Originally Posted by Faceman

Well....I have no idea about production. So that's why I'm asking: Is it really the production that makes the songs sound like artist xyz or is it much more the way the songwriter writes it?
To me a producer has a hand in which instrument you can hear (or not), how prominent a mix is and how clear the sound comes out. But I can't imagine that a producer makes Livin' On A Prayer sound like AC/DC while the other one makes it sound like Soul Asylum and a third one makes it sound like the Backstreets Boys. To me that depends on the song, the hooks, the melody, the harmonics the songwriter writes. But please, correct me if I'm wrong.
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So to break it down once again: Up until DA, Jon wrote a song for the sake of the song. With the beginning of Crush he mostly wrote a song for the hope of having a hit.