[Buying the albums sampled on “You Can All Join In”.]
More this time from Ashley Hutchings’ May 2001 notes in the insert that came with the expanded CD:
“The places where these sessions were recorded made their own special contribution to the experience. Nowadays we continually find ourselves in small, compact purpose-built studios; in those days radio sessions were recorded in massive old spaces, dripping with history. They were often concert halls converted into recording srudios. The Playhouse in Northumerland Avenue, Aeolian Hall in Bond Street, Maida Vale Studios in Delaware Road – great old places. They were packed with instruments, on hand for use by in-house musicians who might need them for the next Sing Something Simple, or the like. Instruments like the celeste, a small tinky-tinky sounding keyboard instrument used for a piece like “Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy”. You can bet that the visiting Incredible String Band (for example) would have wheeled that out and used it on one of their songs. It was possible to close your eyes and imagine Sir Edward Elgar conducting the BBC orchestra in the space in which you stood in your flowery shirt, loon pants and scarf, holding your Fender. I think that we became quite fond of these places.”
More next time.
Comments