A man of many parts
FOR Adrian Baker, the adage "man of many parts" seems inadequate.
He writes, arranges, engineers, produces, sings all vocals and plays most of the instruments on his songs, which he records in a studio built entirely by himself in the cellar of his Essex home.
The studio is no makeshift affair, in spite of its size it offers the same recording facilities as many of London's best, even including a plush listening area complete with soft lights and bar. Its construction involved numerous building skills, particularly electronics, all of which Adrian had to as he went along.
He could afford both the time and the money for the venture through his success over the past few years, which includes a Top 10 hit with “Sherry” - in 1975, an album, and jingles for radio stations and ads.
Born on January 18, 1951 in Romford, Essex, Adrian was encouraged to learn the piano at the age of seven by his mother, who is herself an accomplished pianist and organist playing in local dance bands.
In his early teens, Adrian also learnt the guitar and cello, but the piano remained his main instrument, and he went on to win a gold medal for proficiency by the age of 16.
At that time, he left school and began his music career at a real grass roots level by demonstrating organs for two years.
He also played in a local harmony group called Pebbles during his spare time and he eventually left his job on Christmas Eve, 1969, to turn fully professional with them, playing the guitar and singing vocals.
The group was fairly successful playing in clubs throughout the country and occasionally on cruiser liners, but Adrian decided to leave after two years in order to concentrate on songwriting and recording and plan his first studio in the basement of his parents' home.
Over the next few years he had a number of records released, but it was not until July 1975 that he enjoyed major chart success when his version of the Four Seasons' classic hit “Sherry” reached No. 10 in the British charts.
He had recorded the song at the tail end of a studio session as something of an afterthought, but it proved a winner and its success both here and in Europe gave Adrian valuable television experience and widened his career horizons. At that time he also made an album, “Into A Dream.”
Word of Adrian's talents in songwriting and studio technique was soon circulating throughout the music business, and he was to write music for jingles (notably Radio One and Noel Edmonds’ breakfast show in particular) and advertisements (notably the Crown Paint “Stand Back” song).
The money earned from these ventures enabled him to buy his present home from a musician friend and equipment for a studio in its coal cellar.
He began the conversion in November 1976 and worked at it full time through to December 1977, picking up hints and advice his father, who is a do-it-yourself enthusiast.
Among the many difficulties he encountered was the tricky problem of getting in bulky recording equipment. He eventually solved it by knocking a large hole in the hall and lowering it down.
Now completed, studio is approached down a steep flight of stairs from a small door in the kitchen and is split into two fully soundproofed sections — a bar and listening area and the studio proper.
Adrian uses a 16-track mixing desk, which he converted himself from an 8-track, and he operates the recording machine with a foot pedal.
The instruments he plays on his recordings are acoustic and electric guitars, bass guitar, cello, acoustic and electric pianos, organ and synthesizers. He could also play brass instruments and drums were it not for the fact it would be impossible to monitor the sound at the same time.
He is now developing his own style in terms of songwriting and recording and has been in the studio for most of this year working on new material. His first single for MCA “I'll Keep You Satisfied” is ample proof that that time has been well spent.
