Roger Hawkins on his Pearl drums, 1980

In later years, according to Hawkins, Seger’s surging success began to affect his behavior in the studio. On occasion, during the session for Against the Wind, his easygoing demeanor would be frozen by moments of crisis. "He would have trouble making up his mind," says Hawkins. "He called it 'platinum paranoia.'"

Turn Toward Production

In the late '70's and into the early 1980’s, the rhythm section members became increasingly involved in production, most notably Beckett who by 1980 already had credits on projects by Dire Straits, Bob Dylan, Stephen Stills, John Prine and Delbert McClinton. But since he often plays on the albums he is producing (or co-producing), Beckett confesses he often treads on the border of musical schizophrenia.

"It's discipline," he maintains, "that's all it is. One way you turn the switch, you’re a musician, the other way, you're a producer. But as a producer, you have to look back at yourself as a musician-but also as a producer, too. So-it's weird. When I'm producing, I try not to build around what I'm playing. I'll build around something else, then add in what I can."

When asked for his advice to aspiring studio keyboard players, Beckett took a long, thoughtful pull on a cigarette before answering. "When I first came up here, I threw in every lick I could think of. I was going against rule number one, which is you only play what you need to support the artist. (Ed note: For an example, listen to the astonishing interplay between Beckett's piano and Dylan's voice on Slow Train Coming.) So I was going against the artist, playing right on top-which is all wrong. It's not time to show off unless the producer pushes the button and says, "Okay, now show off." You have to feel the intensity level of the artist, and support that, and also anticipate when the artist is going to change."

Working together for so long, says Beckett, has helped the Muscle Shoals section achieve an intuitive "feel" for each artist. "Working as a section, we have the time to learn how the other guys think. But we have to watch out. The better we get, the more we're in danger of becoming mechanical about it. If we get dead on perfect every time, it could be a problem."

Of course, other rhythm sections-in New York, Los Angeles, Detroit, Memphis and Nashville-also developed this close camaraderie, and made superb records. But likely no other group can claim such diversity of styles, and such a high percentage of mega-hit records--scores of which are still selling and getting steady airplay decades later. What's the secret here?

The isolation and small town atmosphere could be a factor. "Through the years we've been able to draw energy from our roots," says Hawkins. "And we've been able to keep it all moving in a positive direction. If we were in New York, we'd be expending most of our energy just trying to get in the door. Here, we put that energy into making hit records."

Surrounded by walls laden with gold and platinum records, Barry Beckett echoes Hawkins' sentiments, then adds a final note of personal conviction.

"Trust is a big part of it. We have a family here, instead of going it alone. Of course, we were lucky to have the right teachers in people like Rick Hall, and people to help along with way like Jerry Wexler. But mostly we made it because we stuck together as a unit and trusted each other."

He pauses, looks away, then looks back straight in and says quietly: "Also, we wanted it bad, real bad."

The final installment, "Muscle Shoals: The Out-takes" will include odds and ends not used in either the Mix article or the one above, including details on the primitive but highly successful equipment and techniques used for the timeless "When a Man Loves a Woman" sessions with Percy Sledge. Watch for it in late July.

For equipment notes on Muscle Shoals Sound studios, click here.