Our side of the road to the other sometimes when I see this I hear myself saying good job to the sight of him and my window I've seen a blur streaking through my yard which I know was a rabbit chased by a fox and determined pursuit it pains me but I know it is the animals I respect living out their own version of necessity I've heard terrible sounds rising from the trees at night and I've gone outside to stop it only to feel like a trespasser in my own yard which is when I turn back to the safety of my human rooms a group of foxes is called a skulk a leash or an earth when she was very little my daughter Naomi took foxes as her personal mascot when I was 3 I was given a stuffed fox I named rascal who lives now on a high shelf in my closet there is something about foxes that makes me feel so great fully alive as if there's a part of me out there running through grass with them I've come to believe that all animals allowed to live free and wild protect something holy and The World Today's poem is Jane Hershfield 3 foxes' by the edge of the field at twilight one ran her nose to the ground a rusty shadow neither hunting nor playing one stood sat lay down stood again one never moved except to turn her head a little as we walked. Finally we drew too close and they vanished the woods took them back as if they had never been. I wish I had thought to put my face to the grass but we kept walking speaking as strangers do when becoming friends there is more and more I tell no one strangers nor love this slips into the heart without hurry as if it had never been and yet among the trees something has changed something looks back from the trees and knows me for who I am. The slowdown as a production of American Public Media and partnership with the Poetry Foundation. To get a poem delivered to you daily go to slowdown dot org and sign up for our newsletter . Follow the slowdown on Instagram and Twitter. Check. You're listening to Q one c.b.c. Radio one Sirius and 116 from Public Radio International. Name is Tom. Over the past few decades Linda Perry has helped create the kind of hit songs that we've their way into the fabric of your life she's worked with check this out Alicia Keys Adele Weezer the Dixie Chicks James Blunt I mean I could keep going but we run out of show before I ran out of names as a producer and as a songwriter Linda Perry has figured out how to pull something from a performer that they might not even know that they have in them she saw that massive pop stars like pink and Christina Aguilera and Lady Gaga Gwen Stefani all had something to say but Linda was willing to listen and give them some of the biggest hits of their career so far you're going to hear a bunch of these as Lynda takes you through some of the stories behind these huge pop songs but 1st we started with one of the most recent legends She's been working with but this is a new artist This isn't someone who hasn't been using their voice this is someone to be intimidated by this someone who has the kind of legendary career that Linda has always looked up to we start with the legend Dolly Parton Delhi like was someone's like tell me with your ideal situation would be like where do you want to end up I want to and like Dolly Parton yeah she is amazing like she has so much energy she has taught me so much because she really lifts people like Dolly does not there's nothing negative coming from her at all and everything is very about lifting everybody in the room you know and it's extremely inspiring she's operating on a frequency that is far. Most people and we get along awesome because we are we our work ethic is incredible and we write well again I mean we wrote 6 songs in 2 days so we can we listen to one of them take a listen to the. T.v. And in the. Lead. With glee. That's girl in the movies a song written by Dolly Parton and Linda Perry who is my guest and while we're playing that little look to be in said I tell you a story about writing with her yeah well I work with a lot of people right and I barely King get these kids to sing a whole song and one day. To do one sing one song and get the vocal I've been like sometimes up to 3 days no kid just trying to get a vocal just trying to get a vocal Yeah and so Dolly So I do all the the tracks and and l.a. Because although I love Nashville I didn't want that Nashville sound so I recorded everything in my house and my studio and I put the band together and I took band members you know from different bands so she comes and Dolly sing 6 songs and one day I go that being one of her on the movies red shoes I mean fairy complex songs she just comes in and one day you know saying all 6 songs that we wrote and I'm like going on. You know like and all great like all keepers like not a flaw and then she'll stop and go oh I can do that better not me you tell me what you think but I feel like I can do that better I'm like you did it great like 5 takes ago it was amazing so the work ethic today is very alarming to me because you know I don't see the kids putting in the time and the focus that needs to happen in the in their careers right you know and when you've got some 76 years old and when she's blowing through 6 songs in one day I would step it man I'm going to step it up severely I want to take a listen to this this is something that you did with Dolly Parton that I couldn't believe you did I'm happy you did it don't get me wrong but I could see it being sort of a risky thing I could see it being like being where you paint a mustache on the Mona Lisa or something to take a listen to this. Julie. Need. To get the city a. Real. Meaning similar. To the Rudy. The song is already so sad you know that's going by Dolly Parton kind of reproduced by Linda Perry who's my guest Linda like vats but you did something really different with that one I have that you know why I love that version not because it I think is absolutely brilliant but so when they wanted to put Jolene on their album there was like a remakes and they wanted to put that one on the album like you're not putting that bad Remax on my perfect album it's not going to happen and then I guess I am like a remake so yeah yeah that was in the movie they wanted to use it. You know in the on the soundtrack and I'm like it's not going to strobe light scenes exactly I understand so I said hold up and then I just went and I made a phone call and I called my string guy and I'm like I need to do a 16 piece version of Jolene right now and so I go meet with him and I tell. Dolly how we do Jolene and we do you know all strings you know like Eleanor Rigby right and she's like Oh Ok I can do that all right that sounds interesting I was into it yeah she's always like she's always you know like always open minded so now I got the strings I mean literally it will happen in 2 days put the got their arrangement go to Blackbird and so and it's kids and I went with I'm always doing I never go with the norm so I got kids because I knew how old. They're like you know in their early twenties Ok well you know not like old seasoned session players Yeah because I get it sometimes something happens there that's not my jam right yeah so I get these kids are like you know whatever Oh my God Dolly Parton there in black bird and so they're all in their night bring Dolly in like you know it should go in there and prior because she wasn't going to sing with them she was going to do you know in another booth and maybe after so earlier I had put a microphone in there just in case because my dream was that she would sing with them right so I take your in there and I'm kind of in this on a little bit I take her in there and I'm like Dolly Here's the strings and tell everybody and they're all introducing she's like oh my God Well where do you want me to sing I'm like well you know I have you over there but it would be great if you were in the room she's like well I can't be any here right now and not sing with them and I had a camera going and I'm like role and that version is one take one take that perfect perfect vocal you know is one take with Dolly in the room singing live with a string suitable for you to live and I remember I had chills Yeah everybody in the studio freaked out it was that you saw something happen historical So I'm happy to be talking about this stuff and talk about your production work I mean you were the 1st woman nominated in 15 years at the Grammys for producer of the year the last nominee was a member of a team of producers called The Matrix I mean you know this industry inside out and I feel like I'm asking a bit of a dumb question but I need to ask it how can the industry go 15 years without nominating another woman producer of the year well there's many things you can say one a lot of the women that were doing productions are so certain amount of. You have to be eligible for a certain amount of songs or it's volume thing yeah yeah so there could be that because when women produce they're producing their own stuff. And then there's not enough of like them doing you know other material. Too I think that we fall into the norm you know we just got used to scene men producers and then choosing the man producers right Ok yeah I understand what you mean we just are used to that and so you just make those choices when you've got this record coming in you choose that guy because he did all that so we don't go to the girl producer So right now that's part of what I'm trying to do is change the language instead of people asking me why are there no women producers I am now saying there are you're talking to them so why don't we focus on what it is that I do yeah you know and so I started a show where I have Dolly grimed. Sheryl Crow and we're all talking about being in the studio I did one with Alicia Keys and I'm putting the show together called We are now so people can see that women are all over the place we just got changed language. I like I like the story of the song because I hope and you can tell it because you were talking earlier about I said you know you know why has it been 15 years since a woman been nominated for this year and 6 I want to talk about what I do I want to talk about why would be more when the producers that I want to talk with I want talk about what I do I want a frank discussion is what I want to do with these are what I was I was a person do as a producer and this is a cool story to me can you tell the story of of what's up here because someone else produced it of original writing yeah Woolridge unlink the producer. David tickle he . Had a marching drum solo and you know. He asked me to change the lyrics because he didn't understand why I was repeating and I try oh my God I was right whatever all that. Put a solo in there and I was at the end of it I went into enter scope and I said I can't stand this is not the song I wrote and the like can't you just be happy land sounds great Can't you just be an artist you know and and then I was like actually no I can't and so I grabbed the band we had one reel a tape we had no more money no more budget they weren't going to give us a dime went to back to San Francisco and went to the plant and said hey can we come in and can you just give give us a day you know we have you know real tape so we go in there they give us an engineer I don't know anything about production but I know what I don't like so I sat in there thing engineer and we started dialing in sounds together I started moving microphones around until the drums sounded right 6 guitar everything and then we just started recording the song and what was great about it was funny on tape you only have 3 options so we had to be sure that when we we were going to go over take that it wasn't that was not going to be the master take so we were rolling over takes so then we get our take and then David tickle walks in at the end of it while we're gaining in our last take and then I was so annoyed because the producer the producer Mike what are you doing here but I didn't realize that we had to mix and make mastering the next day we worked all night yeah got the song mixed and done and it made the mastering day and then when I asked for production everybody said Can't you just be happy that you saved the day yeah and that you know you're an artist that you know wrote the song and saved it and said. That version Yeah that was my really my 1st production production and that was my version that all over the world Len I remember away and I said we're going listen to some of the songs you've written for other artists now and I remember like being in school and some of these songs came out and people saying to me Did you know that you know from what you know they're going to say it kind of blew our minds take a listen to. That . And the song that defined my lonely high school dance is get this party started and that was written by my my friend here my guest Linda Perry I heard a story that I whole thing came about with you sort of like getting some new gear and trying to figure out how it worked yeah I was a total analogs. And when I moved to Los Angeles I had this really great studio in San Francisco's all analog and then when I moved to l.a. I was like All right you know what is the sound that's on the radio so I asked a friend