David Richardson (audio engineer)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

David Richardson (born in Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England) is an English music producer, audio engineer and musician. He founded Sky Studios with rock band Jethro Tull, the studio later became leading facilities house, Sound Recording Technology (SRT).[1]

History

Richardson learned piano from the age of four and developed a passion for electronics and sound recording. By his teens, he was already recording top Jazz artists of the day; this included names such as,

vinyl pressings are much sought after, such as Grannie, which according to Record Collector is one of the most valuable original pressings of all time.[4][5]

The original SRT Studios were based in Guildford Street, Luton, where bands such as McGregor's Engine recorded.[6] It was this band, with local guitarist Mick Abrahams, drummer Clive Bunker and bassist Andy Pyle that formed the foundation of Jethro Tull which, with the addition of multi-instrumentalist Ian Anderson, went on to sell over 60 million albums.[7] Andy Pyle featured on many early SRT recordings and later became a member of Wishbone Ash.[8]

The SRT studios moved from Luton to

vinyl manufacture.[9] Local folk rock bands that recorded there included Back Alley Choir,[10] and Halcyon, the drummer of which was Nigel Pegrum, who went on to join Steeleye Span.[11] The Shefford studios closed in the mid-seventies. SRT had offices in North Finchley
and for many years the SRT production company used many different recording studios.

Recording of northern artists formed a large part of the SRT catalogue, reflecting the booming 1970s club scene, with many of those recordings produced at

silver disc presented by Chris Tarrant on the ATV Saturday morning programme, Tiswas. Apart from music production, SRT was one of the first manufacturing brokers, and had a close relationship with Abbey Road Studios, where artists were encouraged to attend cutting of the pressing lacquers for their forthcoming vinyl releases. With no complete record of all SRT's early releases, some online sources have started to catalogue many of the vintage SRT vinyl products.[18]

Manufacturing

In the mid-1980s, he started a record factory in

process control as a challenge set to him by RCA (now Sony Music), he created a method to produce a perfect five-piece extrusion moulding; the first perfectly playable audio picture disc. At this point no one had been able to create discs within a constant tolerance and without severe warping. In this procedure he was the first engineer to incorporate fuzzy logic into the process control of the record press by building his own logic controllers. He thus achieved RCA's quality goal, helping the factory to gain further substantial clients including Virgin and Island. The new system produced many very collectible chart-topping products, including Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Eurythmics and Boy George
.

Mastering

After vinyl started to decline, Richardson turned his passion towards

CD audio
.

Classical recordings

In addition to his work on commercial audio products, he was also a leader in creation of the first 20-bit recordings and an early exponent of Sony's

HDCD
.

Present

In 1999, Richardson took a break from Sound Recording Technology, spending more time in his Spanish home. For a number of years he hosted a late night chat show on Central Radio in

Andalucia
.

In 2006 he opened mastering and post production facilities in

Pussycat Dolls, Level 42, New Order and Bronski Beat. He also mastered the audio for the TV show Hollyoaks and music for Dancing on Ice
.

Recent projects include work for

The Strawbs, Belinda Carlisle and Wishbone Ash.[22] Recent restoration work has included masters of classic standard repertoire from Quincy Jones to Frank Sinatra, as well as jazz artists including Miles Davis
.

Chapel Kensington's London studio was moved in June 2015. The studio operation is now working under the original brand name SRT (Sound Recording Technology), thus embracing four decades of reputation, concentrating on mastering for all audio formats, including online mastering.[23] It is based in Richardson's original and present hometown of Harpenden, Hertfordshire. Also working in the business is his son Jack Richardson.

In September 2015, Richardson featured in a programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4, where he spoke about the early history of SRT's studio in Luton.[24]

References

  1. ^ "August 2016 Magazine Contents". Sound On Sound. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  2. ^ "Eastwood - I Am Free / Gypsy - CBS - UK - CBS 7076". 45cat.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  3. ^ "Telstar by Original Tornados (1975)". YouTube. 30 September 2009. Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  4. ^ "Grannie - Grannie (Vinyl, LP, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  5. ^ "Rocklist.net...Record Collector Lists". Rocklistmusic.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  6. ^ "Mick Abrahams". Jethro Tull. 20 June 2014. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  7. ^ "BBC Radio 6 Music - Cerys on 6, With Ian Anderson from Jethro Tull, Ian Anderson from Jethro Tull - Interview". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  8. ^ "Wishbone Ash". Wishbone Ash. Archived from the original on 17 June 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  9. ^ Billboard. 10 June 1972. p. 93. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  10. ^ "Back Alley Choir - Back Alley Choir (Vinyl, LP, Album)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  11. ^ "History". Steeleye Span. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  12. ^ "Licorice Soul Records: High quality groovy retro reissues on vinyl single, LP, 12" and CD formats". Archived from the original on 22 August 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
  13. ^ "New Jersey Turnpike". Sheffield Forum. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  14. ^ "New Jersey Turnpike (2) - Turn The Page (Vinyl, LP, Album)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  15. ^ "Drawmer Electronics Ltd". Drawmer.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  16. ^ "Licorice Soul Records: High quality groovy retro reissues on vinyl single, LP, 12" and CD formats". Archived from the original on 18 January 2012. Retrieved 21 June 2015.
  17. ^ "Cannon & Ball - Rock On Tommy (Vinyl, LP, Album)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  18. ^ "SRT". 7tt77.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  19. ^ "Forum". SA-CD.net. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  20. ^ Richard Osborne (9 January 2013). "Beethoven Concertos". Gramophone.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  21. ^ "Eddy Grant - The Very Best Of Eddy Grant Road To Reparation (CD)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  22. ^ "Access All Areas - Demon Music Group". Demonmusicgroup.co.uk. 20 June 2014. Archived from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  23. ^ "Sound Recording Technology". Sound Recording Technology. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  24. ^ "BBC Radio 4 - Tom Ravenscroft's Campervan of Vinyl Dreamers". Bbc.co.uk. 26 September 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2016.

External links

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