Church Studio resurrected...again.

[PonderInc]

Nice article in the Urban Tulsa about the "Church Studio" at 3rd and Trenton.

http://www.urbantulsa.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A28477

Growing up in Tulsa, I had no idea about this place or its significance.  This strikes me as sort of symbolic of our problem as a city...we have so many things to take pride in...but we're generally clueless about our history and significance.

[Conan71]

Great article, thanks for the link.  A friend of mine has owned the Russell Grand Lake retreat for close to 20 years now.  There's some great history there and it's been well-preserved.  All of the recording equipment was removed when the property passed on from Leon to Bill Ramsey.  My friend got it after Ramsey.  My understanding is Leon either sold it to pay taxes or the IRS sold it for him, so to speak. 

Leon used to be a regular visitor there when he would come through town and the Hanson kids used it as a retreat during their first tour so they could hide out and experience some "normalcy" for a week or so.  It's been related to me that Harrison, Petty, Clapton, Cocker, Billy Preston, and one or two members of the stones had recorded there on some of Leon's projects.  My understanding of why many artists weren't specifically credited on Leon's albums was due to contractual obligations with other labels.

I think a lot of Tulsans are not aware of Leon's contributions to the music scene, nor the number of hits he wrote for other artists (or should I say artists who recorded his tunes in some cases), nor have a comprehension of all the studio work he did in the 1960's for the movers and shakers of pop and rock music.  The man is truly one of the all-time greats.

[cannon_fodder]

That article was a bit confusing, interesting, but kind of rambling.  The long and short of it is the building played host to some serious musical talent and recorded/produced hit records.  No real indication of why that stopped, but it did.  Now it is reopened as something:

That concert will take place on Friday, Nov. 27. No other events are planned at this point, but Jacob Miller said the possibilities for the building are numerous--it could be reopened as a recording studio or a full-time concert hall, perhaps even a church. Randy Miller envisions it playing host to major artists who would record concert videos there, sort of a Tulsa version of "Austin City Limits." He's already been approached by officials from iTunes and various record labels about other projects, but so far, nothing has seemed like the right fit.

"Where this place goes, I think there's an infinite number of possibilities," Jacob Miller said. "It's come full circle back to where it began--not as a church, per se, but as a place of music and rejoicing."

To me the article is kind of sad.  Tulsa HAD a great recording studio, drew in talent, and made a name for itself.  Now we hope to put on some kind of show in the same venue. 

I hope it turns out well and the history is truly amazing, but at the same time the past seems to be depressing in Tulsa.  The wooda, coulda shouldas of what was.

[Conan71]

That article was a bit confusing, interesting, but kind of rambling.  The long and short of it is the building played host to some serious musical talent and recorded/produced hit records.  No real indication of why that stopped, but it did.  Now it is reopened as something:

To me the article is kind of sad.  Tulsa HAD a great recording studio, drew in talent, and made a name for itself.  Now we hope to put on some kind of show in the same venue. 

I hope it turns out well and the history is truly amazing, but at the same time the past seems to be depressing in Tulsa.  The wooda, coulda shouldas of what was.

One possible reason is recording studios are a lot easier to construct about anywhere since recording went digital.  You can "shape" the room, take out odd echos or sounds, etc.  In other words, you can run a recording studio somewhere probably a lot cheaper to heat and cool, and likely not very far from wherever you sleep every night. 

With analog recording, you needed very good sound insulation and acoustic shaping.  Not needed any more.  You could literally produce an entire album from your living room if you so desired.

[FOTD]

The devil agrees with Crushie....it is sad. But that's the end result of aging.

CoCo, thanks for changing your avatar. But really, the devil needs no sympathy.

FOTD bets the Tractors wouldn't think much about this article....especially, JO!

Huskey's Haunted House? Bwhahahaha

[tulsascoot]

That article was a bit confusing, interesting, but kind of rambling.

That's because Urban Tulsa does not know what a well written article is.