Another legendary foundation of modern music has crumbled: iconic recording studio The Magic Shop, a SoHo favorite of Lou Reed, Norah Jones, and David Bowie, will close next month after nearly three decades of operation.
The studio was recently given a spotlight revival via Dave Grohl’s “Sonic Highways” series on HBO, recording there with his band the Foo Fighters in an episode. More significantly, it was also the location where David Bowie secretly recorded his final two albums.
Steve Rosenthal, the Magic Shop’s founder, said in a statement on Monday that March 16 will be the final day of operations for the studio, which has been embroiled in a dispute with its landlord for more than a year. Rosenthal had attempted to buy the property with Grohl’s assistance, but the bid was rejected by the co-op board of the building.
CLOSING TIMEAfter an amazing 28 year run, I will have to close The Magic Shop Recording Studio. March 16, 2016 will be…
Posted by The Magic Shop Recording Studio on Monday, February 22, 2016
The Magic Shop opened in 1988 in a hideaway basement under an apartment building on Crosby Street in SoHo, a beloved home to vintage recording gear which drew the adoration of notoriously fickle musicians, ranging from Lou Reed to Arcade Fire, with the Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley, Woody Guthrie and the jazz pianist Erroll Garner among those who’ve recorded there.
“As the city becomes more of a corporate and condo island,” Mr. Rosenthal said, “some of us wish for a better balance between money and art, progress and preservation, and we hope that one day we will see a reversal of the destruction of conscience and community we are witnessing.”
Listen below to “The Magic Shop’s Greatest Hits,” a Spotify collection compiled by the NY Times:
