Ardent Studios

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Ardent Studios is a recording studio located in Memphis, Tennessee. Ardent Records/Ardent Music is the in-house label.

Contents

[edit] History

Ardent Studios was founded by John Fry and was initially a studio in his family's garage, where he recorded his first Ardent Records 45's. In 1966 the operation moved into a new store building on Memphis' National Street, which was shared with a bookshop. The original equipment came from the garage operation: Altec tube console, Ampex 2-track, Pultec EQ and Neumann mics—some of which are still in use today. Tom Dowd was consulting with Auditronics on an early multitrack console for nearby Stax Records, and Fry ordered the same input modules for his second board. Next came a Scully 4-track, the first EMT plate reverbs in the area, and the beginnings of a world class collection of gear. Ardent became home to young producers and engineers such as Jim Dickinson, Terry Manning, Joe Hardy, John Hampton, Paul Ebersold, and later Skidd Mills, Jeff Powell, Jason Latshaw, and Pete Matthews. In 1971, Ardent Studios moved to its present location on Madison Avenue, followed by the acquisition of 24-track recorders, bigger consoles and more gear. Today Ardent has three studios equipped with large format Neve and SSL desks alongside Pro Tools rigs, and is managed by Jody Stephens (also drummer for Big Star) -- an early Ardent group who's first two albums appeared on Ardent Records label in the early 1970s. All three Big Star albums were named in Rolling Stone's Top 500 albums of all time, and “In The Street,” from their first album, became the theme for “That 70s Show.”

Early on the studio recorded Sam & Dave, Led Zeppelin, Isaac Hayes, Leon Russell and The Staples Singers, and in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s recorded James Taylor, ZZ Top, R.E.M., George Thorogood, The Allman Brothers, Bob Dylan, and Jimmie and Stevie Ray Vaughan. In the 2000s younger artists such as The White Stripes, 3 Doors Down, Cat Power, North Mississippi Allstars, The Raconteurs and Guy Sebastian have recorded at Ardent, and the soundtracks for Hustle and Flow and Black Snake Moan were produced at Ardent as well. To date, Ardent has recorded over 70 gold and platinum albums and singles.

[edit] Notable Artists

[edit] Notable Albums

  • Huey Lewis and the News—Soulsville
  • George Thorogood and the Destroyers—The Dirty Dozen, Bad to the Bone, Born to be Bad
  • Big Star—Keep and Eye on the Sky (Box Set), #1 Record, Sister Lovers, Radio City
  • The Raconteurs—Broken Boy Soldiers
  • The White Stripes—Get Behind Me Satan
  • North Mississippi Allstars—Electric Blue Watermelon, 51 Phantom, Polaris, Shake Hands With Shorty
  • Jim Dickinson—Free Beer Tomorrow, Dixie Fried
  • Alvin Youngblood Hart-Motivational Speaker
  • Stevie Ray Vaughan—Live at Carnegie Hall
  • ZZ Top—Antenna, The Sky is Crying, Afterburner, Eliminator, El Loco, Deguello, Best of ZZ Top, Tejas, Fandango, Tres Hombres, Rio Grande Mud
  • BB King—Blues Summit
  • The Allman Brothers—Shades of Two Worlds
  • REM—Green
  • Al Green—Soul Survivor
  • Joe Walsh—Got Any Gum?
  • The Replacements—Pleased to Meet Me
  • Alex Chilton—Like Flies on Sherbet
  • James Taylor—Mud Slide Slim And The Blue Horizon
  • The Staple Singers—The Staple Swingers
  • Booker T. and the MG's--Soul Limbo
  • Box Tops—Box Tops Super Hits, Cry Like A Baby
  • Guy Sebastian--The Memphis Album [1]

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Memphis Album Reviews [1] Retrieved 4 Jan 2012.

[edit] External links

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