If the walls of the Record Plant could talk, what fantastic stories they would tell! A studio system that dominated the 70s, a new book entitled Buzz Me In tells many stories of one of the more revered production studio systems that resulted in some fantastic music. The studio, borne out of frustration with how their current studio operated, was founded in 1968 by Gary Kellgren and Chris Stone, who wanted to build a studio that was both artist friendly and technically advanced. 

John Lennon is a dominating presence throughout Buzz Me In, because he made the Record Plant (both New York and Los Angeles) his exclusive home for recording music. He even spent a good deal of time there when he wasn’t recording music; one story tells of a visitor wondering who the strange man was who simply sat it the lobby, quietly reading—it was Lennon. Plenty of the hell-raising of the Lost Weekend are told, where he got together with Harry Nilsson, Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, and anyone floating In that orbit. 

But there are plenty of stories to be had here. There’s Aerosmith recording their early material in New York, and they liked the gritty, crime-ridden area as they felt it inspired them. And inspire them it did; they wrote their signature hit “Walk This Way” after watching Young Frankenstein. Then there’s Fleetwood Mac, who hunkered down into the California studios and produced the biggest album of the decade. And let’s not forget Sly Stone, who built an underground studio in the Sausalito studio called The Pit. 

Tragically, it’s the murder of good friend John Lennon that marks the decline in the Record Plant New York. Lennon and wife Yoko Ono worked on her single “Walking On Thin Ice” in the studio and had left the studio when Lennon was shot. The studio still functioned, until it closed in 1987. (Record Plant LA continued on and closed last year, while the Sausalito studio still operates but under a different name.) 

Buzz Me In is simply a fun, fascinating read. It lets the reader peek behind the walls of the recording studio and lets them see what took place behind closed doors. It gives the reader a sense of what took place when some of the best music of all time was made. 

Purchase: Amazon

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