Jimi Hendrix commissioned New York City’s Electric Lady Studios as his personal recording space, built to his specifications. But he only recorded a handful of songs there before he died in 1970. In the five decades since, the studio’s been used by Stevie Wonder, Patti Smith, Taylor Swift, and other stars. John McDermott’s new documentary, Electric Lady Studios: A Jimi Hendrix Vision, tells the story of the fabled space. KCRW talks to McDermott and recording engineer Eddie Kramer about its origins.
The Greenwich Village studio was originally a nightclub called The Generation Club, one of Hendrix’s favorite places to jam, explains Kramer. At the time, the plan was to add in an eight-track machine in the corner and record some songs there: “And I said, ‘You guys are crazy, Jimi spends way, way over $200,000 in 1969, 1970. Let's build him the greatest studio in the world, where he can come and play anytime he wants. And then they said, ‘Yeah, that's a very good idea.’ And they scrapped the club, and it became an Electric Lady.”
Kramer was the man behind the mixing board during the recordings of songs such as “Dolly Dagger” and “Freedom.” He recalls nights they worked together when Hendrix showed up at 7 p.m. — but never early, despite living around the corner.
“He loved the fact that I could get different sounds for him. And it was always Jimi trying to do more with what he had. He only had a few pedals and an amp, but my goodness, the sound was just quite remarkable.”
Prior to the Electric Lady, labels (not artists) owned recording studios, McDermott explains. That led to snags during the studio’s 14-month construction. For example, builders hit a tributary of an underground river that flooded the property.
“One of the interesting things is that there was no studio construction industry back then. So … you had Eddie and a small, really, group of people that were taking on this mountain of challenges. And to me, that was always part of the story that I found really fascinating.”
When cash was tight, construction stopped and workers were laid off. Meanwhile, Hendrix played a concert to recoup money. Kramer says that showed how much Hendrix was willing to do to make the studio a reality.
“This was Jimi’s dream — to have a studio that he called his own. A place that was almost like his second home. And thank goodness we had John Stark, the architect, who did an incredible job of making the shapes very soft and round.”
He continues, “The room to this day still sounds amazing, and we had the latest gear at Electric Lady Studios in 1970. There was no studio in the world that could match it at that time.”
Eddie Kramer frequently collaborated with Jimi Hendrix at Electric Lady Studios. Credit: Abramorama/Experience Hendrix, L.L.C.
Kramer was at the Electric Lady when he learned Hendrix died of an overdose. He remembers walking into the studio and seeing everyone crying. The news hit him like a ton of bricks.
“I remember walking down the corridor, past reception, and I think I just fell into a little bit of a heap. And then I had to pull myself together. But it was an odd day, such a strange, weird day with all the camera crews coming down and people making comments about Jimi. It just felt very odd. We were lost for a while.”
Afterwards, Kramer says continuing to create music at the studio made the most sense.
“It's bloody magic, and it's got Jimi’s vibe in every part of that studio. Musicians, when they walk down to Electric Lady for the first time and walk in, they go, ‘Oh, I know what this is about.’ And they can actually feel it, whether it's psychological, imagination, whatever. But there's definitely a change that comes up with folks when they walk in there.”
He adds, “It's a wonderful place. … You can't even book the damn place. It's so busy, but it's a unique-sounding place. It's got a unique vibe that Jimi had left the world.”
“This was Jimi’s dream — to have a studio that he called his own. A place that was almost like his second home,” says recording engineer Eddie Kramer. Credit: Abramorama/Experience Hendrix, L.L.C.