In the Studio with Rock Turtleneck

Sure, YouTube is a great place to see skateboarding bulldogs and sneezing pandas, but it’s also a place where rock fans can check out rare footage of their favorite bands in the studio. Here are a few studio gems unearthed by Rock Turtleneck's staff of unpaid interns.


X, “White Girl”X captured L.A.'s seedy underbelly more evocatively than any band since the Doors, so it was only natural they would hire Ray Manzarek as their producer. X was considered a punk band, but that’s way too simplistic. John Doe & Exene Cervenka’s lyrics echoed the Beats, while Billy Zoom’s guitar stylings suggested rockabilly and surf. And their tales of drunkenness and heartbreak owed much to classic country. Wild Gift, their second, breakthrough record and Under the Big Black Sun, its successor, are high water marks of early 80s rock. Here they lay down “White Girl,” a key track from Wild Gift, while Manzarek twiddles the knobs.


The Beatles, "Hey Bulldog"
The official video to the Beatles hit “Lady Madonna” shows the fabs clowning around in the Apple Studio #2 where they reecorded most of their magnificent work. But it turns out that the footage is actually of them recording the brilliant toss-off "Hey Bulldog," which like "Lady Madonna" marked a return to rock & roll after months of psychedelia. Lennon & McCartney look more like they're recording a radio comedy hour than a blistering slice of rock. "Bulldog," one of the most underrated of Beatles tunes, is available only on the Yellow Submarine soundtrack. As always, the casual ease with which they produce greatness is a thing to behold, as it John Lennon’s transitional facial hair.


Wilco, "What Light"
The deluxe edition of Wilco’s latest record, Sky Blue Sky, includes DVD footage of the band recording the album at The Loft, their personal rock & roll rehearsal space/studio/Xanadu, equipped with dozens of vintage guitars and a sleeping area. In contrast to X and the Fab Four, Wilco seems to like a brightly lit studio. In that spirit, here’s a Loft run-through of the inspirational “What Light.”