TTG Studios was 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 ...
in Los Angeles, California, co-founded in 1965 by
recording engineers Tom Hidley
Tom Hidley (born 27 May 1931) is an American recording studio designer and audio engineer whose companies have been responsible for the design of hundreds of professional studios worldwide since 1965. Hidley coined the term "bass trap", and is cr ...
and Amnon "Ami" Hadani.
History
The studio was located at 1441 North McCadden Place in the
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood, ...
section of Los Angeles, near the intersection of
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades east to Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles. It is a major thoroughfare in t ...
and
Highland Avenue.
Originally the home of the Hollywood
Knights of Columbus
The Knights of Columbus (K of C) is a global Catholic fraternal service order founded by Michael J. McGivney on March 29, 1882. Membership is limited to practicing Catholic men. It is led by Patrick E. Kelly, the order's 14th Supreme Knight. ...
, the building was built in 1927, an active period in Hollywood, as nearby buildings
Grauman's Chinese Theatre
Grauman's Chinese Theatre (branded as TCL Chinese Theatre for naming rights reasons) is a movie palace on the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6925 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States.
The original Chines ...
, the
Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel is a historic hotel located at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California. It opened on May 15, 1927, and is the oldest continually operating hotel in Los Angeles.
History
The hote ...
and the
Hollywood Athletic Club
The Hollywood Athletic Club is an office building and event space in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles.
Since it was built in 1924, it has had a varied history as a health club, bar, music venue, and billiard room.
It is located on Sunset ...
all date from the same period. In 1960,
Radio Recorders
Radio Recorders, Inc. was an American recording studio located in Los Angeles, California. During the 1940s and 1950s, Radio Recorders was one of the largest independent recording studios in the world. Notable musicians recorded at Radio Recorder ...
converted the ground floor billiards room and half the lounge into a recording studio to form their Sunset-Highland Division, which housed the
Blue Network
The Blue Network (previously known as the NBC Blue Network) was the on-air name of a now defunct American Commercial broadcasting, radio network, which broadcast from 1927 through 1945.
Beginning as one of the two radio networks owned by the N ...
and other entertainment-related companies.
TTG was co-founded by Tom Hidley and Amnon "Ami" Hadani, who had both previously worked with MGM/Verve Records and
A & R Recording
A & R Recording Inc. was a major American independent studio recording company founded in 1958 by Jack Arnold and Phil Ramone.
History
Before founding A & R Recording in 1958, Arnold and Ramone had been working at JAC Recording, Inc.; Arnold h ...
in New York before relocating to Los Angeles in 1965 to found TTG. The studio's name did not stand for "Two Terrible Guys" as has been mistakenly claimed, but rather was adopted from the name of a
Jewish Brigade
The Jewish Infantry Brigade Group, more commonly known as the Jewish Brigade Group or Jewish Brigade, was a military formation of the British Army in the Second World War. It was formed in late 1944 and was recruited among Yishuv Jews from Manda ...
formed after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
whose name was an acronym for the Israeli slang expression "
Tilhas Tizig Gesheften
Tilhas Teezee Gesheften (commonly known by its acronym TTG) was the name of a group of Jewish Brigade members formed immediately following World War II. Under the guise of British military activity, this group engaged in the assassination of Nazi ...
", which roughly translates to "up your ass".
TTG leased 1441 North McCadden Place, converting the second story main hall into a large recording studio that could accommodate up to 100 musicians. Meticulously and innovatively designed by Hidley with a high decibel level threshold, the studio became popular with the up-and-coming rock musicians of that time, including
The Monkees
The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was conc ...
,
Eric Burdon
Eric Victor Burdon (born 11 May 1941) is an English singer. He was previously the lead vocalist of R&B and rock band the Animals and funk band War. He is regarded as one of the British Invasion's most distinctive singers with his deep, powe ...
,
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...
and
The Mothers of Invention
The Mothers of Invention (also known as The Mothers) was an American rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows.
Originally an R&B band ...
, and
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...
.
Burdon introduced
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
to the studio and Hendrix "raved" about the studio's sound.
TTG installed one of the first
16-track tape recorders, which was custom built by co-owner Hidley, at a time when 4- or 8-track recording was still the norm. Jimi Hendrix used this machine at TTG in October 1968.
TTG went out of business in 1985, and building was sold to Yoram and Peggy Kahana, owners and directors of Shooting Star International, a photo agency. The agency retrofitted the cinder block structure, restored the main hall and third floor balcony to their original state, and moved into the building in December 1990. The Kahanas kept and upgraded the ground floor recording studio, which is now occupied by their tenants
Wax Ltd
Wax Ltd. is the American multi-platinum production and songwriting duo of Wally Gagel and Xandy Barry. Collectively and individually they have worked with a wide variety of artists including Zella Day, Blondfire, Family of the Year, Miley Cyrus, ...
