On 12 November 1931 the 'EMI Recording Studios' was officially opened by Sir Edward Elgar. The occasion was celebrated by Elgar conducting the London Symphony Orchestra playing his own composition: Land of Hope and Glory (from Pomp and Circumstance March, No1 in D major). The unique three studio complex immediately became the home of recording for such notable artists as Thomas Beecham, Malcolm Sargent, Adrian Boult and Yehudi Menuhin. On the lighter music side the studios saw such performers as Fats Waller, Joe Loss, Flanagan and Allen, Ambrose and Glenn Miller. Glenn Miller's last recording was made in Studio One, shortly before his untimely death somewhere over the English Channel in 1944.

With the Fifties came Abbey Road's first number one: 'Oh Mein Papa' by Eddie Calvert. The single was top of the charts for nine weeks. Other chart successes were brought by artists such as Michael Holliday, Russ Conway and Ruby Murray who, in 1955 alone, had seven separate chart entries and five records in the chart at the same time (including the number one 'Softly Softly'). She had a total of 80 weeks in the chart in that single year! Cliff Richard and the Shadows had their first Abbey Road number one in 1959.

George Martin arrived in the studios in 1950 where he began to build up the Parlophone label. He ignored the advice of his elders and went off on his own zany course recording anything but the obvious. This included the likes of Peter Ustinov, Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan and the jazz bands of Humphrey Lyttleton and Johnny Dankworth. For thirty years EMI Studios blended harmoniously with the illustrious St John's Wood - that was until 1962 when four young men from Liverpool (and their fans) arrived and changed not only the face of the music industry, but also the relative tranquillity of Abbey Road.

During the 60s, Abbey Road recorded a continuous string of famous hits for the Beatles as well as such artists as Cilla Black, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Billy J Kramer, Manfred Mann, The Seekers and The Hollies.

The EMI Studios at 3 Abbey Road in the peaceful and affluent St. John's Wood district were the setting for nearly all of the Beatles' recordings from 1962 to 1970. The studios were officially renamed "Abbey Road" in the wake of the international fame bestowed on the building by the Beatles, and by the 1969 album which paid homage to their recording home. As the era of the Beatles came to an end, a new and equally determined group of musicians took over as Abbey Road's 'house band'. Pink Floyd managed to ignore the pressure from EMI to cut out all the funny weird nonsense and stretched the studio to its limits, by recording one of the world's most durable and successful albums: Dark Side of the Moon.

At the same time, Abbey Road was also enhancing its reputation as a post-production facility. In 1975 Chris Blair alone cut 12 number one records including artists such as Pilot, Steve Harley, Telly Savalas, Mud, Suzi Quatro, Windsor Davies and Queen.

The four recording studios are imaginatively named: Studio One, Studio Two, Studio Three and The Penthouse Studio. A fifth recording facility is Abbey Road Mobile recording - the best in classical location recording. Abbey Road is home to one of the largest collections of microphones - both vintage and new - in the world. The Studios have a fully licensed restaurant and bar with gardens - just the place to relax after a long recording session! Abbey Road also owns two luxury self-contained flats each sleeping four people which can be rented whilst you record.

The cavernous Studio One was used often by the Beatles as well, especially for large sessions such as the "A Day in the Life" orchestral overdubs and the "All You Need is Love" satellite television broadcast. The EMI Studios at Abbey Road had a long and illustrious history before the Beatles and have remained a busy working studio in the three decades since. The legendary Studio Two is truly an original 1950s masterpiece of recording studio design. The famous acoustics make Studio Two suitable for practically any style of music, imparting a unique character to the sound.

It is without doubt the most famous recording studio in the world and was where The Beatles recorded virtually their entire catalogue of 13 albums. They say there's magic in the walls and it continues to work for many of the artists who record here. Rebuilt to a Sam Toyoshima design in the late 1980s, Studio Three is a completely self-contained recording environment - with its own artist's lounge, kitchen, and client amenities - assuring total privacy. The studio itself offers an isolated live room, a separate vocal booth, gallery, variable acoustics, and a visually stunning main recording area large enough for up to twenty musicians.

Studio Three's initial claim to fame was as the studio where Pink Floyd recorded the classic 'Dark Side of the Moon' in 1972 and 1973. Studio Three's Control Room, one of the largest in London, is equipped with a 72 channel SSL 8000G console with Ultimation and surround sound capability.The main monitors, designed by Roger Quested, can be easily configured for Dolby surround sound. They are complimented by a comprehensive range of outboard equipment (much of it supplied by HHB), housed in a central unit which provides ample space for keyboards, computers and other peripherals. Soundproof enclosures are provided for mulitrack tape machines.

The Documentary

Roger Waters:

"There are studio's all over the world where records have been made, that have done huge numbers. It has to do with the fact that music that was made here that touched people's hearts and lives. And that's why the building has this kinda of shivery...you know...essence...to it."

The beginning of "Brain Damage," probably the bit from the Live in Pompeii video, is played. David Gilmour is sitting on a stool playing over "Brain Damage." And the scene changes to Alan Parsons, engineer on Dark Side of the Moon, speaking in present day.

Alan Parsons:

"I think.....um.....no one was more pleased than I was, at the success of Dark Side of the Moon. It certainly was not expected. I don't think any of them actually expected to see the success that it had."

The scene now switches to Martin Benge, present day Vice President EMI Music Studios (UK), and then back to Roger and Alan.

Martin Benge:

"There was a battle between the artists and the management, to shut down the sessions at 10 O'clock. And........ Pink Floyd had absolutely no intention of going along with this. And on one session, the manager at the time, Alan Stagg, came in and turned the power off."

Roger Waters:

"I had a....kinda of...you know... very strong, simple idea of what the thing was about, and how it might work. But a lot of effort went into it, from a lot of people, not least Alan. Parsons."

Alan Parsons:

"It also...you know...put, put a lot of responsibility on my shoulders, of course being the only one actually up in the control room."

      

Now the scene changes back to a bit more of David Gilmour playing guitar over "Brain Damage," recording in the studio during Dark Side of the Moon in 1972 During the short film clip some one from the studio shout's: "Feedback jump!...." to which David Gilmour replies: "Don't worry about that.... Christ! Where would Rock'n'Roll be without feedback?".

Roger Waters:

"That was Alan Parsons. He was the engineer, and it was a very important position. And he recorded it, clearly very well. "I remember thinking at the time, well this kid learnt something. Cause he obviously went away with Dark Side of the Moon, and thought "I can do that", and he did. And he obviously did it very successfully."

Pictures of Pink Floyd are shown now, and the beginning of "Money" is played in the background.

                      

Roger Waters:

"The money sounds I recorded at home, and a handful of coins, and this and that....and you know....a microphone making those recordings. And just....chopped certain bits together and put it in a loop. So I brought it into the studio, and we put it onto a multi-track, and recorded to it as the click track, for the beginning of the song."

Again, "Money" continues playing to still photos of the band.

Roger Waters:

"And that happened here. Which has something to do with the building, and its kinda of in the walls. The events rub off on the bricks and mortar. And I know its not just John Lennon, its all the other artists who have been through this place, including Glen Miller... from... you know, and everything afterwards.

You know its like being a baseball fan standing in the Dodgers Stadium. This was the diamond that Babe Ruth... waddled around."

This section of the documentary ends with the same shot shown at the beginning, an overhead view of Abbey Road, with a heartbeat and tape effects from Dark Side of the Moon heard in the background.