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RCA Studio A is a music
recording studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for Sound recording and reproduction, recording and Audio mixing, mixing of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home proje ...
in
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
, built and founded in 1965 by
Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson (musician), Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nash ...
, Owen Bradley and Harold Bradley as an addition to the RCA Victor Studio the company established seven years prior. Together these two studios were known simply by the name "RCA Victor Nashville Sound Studios" (or "RCA Studios" for short) and became known in the 1960s for becoming an essential factor and location to the development of the musical production style and sound engineering technique known as the Nashville Sound. RCA utilized the studio until January 1977, after which it was sold to Owen Bradley, who remodeled it and operated the studio as Music City Music Hall until the late 1980s. It was later operated as Javelina Recording Studios. Beginning in 2002, Ben Folds leased the building and operated it as Ben's Place and later Grand Victor Sound. In 2014, when a local developer planned to demolish the building in order to build condominiums, Folds gathered support to preserve the building, and Mike Curb and local philanthropists collectively purchased the building. The following year, RCA Studio A was added to the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
. Since 2016, Dave Cobb has leased the studio and used it to operate his Low Country Sound record label imprint.


History


RCA Studio A (1965-1977)

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson (musician), Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nash ...
and Owen Bradley constructed a new 3-story building at the original address of 806 17th Avenue South (the street would be renamed Music Square West in 1975) to be leased by RCA Victor. Half of the building was built as office space for the label's Nashville division, and the other half was a new recording studio. Officially opening on March 29, 1965, the new addition to RCA Victor's Nashville Sound Studios, which was newer and larger than RCA's adjacent studio built 9 years prior, was appropriately designated as Studio A, while the original studio became Studio B. Studio A was one of three similarly-designed large studios built by RCA in New York, Los Angeles, and Nashville specifically for recording large groups of musicians, such as choirs, string sections, or orchestras, playing together live, which was essential to the Nashville sound production style. With its live room measuring 75 x 45 feet with 25 foot high ceiling, it was the largest studio room in Nashville when it opened. The studio was based on the ideas of
Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson (musician), Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nash ...
, Owen Bradley and Harold Bradley. Studios A and B were collectively referred to as the RCA Victor Nashville Sound Studios. Between 1965 and 1977 the studio hosted artists including
Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an American singer, actor, and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, from 1943 until 1987 ...
, the Blackwood Brothers, Connie Smith,
Charley Pride Charley Frank Pride (March 18, 1934 – December 12, 2020) was an American Country music, country singer. Beginning his career as a Negro league baseball player in the early-1950s, he later pursued a career in country music, becoming the gen ...
, Lynn Anderson,
Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...
,
the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...
, the Blackwood Brothers, George Beverly Shea, Nancy Sinatra, Eddy Arnold, Merle Haggard, Lee Hazlewood and Ann-Margret, and Dottie West.
Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...
, who had recorded nearly all of his albums at Atkins' studio, recorded '' Honky Tonk Heroes'' there in 1973, with the album becoming important to the development of the outlaw country subgenre. In 1977 as the result of an unresolved union dispute, RCA closed their Nashville studios. The label's management continued to occupy offices within the other half of the building until 1990. RCA Studio B was made available to the Country Music Hall of Fame for tours.


Music City Music Hall (1977-1988)

Three months after its closure, Owen Bradley bought Studio A, re-opening it as Music City Music Hall and operating it as a subsidiary to his Bradley's Barn recording studio in nearby Mount Juliet. Artists recording at the studio in the Music City Music Hall era included
Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as "Hey Loretta", "The Pill (song), The P ...
, Gary Stewart, Sylvia, the Family Brown, and Earl Klugh. In 1981,
George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait has sold over 120 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He holds ...
recorded six of the ten songs on his debut studio album at the studio, and returned to the studio to record the followup album, which included his first two number one singles.


Javelina Recording Studios (1989-2002)

By 1992 the studio was run by producer Warren Peterson under the name Javelina Sound Studios. Artists recording at the studio in the Javelina era included Amy Grant,
Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...
, DC Talk,
Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (December 25, 1946 – September 1, 2023) was an American singer-songwriter, author, and businessman. He was known for his tropical rock sound and persona, which often portrayed a lifestyle described as "island escapis ...
, Tim McGraw, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Reba McEntire, Little Texas, Point of Grace, Martina McBride, Wynonna Judd, Mark Chesnutt, Sawyer Brown, Rebecca Lynn Howard, Steve Wariner,
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
, Vince Gill, BeBe & CeCe Winans, Dan Seals. In 1997 Lee Ann Womack recorded her self-titled debut album at the studio, and returned to the studio for the recording of her next two studio albums. Ben Folds, a session drummer at the time, used the studio at night to work on his own original material that would become Ben Folds Five.


