The “visionary” who completely changed Bruce Springsteen’s career forever
Since Bruce Springsteen released his debut album over 50 years ago, the music industry is almost unrecognisable from the one he entered. Nearly every decade, it has faced a dramatic revamp and undergone an evolution. Music never stands still, and one of the people most responsible for moving it forward is Jimmy Iovine.
Springsteen is one of those timeless figures in the musical world. Like a pillar of influence in the Greek capital, Springsteen is not only an ancient monument to times gone by but a reminder of just how perfect architecture, if presented correctly, can truly be. But, the truth is, without Iovine, he wouldn’t be anywhere close to the man so revered today.
While he is not technically a recording artist, Iovine’s impact on the musical landscape is challenging to do justice to. The New York native received his first break as a youngster as a recording engineer, working with John Lennon and Bruce Springsteen. Despite being a teenager, Iovine was already a prestigious talent, and within a few years, he was one of the most sought-after producers in the industry.
Iovine was the producer behind Patti Smith’s Easter, which included the Springsteen-written hit ‘Because The Night’ and his star continued to grow. Over the next few years, Iovine was involved in more classic albums from U2, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Pretenders and Stevie Nicks.
As an innovator, Iovine has always had his finger on the pulse, and when hip-hop was emerging, he was at the forefront of the revolution. He later co-founded Interscope Records, finding talent such as Eminem and becoming Dr Dre’s business partner.
While Iovine and Springsteen have become two of the most powerful men in the music industry, they have never forgotten their roots. Their friendship has lasted the test of time, and when Iovine was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, it was only fitting that ‘The Boss’ was the person who added him into the club.
Springsteen started his speech by saying: “Jimmy Iovine has graduated from being the skinny Italian kid who changes the tape and hits the start and stop buttons on the recording machine to the skinny Italian kid at the console engineer on Born To Run and Darkness on the Edge of Town. I walk in the studio, and Jon just says to me, ‘He told me he could do it.’ I asked him, ‘What’s this kid doing at our mixing boards?'”
He remembered: “But somehow, he did it, and on an engineer’s salary, he had parked outside the Record Plant, an orange Mercedes. Now, this was a moment when no one knew what the words Mercedes-Benz meant to me. Jimmy knew. What else does Jimmy know? That afternoon, gets me in that honourable Mercedes-Benz and takes me on a little drive to Coney Island. On the way, he casually drops, ‘What’re going to do with that song, ‘Because The Night?'”.
Springsteen explains how Iovine convinced him to give it to Patti Smith, who turned an unfinished outtake into a hit record. He said: “Jimmy knows great songs, and he knows who can sing them. He has one of the greatest guts for talent and is one of the greatest sponges for learning I’ve ever met. Jimmy misses nothing”.
That’s perhaps the greatest asset any producer can have. It’s all well and good to make good artists sound great, perhaps even point them in the right direction every once in a while, but Iovine had a habit of not just seeing the shoreline of a newly discovered island of prospective talent but catching a wave toward, using a single surfboard to get him and the rest of the world there.
After discussing Iovine’s pivot from producer to music mogul, Springsteen explained why he believes the move has succeeded. “He is an incredibly well-rounded, visionary executive. Jimmy never took off his fan shoes. You need to keep them on. I still get messages from him with Born To Run blasting in the background. Jimmy recognised that the chemistry in Jon and I’s relationship is the secret formula — not just for rock and roll magic but for rock and roll,” he said.
Listen to Patti Smith sing ‘Because The Night’ below, a track which wouldn’t exist without Iovine.
