Why everyone finds inspiration at Aaron Dessner's Long Pond Studio

We traveled to a special place this week: Long Pond Studio in upstate New York. It's the home and workplace of Aaron Dessner, a member of the indie rock band The National and a GRAMMY-winning producer behind some of this year's biggest albums. We discuss the alchemy that's happened there with artists like Gracie Abrams, Noah Kahan, Marcus Mumford and Taylor Swift.

00:00 Welcome to Long Pond

01:03 Sleep Well Beast, the first album made here

02:11 Building a studio that lets nature in

05:58 How folklore put Long Pond on the map

06:57 The chance meeting behind Mumford & Sons' Prizefighter

10:38 Taylor Swift's out-of-the-blue text

13:08 "Cardigan" arrives at 3 a.m.

16:49 Making space for artists in the room

19:29 How Aaron starts a song

25:02 Dad's drum set and growing up with twin Bryce

28:44 Music as a refuge

30:21 Where does music come from?

34:35 Producing without "peeing on a tree"

38:46 Chasing hits vs. the "ugly ducklings"

42:24 Meeting Gracie Abrams and writing in the room

46:25 Pop pressure and making "That's So True"

50:55 "I still feel like a kid"

53:05 What's inspiring Aaron now

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Anthony Mason, the host of Alchemy, is also a Special Correspondent with CBS News. One of the most versatile and experienced television journalists, Anthony co-hosted CBS This Morning: Saturday for seven years (2012-2019), and then the weekday CBS This Morning broadcast for two more. But he may be best known for his interviews with artists like Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin, Dolly Parton, Annie Leibovitz, Judi Dench, David Hockney, and André 3000. He has won a dozen Emmy Awards. In 2023, the Songwriters Hall of Fame presented him their Patron of the Arts Award. And for the past three years he has hosted the GRAMMY Hall of Fame Gala.