Royal Studios is a

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

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

, United States. Established in 1956, it is one of the oldest continuously operated music recording studios in the world. It is widely known for producer, recording artist and owner, Willie Mitchell, and notable productions of Al Green,

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...

John Mayer John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Born and raised in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Mayer attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but left and moved to Atlanta in 1997 with ...

Buddy Guy George "Buddy" Guy (born July 30, 1936) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He is an exponent of Chicago blues who has influenced generations of guitarists including Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Stevie Ray V ...

My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket is an American rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Koster. The ba ...

Robert Cray Robert William Cray (born August 1, 1953) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He has led his own band and won five Grammy Awards. Early life Robert Cray was born on August 1, 1953, in Columbus, Georgia, while his father was statione ...

De La Soul De La Soul () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative ...

Otis Rush Otis Rush Jr. (April 29, 1934 – September 29, 2018) was an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter. His distinctive guitar style featured a slow-burning sound and long bent notes. With qualities similar to the styles of other 1950s art ...

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943), often referred to during the 1960s and 1970s as "Keith Richard", is an English musician and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the co-founder, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-princi ...

, Solomon Burke,

The Bo-Keys The Bo-Keys are a soul jazz band from Memphis, Tennessee, formed as an homage to the city's rich musical tradition. History In 1998, Scott Bomar was asked to assemble a backing band for former Stax artist and songwriter Sir Mack Rice. His co ...

, Bobby Blue Bland,

Ann Peebles Ann Lee Peebles (born April 27, 1947) is an American singer and songwriter who gained celebrity for her Memphis soul albums of the 1970s for Hi Records. Two of her most popular songs are " I Can't Stand the Rain", which she wrote with her husband ...

Ike & Tina Turner Ike & Tina Turner were an American musical duo consisting of husband and wife Ike Turner and Tina Turner. From 1960 to 1976, they performed live as the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, supported by Ike Turner's band the Kings of Rhythm and backing vocal ...

, Tom Jones, Anthony Hamilton,

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

Paul Rodgers Paul Rodgers (born 17 December 1949) is a British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was the lead vocalist of numerous bands, including Free, Bad Company, The Firm, and The Law. He has also performed as a solo artist, and co ...

Cody Chesnutt Cody Chesnutt (stylized as Cody ChesnuTT; born October 21, 1968) is an American R&B and neo soul musician from Atlanta, Georgia. Biography Chesnutt's music blends elements of rock, funk, soul, hip hop, and blues. After relocating to Los Ang ...

, Sam Moore as well as the '' Barnyard'' and '' Soul Men'' soundtracks. The studio is operated by the family of Willie Mitchell with son Lawrence "Boo" Mitchell serving as manager/engineer, son Archie Mitchell serving as an engineer and daughter Oona Mitchell serving as administrator.

Establishment

Royal Studios was founded in 1956 in

, as the operating studio of

Hi Records Hi Records is an American soul music and rockabilly label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1957 by singer Ray Harris, record store owner Joe Cuoghi, Bill Cantrell and Quinton Claunch (formerly producers for Sun Records), and three silent partn ...

. The original structure was used as a movie theatre, with Shamrock Theatre opening at the location in 1915. Early theatres of this type showed silent movies and were called nickelodeon theatres because of their nickel admission. The Rex Theatre, a previously open-air theatre, took over the location and replaced the Shamrock Theatre. It was converted to sound in the early 1920s and renamed as Royal Theatre. Royal Theatre remained a neighborhood theatre until it closed in 1955. In 1956 the theatre was rented by

’ President Joe Cuoghi, his partners

Quinton Claunch Quinton Mavis Claunch (December 3, 1921 – April 10, 2021) was an American musician, songwriter, record producer and record label owner, who was responsible with others for setting up Hi Records in the 1950s and Goldwax Records in the 1960s. B ...

and John Novarese as well as three silent partners including Cuoghi's lawyer, Nick Pesce.

converted the theatre into Royal Recording Studios and opened the doors in 1956.

History

Soon after its establishment in 1956, Royal Studios became known as the “House of Instrumentals”. This name was due to its production of instrumentals hits including

Bill Black William Patton Black Jr. (September 17, 1926 – October 21, 1965) was an American musician and bandleader who is noted as one of the pioneers of rock and roll. He played in Elvis Presley's early trio. Black later formed Bill Black's Combo. Ear ...

