Under The Volcano – Reaction
A recording studio in the Caribbean …
We knew about George Martin’s Air Studio in London but never really followed the story from there on out and were surprisingly unaware of his expansion to the Caribbean Island of Montserrat.
MLT Club member Tomás shared the trailer of the documentary “Under The Volcano” with us and you can watch us react to it live in today’s video.
We went ahead and watched the full documentary last night. It’s fascinating, and we highly recommend it! It includes interviews with people from Mark Knopfler, Sting, Giles Martin and Stewart Copeland all the way to the cleaning and cooking staff who worked at the studio back in the 70s and 80s.
Here is the link to the trailer on YouTube: Under the Volcano – Official Trailer
If you have seen it, let’s talk about the documentary in the comments!
Mona & Lisa
I love ALL your Reaction videos; I enjoyed that one too! I’ve heard of George Martin’s Air Studios in Monserrat where Macca recorded in 1981. I knew that Paul recorded his album “Tug of War” there, & I used to sing “Take it Away” from that album, & other songs in a quartet that I had in the early ’80’s.
Paul McCartney – Tug of War (The McCartney Years) (Official Music Video) – YouTube
This 2nd video of Paul’s has a great message about the need for PEACE! It recreates a true story of when the British & German armies had a rare moment of truce, meeting outside their trenches on Christmas Day, 1914 during WWI. (Recorded in 1982.)
Paul McCartney – Pipes Of Peace – YouTube
I hope you enjoy these! — Bud
Saw “Under The Volcano”. It was a really enjoyable and fascinating watch to see so many music legends take creative refuge at George Martin’s studio and retreat in Montserrat. Thanks Tomas for the great submission. MLT had the right idea indeed with their creative retreat in Lanzarote. I think Sting summed it up well: “Montserrat allowed us to calm down”, and it looked like gave many groups who came to the island that calming down effect to create. The movie evokes something really magical about George Martin’s Monserrat. It even provided a peaceful backdrop for Mick Jagger and Keith Richards to mend things between them and go on to create another album, and continue the Stones legacy in the 80s. This movie provided even more insight into George Martin and my appreciation for him.
Hey Jung, how/where did you see this document, is it free to watch because if not, sadly I can’t watch it, I don’t have cable TV and can’t really afford to pay to watch something … glad you got to watch it, it sounds interesting.
Hey Jacki. I watched it on Youtube, did the movie rent option ($5.99). Unfortunately couldn’t find a free version on the internet.
Thanks Jung, well I’ll just have to wait until I can see it for free somewheres, as I’m not/can’t afford to pay for to watch it as I’m on a tight budget .
The film is available in the US. We watched it tonight for $4.00 and it was well worth it. It’s ironic that a documentary about Sir George Martin and his wonderful Montserrat recording studio isn’t available in the UK. I think the Wagners would like it if it becomes available.
How fascinating Mona and Lisa! Thank you for sharing this with us. 2 things to share, with the idea of going somewhere other than the norm to record and get new idea’s. The Rolling Stones recorded exile on main street in France in 1971 ( to avoid tax problems ) and in Keith Richards house in the basement, and to me this album is their best. Another one is Joe Walsh, he left the James Gang and moved to the Rockies. While cutting grass one day he happened to look up at the Rockies and the Song Rocky Mountain Way hit him. Just thought I throw those two examples out to prove the point of being in another place for inspiration.
I never knew George Martin had a studio there.
I am familiar with the story about the volcano, it was dramatic back when that happened and all over the news. The volcano basically wrecked the place beyond habitability.
Good video, gives me something to check out.
There’s a former recording studio turned museum about a dozen miles from where I grew up. I’ve seen pics of what it looks like inside, but have never done the tour. Might be interesting some time. Berry Gordy used to live upstairs. It’s called Hitsville USA and holds the Motown Museum.
It appears that the full video is currently available on one of the larger movie channels. Since it’s a pay service, I would guess you won’t currently be able to see it for free elsewhere.
I am interested in seeing it too. Thanks for this Tomás, Mona, Lisa and Michaela.
Yes… Sadly, unless it’s Free viewing sonewheres in Canada , I won’t be able to view it, and You’re in Canada too, am I right in that Chris ?!
Actually I’m in Michigan. Although I can pull in TV from Windsor.
We hope to give it a look this weekend.
I hadn’t heard of the studio, but the trailer makes me want to look at it.
Nice Friday surprise to see my submission.
