WITNESSING RECORDED HISTORY

My recent release Land of Enchantment was tracked in Studios 2,3 & 5 of East West Studios in LA, the most iconic recording studio in America. I am very grateful for this amazing experience.

Studio 3 has seen The Beach Boys including “California Girls”, “Good Vibrations”, and “God Only Knows”, The Mamas & The Papas hits “California Dreaming”, “Monday, Monday”, America’s song “Goodbye”, Stevie Nicks, Bonnie Raitt “Nick of Time” album. to name a few.

Studio 2 includes many of Frank Sinatras hits form the 1950s forward, Ricky Nelson’s “Fools Rush In”, the Righteous Brothers, Dionne Warwick’s hit “Déjá Vu”, Blonde, Tom Petty, Elton John, Blink 182, Greenday to name a few.

Studio 3 (Beach Boys, Momas & Popas) pics 1-3 , Studio 2 (Elvis & Frank Sinatra) pics 4-6, Bill Putnam original owner, iconic engineer and builder of the rooms still in use today.

Studio 2 hosted all basic tracking live to tape (disc). After a few rehearsal passes, generally three, we tracked for keeps. This included guitar, piano, bass, drums, sax and aerophone. Vocals, cello percussion and Dapo’s piano overdubs went in next. All duet solo exchanges between Dapo, Tom Scott and myself went in live during initial basic tracking. A magic seemed to flow thru the room and wires of that console as we tracked some pretty challenging music.

I played things I would have never performed under most conditions and the recording environ became very challenging as our allotted studio time began to run thin. With the best studio musicians LA had to offer, things moved along seamlessly. Any other combination of people would have taken considerably longer thereby putting the whole project at risk.

Overdubbing was done between Studio 5 and Studio 3 as the clock ran down. The producer underestimated the time it would take to track all the material which forced us to leave Studio 2 before all overdubs could be finished. A lot of back end editing and production work had to be finished at Clayton Studios in St. Louis, MO.

Two of the arrangements, Norwegian Wood and By The Time I Get To Phoenix, could not be fully realized which meant rearrangements and on the spot flexibility. By The Time I get To Phoenix was finished in Studio 5 with percussion and guitar. Native Dancer, Norwegian Wood and Emerald Springs were completed in Studio 3 with a rewrite on the cello part which was tracked in St. Louis.

Looking back I am very grateful to have had this once in a lifetime experience and opportunity to track and work in Studios 2, 3 & 5 at East West Studios. Clark Germain, my engineer, was the engineer for Bonnie Raitt’s Nick of Time session which happened in Studio 3. It was really great listening talking with him about all the people he had recorded; from Hebbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter to Michael Jackson to Bonnie Raitt and beyond.

Shots of control room and main studio 2 room. Pictured in photo 3 is Dapo on keys, an upstairs area and below is the iso room where I tracked Norwegian Wood as a trio live with Vinnie, Timothy and my new, first time ever recorded and played Imrat guitar.

Picture 6 is the private room we had for Studio 2 rentals only. Each studio has its own themed room for clients to access. Actually, other than the studios, the whole place was done up kind of like 1900, turn of the century, French brothel.

Below is a history of the rooms I was in as pulled from the East West Studio website. In the words of Spock, “Quite Fascinating.”

Studio Facility PR Shots from L-R: Studio 2 pics 1-2, Studio 3 pics 3-4, Studio 5 pics5-6

1960’s

The early years of Studio Two were dominated by some of the most memorable recordings of American television, including the themes from The Beverly Hillbillies, Green Acres, and Hawaii Five-O. Other hits from the time in Studio Two include Ricky Nelson’s “Fools Rush In”, Wayne Newton’s “Danke Schoen”, and the Righteous Brothers’ “Soul & Inspiration”.

It was in Studio Three, however, that sound of the 60s generation came into being. Here, The Beach Boys recorded their masterpiece album Pet Sounds and some of their greatest hits, including “California Girls”, “Good Vibrations”, and “God Only Knows”. It was also here that The Mamas & The Papas recorded their smashes “California Dreaming”, “Monday, Monday” and “Dancing in the Street”. Other notable recordings from this period include Scott McKenzie’s “San Francisco”, “Make Your Own Kind of Music” by Mama Cass, Barry McGuire’s anti-war anthem “Eve of Destruction” and The Cowsills’ hit “Hair” from the musical “Hair”.

1970’s

In Studio Two, David Cassidy sang “I Think I Love You” from The Partridge Family, the themes were done from the TV show The Love Boat and the miniseries Roots, Dionne Warwick recorded her hit “Déjá Vu” and David Bowie mixed Iggy Pop’sgroundbreaking album Raw Power.

Dolly Parton’s soundtrack for the film 9 to 5 was recorded in Studio Three, along with the band America’s song “Goodbye” from their album Hat Trick. Disco reigned supreme with The DeFranco Family’s Save The Last Dance For Me and Herbie Hancock’sMonster. Throughout the building, scenes for the motion pictures A Star Is Born and You Light Up My Life were filmed.

1980’s

In Studio Three, Blondie cranked out some of their most famous hits, including “The Tide is High”and “Rapture”.

In 1985, Bill Putnam sold both United Studios and Western Recorders to engineer Allen Sides. Putnam’s health had been ailing for several years so he was anxious to sell his holdings. Allen Sides still had to convince Frank Sinatra though, who still owned a stake in the company. Once successful, Sides renamed both studios Ocean Way Recording.

Studio Two welcomed Elvis Costello for his album Spike and The Red Hot Chili Pepper’s Mother’s Milk. The Red Hot Chili Peppers would go on to make many more albums in this room. Donna Summers recorded Cats Without Claws in Studio Three along with Stevie Knicks’ Rock A Little.

1990’s

It was also during this time period that Studio Five was built out of the old UREI offices for alternative rock producer Scott Litt.

Studio Two had become the epicenter for rock music by this time, welcoming Iggy Pop, Slayer, Tom Petty, Incubus, AC/DC, Elton John, Blink 182, Greenday, Weezer, and the return of The Red Hot Chili Peppers for their hit album Californication.

Studio Five saw mixes from R.E.M., Liz Phair, The Indigo Girls, and Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged in New York.

In 1999, owner Allen Sides sold the building to computer magnate Rick Adams, who changed the name to Cello Studios.

2000’s

During the Cello years, the studios took on a more hard rock sound. Rage Against the Machine, System of a Down, Audioslave, Jimmy Eat World, Ryan Adams, Natalie Merchant, and Sum 41 made some of their best work during these years in Studio Two, along with the return of Weezer, Tom Petty, Blink 182, and The Red Hot Chili Peppers. The room became a favorite of legendary producer Rick Rubin.

The early work of The Mars Volta and Muse came through Studio Three and were mixed in Studio Five. Also in Studio Five, mixes were done for My Chemical Romance, Franz Ferdinand, and New Order, along with the soundtracks for the films Spider-Man, The Scorpion King, and Daredevil. The ambience of Studio One lent a large sound to albums by AFI, Tool, and Macy Gray, as well as HBO’s Six Feet Under.

In 2005, Cello Studios shut down and the studios were in danger of closing for good. Just before it was slated for demolition, EastWest Sounds owner Doug Rogers purchased the facility, who changed the studios to our contemporary name – EastWest Studios. First though, Rogers brought in famed designer Phillippe Starck to completely remodel the lobby, kitchen, and artist lounges in order to bring the facility into the 21st century, while preserving the historic look and sound of the recording rooms.

In 2009, EastWest Studios opened its door for business. The soundtracks for the films Burlesque and Get Him To The Greek were recorded in Studio One and 2, respectively, and pop phenomenon Rihanna recorded work for her album Rated R in Studio Three.

2010’s

Studio Two is still rocking with the return of Muse, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Slipknot, Slayer, and Metallica. Rihanna, Demi Lovato, Ariana Grande, Janelle Monáe, and Lady Gaga have recorded some of their biggest chart toppers in Studio Three, which was also the site of scoring sessions for Gone Girl and the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise. Studio Five went through extensive renovations and reopened in 2014, hosting projects by Wu Tang Clan, Frank Ocean, Martin Garrix, and The War On Drugs Grammy-winning album A Deeper Understanding.