22 St Peter's Square, in

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It ...

, London, is a grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

with a former laundry that has been converted to an architects' studio and office building. The property is situated in the western corner of

St Peter's Square St. Peter's Square (, ) is a large plaza located directly in front of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the papal enclave in Rome, directly west of the neighborhood (rione) of Borgo. Both the square and the basilica are named after Saint ...

, that was laid out and built from 1827, opposite

St Peter's Church, Hammersmith St Peter's, Hammersmith, is a Church of England parish church. It is a Grade II* listed church, and the oldest church in Hammersmith. History When the church was built in the village of Hammersmith in 1829, all that surrounded it was meadows ...

. In the basement of the rear of the building is the former studio of

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

known as The Fallout Shelter, 47 British Grove. Many musicians began their careers or recorded in the building, including

Steve Winwood Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a guitarist, keyboard player, and vocalist prominent for his dis ...

and

Traffic Traffic is the movement of vehicles and pedestrians along land routes. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic laws and informal rules that may have developed over time to facilitate the orderly an ...

Robert Palmer Robert Allen Palmer (19 January 1949 – 26 September 2003) was an English singer and songwriter. He was known for his powerful and soulful voice, sartorial elegance and stylistic explorations, combining soul, funk, jazz, rock, pop, regga ...

Cat Stevens Yusuf Islam (born Steven Demetre Georgiou; ), commonly known by his stage names Cat Stevens, Yusuf, and Yusuf / Cat Stevens, is a British singer-songwriter and musician. He has sold more than 100 million records and has more than two billion st ...

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, he fused elements of reggae, ska and rocksteady and was renowned for his distinctive voca ...

, U2,

Nick Drake Nicholas Rodney Drake (19 June 1948 – 25 November 1974) was an English singer-songwriter and musician. An accomplished acoustic guitarist, Drake signed to Island Records at the age of twenty while still a student at the University of Cambridg ...

Johnny Thunders John Anthony Genzale (July 15, 1952 – April 23, 1991), known professionally as Johnny Thunders, was an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He came to prominence in the early 1970s as a member of New York Dolls. He later formed the He ...

and

Sandy Denny Alexandra Elene MacLean Denny (6 January 1947 – 21 April 1978) was an English singer-songwriter who was lead singer of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention. She has been described as " guably the pre-eminent British folk-rock sin ...

. It has a Hammersmith Society Conservation award plaque (2009) and has been included in tours in Architecture Week.

History

Number 22, unlike the predominant pattern of housing in

, consists of a trio of linked houses, each of three stories plus basement, the only example of this layout in the square. The center part is recessed, with a projecting Ionic colonnade to the ground floor forming a balcony to the raised ground floor, and this has a cast-iron

balustrade A baluster () is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its ...

in the 'Heart and Honeysuckle' Anthemion pattern. The houses on either side have two bays projecting beneath a

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

. Their outermost bays are recessed and have projecting porches with Ionic columns. The entrance to No. 22 retains the original eagle statue (of plaster or composite stone) on the porch. Paired statues of dogs sit on the piers flanking the steps up to the front door. Until the 1890s the large private garden at the rear of the house was laid out as a long rectangular lawn bordered by shrubs and trees, with an open field to the South.

Royal Chiswick Laundry

By 1894 the garden was completely covered by laundry buildings. The Royal Chiswick Laundry Western Dying and Cleaning Works was constructed behind the house fronting British Grove, a lane to the rear. The laundry buildings consist of two long sheds running almost the full length of the former garden. They are of London stock brick with red brick window arches under slate roofs, with glazed skylights running along the roof ridges. Former Royal Chiswick Laun copy

In 1929 John Piper the artist (b 1903) lived in a flat at 22 St Peter's Square and then by the 1940s the house and laundry was owned by the then Mayor of

, Alderman Sir Marshall Hays JP (b 1872). The laundry closed in 1968, then the buildings were for a time occupied by a company that added soundtrack to film before the property became the offices, recording studios and premises of Island Records, who moved in with a staff of 65.

