Mastermind

Album: West Coast Time (2012)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • A track from her third studio album, West Coast Time, "Mastermind" finds Michelle Branch moving away from her traditional pop-country sound and more towards pop. She told Billboard magazine the tune "comes from kind of more of an urban background." Branch added that it has "this '60s, spy kind of feel" with a "very kind of spaghetti western guitar riff" that she compared to the Swedish alternative rock band Cardigans. "It definitely does sound anything like I've done so far," Branch concluded.
  • Mike Elizondo produced the song. The Los Angeles producer and songwriter is best known for his Hip-Hop collaborations with artists such as Eminem, 50 Cent and Dr. Dre but has also worked with such diverse talents as Regina Spektor, Maroon 5 and Carrie Underwood.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Daryl Hall

Daryl HallSongwriter Interviews

Daryl Hall's TV show is a hit, and he's been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - only one of these developments excites him.

Booker T. Jones

Booker T. JonesSongwriter Interviews

The Stax legend on how he cooked up "Green Onions," the first time he and Otis Redding saw hippies, and if he'll ever play a digital organ.

Fire On The Stage

Fire On The StageSong Writing

When you have a song called "Fire," it's tempting to set one - these guys did.

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat WorldSongwriter Interviews

Jim talks about the impact of "The Middle" and uses a tree metaphor to describe his songwriting philosophy.

Randy Houser

Randy HouserSongwriter Interviews

The "How Country Feels" singer talks Skynyrd and songwriting.

Carol Kaye

Carol KayeSongwriter Interviews

A top session musician, Carol played on hundreds of hits by The Beach Boys, The Monkees, Frank Sinatra and many others.