“In the early ‘60s, when he went off on his own, he created this company called A-I-R, which I believe stands for the Association of Independent Recordists, and that was the key. Independence. He took that model, and he was getting great residuals and everything from The Beatles’ work. So he had the money, and he built a recording studio in London, which he called AIR Studios, named after the group he had founded, and that, because of who he was, everybody wanted to go there, from Bowie to Queen. Everybody went there. But the ‘70s turned out to be this renaissance period in music where you couldn’t think twice without having paparazzi in your backyard. It was horrible. And artists wanted to get away from that because they felt so constrained. They couldn’t think or create. It was just not the world that they wanted it to be, so they ended up wanting to go somewhere else.” – Myles Wakeham
This episode is the second half of my conversation with recording engineer, producer, and owner of Troubled Clef Studios, Myles Wakeham, as we discuss the events that led him to found his own studio in Mexico, some of the most memorable sessions they’ve hosted so far, and his advice to musicians on how to get out from under the streaming platforms and back in front of an audience.
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(00:00) – The Legacy of George Martin
Myles and I start the second half of our conversation with the story of how he founded Troubled Clef Studios in San Miguel de Allende, and how he was inspired by George Martin’s famous AIR Studios. “The legend goes that the last band that recorded there was the Rolling Stones,” he tells us. “And the Stones had a kind of reputation that any studio they went into, the studio was destroyed after they left. And lo and behold, guess what happened.” He shares the personal challenges that led to his new life and direction with Troubled Clef Studios, including the changes in the tech industry. “I’d seen the industry that, you know, as a kid in the garage kind of thing turn into this,” he says. “It just felt like it was consolidating around maybe half a dozen players, and, as it happens, now that’s the people who own and run the world pretty much. I just lost my faith in it and didn’t want to do it.”
(13:18) – Building a Studio in Mexico
He tells us more about how his wife helped inspire him to fulfill his dream of building a studio, and the logistics of starting a new business in Mexico. “’Why don’t you build that recording studio here?’” he recalls her asking. “So that became the mantra. Then the problem that creates, you know, you make a decision that you’re going to do something as epic as that, then it turns into, well, what challenges I’m going to have being in the middle of Mexico.” He shares the story of the studio’s first client, a New York Times bestselling author, and how it led to other high-profile clients and projects. “We sent it back, and they loved it,” Myles recalls. “That led to Condé Nast hiring us, and then after that The New Yorker magazine hired us. So we got into this whole production world very quickly.”
(26:22) – The Importance of Live Music
As our conversation comes to a close, Myles tells us about his role as a university professor, and the lessons he hopes to pass on to his students. “To teach what it’s like to work with a diva,” he explains. “[To] teach what it’s like to work with artists that aren’t confident, and to show them how to bring out their best side of themselves. You know, the stuff that you can’t watch in a YouTube video or read in a book or anything, but the stuff that’s real.” He tells listeners how they can get in touch, and offers his insights into what it takes to remain relevant in the world of Spotify and streaming playlists. “If you’re a musician doing it because you love music,” he says, “you’ve got to go out there with a crowd, and you’ve got to become a part of that world. You’ll be surprised how rewarding it really is.”
Episode Summary
- George Martin’s impact and the creation of Air Studios.Myles recounts his most memorable projects and experiences.Why musicians need to engage with live audiences today.
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