Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios, created in November of
1931 by
EMI in
London, is best known as the legendary
recording studio used by the
rock bands The Beatles,
Cliff Richard,
Pink Floyd and
The Shadows. The studios are located in
Abbey Road, in
St John's Wood in the
City of Westminster.
Built as a
Georgian townhouse in
1831, the premises were acquired by The
Gramophone Company in
1931 and converted into studios. The neighbouring house is also owned by the studio and used to house musicians. During the mid-1900s the studio was extensively used by leading British conductor Sir
Malcolm Sargent, whose house was just around the corner from the studio.
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The iconic album cover. The studios are just off the picture to the left. |
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Abbey Road as it looks today. |
The Gramophone Company later amalgamated with
Columbia Graphophone Company to form
EMI which took over the studios. The studios were then known as
EMI studios until they changed their name to Abbey Road Studios formally in the
1970s.
Studio Two at Abbey Road became a centre of rock music in
1958 when
Cliff Richard and the Drifters (later Cliff Richard and
The Shadows), recorded
Move It, arguably the first European
rock 'n' roll single. It also witnessed the beginnings of a change from "rock 'n' roll" to "Rock". The Beatles also found great success in Studio Two, and during the early-to-mid-
'60s, the Beatles and Cliff and The Shadows became almost like joint owners of the studio, with friendly battles for recording time.
It was the Beatles who broke with tradition, changing recording techniques, and forever changing the boundaries of what was considered Popular music. Inventing flanging, backwards recording, automatic double tracking, and the first band to use feedback on a recording, The Beatles utilised Abbey Road studios to full effect.
Abbey Road Studios is most closely associated with
The Beatles, who recorded almost all of their albums and singles there between 1962 and 1970. The Beatles named their
1969 album,
Abbey Road, after the street where the studio is located (the recording studio, formely called EMI Studios, would only be named Abbey Road after the Beatles record in
1970). The cover photo for that album was taken by Iain Macmillan outside Abbey Road studios, with the result that the pedestrian
zebra crossing outside the studio, where the Fab Four were photographed, soon became a place of pilgrimage for Beatles fans from all over the world. Among the less desirable effects of this notoreity has been the unsightly
graffiti written on the studio fence by visitors and the regular theft of road signs.
Pink Floyd recorded most of their late '60s to mid-1970s albums (like
Dark Side of the Moon,
Atom Heart Mother and
Wish You Were Here) at the studio as well.
Elliott Smith also recorded "In the Lost and Found" from his "Figure 8" album at the studio.
The Shadows named their
Live At Abbey Road album after the studio, with the cover spoofing the Beatles' album. Studio Two was also used by
the Hollies,
Manfred Mann,
the Seekers,
Gerry and the Pacemakers,
Martin Briley and others.
Notable producers and engineers who have worked at Abbey Road include
Sir George Martin,
Geoff Emerick,
Norman "Hurricane" Smith,
Ken Scott,
Mike Stone,
Alan Parsons, Phil McDonald, Richard Lush and
Ken Townshend, who invented the groundbreaking studio effect known as
automatic double tracking (ADT). The chief mastering engineer at Abbey Road was Chris "Vinyl" Blair, who started his career early on as a tape deck operator. He worked his way up the ranks to get to the top. A highlight of Chris's career was receiving an award for
Radiohead's
Kid A. Chris died on
November 7 2005.
Kanye West had a live concert in the Abbey Road Studios in late 2005, following the release of the live-album version of
Late Registration. Featured on the cover is his mascot ,
Drop Out Bear, on Abbey Road street (imitation of the Beatles cover).
Abbey Road Studios got its start in the
film scoring business in
1980, when
Anvil Post Production formed a partnership with the studio, called Anvil-Abbey Road Screen Sound. The partnership started when Anvil was left without a scoring stage when
Korda Studios were demolished. It ended in
1984, when EMI merged with
Thorn to become
Thorn EMI.
Abbey Road's success in the scoring business continued after the partnership ended. Films whose scores were recorded at the studios include:
*1981
Raiders of the Lost Ark*1982
Greystoke - The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes*1983
Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi*1984
Ladyhawke*1985
Brazil,
A Room with a View*1986
The Jewel of the Nile,
Shanghai Surprise,
Aliens*1987
Madame Sousatzka,
The Last Emperor*1988
A Man for All Seasons,
Shirley Valentine,
Willow*1990
Memphis Belle,
Shining Through*1991
City of Joy,
The Fisher King*1992
The Endangered*1993
The Man Without a Face,
M. Butterfly,
The Innocent*1994
Immortal Beloved,
Interview with the Vampire,
Little Women,
The Madness of King George*1995
Apollo 13,
Brassed Off,
Braveheart,
Talk of Angels*1996
Carla's Song,
The Crucible,
G.I. Jane*1997
Deep Impact,
Desperate Measures,
Event Horizon,
Lost in Space,
Titanic Town,
Virus,
Wilde* 1998
Hilary and Jackie,
Jakob the Liar,
Practical Magic,
The Prince of Egypt,
What Dreams May Come* 1999
Bicentennial Man,
Chocolat,
Dogma,
Eyes Wide Shut,
I Dreamed of Africa,
Message in a Bottle,
Notting Hill,
Rules of Engagement,
Sleepy Hollow,
Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace,
The Talented Mr. Ripley* 2000
Thirteen Days,
Captain Corelli's Mandolin,
Chicken Run,
Hollow Man,
Rugrats in Paris: The Movie,
Shrek* 2001
From Hell,
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring,
We Were Soldiers* 2002
The Four Feathers,
Gangs of New York,
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers,
Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones,
The Hours,
The Life of David Gale,
Thunderpants,
Punch-Drunk Love* 2003
Bon Voyage,
Johnny English,
Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life,
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen,
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,
Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas,
Veronica Guerin* 2004
Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London,
Around the World in 80 Days,
Cold Mountain,
Beyond the Sea,
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,
Mona Lisa Smile,
Sylvia,
The Phantom of the Opera,
Birth,
King Arthur,
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow,
Alfie,
The Edge of Reason,
The Little Prince - A Magical Opera*2005
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy,
Proof,
Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the SithIn March/April
2005 Abbey Road Studios held a film festival. It included a tour of Studio One and Studio Two (excluding control rooms). They displayed several films in Studio One associated with the studio and a photographic exhibition in Studio Two. Also on display were several microphones, two upright pianos and a
Hammond Organ.
There have been strong rumors that U2 will be recording their new album with Greg Fidelman and Rick Rubin at Abbey Road Studios in September 2006.
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Abbey Road Studios*
Abbey Road Cafe
