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couple of weeks.
    Then, Billy and I decided to give the tune a rest—we didn’t even mention it to the band for a few days. Then, one afternoon, we were putting another song through its paces when Billy stoppedabruptly and said, “Let’s do ‘Get It Right the First Time’— right now .”
    It was impulsive—maybe even instinctive. He counted it off, and miraculously, the groove slipped right into place. We had it down in a few takes; afterward, we cracked open a bottle of wine and said, “Amen!”

TRACK 2
The Music That Makes Me Dance
    At the Palace Theatre, New York City, late 1950s Phil Ramone Collection
    I’ll always be a musician at heart.
    Music has been part of my life since I was three, when I saw a gypsy fiddler playing for tips in a restaurant. Something about him fascinated me, and I went so crazy that my parents ran out and bought me a toy violin. I found the violin enchanting, and by the time I was four, I was playing the real thing and studying classical music with the conductor of a symphony orchestra.
    The restaurant violinist of my youth was simply a catalyst.
    No one can master an instrument unless they have some aptitude, and I was lucky to have been born with a latent affinity for music—an unwavering passion that, once ignited, couldn’t be repressed. Thankfully, my love for music was recognized early on and nurtured in innumerable ways.
    There’s a strict discipline that comes with playing serious music, and that discipline is ingrained in me. It’s guided my life and helpedme accomplish everything I’ve done. Discipline, and a strong sense of purpose, came from my parents. Mom and Dad’s encouragement fostered our creativity and helped bring out the best in my sister, Doreen, and me.
    While most ten-year-olds were outside playing ball, I was inside playing the violin. My teacher was a gifted man named Ivan Galamian, and whenever we were home, my sister and I were usually practicing. Once in a while, people would knock on the door and say, “Keep practicing—it sounds good.” Then, you might hear, “Shut up!” It paid off, though: I ended up at Juilliard, and Doreen went on to study opera and dance.
    Although I had little time to myself, studying music on that level gave me a solid foundation. I probably absorbed more music as a teenager by going to Juilliard and knocking around the city than most people do in a lifetime.
    But I wasn’t just playing the violin—I was listening, too.
    I loved tinkering with electronics kits and phonographs, and a big delight for me was discovering the link between music and sound recording. Captivated by my instrument’s tonality, I spent hours trying to rig it up electronically so it would sound good on a recording. That curiosity helped me learn about the sound of music. While I studied hard and played the fiddle for years to come, it was the irresistible urge to make it sound better that drove me to become a recording engineer and producer.
    A common question that hopeful producers often ask is, “Do I need to be a musician—or be able to read music—to become a record producer?”
    While having formal musical training isn’t required, it certainly helps. In fact, for me it’s been invaluable.
    My experience as a musician has a discernible effect on the way I approach production. It also enables me to follow a score, recognize errors in tuning and pitch, and explain what I hear in my head to artists, arrangers, and musicians.
    The communication aspect is particularly important. Musicians are an eccentric lot, and speaking their language helps me tap into their needs more easily. A good example of this is what happened when Paul Simon recorded “Have A Good Time” for the album Still Crazy After All These Years in 1975.
    The song has a jazzy feel, and to emphasize its leitmotif I asked saxophonist Phil Woods to play a wild, free-form jazz riff at the very end. Knowing how much Woods idolized saxophonist Charlie Parker, I snapped my fingers