Session Times: Tell us about your influences and your early days in the industry...
David Cafe: Well, I've always had this insatiable curiosity to see how things worked and used to dissect old radios and all that. Once I pulled apart one of those "Bag O' Laughs" things from Weirdo's joke shop and found a tiny record inside. I turned it over and played the other side and to my total amazement, this cavalry bugle 'reveille' thing started playing! From then on I was hooked...

Being on the younger end of a large family I had plenty of early exposure to The Beatles, Dylan and the British rock and pop music of the mid sixties. Then there was the soul artists of Motown & Stax, the funk of Sly Stone and the local stuff, like Ayers Rock and Sebastian Hardie. As my interests broadened I got into the impressionists and a lot of old jazz & blues - anything that was good...

When I started studio work at age fifteen it was very inspiring - working on a daily basis with some great musicians. The studio band included a young bloke from the country named Tommy Emmanuel on guitars. We would sneak in on weekends and experiment. Duncan McGuire and Mark Kennedy taught me about production and engineering but from a player's perspective. I found as I developed as a producer personal tastes became more transparent as you tend to concentrate more on what's good or bad.

ST: What do you see as the main function of the producer ?
DC: The exact role will vary from project to project but generally I see the producer as a bit of an Edward Woodward.
ST: What - a fart in the bath?
DC: NO! - I mean The Equaliser. Someone who can make up the difference in order to keep things running smoothly- to make sure a session doesn't get bogged down. If a player has a mental block with a part or the singer's voice starts to go the producer would sense this early and steer the session to more productive waters. It could mean other things too, like helping with a feel or an arrangement or the odd lyric, or if things are running smoothly just making sure everyone is happy and getting them a drink! (This is rare-Ed.) Of course there are also the traditional responsibilities like booking studios and players and being accountable for the budget to whoever's paying the bill.

ST: How would you deal with a "precious" artist?
DC: The whole thing is based on trust, and if it ain't there - forget it. I've seen bands forced into a working relationship with a producer with some disastrous results. All the backstabbing that can go on is ugly and could be avoided if people were honest up front. You have to make sure mutual trust exists before attempting any recording. It may take a while to develop- that's where pre-production comes in.

You need enough time to get a vibe established with the artist. Pre-production is crucial, though you can over-do it, I mean you don't want to work the life out of a piece before it's recorded. Some magic things will only ever be played once and you want that to be when the tape is rolling. Also, I would always be ready for first takes - it takes a lot of awareness to know when something is as good as it's going to get. After witnessing lots of music being created you start to understand the psychology behind it.

ST: What is your basic approach to mixing?
DC: I see mixing as an extension of arranging. Of course you need to be current about what sounds you are using - hopefully because you're hip and not because of some contrived effort to be fashionable! If a piece has vocals then they are the centre of focus for the listener - everything else in the mix is used to frame them. How you would place instruments and when to use a part is dictated by where the vocals are heading. A part that was been recorded from start to finish might end up only on the fade out. If something that took hours to record is not working - ditch it. Sometimes a bold brush stroke is called for.

When you're mixing something complex there is a series of little puzzles to be solved with parts and sounds before the piece starts to shape up, and if you stay open and don't have any preconceived ideas you get presented with little signposts that steer you along the way. After a while you might get a hunch about how a mix should be sounding and the signposts help the decision making process.

Once you have your arrangement together with mutes you can start to actually "mix" something by checking the internal balance of each section and then adding that to the track. This helps to get a transparent mix that sounds the same when you take it away. I mix mainly at low level and take a lot of short breaks.

ST: You had a reputation for being a bit of an up-start...
DC: Really? It's funny how people can interpret things. I know I have a competitive streak and passion for what I do, always wanting to improve the recordings being made. Let's face it - this is not the public service! ...Hmmm - maybe I have mellowed out a bit since then...

ST: Are there any particular moments during your career which stand out?
DC: Just the opportunity to work with so many brilliant musicians and creative people. Their talent invariably rubs off on you to some degree and you know what they say- "originality lies in being able to successfully disguise your influences".

ST: What about the future?
DC: These communications gadgets are great, aren't they? New formats are changing the way we mix but hopefully not the way we record - I mean the inspiration should still be the same, shouldn't it?

ST: You mean money?
DC: Very funny. No, I think people will always relate to music that comes from the heart. We just have to embrace the new technologies and learn whatever skills necessary to remain valid. The alternative is finding a new career- journalist, perhaps?