Before coming across this documentary, I was aware of the studio from bits here and there, but never realized it was all one place. I had heard that Sting sang background vocals to Money for Nothing because they happened to be in the same Caribbean island at the time, Carl Perkins played with Paul in Monserrat, the Music for Monserrat concert, but this documentary brought it all together. I’ll watch it again, for all the details.
They seemed to play up the drama with Sting for the trailer, it didn’t seem that much to me in the film. The Volcano was more dramatic for sure!
I think studios like that are a thing of the past, although they are a good way to bring a lot of talent into one room (including engineers, etc.), it’s so cheap and easy to have a home studio nowadays that it’s hard to beat that convenience.
I had not thought of the correlation with Lanzarote. There’s definitively a different feel being on an volcanic island that is active.
I’ve been to Lanzarote, Tenerife, Hawaii, and Lanzarote was where I felt the “active volcano” vibe the most.
Thank you for another great reaction video!
It was a great submission and fascinating documentary, thank you Tomás! They always pick the most dramatic soundbites for the trailer, don’t they? 🙂
Lanzarote felt like a different planet at times to us!
Thank you Lisa, Here’s an interview with the Director and Producer (Aussie women) and how they managed to pull off.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC1d0Ahk4og
You have great footage of Lanzarote with Once Upon A Time and Starman
I sent this to Michaela last Christmas with the greeting video.
The history of Greenwich Village. 92 minutes.
It starts right off with John Sebastian promoting the song-writing in The Village
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYBnGmXgB1E
Cheers
Unfortunately, it says “Video Unavailable” here. I’d love to learn more about the Greenwich Village scene. It plays such an important role in musical history.
I’ve had family in and around the Village since my grandfather was born there in 1893; my niece lives there now. My experiences started in the ’70s. We would buy a copy of the Village Voice to see who was playing, and go see them that night. I wrote in the Club a while back about seeing Billy Preston play at Ashford and Simpson’s club, that was one of those visits.
Here’s an interview I found a few days ago, of John Sebastian talking about his time in the Village, including with Bob Dylan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbslfw8x8Dw
Currently the Voice is rerunning a story they first ran in 2018 about Jethro Tull. It sounds like the author first saw them on the same 1975 tour that I saw them.
https://www.villagevoice.com/jethro-tull-50-years-on-should-we-care/
The Voice has played a role for Village music since it’s founding in 1955. Lots of history in its pages, some of which you can still find. And there’s still music in Greenwich Village.
It seems to be available in the UK but you might have to buy it: £5.99 at https://www.amazon.co.uk/Under-Volcano-Sting/dp/B099Y6Y6LX
We paid $4.00 to rent in US.
Lisa i hope you’re still tracking this. Let me share this with you.
I sent you a message to send you a photo.
It’s a snipit from the Greenwich Village video.
Cheers
Hi Tom,
Thanks so much for giving us access to that documentary film. I peeked at it. It looks great and I’m going to watch the whole thing later on.
I was born and raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, not very far from Greenwich Village, and lived there for 25 years. I went to the Village hundreds of times and have lots of fond memories.
Stay cool,
Bobby S.
You’re very welcome Robert
“I don’t know where i’m going to go when the volcano blows”
Jimmy Buffett had a whole album called Volcano in the eighties.
As the video shows – many artists were very fond of the place.
Cheers
Most of that album was recorded there, it must have been an inspiring volcano!
It was sad to hear of his passing last month. 🙁
Thx again for this excellent Reaction Video. I will watch this soon.
Cool, now I have another documentary to watch, it sounds really interesting. I have watched documentaries lately about The Wrecking Crew, the Sound Factory studios in California and the Muscle Shoals studios in Alabama. They are all very interesting documentaries and help write the history of rock n roll and popular music in general.
Thanks Tomas for the video and thank you girls for everything.
Tim! I’ve watched all of these too, they are great, lots of insights.
Tomás
I have to add this comment. I watched the Sound City documentary again last night and found one thing quite strange or funny or weird or whatever you want to call it but the main component that made all the great recordings there possible was the incredible handmade mixing board called the (strange part) Neve. The board was only one of four built by the engineer Rupert Neve.
I had asked the Twins if the mixing console name had some part in naming the gooseling, but apparently it was a happy coincidence.
Excellent story. This was the place to go back in the day. Another place most people don’t know much about, but you probably do, is the recording studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama where I’m from. Check out the trailer link below. The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Allman Brothers, Wilson Pickett, Percy Sledge, Paul Simon and many others recorded in Muscle Shoals. There is a documentary about two competing studios in Muscle Shoals which is really interesting.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNGtfpim0OM).
