Ardent Recording, Memphis, Tennessee

The new issue of Blues Revue magazine is on the stands and my review of Rory Block’s new album, Blues Walkin’ Like A Man is the lead article in their review section. That’s pretty cool…

In the next issue, which I believe comes out in December, they’ll be running reviews I’ve written on Carlos Del Junco’s new record, Steady Movin’ and Paul Mark and the Van Doren’s new Radiation Records release called Blood And Treasure.

I bring this up because the Paul Mark record was recorded at the legendary topic of this post, Ardent Recording. Still at the 2000 Madison Avenue location where it has been since 1971, Ardent’s list of artists who’ve recorded there is unparalleled: Big Star, Robert Cray, the Replacements, Stevie Ray Vaughan, B.B. King, the Box Tops, the list goes on and on. The classic soul tracks Soul Man and Knock On Wood were recorded at Ardent, as was Led Zeppelin III.

There were so many great records made at Ardent (including Paul Mark’s, I might add) that it’s going to take two posts to fit ‘em all in. Here’s Part One:

Cat Power - After It All

Cheap Trick - Southern Girls

Gin Blossoms - Found Out About You

ZZ Top - Heard It On The X

R.E.M. - I Remember California

Isaac Hayes - Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic

Artwork: Ardent Founder John Fry, 1968 (from the MixOnline article, “Mix Turns The Bog 4-0“)

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