Ongoing History of New Music

Ongoing History Daily: The most famous recording studio in the world

If you ask any music fan to name the most famous recording studio in the world, chances are they’re going to blurt out Abbey Road in the St. John’s Wood area of London. It’s also probably the oldest recording studio still in existence.

On November 12, 1931, it opened its doors in a nine-bedroom mansion in what was once a suburb. EMI Studios, as it was called then, was (as far as anyone knows) the first purpose-built recording studio and eventually the birthplace of just about everything The Beatles ever recorded along with albums Pink Floyd, Oasis, Muse, Florence + The Machine, and hundreds of others.

And here’s something many people don’t know. The facility was officially called EMI Studios until 1976, seven years after The Beatles released an album with that title. Only then did Abbey Road become Abbey Road.

If you want to know more, I highly recommend this book.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 39311 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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