Associated Independent Recording
Associated Independent Recording (AIR) is one of the large, independent recording studios that was founded in 1965 on Oxford Street in London by Beatles producer George Martin as a production company after he left the record label EMI . Initially, the production company consisted only of music producers who carried out their music productions for performers in foreign recording studios.
History of origin
George Martin was increasingly dissatisfied that he was not adequately involved in the growing success of his productions by EMI, because the now renowned producer received a fixed salary as an employee, but no sales-related royalties from record sales. That is why he resigned in mid-1964, when the Beatles he produced in particular were already able to produce many hits with million-seller status. He brought the EMI group under such pressure that they offered him a three percent profit share for 1964. For 1963 it was pre-calculated, he would have it deserves as a producer by the profit sharing gross 66,000 pounds, of which the Parlophone (salaries and other fixed costs) would be deducted from 55,000 pounds -Costs, so he would have received net 11,000 pounds - compared to its actual Fixed salary of £ 3,000 annually. So EMI had made a profit of 2.2 million pounds in 1963 through George Martin. The calculation showed a crucial flaw at Martin's expense: the costs had already been deducted from EMI's net profit, so that the parlophone costs did not have to be deducted again from Martin's royalties. When Martin realized this, he left EMI in August 1965 and, with a loan of 5,000 pounds, founded AIR in London, a production company independent of record labels, initially without its own recording studio.
Own recording studio
The production company AIR had to use other studios (for example Abbey Road Studios ) and pay rent for them due to the lack of their own recording studios . The capitalless Martin was therefore looking for sponsors who should finance the establishment of his own recording studio. When this was successful, his ambitious plans were implemented with a time lag. After the construction costs for the recording studio had almost doubled and triggered a financial crisis, it was opened in Oxford Street on October 7, 1970. The first recordings were made here on October 9, 1970 for Cilla Black's LP You're My World . This was followed by the album A Lot of Bottle by the Climax Blues Band , which was produced by Chris Thomas, who switched to AIR in March 1968.
With George Martin, other important creative people had left the EMI group in 1965: his longtime assistant Ron Richards, Columbia's producer John Burgess and Peter Sullivan, who was assistant to producer Wally J. Ridley for a long time at HMV. Each of the four partners received a 25% stake in the capital of AIR. Many of the performers went with the producers to have them produced by AIR, but kept their record contracts with the EMI labels. Therefore, EMI felt compelled to sign a contract with AIR. Thereafter, AIR received 7% of the retail price from EMI for a plate produced. In the case of artists under contract with EMI, AIR also received a production royalty of 2% of the retail price. That was not the case for the Beatles: Here EMI was only willing to pay half a percent of the retail price for British sales, in the USA only 5% of the costs of the press factories. Despite its continued success, AIR did not become wealthy as a result.
AIR studios on Montserrat
In 1979, Martin opened the AIR studios branch on the Caribbean island of Montserrat . The first album produced in the studios was Real To Reel by Climax Blues Band from 1979. Martin traveled to some productions especially for the album Time Exposure by the Little River Band (August 1981). The Police recorded the million-seller Every Breath You Take and other titles for the LP Synchronicity between December 1982 and February 1983. Artists like Paul McCartney , Rush , Pink Floyd , Black Sabbath , Sheena Easton , Luther Vandross and Supertramp have also recorded records here. Between November 1984 and March 1985 a. a. for Dire Straits the album Brothers in Arms , the Rolling Stones recorded their album Steel Wheels between March 29 and June 29, 1989. A few months later, the studio was largely destroyed by Hurricane Hugo on September 17, 1989 . The complete destruction of the studio and a large part of the island then brought about the eruption of the Soufrière Hills volcano on June 25, 1997.
AIR Lyndhurst in London
As a result of the destruction by the hurricane, a new studio complex with excellent acoustics was opened in December 1992 in the converted Victorian church Lyndhurst Hall (built in 1880 by the architect Alfred Waterhouse ) in the northern part of London (district of Hampstead ). Here, too, the estimated renovation costs almost doubled. Prince Charles attended the opening . The first recording session was the film music for Son of the Pink Panther, recorded by Henry Mancini in January 1993 . In March 1993, Chrysalis Records and the Japanese electronics group Pioneer each took over half of the shares in AIR in a joint venture . Chrysalis was able to almost amortize the cost of one million pounds for the acquisition within a year through the profits from AIR, as AIR had meanwhile developed into an internationally sought-after recording studio. In 22 years, AIR has produced 22 British number one hits. The renovation of the church cost almost £ 20 million, which the two consorts shared.
Furnishing
Lyndhurst consists of four recording studios and a television recording post-production department. Lyndhurst Hall , the meeting room of the former church, is planned with an area of 300 m² for symphonic ensembles of over 120 people. There is also a capacity of 500 guests; it is the largest of the recording studios. Studio 1 can accommodate around 50 people with an area of 140 m², the recording system is designed for 72 channels, the mixer in studio 2 for 80 channels. The first assignment here was the Dire Straits live album On the Night from March 1992. Studio 3 was one of the first digital mixing studios in the world.
The studios were expanded for film music recordings and for post-production. The Internet Movie Database According to the AIR Studios 176 film scores were produced.
Today the AIR studios are among the world's most renowned recording studios. For Mark Cunningham, they are perhaps the best studios in the world.
sale
On February 8, 2006, the Chrysalis / Pioneer consortium sold the AIR studios for £ 3.3 million to Richard Boats, owner of Strongroom Recording Studios
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ George Martin with Jeremy Hornsby, All You Need is Ears , 1994, pp. 179 ff.
- ↑ George Martin with Jeremy Hornsby, All You Need is Ears , 1994, p. 182.
- ↑ George Martin with Jeremy Hornsby, All You Need is Ears , 1994, p. 261.
- ^ Billboard Magazine , March 6, 1993, p. 42.
- ^ Billboard Magazine , April 11, 1998: George Martin, Producer, Composer, Author, Knight , pp. 45 ff.
- ^ A b John Shepherd: Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World , 2003, p. 646.
- ^ Internet Movie Database
- ^ Mark Cunningham, Good Vibrations: A History of Record Production , 1998, p. 347.