Combo's “Smokie Part 2”, “Josephine”, “White Silver Sands” and “Don’t Be Cruel” with each selling over a million copies. In the early 1960s,

hired Willie Mitchell as a recording artist and producer. His involvement with Royal Studios steadily evolved over the 1960s.

founding president, Joe Cuoghi, died in 1970 and the Hi Records label had to restructure. Attorney Nick Pesce became President and Willie Mitchell was promoted to Vice President. The Royal Studios facility came under the direction of Willie Mitchell and was renamed Mitchell's Royal Sound Studio. In 1968, Willie Mitchell met Al Green and offered him a record deal. Willie Mitchell and Al Green began producing and co-writing an album titled “Green Is Blues” – Al Green’s first album released on Hi Records. After this start, Willie Mitchell and Al Green collaborated on seven consecutive gold singles starting in 1970. Al Green sold over 20 million records during his career with

. For the purpose of perspective and comparison to a similar label, this was more than the combined album sales of

Stax Records Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records. Stax was ...

top recording artists

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

Sam and Dave Sam & Dave were an American soul and R&B duo who performed together from 1961 until 1981. The tenor (higher) voice was Sam Moore (born 1935) and the baritone/tenor (lower) voice was Dave Prater (1937–1988). Nicknamed "Double Dynamite", "The S ...

, and Booker T. & the M.G.'s during their entire careers. Other notable artists with albums produced at Royal Studios during this time include Bobby Blue Bland,

Otis Clay Otis Lee Clay (February 11, 1942 – January 8, 2016) was an American R&B and soul singer, who started in gospel music. In 2013, Clay was inducted to the Blues Hall of Fame. Early life Clay was born in Waxhaw, Mississippi, to a musical family, ...

, and

Syl Johnson Sylvester Johnson (born Sylvester Thompson; July 1, 1936 – February 6, 2022) was an American blues and soul singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. His most successful records included "Different Strokes" (1967), " Is It Because I' ...

. Reaching its commercial peak in the early to mid-1970s,

declined during the late 70s as a result of soul music being replaced by disco. Despite the decline of

, Royal Studios remained continuously in production of consistent hits from the 1957s through the present.

Present

Operation and facilities

Royal Studios is in operation at the original location under the management of Lawrence "Boo" Mitchell, one of the sons of Willie Mitchell. His credit roster includes independent artists and notable acts such as Anthony Hamilton,

, Al Green,

and 8 Ball. Royal Studios features two vintage MCI recording consoles along with other rare equipment including two original Pultec EQs,

Universal Audio United Recording Electronics Industries (UREI) was a manufacturer of recording, mixing and audio signal processing hardware for the professional recording studio, live sound and broadcasting fields. History Bill Putnam Sr. founded Universa ...

LA2As and LA3As.

Vintage tape machine collection

Royal Studios remains in possession of one of the widest collections of studio grade vintage reel-to-reel tape machines. Several of the tape machines are unique and customized. The collection includes a uniquely modified 8-channel

Ampex Ampex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff as a spin-off of Dalmo-Victor. The name AMPEX is a portmanteau, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence.AbramsoThe History ...

351 with tube circuits replacing the entire transistor circuitry, a standard

351,

Studer Studer is a designer and manufacturer of professional audio equipment for recording studios and broadcasters. The company was founded in Zürich, Switzerland, in 1948 by Willi Studer. It initially became known in the 1950s for its professiona ...

B 67, Sony APR-5000, MCI JH24 and MCI JH16.

Notable recordings

Royal Studios has served a variety of artists during its operation. The list below is of notable albums which feature recordings from Royal Studios. These albums went Platinum, Gold or won a Grammy or other significant recognition. * 1966:

Charlie Rich Charles Allan Rich (December 14, 1932July 25, 1995) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. His eclectic style of music was often difficult to classify, encompassing the rockabilly, jazz, blues, country music, country, sou ...

– Love Is After Me (USA) * 1967:

– Chuck Berry In Memphis (USA) * 1968:

Ike and Tina Turner Ike or IKE may refer to: People * Ike (given name), a list of people with the name or nickname * Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969), Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II and President of the United States Surname ...

– Too Hot To Hold (USA) * 1969:

– The Hunter (USA) * 1970: Al Green – Gets Next To You (USA) * 1971: Al Green – Let's Stay Together (USA) * 1972: Al Green – I'm Still In Love With You (USA) * 1973: Al Green – Livin’ For You (USA) * 1973: Al Green – Call Me (USA) * 1974:

– Trying To Live My Life Without You (USA) * 1974:

– I Can't Stand The Rain (USA) * 1974: Al Green – Explores Your Mind (USA) * 1975: Al Green – Al Green Is Love (USA) * 1975: Al Green – Full of Fire (USA) * 1975:

– Take Me To The River (USA) * 1975:

– Atlantic Crossing (USA) * 1976: Al Green – Have A Good Time (USA) * 1977: O.V. Wright – Into Something I Can't Shake Loose (USA) * 1981:

Jesse Winchester James Ridout "Jesse" Winchester Jr. (May 17, 1944 – April 11, 2014) was an American-Canadian musician and songwriter. He was born and raised in the southern United States. Opposed to the Vietnam War, he moved to Canada in 1967 to avoid b ...

