Abbey Road Studios

If you are remotely interested in music you are probably well aware that Abbey Road Studios are currently celebrating their 80th anniversary. As part of the celebrations, the famous Studio 2 was opened up to members of the public on select dates only. Not wanting to miss an opportunity like that, I stumped up my 75 quid and I was there like the proverbial rat up a drainpipe. Well actually I was a lot slower than the rat but that was due to works being carried out on the main east coast line causing a detour through Ely and Cambridge. Anyway, like the train, I digress.
So, what did my £75 get me? Well for me it was all about getting into Studio 2 which I am sure you will know was where almost all of The Beatles fine (nay, brilliant) recordings were created. But in addition to access to the studio, the assembled gathering (there were about 200 of us like minded individuals) were treated to a 90 minute lecture by Brian Kehew and Kevin Ryan.


In case you have never heard of that pair, they were the researchers and authors of a hefty (and expensive) book entitled 'Recording The Beatles' in which they went into detail about the techniques and equipment used in the recording of those memorable songs.


Despite the train diversion, we arrived early and after a detour to admire the house in Cavendish Avenue that Paul McCartney purchased in the mid sixties for £40,000, we were soon queueing outside the famous studios. Being a weekend there were of course the usual mass of visitors from all over the world, annoying the London cab and bus drivers by attempting to recreate the front cover photo of the Abbey Road album. Naturally this involves stopping in the middle of the zebra crossing to ensure that everyone is in step while the obligatory photo is taken. We even saw one poor bloke who had no one to take his photo so on his mobile phone, he instructed the person on the other end of the line to take a screen shot from the web cam that overlooks the crossing. Enterprising or what?


Anyway, the doors eventually opened and we filed in through that famous doorway. Tickets were checked, wristbands attached and we were then shepherded along a corridor and down a photograph lined staircase to the entrance to Studio 2. I have to confess that stepping into that hallowed space brought a flutter to my heart, and looking at the faces of those around me, I know I wasn't alone. In some respects the place looked so familiar. Like many Beatles fans I own the fine Mark Lewisohn book 'The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions' and I have pored over the photographs therein. So I was familiar with that staircase leading to the control room that ran up the wall to my right. Also straight ahead was the familiar fire exit with the clock above.


In the corners of the studio, various pieces of recording equipment and instruments had been laid out for our inspection. We were free to roam around and take as many photos as we wished. All of us were like kids set free in a sweet shop.


The lecture didn't just focus on The Beatles, but covered the whole of the history of the studios  from it being taken over by His Masters Voice in 1931 right through to the current date. Utilising film, sound clips, and a nice collection of photographs from through the years, Kehew and Ryan made a fine job of their presentation. They covered the early classical recordings by the likes of Edward Elgar, through the comedy records of Peter Sellers etc. and onto the initial recordings of Cliff Richard. Into the sixties we were told stories of recording sessions by The Hollies, Pink Floyd and of course The Beatles among many others.

One of the highlights occurred when four members of the audience were invited to play a certain chord on four separate keyboards and to simultaneously depress the sustain peddle. At the end of the countdown, their fingers came down on the appropriate keys and we were all treated to that distinctive chord that occurs at the very end of 'A Day in the Life'. To hear that in the very room it was originally created and on the very same instruments. Well, words cannot describe the feeling.


Despite the cost, I felt privileged to have had the opportunity to attend. Judging by the applause at the end of the lecture and the smiling faces as we all filed out, I don't think anyone felt disappointed by the experience.


As The Beatles might have said, 'It was fab, man.'