I dunno. I like having total control of my songs as well. But sometimes having someone point things out to me that I didn't notice is helpful.
Well yeah, who wouldn't? But at the end of the day, as I have learned, someone always knows something better than you do. I'm a writer, and a damn good one. But I'd be a fool if I didn't let an editor look at my stuff and make changes to it. As long as the changes make sense and make it a better product, I'm completely ok with it.
The Tesla story I just wrote and published. One of my staff folks looked it over, tweaked two of my paragraphs (sentence changes) and removed another one. Could my original have been published as it was? Certainly. But did the changes made make sense and make it a better story? Yes. So I put my ego aside and let those changes be made, even if I might think what I wrote initially was just fine.
And I also do that (be an editor) for the same guy, and re-write sections and re-order his work from time to time as it is necessary. I pass it back to him, and 99 percent of the time, he signs off on it...even though I may have made a significant change. It's called trust in someone else to help something good, get better. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but you have to take those chances.
That's what Mike Portnoy can't do. He felt he got burned so badly, that now he can't let anyone do anything to DT's music that he doesn't necessarily agree with...even if the person suggesting the changes knows what they are talking about.
now, I'm not saying I KNOW what goes on behind the scenes. Of course I don't.
All I DO know is, given all the comments I have read from Mike over the past decade, I feel he doesn't trust anyone to make decisions on the band's work, other than himself and JP. People can give input, but he doesn't trust anyone enough to go against his own vision once in awhile, and try something that may be a little different. And that all stems from the bad experiences of years ago, and his own ego.
MP does a ton of great things, and I have a lot of respect for how much he gives to fans. But like anyone, he has some failings, and his (in my opinion) unwillingness to let go of some of that creative control and decision making is making Dream Theater really one-dimensional and stale.