Blackbird Studio

Last updated

Blackbird Studio
FormerlyCreative Recording
Industry Recording studio
FoundedBerry Hill, Tennessee, U.S. (2002 (2002))
FounderJohn McBride, Martina McBride
Headquarters
Berry Hill, Tennessee
,
U.S.
Number of locations
1
Website blackbirdstudio.com

Blackbird Studio is a music recording studio located at 2806 Azalea Place in Berry Hill, Tennessee. Originally built as Creative Workshop II and later operated as Creative Recording, the studio changed ownership and was rebuilt and renamed Blackbird Studio in 2002. Blackbird has since become one of the largest recording facilities in Nashville, with one of the largest collections of vintage musical instruments and recording equipment in the United States. [1]

Contents

Blackbird has been the site of numerous notable recordings by artists including Vince Gill, The White Stripes, Kings of Leon, Taylor Swift, Hiromi, George Strait, Merle Haggard, Kenny Rogers, Willie Nelson, Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Bon Jovi, Kid Rock, Faith Hill, Rascal Flatts, Jimmy Buffett, Tim McGraw, Dolly Parton, Randy Travis, Martina McBride, and many more. [2]

History

Creative Workshop II and Creative Recording

In 1982 songwriter and producer Buzz Cason expanded his Creative Workshop recording studio by building Creative Workshop II next door, designed by George Augspurger. [3] In 1986, Cason sold Creative Workshop II to Creative's vice president, engineer and producer Brent Maher, who renamed the studio Creative Recording.

John and Martina McBride

John McBride, who had dreamed of owning his own recording studio but was turned down for an SBA loan and instead approved for a live sound system company, had built a successful live sound business in his hometown of Wichita, Kansas. After meeting and marrying a not-yet famous singer by the name of Martina, the two moved to Nashville, Tennessee, on New Year's Eve 1989. McBride joined Garth Brooks' sound crew and became Brooks' concert production manager, eventually selling his live sound company MD Systems to Clair Brothers in 1997. Over the next several years, McBride was buying recording equipment and building a studio in his garage.

Blackbird Studio

On January 15, 2002, the McBrides bought the Creative Recording studio located at 2806 Azalea Place in Berry Hill, an area sometimes referred to as the "Music Hill" counterpart to Nashville's "Music Row". An avid fan of the Beatles, McBride re-named the studio Blackbird Studio. [2] Over the next year, McBride enlisted the help of audio engineer Vance Powell and invested $3 million to expand the 1970s-era George Augspurger-designed studio. [4] with the goal of establishing a world-class studio and providing his wife Martina with a greatly improved recording space. [1]

Initially a single-room studio, Blackbird's Studio A featured a Neve 8078 analog mixing console that was custom-built for Motown's Los Angeles studio before being owned and used by Donald Fagen. McBride purchased the console from Fagen in 2002, and restored and modified it for Blackbird. [5] Studio A's live room features a moveable ceiling. [6]

In 2004, McBride bought the land behind the initial building and built Studios C and D. [4] Designed by George Massenburg and Mike Cronin, together with RPG Diffusor Systems founder Peter D'Antonio, Ph.D., Studio C features a primitive root sequence diffusor made up of 138,646 individual pieces of wood. Studio C originally featured an 80-channel SSL 9000K mixing console, while Studio D features a 96-channel API mixing console. [7] Also in 2004, Blackbird Audio Rentals, headed by Rolff Zwiep, was launched to rent vintage and new equipment owned by the studio. [8] [2]

In 2006 Blackbird added Studio F, a 750 square foot mix room. Studio G, where Jacquire King established a residency from 2013 to 2019, has a modified Quad 8 console. In 2015, King was quoted as saying that Blackbird Studio G was his "favorite recording space in the world." [7] At this time, with nine studios, Blackbird had become the largest recording facility in Nashville. [2]

The studio is known for its collection of vintage recording gear, including one of the most extensive collection of vintage and new microphones, [9] [10] as well as its exceptional live rooms, and a variety of echo chambers. [11]

Producers and engineers working at Blackbird have included George Massenburg, Dann Huff, Tony Brown, Ethan Johns, Richard Dodd, Niko Bolas, Rob Cavallo, Peter Asher, Phil Ramone and many others. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electrical Audio</span> Recording studio in Chicago, USA

Electrical Audio is a recording facility founded in Chicago, Illinois by musician and recording engineer Steve Albini in 1997. Hundreds of independent music projects have been recorded there. Unlike most producers, Albini refused to take any royalties from musicians who record at the studio.

