Apple Studio was a recording studio, located in the basement of the Apple Corps headquarters at 3 Savile Row.
Originally designed by Mardas, of Apple Electronics, the initial installation proved to be unworkable − with almost no standard studio features such as a patch bay, or a talkback system between the studio and the control room, let alone Alex's promised innovations − and had to be scrapped. Nevertheless, the Beatles recorded and filmed portions of their album Let It Be in the Apple Studio, with equipment borrowed from EMI; during takes they had to shut down the building's central heating, also located in the basement, because the lack of soundproofing allowed the heating system to be heard in the studio.
The redesign and rebuilding of the basement to accommodate proper recording facilities was overseen by former EMI engineer Geoff Emerick, and took eighteen months at an estimated cost of $1.5 million. The studio reopened on 30 September 1971 and now included its own natural echo chamber, a wide range of recording and mastering facilities, and could turn out mono, stereo and quadrophonic master tapes and discs. In 1971, it would have cost £37 an hour to record to 16 track, £29 an hour to mix to stereo, and £12 to cut a 12” master. George Harrison attended the launch party, along with Pete Ham of Badfinger and Klaus Voormann.
The studio became a second home for Apple Records artists, although they also used Abbey Road and other studios. The only Beatle solo release to use Apple Studio for a significant portion of its production was Harrison's Living in the Material World album of 1973, yet most of the recording is thought to have taken place at his impressive Friar Park studio.
The first projects to be carried out there after the re-opening were the recording of Lon & Derrek Van Eaton's Brother album, and overdubbing and mixing on Badfinger's Straight Up. Other artists such as Harry Nilsson, Nicky Hopkins, Wishbone Ash, Viv Stanshall, Stealer's Wheel, Lou Reizner, Clodagh Rodgers and Marc Bolan (as shown in the movie Born To Boogie) also worked there. The existence of acetates by numerous performers is evidence that the studio was widely used. Apple Studio was closed down for good on 16 May 1975.
Read more about this topic: Apple Corps, Subsidiaries
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