About The Cowshed Studio

About Cowshed Studio, North London, UK

The Cowshed Studio is a recording studio located at 125 Myddleton Road in North London. It has provided a recording service to many artists – new and old - since its inception in 1976.

Up until its change of owners (To be confirmed at the time of writing in 2016) it was run by the producer / engineer Joe Leach and his wife, Biba. The studio featured vintage instruments and equipment, which was maintained with love and care. This included a 24 track analogue tape recorder, which was frequently used at the Cowshed – as late as 2016. The analogue tape was transferred to digital for mixing and mastering later, but the end-result proved to be a genuine sound. Joe Leach knew the studio inside-out, and could tell you exactly how to achieve a “livelier” or “dead-er” sound depending on how the equipment and mics were set up.

In 2012 the studio was threatened by closure as the landlord planned to redevelop The Cowshed to housing. After a petition and campaigning by Joe and Biba, Haringey Council got over 300 written objections from musicians from all over the world, and the studio was eventually saved. It was in frequent use, and many famous people have recorded there, including Boy George who used the house engineer Nick Trepka to turn the dials.

The 17th of May 2016 was a most poignant date for the owners John and Biba as they made a big, family-based decision to relocate to Australia. After 18 years of bump and grind in the London scene the couple are intending to sell the studio. At the time of writing, we are not sure if it will continue to be run as a public recording studio, though it for sure will be a different place after John and Biba's departure. The Cowshed has been described as an Aladdin's cave of classic gear worthy of the status of a national treasure. This unique collection of exquisite and rare equipment was carefully assembled by Joe and used on thousands of songs revealing the insights, dreams and visions of countless artists' inner worlds.

The studio will live forever on over 150 albums and represent the sound of analog magic for years to come. This includes all Fluffy Jackets recordings made from our humble beginnings in 2007 up to 2014. Take a moment, and a sip of your favourite whiskey as you sample some truly amazing analogue sounds - from our self titled debut 3-track EP feat. Whitesnake bassist Neil Murray (2007) to the award winning Fighting Demons album (2014), and – rather uniquely - listen to compare “The Cowshed sound” with the sound from the birthplace of rock-and-roll Sun Studio in Memphis TN - as we used these two studio’s on the Fighting Demons record.

We would like to place on record (pun intended) our sincere thanks to John and Biba who both were so kind and helpful in guiding us through many recording experiences at the Cowshed Recording Studio. Thanks for the many happy memories.