George Y. Massenburg is a Grammy award-winning recording engineer and inventor. Working principally in Baltimore, Los Angeles, Nashville, and Macon, Georgia, Massenburg is widely known for submitting a paper to the Audio Engineering Society in 1972 regarding the parametric equalizer.

Record One is a recording studio complex in the Sherman Oaks neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Originally founded in 1979, the studio has been the site of numerous commercially successful and award-winning recordings. Since 2015, Record One has been under the ownership of Dr. Dre and his business partner Larry Chatman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neve 8078</span>

The Neve 8078 was the last of the "80 series" hand-wired analogue mixing consoles designed and manufactured by Neve Electronics, founded in 1961 by the English electronics engineer Rupert Neve, for high-end recording studios during the 1970s. Some were custom built for major studios like CBS Sony.

<i>White Christmas</i> (Martina McBride album) 1998 studio album by Martina McBride

White Christmas is the fifth album and first Christmas album by country singer Martina McBride issued by RCA Nashville in 1998. The album was reissued in 1999 with new artwork and two new tracks. It was re-released for the second time in October 2007 with newer artwork and four new tracks added. In 2013, it was reissued for a third time as The Classic Christmas Album. The re-release added her Elvis Presley duet, "Blue Christmas", which was originally released on his posthumous album Christmas Duets, while removing the track "Jingle Bells" and revising the track listing.

Mike Hedges is a British audio producer/engineer best known for his work with the Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and Manic Street Preachers. During his career, Hedges has worked with an eclectic roster of artists ranging from rock and pop acts such as U2, Dido, Travis, Texas, the Beautiful South, and Everything but the Girl, to cult-indie band the Cooper Temple Clause and classically oriented projects, the Priests and Sarah Brightman. His creative input and influence dramatically impacted the trajectories of bands such as the Cure, the Associates, Manic Street Preachers, and Travis.

<i>Martina</i> (album) 2003 studio album by Martina McBride

Martina is the seventh studio album by American country music artist Martina McBride. It was released in September 2003 by RCA Nashville. It was a number one on the country album charts and number seven on the US album charts. The album produced four singles on the country charts: "This One's for the Girls" at #3, "In My Daughter's Eyes" at #4, "How Far" at #12 and "God's Will" at #16. "This One's for the Girls", which featured backing vocals from Faith Hill, Carolyn Dawn Johnson and McBride's two daughters, was also McBride's first and only Number One hit on the Adult Contemporary charts. The album was certified 2× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.

<i>The Time Has Come</i> (Martina McBride album) 1992 studio album by Martina McBride

The Time Has Come is the debut studio album by American country music artist Martina McBride, released on May 5, 1992, by RCA Records Nashville. The album rose to the No. 49 position on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. It includes the singles "The Time Has Come", "Cheap Whiskey" and "That's Me", all of which charted on the Billboard country charts. "The Time Has Come" was the highest-peaking of the three, reaching #23. "When You Are Old" was later recorded by Gretchen Peters on her 1996 album The Secret of Life.

James Elmore "Buzz" Cason was an American rock singer, songwriter, record producer and author.

Jacquire King is an American record producer, recording engineer and mixer. King has worked with such notable artists as Kings of Leon, Tom Waits, James Bay, Kaleo, Modest Mouse, Shania Twain, Buddy Guy, Norah Jones, Of Monsters and Men, Cold War Kids, Punch Brothers, City and Colour, Robert Ellis, Dawes and others. His work has received more than 35 Grammy Award nominations to date.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Audio engineer</span> Engineer involved in the recording, reproduction, or reinforcement of sound

An audio engineer helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, and reinforcement of sound. Audio engineers work on the "technical aspect of recording—the placing of microphones, pre-amp knobs, the setting of levels. The physical recording of any project is done by an engineer…"

Gravity Studios is a recording studio in Chicago, Illinois founded in 1993 by Doug McBride. Starting with the single "Seether" by local band Veruca Salt, Gravity has hosted bands such as the Plain White T's, Silversun Pickups, and Fall Out Boy.

