Nod to The Legend · The rooms · 1959–1972
Motown's Hitsville U.S.A.
Detroit, 2648 West Grand Boulevard
In a small studio nicknamed the Snakepit, the Funk Brothers cut hit after hit, with an echo chamber up in the attic. Bass went straight into the console, tambourine rode the backbeat, and everything was built to sound great on a car radio.
Still heard: The "Motown sound": a hard backbeat, DI bass and tight mono-minded mixes.
Related legends
- The Teletronix LA-2A: Optical leveling amplifier, designed by Jim Lawrence
- Bruce Swedien: Engineer for Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson
- Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis: Flyte Tyme, Minneapolis
- Bartolomeo Cristofori: Inventor of the piano, Florence
- The Ludwigs and the Drum Kit: William F. and Theobald Ludwig
- Laurens Hammond: Inventor of the Hammond organ