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Hook End Recording Studios was a
The original studio, Space Studios, was built by Alvin Lee of the band Ten Years After when he first bought the house. Many recordings were made during Lee's tenure, including ''
recording studio
A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large enoug ...
located in Hook End Manor, a 16th-century Elizabethan
The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...
house near Checkendon
Checkendon is a village and civil parish about west of Henley-on-Thames in South Oxfordshire and about north west of Reading in Berkshire on a mid-height swathe of the Chilterns.
History
The parish has a record of continuous settlement since ...
, Oxfordshire, England.
History
The original studio, Space Studios, was built by Alvin Lee of the band Ten Years After when he first bought the house. Many recordings were made during Lee's tenure, including ''On the Road to Freedom
''On the Road to Freedom'' is an album by English rock musician Alvin Lee and American gospel singer Mylon LeFevre. Released in November 1973, it was the first solo project by Lee, who had achieved international success through his leadership of ...
'' (1973), before he sold the house and studio to David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined as guitarist and co-lead vocalist in 1967, shortly before the departure of founding member Syd Barrett. P ...
of the band Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
, who used the studio to record parts of the band's album '' The Final Cut'' (1983). Gilmour sold the house and studio to Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley. They sold it to Trevor Horn, who turned it into Hookend Productions Ltd.
Several major rock bands have recorded albums at the studios. These include Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Welsh Rock music, rock band formed in Blackwood, Caerphilly, Blackwood in 1986. The band consists of cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, lead guitar) and Sean Moore (musician ...
' '' Gold Against the Soul'' (1993), The Cure
The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...
's '' Disintegration'' (1989) and '' Mixed Up'' (1990), and Marillion
Marillion are a British rock music, rock band, formed in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, in 1979. They emerged from the post-punk music scene in Britain and existed as a bridge between the styles of punk rock and classic progressive rock, becomin ...
's '' Seasons End'' (1989) and ''Holidays in Eden
''Holidays in Eden'' is the sixth studio album by the British neo-progressive rock band Marillion, released in 1991. Recorded at Hook End Manor in Oxfordshire and Westside Studios in London, it was the band's second album with vocalist Steve Ho ...
'' (1991).
In October 2017, the house was reported to be abandoned and in a state of disrepair. Hook End Manor is now owned by Mark White.
References
Recording studios in England Culture in Oxfordshire David Gilmour {{recording-studio-stub