Burgess Macneal is an American electrical engineer, recording engineer and inventor. He is most widely known for his role in the invention of parametric equalization and operation/ownership of the Sontec and ITI brands.

Quad Studios Nashville was a four-studio recording facility established as Quadrafonic Sound Studio in 1971 on Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee, US. The studio was the location of numerous notable recording sessions, including Neil Young's Harvest, Jimmy Buffett's "Margaritaville", Joan Baez' "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down", and Dobie Gray's "Drift Away". The studio's location has been the home of Sienna Recording Studios since 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brent Maher</span> American songwriter and record producer

Brent Maher is a producer, engineer, and songwriter currently residing in Nashville, Tennessee. He has produced and engineered six Grammy-winning records and received awards from the CMA, ACM, CCMA, ASCAP, SOCAN and NSAI. Maher engineered classic recordings like Ike and Tina Turner’s “Proud Mary” and The 5th Dimension's "Age of Aquarius". He discovered The Judds and produced all ten of their albums, writing many of their hit songs. Maher has also served two terms on the board of directors of the Academy of Country Music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F. Reid Shippen</span> American record producer

F. Reid Shippen is a mixer, engineer and producer, currently based in Nashville, Tennessee. He has mixed a wide variety of records including Cosmic Hallelujah by Kenny Chesney, Lights Out by Ingrid Michaelson, The Mountain by Dierks Bentley, When I Was Younger by Colony House, and Eye On It by TobyMac. Shippen has mixed nine Grammy Award winning projects and received the Audio Engineer of the Year award at the 54th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards.

Vance Powell is an American six-time Grammy Award winning record producer, engineer and mixer. His credits include Phish, Chris Stapleton, Jack White, Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown, The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather, The White Stripes, Arctic Monkeys, Wolfmother, Deadly Apples, Seasick Steve, Black Prairie, The Revivalists, Tinariwen, JEFF the Brotherhood, Illiterate Light, Daniel Ellsworth & The Great Lakes, and Martina McBride, among many others.

<i>Reckless</i> (Martina McBride album) 2016 studio album by Martina McBride

Reckless is the thirteenth studio album by American country music singer Martina McBride. The album was released on April 29, 2016, by Nash Icon Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shannon Forrest</span> American drummer

Shannon Forrest is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session work. As a session drummer, he has contributed to the work of many well-known artists, and he is also a producer and engineer. Additionally, he was the touring drummer of Toto from 2014 to 2019, and again from 2024 to the present.

Helios was a brand of mixing consoles custom-designed and built for use in recording studios. Produced from 1969 to 1979, Helios consoles were utilized by many key recording studios to produce numerous notable recordings and played a vital part in the history of British rock.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Kenny, Tom (May 1, 2008). "Blackbird Studio". Mix. Retrieved November 18, 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Gallagher, Matt (November 19, 2015). "Blackbird Studio Names New Manager". Mix. Retrieved November 18, 2024.
  3. ↑ Millard, Bob (October 23, 1982). "Nashville's Major Studios Report A Healthy Year". Billboard. p. 48. Retrieved November 19, 2024.
  4. 1 2 Crane, Larry (March 2011). "Vance Powell: When Opportunity Knocks, Grab it by the..." Tape Op. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
  5. ↑ Berry, Gus (January 2022). "KIT Plugins: BB N105 V2 Plug-In". Tape Op. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
  6. ↑ "KIT Plugins release BB Chamber A". Sound On Sound. May 28, 2024. Retrieved November 18, 2024.
  7. 1 2 Frost, Matt (May 2015). "Jacquire King, Lowell Reynolds & James Bay: Recording Chaos And The Calm". Sound On Sound. SOS Publications Group. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Blackbird Audio Rentals". Sound On Sound. June 26, 2009. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
  9. ↑ Kenny, Tom (May 5, 2023). "Sidebar: The Technological 'Deep Cuts' of Inside Blackbird". Mix. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
  10. ↑ Tingen, Paul (December 2008). "Secrets Of The Mix Engineers: Jacquire King". Sound On Sound. SOS Publications Group. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  11. ↑ Tingen, Paul (October 2007). "Secrets of the Mix Engineers: Joe Chiccarelli". Sound On Sound. SOS Publications Group. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.