Rick Rubin on finding the magic in music
Desert Island Discs

Rick Rubin on finding the magic in music

B1IntermediateOctober 9, 20263 min
  • Interview
  • Music

Record producer Rick Rubin was cast away by Lauren Laverne in 2022. He is responsible for shaping the sound of artists such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Beastie Boys and is credited with reinvigorating the career of Johnny Cash in the 1990s, but you're more likely to see him reclining on a sofa than hunched over a mixing desk when he's hard at work. He explains what he listens for in a piece of music. You can hear the full episode on BBC Sounds.

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Sentence 7 of 12 · 0:39

and the Beastie Boys, but pictures of him hard at work look like someone else's holiday. He can

.

He spoke to me in 2022. I'm not technical in any way and my job is to listen. I could listen

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  • 89% of the words are B1 or easier.
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  • 3 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.

Transcript

The opening of the episode. The whole transcript is in the player.

0:00

Hi, it's Lauren Laverne and this is Desert Island Discs postcards, a selection of some of our most memorable moments from the thousands of people we've cast away to our imaginary desert island. Our final postcard this week comes to you from the Grammy award winning record producer

0:29

Rick Rubin. He's responsible for shaping the sound of artists including the red or chili peppers and the Beastie Boys, but pictures of him hard at work look like someone else's holiday. He can usually be found reclining barefoot on a sofa with his eyes closed waiting for the magic to occur. He spoke to me in 2022. I'm not technical in any way and my job is to listen. I could listen

0:53

in the deepest way if I'm relaxed with my eyes closed. And what are you listening for? Is it a search or is it just an experience? It's just an experience. I'm both listening to what's coming at me and paying attention to what's going on in my body as I listen. Does something happen that makes me want to lean

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