– Talk Memphis (USA) * 1985: Al Green – He Is The Light (USA) * 1986:

Wet Wet Wet Wet Wet Wet are a Scottish soft rock band formed in 1982. They scored a number of hits in the UK charts and around the world in the 1980s and 1990s. They are best known for their 1994 cover of The Troggs' 1960s hit " Love Is All Around", which ...

– Popped In Souled Out (UK) * 1988:

– Talk Is Cheap (UK) * 1989: Al Green – As Long As We’re Together (USA) * 1992:

Pops Staples Pops may refer to: Name or nickname * Pops, an informal term of address for a father or elder * Pops (nickname), a list of people * Pops (Muppet), a Muppets character * Pops (Johnny Bravo), a character from the Cartoon Network animated televisio ...

and

The Staple Singers The Staple Singers were an American gospel, soul, and R&B singing group. Roebuck "Pops" Staples (December 28, 1914 – December 19, 2000), the patriarch of the family, formed the group with his children Cleotha (April 11, 1934 – February 21 ...

– Peace To The Neighborhood (USA) * 1994: Tom Jones - The Lead and How To Swing It * 1995: Toshio Orito – Soul Joint (Japan) * 1996:

Krzysztof Krawczyk Krzysztof January Krawczyk (; 8 September 1946 – 5 April 2021) was a Polish baritone pop singer, guitarist and composer. He was the vocalist of a popular Polish band, Trubadurzy ("the Troubadours"), from 1963 to 1973 when he started his ...

(Poland) * 1997:

Boz Scaggs William Royce "Boz" Scaggs (born June 8, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. An early bandmate of Steve Miller in The Ardells and the Steve Miller Band, he began his solo career in 1969, though he lacked a major hit until h ...

– Come On Home (USA) * 1998:

– Any Place I'm Going (USA) * 2000:

– Art Official Intelligence (USA) * 2000: Marti Pellow – Smile (UK) * 2001:

– Shoulda Been Home (USA) * 2001:

Jean-Jacques Milteau Jean-Jacques Milteau (born 17 April 1950, Paris) is a French blues harmonica player, singer, and songwriter, as well as radio presenter. Career Milteau became interested in the harmonica when he first heard folk and rock music (such as Bob D ...

– Memphis (France) * 2002: Al Green – I Can't Stop (USA) * 2003:

– It Still Moves (USA) * 2004: Al Green – Everything's O.K. (USA) * 2005:

– Bring ‘Em In (USA) * 2005: Roy Young – Memphis (Israel) * 2005: Marti Pellow – Moonlight Over Memphis (UK) * 2006: Axelle Red – Jardin Secret (Belgium) * 2006:

– Barnyard The Movie Soundtrack (USA) * 2006:

– Continuum (USA) * 2007:

Bernard Lavilliers Bernard Oulion (; born 7 October 1946 in Saint-Étienne), known professionally as Bernard Lavilliers (), is a French singer-songwriter and actor. Discography Albums Studio albums * ''Premiers pas...'' (1968) * ''Les poètes'' (1972) * ''Le St� ...

(France) * 2008: Anthony Hamilton – Soul Men The Movie Soundtrack (USA) * * 2008:

Denise LaSalle Ora Denise Allen (July 16, 1934 – January 8, 2018), known by the stage name Denise LaSalle, was an American blues, R&B and soul singer, songwriter, and record producer who, since the death of Koko Taylor, had been recognized as the "Queen of ...

(USA) * 2009:

– Soul Book (USA) * 2010: Solomon Burke – Nothing's Impossible (USA) * 2011:

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is an Indian-born British musican, singer, producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who holds both British and Barbadian citizenship. He has total sales of over 21.5 million s ...

– Soulicious (UK) * 2011:

– Landing On A Hundred (USA) * 2014: Sam Moore - They Killed a King - tribute song to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968) * 2014:

- The Royal Sessions * 2014:

Mark Ronson Mark Daniel Ronson (born 4 September 1975) is a British-American DJ, songwriter, record producer, and record executive. He is best known for his collaborations with artists such as Duran Duran, Amy Winehouse, Adele, Lady Gaga, Lily Allen, Robbi ...

ft.

Bruno Mars Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), known professionally as Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for his stage performances, retro showmanship, and for performing in a wide range of musical s ...

Uptown Funk "Uptown Funk" is a song by British record producer Mark Ronson from his fourth studio album, ''Uptown Special'' (2015), featuring American singer and songwriter Bruno Mars. It was released as the album's lead single on 10 November 2014 via dow ...

! (USA)

References

External links

* {{Authority control Recording studios in Tennessee Companies based in Memphis, Tennessee Entertainment companies established in 1956 1956 establishments in Tennessee