Cast your minds back to Summer 1986. It’s the control room of the legendary Spaceward Studios in Cambridge www.spaceward.co.uk. I’d just turned seventeen and I was up there to record audio overdubs for my Mum’s animation film ‘Snow Magic’ for which I had composed the soundtrack. She knew Gary Lucas, one of the key producers and founders of the studio itself.
I was a very brief intern there, but oh my G-d, what a place, what an atmosphere, what talent everywhere I looked. Just being there had a big impact on me. It was a creative hub – and these people were both serious and talented yet seemed to maintain a matey confidence that was just beyond cool for my teenage mind. I’d been in studios before. Through my parents’ encouragement for my passion, I had already developed my own decent studio next to my mother’s animation editing room. I had a Fostex 1/4in A8 reel to reel multitrack and new Akai S900 sampler. I’d recorded a few local bands at my studio, but what I was witnessing was the real deal – on quite another level.
Everyone from The Stranglers to Iron Maiden to Teardrop Explodes to assorted new wave acts that I worshipped seemed to be drifting in and out, full of cool easy breezy banter. These were rock titans, of that there was no debate. Even the likes of Gary Numan and The Damned had been in recently and recorded there. Right in front of me were bona fide artists (and not the usual blaggers) recording exciting vocal and backing vocal overdubs, instrumental takes and creatively arranged parts, not to mention the original live takes. Was I wide-eyed? Yes. Did I want to let on? NO! As an Assistant Tape Op, I was hardly noticed anyway. Here’s a great anecdote from that period:
I wasn’t at the session, but the producer and assistant producer/sound engineer Gary Lucas had told me that there was a worrying issue festering. Apparently while Julian Cope was recording World Shut Your Mouth, he’d been smoking so much dope that the vents started emanating the sweet smell of refined marijuana which permeated all the grounds around the studio complex.
The studio manager and staff began to worry about the ramifications and possible imminent police presence!
While I was there I had the laborious task of shooting 100Hz, 1kHz and 10kHz sine wave signals through each of the 24 tracks into the giant reel to reel multitrack machine. It’s called calibrating and basically ensures that what you hear in playback is as close as possible to the audio going in being recorded live. This slowly spooling tape was two inches wide compared to the measly and hissy 1/4in tape in my home studio. It was basically like lasagne compared to my spaghetti.
I only ended up interning for four visits, mainly because I was London-based and it was a shlep. Plus I had A-levels to think about in the Autumn. My brief job title? Assistant Tape Operator. Only four visits, but what a creative revelation…
