Local recording legend

[7/4]

Plainfield is just a few towns west of here.

Sound career

Man finds his groove in studio

Friday, August 03, 2007

BY CANDICE LEIGH HELFAND

Star-Ledger Staff

When Robert T. Speiden first moved to Plainfield in 1969, he set up a meager recording studio in his backyard.

"I was interested in recording for a long time," he said. "So I used a building out back (behind my house) the size of a two-car garage, made of cement block, to make a studio."

Known then as Quality Sound, the facility is now called Netherwood Recording -- but that can't erase almost 40 years of history encased in its brick walls.

The studio has seen some considerable acts, including Jersey-based band the Smithereens -- who recorded their first album under Speiden's watch -- the 1960s group The Velvet Underground, guitar legend Les Paul and drummer Max Weinberg, who rose to fame in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band and who currently plays on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.

But Speiden's recording experience is not limited to rock 'n' roll.

Having worked with both the famous and the infamous, the studio helped produce a master copy of mass murderer Charles Manson's "Lie: The Love and Terror Cult," according to studio co-owner Frank McGlynn. The proceeds of the "Lie" album are donated to an organization in California that benefits families of the victims of violent crimes.

Speiden has also done work for the Escorts, an R&B group from Rahway. And one of Speiden's favorite projects is one he gets to do annually -- he has recorded the Plainfield Symphony since 1984.

"I like classical music, and recording it is a really satisfying job," he said. "And we use one of my microphones to do it."

Speiden is referring to a microphone he invented, called the Royer SF-12, that records ensembles perfectly without any other microphones assisting.

McGlynn said it's "as good as setting a pair of ears up in a concert hall."

The microphones are manufactured to this day by Royer Labs, a company located in California that holds Speiden in the highest esteem.

Rick Perrotta, owner and president of Royer Labs, said that Speiden has helped his company for nearly a decade.

"We consider him to be not only great friend, but also someone we highly respect," he said.

Speiden's relationship with Royer Labs began when David Royer, the chief engineer, began corresponding with him after being amazed with his own experiences using Speiden's self-made, earlier version of the SF-12.

"He had developed that mic in the early 1980s," Royer said. "I saw one then, and thought it had been special delivered from another planet -- we were honored when we had the opportunity to continue production of it."

Royer added that Speiden's personality is just as captivating as his recording and engineering prowess.

"He's something of a free spirit, very much an old-fashioned experimenter," he said. "He's got quite a bit of whimsy about him, too."

Now 84, Speiden shares control of the studio with McGlynn, a family friend who affectionately refers to Speiden as his uncle.

"The technology has eluded me, and I haven't tried to keep up," Speiden said. "But Frank is very hip, and he knows what's going on."

Though proficient in modern recording techniques, McGlynn remains respectful of the old methods, and sees the studio as a historic landmark.

"I'm hoping to get the studio itself certified as a historical building, especially due to all of the different acts that have recorded albums here," he said. "Too many musical landmarks around here are disappearing -- these places left a history with the arts, and with music."

He added that Speiden's workshop wonderland is home to vintage equipment, some with the ability to produce vinyl records.

Speiden continues to work there with McGlynn and fellow employee Bernard Judd, regardless of his age.

"I don't know how much longer I'm going to be able to do this, but I'll keep trying," he said.

[7/4]

review