Man of Two Thousand Tracks

Visconti, in all black, spun around to face the control panel. The paper cone, now on a coffee table, uncurled and became a lyric sheet again, for a song called “Skin in the Game.” He gave directions via intercom to Harford, who was in a remote booth laying down the lead vocal. Muldoon, in an easy chair, appraised his phrasings. A stanza kept tripping Harford up: “I used to like long hours in court / In which they tried to pin / A crime on somebody in thrall / To oxycontin or alcohol.” The last line was a mouthful. Muldoon gave Harford permission to try “oxy or alcohol” instead. Harford did. It scanned.