Look back at famous recording studio that came before parr street

IT WAS WELL-ESTABLISHED BEFORE ITS MOVE THE CITY CENTRE 19:30, 23 Nov 2023 Before the Grammy Award winning Parr Street Studios made a name for itself in the music industry, the business

started from humble beginnings elsewhere in Merseyside. Originally known as Amazon Studios, the business, fronted by recording boss Mr Jeremy Lewis, was based in Simonswood, Kirkby from the

70s and went onto welcome many soon-to-be famous artists through their doors when their careers were in their infancy. According to National Museums Liverpool, the studio was housed at a

centre that used to give MOT tests to cars, meaning recordings would begin in the evening and carry on into the night. On March 12, 1976, the ECHO reported how the eight-track studio had

only released one single under their label so far, but that the business also did "a good deal of work for people who sell their own records and a fair amount of recording for Stag

Music." By the 80s, Amazon Studios became more established and go to place for the local post-punk music scene. READ MORE: CAN YOU GUESS THE PRICE OF THESE MCDONALD'S MENU ITEMS

FROM 1993? READ MORE: 17 LOST PHOTOS SHOW LIVERPOOL SAYERS WORKERS THROUGH THE DECADES Responsible for early recordings by bands such as Echo and the Bunnymen, the formation of Inevitable

Records also gave Amazon the opportunity to record and release tracks by Merseyside bands such as China Crisis, It's Immaterial and Dead or Alive. Article continues below Through the

years, The Smiths and Black Sabbath also recorded there. If you're a music lover who grew up in Kirkby or elsewhere in Merseyside, you'll likely remember the early days of Amazon

Studios, before Parr Street Studios were born. These images, recently unearthed from our archives, Mirrorpix, show the early days of Amazon Studios and have been unseen for years. One image,

taken in January 1976, shows Jeremy Lewis and Mike Bersim inside the new recording studio on the Simonswood industrial estate. You can also see Mr Lewis in the studio again in 1981 as well

as in Parr Street over a decade later in 1992, when it was newly opened. It was in the early 90s that the business moved venues to make it more viable. DO YOU REMEMBER AMAZON STUDIOS IN

KIRKBY? LET US KNOW IN THE COMMENTS SECTION BELOW. READ MORE: Moments captured at high street staple BHS before its final daysREAD MORE: Liverpool's lost floating nightclub that was

'broken up for scrap' On February 24, 1992, the ECHO reported: "The million pound dream of Liverpool recording boss Jeremy Lewis becomes reality today. The man behind the

world-famous Amazon Studios, celebrates the opening of his state-of-the-art studio complex in the city’s Parr Street, along with hundreds of rock stars and colleagues. "Jeremy, who

originally set up his studio and the Inevitable recording label in Kirkby’s Simonswood in the late 1970s, now has the biggest residential recording base of its kind in Europe. The move from

Kirkby and the renovation of the art deco premises - involving new hi-tech studios, recreational areas and plush residential suites for recording stars - has cost well over £1m." In

September 2001, studio manager Anne Lewis also reflected on the move from Kirkby to the city centre. At the time, the business had become part-owned by Tony Smith as well as band members of

Genesis. In 2001, Anne told the ECHO: "There was no accommodation and hotels were scarce in those days. We are now well-established. "We employ 11 people and provide work for

self-employed engineers and others. Most work is from outside the city," said Anne. "Many of our bookings are with London record companies, for bands from all over the world. And

we produce all kinds of music. "We recently produced the opening music for the Manchester Commonwealth Games, for instance. In the past, we've struggled to bring people to

Liverpool, as there was an attitude everything had to be done in London. But things are changing. Bands who make it big here want to stay at home." READ MORE: St John's

Precinct's lost nightclubs, pubs and restaurantsREAD MORE: Vibrant characters captured in 80s and 90s pictures by the 'Photie Man' From the 90s, Parr Street Studios became one

of the country's most celebrated. Over the years, it was used by the likes of Coldplay, Echo and The Bunnymen, Rihanna, Black Sabbath, Diana Ross, The Charlatans, Moby, Pulp and Take

That. But in April 2020, news that the Grammy award winning studios would close on the premises drew a significant reaction from within the city’s music and cultural scene. The Attic bar,

found above the studio, closed in 2021 and the recording studio has since relocated to Kempston Street in Liverpool's Fabric District to make way for the development on Parr Street.

JOIN THE LIVERPOOL ECHO'S MEMORIES AND HISTORY WHATSAPP COMMUNITY Article continues below Earlier this week, the ECHO reported how a building next to the former Parr Street Studios has

been demolished, "enabling" the future redevelopment of the historic site. Formerly used by The English Province of the Congregation of Christian Brothers, 55 Parr Street was

knocked down. after being purchased by a private buyer last month, as reported by Liverpool Business News. RECEIVE NEWSLETTERS WITH THE LATEST NEWS, SPORT AND WHAT'S ON UPDATES FROM THE

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