By Guy Fairbank in General Articles, Blogging | 5 days ago
Island Records, St Peter's Square
Chiswick has a surprisingly rich musical heritage, Handily placed for Heathrow, away from the hustle and bustle of the West End and considerably more affordable, the borough has been home to recording studios, record labels, music venues and artists.
The Chiswick Empire, demolished in 1959, played host to the likes of Alma Cogan and Marty Wilde, and when Cliff Richard performed there, a riot broke out. Down the road, the Rolling Stones, supported by Marianne Faithfull, filled the Commodore Theatre, which was then a rival to the Hammersmith Odeon. The Stones’ presence in W4 has continued: in 2005 they used Mark Knopfler’s British Grove Studios to record Blue and Lonesome and, only recently, Metropolis Studios for their latest, highly acclaimed album Foreign Tongues.
Another band from the Sixties with roots in Chiswick is The Who. Bass player John Entwistle was a local boy while guitarist and songwriter Pete Townsend was born in the former Chiswick Maternity Hospital (as was Phil Collins, Deep Purple’s Ian Gillan and Kim Wilde). Townsend once lived in Whitehall Gardens. Phil Collins formed his first band while attending Chiswick School. Kyle Simmons from Bastille is another old boy.
Near the site of the maternity hospital lies Eyot Green, and in 1968 a groovy rocker by the name of Steve Marriott fell foul of his neighbours. While recording Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake in Barnes’ Olympic Studios, Marriott installed loud speakers and invited his friends over for raucous parties. The genteel next-door neighbours the Hasselthwaites pleaded with Marriott to keep the noise down but to no avail. Marriott’s antics inspired the Small Faces’ classic song Lazy Sunday Afternoon.
Linda Lewis Blue Plaque
Another songwriter who made their home in Chiswick was Linda Lewis. Self-taught, she was arguably Britain’s first female singer-songwriter. Her self-penned song Rock-A-Doodle-Doo reached the top 20 ...
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