Andy Bradley
October 2009 is a dual anniversary at SugarHill Recording Studios.As the studio celebrates its 68th year of continuous operations, its chief engineer, historian and partner, Andrew "Mort" Bradley, celebrates his twenty-fifth year as one of Texas' top recording engineers. A special Live From SugarHill episode featuring Texas legendsJohnny Bush and Roy Head will air on October 8, 2009, 7p.m. CST onOutboundmusic.com to celebrate Bradley's silver anniversary and SugarHill Studios'unparalleled legacy.
Andy Bradley began his music career in Sydney, Australia where he interned atTrafalgar Studios during the early Radio Birdman recording sessions. At the behest of his friends in the band, Andy's career path took a steep swerve from starving college student and part-time music journalist to well-traveled roadie, following the band as the live sound technician during the Australian leg of AC/DC's 1975 Highway to Hell Tour. He landed in Houston, Texas in 1980 where he first went to work for Bill Holford at ACA Studios. He moved to SugarHill Recording Studios under the management of "Crazy Cajun" producer Huey P. Meaux in 1984. Bradley, along with partners Dan Workmanand Rodney Meyers, purchased the studios from Discos MM/Modern Music Venturesin 1996. In addition to his position as chief engineer at SugarHill, he is the chief of recording services for Rice University's Shepherd School of Music, and sits on the craft committee of The Recording Academy® Texas Chapter.
"When I first met Andy," producer Dan Workman recalls, "he was recording Houston punk icons, Really Red. All the local bands recognized his talent both as a first-rate engineer and an open-minded innovator in the studio. Little did I know that I had met my mentor, future business partner and life-long friend during that session. When I began my own engineering career, his killer sound and expert 'board-side manner' were the benchmarks that I strove to achieve. Today, Andy's work ethic and technique is the pinnacle of our business. The fact that he's still making amazing records is an ongoing gift to all of Texas music."
With an extensive body of work encompassing numerous genres, Bradley has engineered and produced several GRAMMY nominated projects. National record labels such asCapitol/EMI, WEA, Fonovisa, Rounder, Vanguard, BMG, Demon and Koch International request his services frequently. Many recordings, including works by Tejano singer Emilio Navaira have achieved RIAA gold record certification. Past recording credits include Little Joe y La Familia "Renunsacion" (1985), Arnett Cobb/Dizzy Gillespie "Showtime" (1988), Tab Benoit, "Nice and Warm" (1990), Elsa Garcia "Ni Mas Ni Menos" (2005), Johnny Bush "Kashmere Gardens Mud" (2007) and the upcoming Willie Nelson, Ray Price, Johnny Bush collaboration "Young at Heart". Other notable clients include saxophonist Grady Gaines, German conductor Christoph Eschenbach of The Houston Symphony, blues trumpeter and former B.B. Kingbandleader Calvin Owens, Italian mezzo-soprano opera singer Cecilia Bartoli, violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman, American soprano Renée Fleming, gospel singer Cynthia Clawson and avant-garde folk artist JANDEK.
Recently, Bradley added author to his extensive list of credits, completing a book entitledHouse of Hits: The Story of Houston's Gold Star/SugarHill Recording Studios, a recorded biography chronicling the past 65 years of music making history. The book, co-authored with noted music historian Roger Wood, is due out from University of Texas Press in Spring 2010.