of mine I'm like tell me what this the sound is 2000 was 200-2002 something like that right. And he's like oh it's a tritone keyboard it's a role an expansion right you know but I get all this gear and I hook it up and I know I'm just playing with it and like literally 30 minutes later I have this song what you just heard and there's no vocals the hook and everything I grab to you know well yeah everything and I at the end after I got the music and mind you today you have probs I don't have Pro Tools I was still going to tape right so you know that loop I played down for 3 and a half minutes whatever I played bass for 3 and I mean everything was just all live that I played the Kool-Aid all the samples live you. And so then I just grabbed a bullet microphone which is a harmonica microphone and I just picked it up and I'm like Ok I'm the think of every you know friggin cliche I can think of now and so I just started. And I just wrote this song and I laughed I played it to my manager on the phone and she's all what's that I'm like I just wrote it down you know and then literally a week later met Pink and then play that to her and she's like oh my God And then what's his name her earlier Thank you l.a. Reid was like well that's our 1st singer it is surprising to you that you were writing top 40 pop and know you know what was interesting I think is so me because I went in to enter script records and I told them that I will never write a pop hit for them ever again so they better just leave let me go right because that I was being held captive was kind of to them a pop Yeah yeah but I was being held captive they just wanted me to do that over and over and I said I wasn't going to do that but even if what part 2 was in my pocket I would never give it to them so finally they let me go and then it was so funny that the 1st thing I'd started doing was right. We could listen to another one of the big the big pop hits Take a listen to this. That is Christina Aguilera and beautiful Linda Perry who again co-wrote wrote that song with Christina. Wrote that song because you know I go there. Is in studio with me right now I was looking at the piano and I sat down yesterday at the piano trying to work it out it's I couldn't quite get there that's. Number one player but yeah. Suddenly. Very. Short version. Now. From all the peg chain. I'm going to hand this. And bring. It Down to bring it down today Linda Perry sing in the song she wrote What's wrong with me the song she wrote because the Maggot Lair is beautiful I got a couple questions for you and I know you got to move on but he tell me a little story to read in that song well I wrote that song thinking that you know I would go back to being an artist because I was I kind of disappear Thanks for doing that by the way that's the coolest thing. I rarely do that I don't really perform but you're welcome yeah I have yes I'd like to think that like yesterday thank you . So I was thinking alright I'll go do that again and I was got to that chorus and it was like I am beautiful no matter what and then I just I stopped dead like I don't think I'm beautiful like it had a very crazy emotional effect on me and then I realized oh I don't think I'm beautiful I'm trying to tell myself that and I need to realize that people. Can't make me feel bad for you know what I look like you weren't wearing me down exactly so that's where it kind of came from so it was going to be my song that was going to be my hit and then Christina. I played it to her because she wanted me to break the ice I played her the song and then she's like I want that song and I was like and then I said I'll tell you what you let me hear you sing it because you are beautiful there's no way you relate to this song and then when I heard her sing it she literally at the top of the song was to her friend she was like talk you know and I knew I was going to keep that at the top of the song which I did and I knew she felt as vulnerable and secure as I did when it made sense Linda I got to tell you by talking to you today I mean we talked a lot about how the music industry is in some trouble you know and I know that like compared to when you were when Watts Up came out I mean I was reading about you yesterday and I saw a sentence that I never see anymore which is that oh the what's up by 4 non blonds the success of that single catapulted the album into you know x. Amount of sales and out of the West it's never going to happen again this is never going to sell an album ever I believe in the power of the album I do believe it's coming back and the way I write like if you notice that I don't have a bunch of songs coming out all the time yeah you know I just am very I just do what I do but lately my phone has been ringing off the hook Yeah and I know that means something because I said I'm not going to write what people want when people want songs again they'll call me and lately everybody's been calling me I think that means you might be a little hopeful and that's Ok so you know I mean like I'm super hopeful yeah I mean I am I'm I love music I love the industry as crazy as it is and how negative it can be I find it very thriving always because there's so much you can do there's so many ways to step in and make a difference. But not just the music industry like music Yeah but you're hopeful about music I am I am I'm hopeful about what I'm doing I'm hopeful about what we're talking about. About a lot of my friends I'm hopeful and what I'm seeing in kids right now you know I'm hopeful and just the energy of the world as crazy as that is it feels very right on the very spot on right now where we are I really appreciate taken so much time and of course I really I really love this. This is a good guy I know you can't see him but he's very sincere and I get why you're popular. He was back right after this. You're listening to The Daily. From the c.b.c. . Programs confused here will have news from the Canadian perspective coming up with the c.v. Sees as it happens Stay with us. If you want to do with an old car with a low trade in value consider donating into your favorite public radio station called Triple 85 to 5 to 7 to see if your. Website. C.b.c. Radio one across North America on Sirius x.m. $169.00 n.p.r. I published Radio International My name's Tom our it's not an exaggeration to say that Steve Martin and Martin Short are each comedy legends but these 2 dude's they're funny on their own but when they get together something special happened somehow they get even funnier and that comedy bromance is right up there with Key and Peele Cheech and Chong Smothers Brother