. Bonus fact: ‘X-Static’ features a guitar solo from Greg Dulli of The Afghan Whigs.
Want to learn how to be a multi-tasking music maverick? The Australian Institute of Music offer courses in Composition & Music Production and Audio Engineering, as well a range of instrumental tuition, giving you all the skills you need. Apply now.