Wow, sounds like another fascinating story and studio I don’t know much about.
https://youtu.be/hKmGUIM1uAI?feature=shared
This the YouTube link to the Muscle Shoals Documentary. Really amazing story about all the artists that recorded there.
https://youtu.be/acix6xKYlig?feature=shared
This is the YouTube link for the Sound City documentary. Very cool story. They produced a lot of great albums there. I mistakenly called it Sound Factory, sorry.
I hope you and Mona are able to watch the documentary. I think you will really enjoy how the two studios split and competed against each other. A friend of mine that replaced me as lead guitarist after I left the band became a session guitarist there and actually played acoustic guitar on one of the Rolling Stones songs.
Happy Friday, well that was interesting, I don’t recall or if I do, it was vaguely , the awareness of this studio , as the 80s were my teen years , but I remember of the recording studio in Morin Heights Quebec, and one out in Vancouver where Canadian Band ( my fave Canadian band ) , Glass Tiger had recorded , and the Morin Heights studio, alot of Canadian musicians/bands have recorded ( not sure if it’s still around or not longer ) ….
Wow , I could see why this Carribean studio location was a Hotspot in its heyday …. If I can access the documtary on YouTube , I’d like to watch the whole thing, Thankyou Tomas for the submission, this looks interesting , it also further gives insight from an an outside perspective about how a recording studio works, but Team MLT have already given us some insight from their own home studios , so we kinda have a heads up but nice to see this from a different vibe of setting/era and how it affected those present at the time spent there .
Thankyou, Mona Lisa, Michaela, Rudi for presenting this for today, a new thing learned …. and I agree, when sometimes it takes an exotic place or just somewhere untouched/unknown to generate the creative flow of juices of creativity of inspiration, that wasn’t going to occur otherwise but came as a complete and welcoming surprise of good … 😊🤟💎
Le Studio in Morin Heights…Rush recorded most of their 80s albums there!
Yes…that’s the studio alright …. I knew it was Morin Heights….not sure if still going, changed hands, or shut down now … I just recall Glass Tiger and others having recorded their back in the day…. 🤘🏻🎼🎵🎶🎙🎤🎛🎚🔊🎧🍁🇨🇦
I haven’t seen it yet, but plan to, looks fascinating. Feels like a lot of parallels to your time in Lanzarote. I saw Sugar Man, and what a heartwarming and inspiring movie, sad to hear Sixto Rodriguez passed away earlier this year.
I hope you get a chance to watch it soon! When you asked about “the most recent movie we’ve watched” during the livestream I couldn’t remember – that’s how long it’s been. Now I have a new answer … although technically, do documentaries count as movies? 😛
Sixto’s passing away was heartbreaking. But he left us with some wonderful music!
Hi Mona! Thanks, I’m looking forward to watching it this weekend. 🙂 I think some documentaries are much better than movies.
Hello Ladies,
I vaguely remember hearing of a recording Studio in the Caribbean when I was in High School from a DJ friend of mine. We were discussing some obscure recording studios. The other one that cam to mind was Caribou Studios in Colorado. The Beach Boys, Elton John, Chicago, just to name a few recorded there. Chicago was so grateful to be able to record there that they gave a concert there for all the staff and their friends and families before it closed. What is unique is that at one time, the Beach Boys sang Background on Chicago’s hit Wishing You Were Here. It was recorded at Caribou.
I never knew the story behind Montserrat. Thanks for a really good reaction video Tomas and Ladies.
Best Always,
Rick Ross
As one who loved the 80s (guess it is because it was the soundtrack of my adolescence) I found this preview very interesting. A few things popped into my head.
Mona and Lisa, give the 80s another chance. There are some gems out there. Also, nothing is cooler than a mullet, lol.
Well hello Ladies, what a nice item by Tomas. I really didn’t know about this studio as well. I knew sir George Martin was called the ” fifth beatle , but that was all i knew. I will see if i can find the movie but ifvit will work???
I immediately thought, when i saw todays movie of you about your recordings in Lanzarote, you were on a volcano instead of under it…….I happened to be there the same year and it really impressed me very much. I can imagine these surroundings make a great scene for creativity.
It’s such an interesting story isn’t it, I too was surprised I hadn’t heard of it. And there must be something about volcanic islands and creativity 😉
Yes Lisa i totally agree, the wild landscapes , the pure beauty of it inspires many people i suppose.