What benefit is there to hiring a producer for my record?

Everyone's heard the old hollywood actor's line, "what i really want is to direct". and while Clint Eastwood may have had a pretty convincing run directing himself in movies, it took him 20 years of acting first and most who try to jump the gap aren't so lucky. Directors typically don't write scripts, hold cameras, set lights, choose costumes or stand in front of the camera, yet in the end, the story is told through their eyes and the film takes a shape that reflects that vision. It is their job to tell the best version of that story. The same is true of record producers. They help the band, the singer and the song realize the best versions of themselves. Producers keep an ear to the total picture, allowing everyone else to focus on their own roles, drawing out the best parts, weaving them together and patching in any missing pieces.