The Village (studio)

The Village (also known as Village Recorders, or the Village Recorder) is a recording studio located at 1616 Butler Avenue in West Los Angeles, California.

History
Built by the Freemasons in the 1920s, the building was originally a Masonic temple. It remained that way until the 1960s, during which the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi used it as his Los Angeles center for Transcendental Meditation. The Building maintains much of the original Masonic characteristics including a large Auditorium/Masonic Meeting Hall and original stained glass windows. Once converted to a studio in the late 1960s the Village was the birthplace of classic records including Aja by Steely Dan, Joe's Garage by Frank Zappa, Planet Waves by Bob Dylan and many more.

The Village is home to a vintage Neve 8048 console as well as two Neve 88R consoles. The Village is renowned for its extensive inventory of vintage microphones and outboard gear. The Village also has Oscar Peterson's Steinway & Sons Model A, which Peterson used extensively from the 1940s through the 1980s.

John Mayer recorded parts of his album Continuum at The Village Recorder - and released some of those sessions on his EP The Village Sessions, featuring Ben Harper.

Many major motion picture and television soundtracks have also been recorded at the studio, including Ace Ventura, Dead Poets Society, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, The Simpsons, Toy Story 2, Walk the Line, The X Files, Wall-E, Revolutionary Road, The Shawshank Redemption and others.

The Village also becomes home to KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic radio show, hosted by Jason Bentley, during on-air membership drives when the station's own performance room is unavailable.

Artists who have used the Village
• Aaliyah

• Aerosmith

• After Midnight Project

• Ahmad Jamal

• Alanis Morissette

• Alice Cooper

• Alison Krauss

• Amy Grant

• B.B. King

• Backstreet Boys

• Beware of Darkness

• Biffy Clyro

• Bob Dylan

• Bono

• Brian Setzer

• Christina Aguilera

• Christine McVie

• Clare Bowen

• Colbie Caillat

• Courtney Love

• Crosby, Stills and Nash

• Danny Elfman

• Dr. Dre

• Dreams So Real

• Elton John

• Elvis Costello

• Eric Clapton

• Fleetwood Mac

• Frank Sinatra

• Frank Zappa

• George Harrison

• Grateful Dead

• Guns N' Roses

• Harry Styles

• Janet Jackson

• Jars of Clay

• Jimmy Buffett

• John Fogerty

• John Lennon

• John Mayer

• Johnny Cash

• Julie Andrews

• Katharine McPhee

• Kelly Clarkson

• Keyshia Cole

• Kiss

• Lady Gaga

• Leon Russell

• Les McCann

• Lindsay Lohan

• Lindsey Buckingham

• Little Richard

• Live

• Madonna

• Mariah Carey

• Mark Hudson

• Marty Balin

• Mick Jagger

• Neil Young

• Nelly

• Nine Inch Nails

• No Doubt

• Oasis

• Olivia Newton-John

• Ozzy Osbourne

• Pat Benatar

• Peter Gabriel

• Pink Floyd

• Randy Newman

• Ratt

• Ray Charles

• Red Hot Chili Peppers

• Rihanna

• Ringo Starr

• Robert Plant

• Ronnie James Dio

• Ryan Adams

• Sad Café

• Sam Phillips

• Sara Bareilles

• Sixpence None the Richer

• Snoop Dogg

• Steely Dan

• Stevie Nicks

• Stevie Ray Vaughan

• Sting

• Supertramp

• Switchfoot

• Take That

• Talking Heads

• t.A.T.u.

• Taylor Swift

• Tech N9ne

• The Allman Brothers

• The Band

• The Beach Boys

• The Carpenters

• The Cat Empire

• The Doors

• The Eagles

• The Rolling Stones

• The Smashing Pumpkins

• Tina Turner

• Tokio Hotel

• Tom Jones

• Tom Petty

• Toni Braxton

• Tori Amos

• Ty Dolla $ign

• Usher

• Weezer

• Yngwie Malmsteen