Devonshire Sound Studios was a music recording studio designed and built by David Mancini located at 10733 Magnolia Blvd in North Hollywood, California. Mancini is also known for designing and building the California Hollywood Recording Studios. [1] [2] The original Devonshire Studio was located in Granada Hills and the original partners were Ray Dewey, Glen Pace, Dick Stricklin and a little later Bill Comstock of The Four Freshmen. Ray met Bill when The Freshmen were recording Ray's song "Girls" for Liberty Records. Originally designed as a production studio, Devonshire soon required more space, more studios, a live chamber, parking, etc. The studio relocated to North Hollywood in 1971 and Mancini became a partner and builder.
At its peak as a music recording studio, Devonshire was more than 8,800 square feet (820 m2) and housed four studios, the largest of which was 25 feet (7.6 m) by 46 feet (14 m). The facility also included control rooms, three acoustical echo chambers, a lounge, a bar, a billiard and ping-pong table room, and a whirlpool spa.
Many hits were cut at Devonshire.
Billy Joel's album Streetlife Serenade was recorded at the studios in the spring of 1974. [3]
Jackie DeShannon's album New Arrangement was recorded at Devonshire in September 1975 under the direction of Michael Stewart on the Columbia label. Session artists and arrangers who worked on the album included Brian Wilson who sang backing vocals with his then wife Marilyn Wilson-Rutherford, Richard Carpenter who would go onto record Boat To Sail on the 1976 album Kind Of A Hush, Larry Knechtel, drummer Ronnie Tutt, Randy Edelman, Kenny Rankin, bassist John Kahn, and Buddy Emmons. [4]
In October and November 1976, Bing Crosby recorded tracks at the studios under the direction of Ken Barnes for the album Beautiful Memories . [5]
In 1976 Weather Report recorded Heavy Weather at the studios. Brian Risner, the engineer for Weather Report from 1972 to 1984, described the "air" in Weather Report's recordings as a product of the room acoustics at Devonshire. [6]
Ringo Starr recorded at the studios in August 1980 for the album Stop and Smell the Roses . [7]
The Jacksons recorded parts of their 1980 album Triumph at the studios.
Kelle Musgrave took over as studio manager in 1988 and bought in Warner rep and producer Rob Cavallo who had recorded and mixed Green Day’s breakout record Dookie and The Muffs eponymous first album. Additionally, Musgrave convinced producers John Purdell and Duane Baron to give the studio a shot. They went on to produce Ozzy Osbourne's legendary No More Tears , plus albums for Cinderella, Heart and many more. Tom Petty recorded parts of Full Moon Fever at Devonshire. Many other acts recorded at the studio including Bell Biv Devoe, Tupac, Beastie Boys, Suicidal Tendencies, Mötley Crüe, Fleetwood Mac and Roger Waters.
The Devonshire mixes were released as part of the 20th Anniversary Edition of Nirvana's Nevermind album. Producer Butch Vig (Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Green Day, Muse, Foo Fighters) began mixing Nevermind at Devonshire as soon as they were finished recording the album in May 1991; however, the label ultimately hired Andy Wallace to mix the record at a different studio. Vig pulled out the original mixes years later as Nirvana was getting ready to release the 20th Anniversary Edition. These original mixes are now known as "the Devonshire mixes". [1] [8]
The original North Hollywood Devonshire Studios building is now owned and operated by Salami Studios who refurbished it in 1992. Salami is a premier recording studio used primarily for cartoon voice-over work. Notable shows include SpongeBob SquarePants, The Ricky Gervais Show, Hey Arnold!, Dexter's Laboratory, The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius , Johnny Bravo , The Proud Family , and the Kung Fu Panda film series. [9]
The original Granada Hills Devonshire Studios buildings were demolished and replaced with apartments.
Nevermind is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a major label and the first to feature drummer Dave Grohl. Produced by Butch Vig, Nevermind features a more polished, radio-friendly sound than the band's prior work. It was recorded at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California, and Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin, in May and June 1991, and mastered that August at the Mastering Lab in Hollywood, California.
