Watch the video recap by GRAMMY Camp Media Team member Kevin Burke here!
The GRAMMY Camp – Jazz Session big band spent Saturday morning recording an album at Capitol Studios, in the same studio where Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, and a slew of other musicians cut some of music’s most famous records. Needless to say, the band was very excited to be there, despite having a 6:30 a.m. session.
“It’s so amazing to get to play in the same place as Ella Fitzgerald, Sinatra, all those people,” trumpet player Ryan Deweese said. “It’s great to learn what it’s like to play in such a great place.”
The band recorded tracks in the famed Studio A for the 2012 GRAMMY Camp – Jazz Session album. The album also includes songs featuring the jazz combo and choir, who recorded their parts the day before. According to bass trombone player Chris Palowitch, the band only had time to record two or three takes of each track during the session.
“I’ve heard a few of [the tracks] already, and they sound great,” Palowitch said. “Not even some of the bigger artists today get to record in such an awesome place. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Studio A was recently updated, and the first artist to record in the renovated room was none other than the 2012 MusiCares Person of the Year Paul McCartney. Additionally, awards for several recordings by The Beatles line the wall in the building’s entrance. The hallways are decorated with pictures of iconic artists from decades past, including Les Paul, Mary Ford, and Dean Martin.
Palowitch said “Lonely Street,” a Sam Hart ballad, is his favorite tune to play.
“It’s an awesome tune, even though I don’t play that much on it,” he said.
Cameron MacIntosh, a drummer, echoed the feelings expressed by the band.
“It’s a huge honor to play where so many of my idols have recorded,” he said, sitting in the drum isolation booth. “You know that drum solo in The Beatles’ ‘The End?’ That was recorded right here!”
Julian Ring is an alumnus of GRAMMY Camp and a music journalist living in the Bay Area. He also served on the GRAMMY eTeam. Julian has written for GRAMMY.com, The Wall Street Journal, and The Oakland Tribune. Kevin Burke is an alumnus of GRAMMY Camp NY and the guitarist for Long Island-based pop-punk band, No Good News. He studies guitar, audio engineering, and music theory at Long Island High School for the Arts and attends Garden City High School part time. You can listen to his music at http://nogoodnews.bandcamp.com/
Julian and Kevin are GRAMMY Camp music journalism students who were selected to cover GRAMMY Week 2012 as part of the GRAMMY Camp – Jazz Session media team. To find out more about GRAMMY Camp and to apply for this summer, click here. Deadline is March 31, 2012.