Island Records

In 1973, the property became the offices, recording studios and premises of

, who moved in with a staff of 65. The house became the administrative offices of the company, where the legal and finance staff worked, while the former laundry buildings were the offices for the A&R, production, marketing, promotion and sales departments. The basement was converted into a small recording studio, called the Fallout Shelter with its entrance at 47 British Grove, incorporating the base of the chimney, which was occasionally used in recordings to add reverberation (echo) to vocals. The recording studio, was described by

Chris Blackwell Christopher Percy Gordon Blackwell OJ (born 22 June 1937) is a Jamaican-British former record producer and the founder of Island Records, which has been called "one of Britain's great independent labels". According to the Rock and Roll Hall ...

, the founder of

, as 'the little one in the back of Island Records at 47 British Grove.' With the sound of recording sessions continuing late into the night, members of staff sleeping on the premises, the comings and goings of musicians, staff and visitors, the use of their parking spaces, and the noise all this made, caused friction between Island Records and some local residents. There was also a canteen above the studio. The roster of musicians recording on the Island label at this time included reggae artists

Bob Marley and the Wailers Bob Marley and the Wailers (previously known as the Wailers and prior to that the Wailing Rudeboys, the Wailing Wailers and the Teenagers) were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley (Robert ...

who recorded some tracks for ''

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

'' there,

Toots and the Maytals The Maytals, known from 1972 to 2020 as Toots and the Maytals, are a Jamaican musical group, one of the best known ska and rocksteady vocal groups. The Maytals were formed in the early 1960s and were key figures in popularizing reggae music. ...

, A Special Moment (Tot Taylor)

Aswad Aswad are a British reggae group, noted for adding strong R&B and soul influences to the reggae sound. They have been performing since the mid-1970s, having released a total of 21 albums. Their UK hit singles include the number one "Don't Tu ...

and

Steel Pulse Steel Pulse are a roots reggae band from the Handsworth area of Birmingham, England. They originally formed at Handsworth Wood Boys School, and were composed of David Hinds (lead vocals, guitar), Basil Gabbidon (lead guitar, vocals), and Ro ...

. The 'non reggae' Island artists include

and

(working with the

Spencer Davis Group The Spencer Davis Group were a British blues and R&B influenced rock band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (vocals, keyboards, and guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). ...

and

, and as a solo artist),

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, model and actress. She began her Model (person), modelling career in New York State, then in Paris, working for fashion houses such as Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves St ...

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...

Melissa Etheridge Melissa Lou Etheridge (born May 29, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and guitarist. Her Melissa Etheridge (album), eponymous debut album was released in 1988 and became an underground success. It peaked at No. 22 on the Billbo ...

Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer, songwriter, musician, and businesswoman. With over 30 million records sold worldwide, she was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix ...

and P J Harvey and their most successful signing, the Irish band U2.

Island Studios

In 2005 Frost Meadowcroft acquired the property on behalf of

Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands is a practice of architects, urban designers and masterplanners established in 1986 and practising out of London. History Alex Lifschutz and Ian Davidson met working on the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Headquarters ...

architects from

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum ...

for £4.1m. The architects then proceeded to return the laundry sheds to their original open plan and restored most of the metal-framed windows to their nineteenth-century proportions. Historically significant features of the laundry, such as the boiler chimney and the incised lettering in the gable overlooking British Grove, have been retained and restored. Both these companies now occupy the space as studios and offices together with Nick Stewart & Associates. In recognition of its heritage the building is now called Island Studios.

References

External links

* http://www.lds-uk.com * http://www.frostmeadowcroft.com * http://www.islandrecords.com * http://www.nickstewart.net.com * https://web.archive.org/web/20030426031758/http://johnpiper.org/ {{Coord, 51.4911, -0.2446, type:landmark_region:GB-HMF, display=title Office buildings in London Redevelopment projects in London Houses in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Grade II listed office buildings Hammersmith Grade II listed houses in London