Siamese Dream is the second studio album by the American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins, released on July 27, 1993, by Virgin Records. The album was produced by Butch Vig and frontman Billy Corgan. Despite its recording sessions being fraught with difficulties and tensions, Siamese Dream debuted at number ten on the Billboard 200, and was eventually certified 4× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), with the album selling over six million copies worldwide, catapulting the Smashing Pumpkins to mainstream success and cementing them as a significant group in alternative music.
Bryan David "Butch" Vig is an American musician, record producer, and songwriter who is the drummer and co-producer of the rock band Garbage. Known for producing the diamond-selling Nirvana album Nevermind (1991), Vig also produced for several other alternative rock acts of the 1990s, including the Smashing Pumpkins, L7, and Sonic Youth. Some notable production credits of Vig include L7's Bricks are Heavy (1992) and the Smashing Pumpkins' Siamese Dream (1993).
With the Lights Out is a box set by the American rock band Nirvana, released on November 23, 2004. It contains three CDs and one DVD of previously rare or unreleased material, including B-sides, demos, and rehearsal and live recordings. The title comes from the lyrics of Nirvana's 1991 single "Smells Like Teen Spirit".
"Come as You Are" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by frontman and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the third track and the second single from the band's second studio album Nevermind, the single released in March 1992. It was the band's second and final American top 40 hit, reaching number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100, and second UK top 10 hit, reaching number nine on the UK Singles Chart. The single reached the top 10 in eight countries and the top 40 in eleven further countries.
"In Bloom" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It appears as the second track on the band's second album, Nevermind, released by DGC Records in September 1991.
"Lithium" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It appears as the fifth track on the band's second album, Nevermind, released by DGC Records in September 1991.
"Drain You" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It is the eighth track on their second album, Nevermind, released in September 1991. The song was released as a promotional single in late 1991, and also appeared as a b-side on UK retail editions of the first single from that album, "Smells Like Teen Spirit".
"On a Plain" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It is the 11th track on their second album, Nevermind, released in September 1991.
"Here She Comes Now"/"Venus in Furs" is a split single by American rock bands Nirvana and Melvins. It was released in June 1991 by The Communion Label.
"Endless, Nameless" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain, bassist Krist Novoselic, and drummer Dave Grohl. It is the 13th and final song on the band's second studio album, Nevermind, released in September 1991.
"Breed" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the fourth song on their second studio album, Nevermind, released in September 1991.
Double tracking or doubling is an audio recording technique in which a performer sings or plays along with their own prerecorded performance, usually to produce a stronger or bigger sound than can be obtained with a single voice or instrument. It is a form of overdubbing; the distinction comes from the doubling of a part, as opposed to recording a different part to go with the first. The effect can be further enhanced by panning one of the performances hard left and the other hard right in the stereo field.
Smart Studios was a recording studio located in Madison, Wisconsin. It was set up in 1983 by Butch Vig and Steve Marker to produce local bands. The studio produced bands such as Killdozer, The Smashing Pumpkins, L7, Tad, and Nirvana. After initial production and remix successes, the building became the focus of operations for Vig and Marker's own band, Garbage, who released their debut album in 1995.
Classic Albums: Nirvana – Nevermind is a documentary DVD released by Eagle Vision in March 2005, as part of the Classic Albums series. It features interviews specifically for this release with Nirvana band members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic, as well as Nevermind album producer Butch Vig about the recording of the album. Other interview highlights include Garry Gersh, Jonathan Ponneman and Nils Bernstein, Thurston Moore and Jack Endino.
All or Nothing is the second studio album by English rock trio The Subways and was released on 30 June 2008. Recorded at Conway Recording Studios in Hollywood by producer Butch Vig, the album was preceded by the release of two singles: "Girls & Boys", released 27 March 2008, and available as a free download, and "Alright", released 16 June 2008.
The discography of Butch Vig, an American musician and record producer, consists of a mix of albums, extended plays and singles released by bands he was a performer in and records on which he produced, mixed, remixed, engineered or a combination of those roles.
"Old Age" is a song first released by the American rock band Hole, composed by Kurt Cobain of Nirvana with lyrics later written by Courtney Love. At the time of Hole's recording of the song, Love was married to Cobain.
James Allan Berkenstadt is an American writer, record producer, and historical entertainment consultant.