Ben's Place & Grand Victor Sound (2002-2014)

Folds moved away and returned to Nashville in 2002, and leased the building for the next 12 years, initially for his own use. He also rented out parts of the building to other artists, such as Jamey Johnson. In 2009 Folds enlisted the help of Sharon Corbitt-House to re-open it to outside clients as a commercial studio under the name of Ben's Place and later Grand Victor Sound. Artists recording at the studio during this timeframe included Kacey Musgraves,
Joe Bonamassa Joseph Leonard Bonamassa ( ; born May 8, 1977) is an American blues rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. He started his career at age twelve, when he opened for B.B. King. Since 2000, Bonamassa has released fifteen solo albums through his inde ...
, John Hiatt, and Jewel. Folds himself recorded '' So There'' at the studio with the yMusic Ensemble, which included a piano concerto performed with the 83-piece
Nashville Symphony The Nashville Symphony is an American symphony orchestra, based in Nashville, Tennessee. The orchestra is resident at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center. History In 1920, prior to the 1946 founding of the Nashville Symphony, a group of amateur a ...
and producer Elliot Scheiner.


Demolition controversy

In 2014 the building’s existence was threatened with demolition by a local developer to make way for condominiums, and Ben Folds gathered regional and professional support in an effort to save the building. In late 2014, just prior to the building's demolition, Curb Records founder, Mike Curb, and local philanthropists Chuck Elcan and Aubrey Preston partnered to collectively purchase the building for $5.6 million in order to preserve its historic significance. The efforts to save RCA Studio A led to a more consolidated, dedicated and collaborative effort to preserve the musical history and promote creativity within Music Row and the Nashville area. It also led to the establishment of grassroots preservationist organizations such as the Music Industry Coalition. Producer Dave Cobb, who was slated to record an album with Chris Stapleton, originally intended to record the album at Sound Emporium Studios, but it was already booked. Having read reports of the impending demolition of the historic RCA Studio A building and its Grand Victor Sound studios, he decided to record Stapleton's debut studio album there, before the building and its recording studios were gone forever.


Historic landmark & Restoration

In 2015, Studio A joined Studio B in the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
. The same year, Kacey Musgraves recorded her 2015 Grammy-nominated album '' Pageant Material'' at the studio. In early 2016,
country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...
record producer Dave Cobb leased the building, which he uses for his Low Country Sound record label imprint. In October 2017, the completion of a $500,000 restoration of the studios was marked by the mounting of replicas of RCA Victor Recording Studios signage used for the first four years of the studio's operation on the building's exterior.


Production style

Bradley Studios, RCA Studio B, and RCA Studio A were essential locations to the development of the "Nashville Sound", a style characterized by background vocals and strings. The Nashville Sound both revived the popularity of
country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...
music and helped establish Nashville's reputation as an international recording center, with these three studios at the center of what would become known as Music Row. Designed and built later than the Bradley Studios' Quonset Hut and RCA Studio B, Studio A's
gym A gym, short for gymnasium (: gymnasiums or gymnasia), is an indoor venue for exercise and sports. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasion". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learn ...
-sized room, large enough to house choirs, orchestras, string sections and a live band, was specifically designed by John E. Volkmann to more easily facilitate recording the large ensembles needed to create the Nashville Sound. Today, it is the last remaining of only three Volkmann-designed rooms of this size.


List of notable artists recorded

Notable artists who have recorded in RCA Studio A include: * Eddy Arnold *
The Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...
*
Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (August 3, 1926 – July 21, 2023), known professionally as Tony Bennett, was an American jazz and traditional pop singer. He received many accolades, including 20 Grammy Awards, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, ...
* The Blackwood Brothers * Zach Bryan * Brandi Carlile * Brent Cobb *
Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances featuring expressive body movements. Most of his best-known singles, such as "Feelin' Alright ...
*
Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian songwriter, singer, poet, and novelist. Themes commonly explored throughout his work include faith and mortality, isolation and depression, betrayal and redemption, soc ...
* Anderson East * Ben Folds * Jason Isbell * Alan Jackson *
Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...
* Jamey Johnson * B.B. King *
Miranda Lambert Miranda Leigh Lambert (born November 10, 1983) is an American country music, country singer. Born in Longview, Texas, she started out in early 2001 when she released her self-titled debut album independently. In 2003, she finished in third place ...
*
Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as "Hey Loretta", "The Pill (song), The P ...
*
The Monkees The Monkees were an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band consisted of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones (musician), Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. Spurred by the success of ''The Monkees (TV series), Th ...
* Kacey Musgraves *
Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...
* Amanda Palmer * Paramore *
Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...
* John Prine * Rival Sons * Leon Russell *
William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1966 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...
* George Beverly Shea * Amanda Shires * Nancy Sinatra * Chris Stapleton *
George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait has sold over 120 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He holds ...
* Porter Wagoner


References


External links


Official website
{{Authority control Recording studios in Tennessee Buildings and structures in Nashville, Tennessee RCA Records