, the multi-platinum production and songwriting record label of
Wally Gagel
Wally Gagel is an American, multi platinum, award-winning record producer, audio engineer, mixer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. His current work with Blondfire, Zella Day, Best Coast, Hunter Hunted, The Mowglis and Redlight King has garn ...
and Xandy Barry, and WICK Studios, a photo and video rental production studio.
Personnel
Tom Hidley
TTG Studios' co-founder was Tom Hidley. He was born May 27, 1931 in Los Angeles, California.
As a teen, he spent long hours playing the saxophone, clarinet, and flute, until ordered to cease by his physician after a physical breakdown.
He then turned to non-performance aspects of music, and spent nights recording at clubs and days working at loudspeaker and tape-machine companies.
In 1959, "
Madman Muntz
Earl William "Madman" Muntz (January 3, 1914 – June 21, 1987) was an American businessman and engineer who sold and promoted cars and consumer electronics in the United States from the 1930s until his death in 1987. He was a pioneer in telev ...
" hired Hidley to assist in the development of the first
car stereo
Vehicle audio is equipment installed in a car or other vehicle to provide in-car entertainment and information for the vehicle occupants. Until the 1950s it consisted of a simple AM radio. Additions since then have included FM radio (1952), 8-t ...
.
Among the first to own a Muntz car stereo was
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...
, the famous singer and actor.
Through Sinatra's purchase, Hidley became known to a Sinatra associate Val Valentin, who invited Hildley to assist in the building of a new recording studio in New York.
In 1962, they built the MGM/Verve studio.
In 1964,
Phil Ramone
Philip Ramone (né Rabinowitz, January 5, 1934March 30, 2013) was a South African-born American recording engineer, record producer, violinist and composer, who in 1958 co-founded A & R Recording, Inc., a recording studio with business par ...
hired Hidley to work at his A&R studio as the audio technical manager.
Also employed at that time by A&R was Ami Hadani.
Hidley went on to found
Westlake Recording Studios
Westlake Recording Studios is a music recording studio in West Hollywood, California.
History
Westlake Recording Studios was founded in the early 1970s by the American audio engineer Tom Hidley under the name Westlake Audio. Hidley was experienc ...
in the 1970s, a facility which was highly influential in standardizing acoustic design in the recording industry and which has been used by a large number of prominent vocal artists.
Ami Hadani
TTG co-founder Amnon "Ami" Hadani was born August 19, 1929. He was credited as Omi Hadan on some records.
Hadani's association with
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
/
Verve
Verve may refer to:
Music
* The Verve, an English rock band
* ''The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve
* ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album)
* Verve Records, an American jazz record label
Businesses
* Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee ho ...
artists preceded TTG and his work with rock groups. He engineered albums by jazzmen
Ray Brown and
Milt Jackson
Milton Jackson (January 1, 1923 – October 9, 1999), nicknamed "Bags", was an American jazz vibraphonist, usually thought of as a bebop player, although he performed in several jazz idioms. He is especially remembered for his cool swinging solo ...
, actress
Lainie Kazan
Lainie Kazan (born Lainie Levine; May 15, 1940) is an American actress and singer. She was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for '' St. Elsewhere'' and the 1993 Tony Award for Best Featured Actr ...
, and location recording for
standup comic Shelley Berman
Sheldon Leonard Berman (February 3, 1925 – September 1, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, writer, teacher, and lecturer.
In his comedic career, he was awarded three gold records and he won the first Grammy Award for a spoken comedy reco ...
.
According to
Bruce Botnick
Bruce Botnick (born 1945) is an American audio engineer and record producer, best known for his work with the Doors, the Beach Boys, Eddie Money, Love and film composer Jerry Goldsmith.
Early work
Botnick engineered Love's first two albums, and ...
, Hadani was a General in the
Israeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force (IAF; he, זְרוֹעַ הָאֲוִיר וְהֶחָלָל, Zroa HaAvir VeHahalal, tl, "Air and Space Arm", commonly known as , ''Kheil HaAvir'', "Air Corps") operates as the aerial warfare branch of the Israel Defense ...
, and had to leave for weeks at a time when Israel was at war.
Ami Hadani was married to actress/screenwriter
Ellen Weston
Ellen Weston (born Ellen Weinstein) is an American actress, producer, and writer.
Early years
Born in New York City, Weston is the daughter of educators; her mother was a teacher, and her father was a superintendent of schools. She attended Perfor ...
and they had one child, Jonathan Hadani. They were divorced when their son was six years old. Ami remarried Christine Ermacoff, a studio cellist. Ami Hadani died on September 22, 2014 in Los Angeles.
Albums recorded at TTG Studios
References
External links
WICK Studios websiteWAX LTD website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ttg Studios
Recording studios in California
Buildings and structures in Los Angeles
1965 establishments in California
1985 disestablishments in California