It’s not everyday that Peter Rowan pays a house visit. The bluegrass papa was in the area a while back and decided to check out Michael Youngwood’s new recording digs. Youngwood, who is known in the region for his adept skill on the flute, guitar, and saxophone (along with three stellar CDs), needed a spring-cleaning in the worst way.

“The studio was in complete disarray,” recalled Youngwood. “There was stuff everywhere, and he didn’t even seem to notice. He hung out for three hours just shooting the breeze.”

What Rowan did notice was Youngwood’s newest project, Sleeping Wolf Production’s Studio.
“He stepped five feet in and he clapped twice (Michael giving forth his best Rowan clapping impersonation). He said, ‘I like this, I could work here.’”

Rowan then upped the ante.

“I’ve lost a lot of friends in the last couple of years (like Jerry Garcia),” he said. “You know I haven’t recorded my own music in awhile. I’m glad to know to know that this is here. If I come back, do you mind I bring a couple of friends?”

Those friends were Dobro master Jerry Douglas and flat-picking madman Tony Rice.

“‘Sure’, I told him,” said Youngwood with 20 campfires in his eyes. “I mean, what am I going to tell him? ‘No way, Peter, it just won’t work (laughs).’”

Rowan’s visit affirmed what Michael was working towards — a studio more relaxing than comfort food.
“That was the first clue,” said Youngwood, “that maybe I’ve hit upon something here. Peter just solidified the fact that this studio is conducive to creativity.”

Earlier, I pulled up to the red barn structure (tucked away amidst the mountains of Jonathan Creek) not knowing what to expect. All that came to the brain was the average studio — a 4-cornered isolated room, a twisted tangle of recording equipment, and musicians scrambling to and fro before the second take.
My assumptions were squashed like a steamrolled can. Hardwood floors greeted my feet as I gawked at musician Utopia. The main studio’s walls had a mellow green hue (the color inspiration, “Tolkien Blue,” coming from one of Youngwood’s favorite books, The Fellowship of the Rings) that slowed my heartbeat in half. Sunlight flitted through the tiny windows atop the 20-foot ceiling, transforming the green into plush blues. Palm fronds, rugs and tapestries adorned the floors and walls, giving the room an escalation in relaxation. Several pictures of Hendrix stood watch over the grand piano (designed by Steinway’s chief engineer, Joseph Pramberger), guitars and congas.

Next came the Control Room. Low profile reds covered the walls, with a couch in the middle that hugged out any kind of tension. Across the way was the “Motherboard,” a huge control deck (see above for technical descriptions) that monitors and records every peep. Appropriately, several small howling wolf figurines “guarded” the delicate machinery.

My observations were done amidst a circle of Michael’s friends and acquaintances, folks who were there to record or simply pass the rainy day away. I couldn’t blame them. I felt like I had broken into a mid-day slumber party, although, there was something familiar missing.

“If you’ll notice, there’s not a clock in the whole place,” said Michael, answering my mute question. “If you’re watching the clock, it’s hard to be creative or productive.”

“I appreciate the fact that Michael doesn’t rush us,” said harpist Karin Lyle. Karin was in the studio with friend and dulcimer player Anne Lough recording an upcoming Christmas album.

“They [friend Paul Petersen was helping with the mixing] don’t rush us at all. They encourage us to relax and try it again. I’ve been in studios before this and (besides the presence of a clock) there was a tension there if people made too many mistakes.”

“Recording an album is a big investment,” said Lough. “You want to show your experience and that can’t happen if you’re rushed.”

“There’s nothing more miserable than having time shoved in your face,” said Anne Shuttlesworth, a Broadway pianist on break from the production of “Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. I once had a 12-hour session where no one could hear us and we were supposed to get everything done in two takes. So here we were, desperately scribbling on paper, trying to get it all down within a minute time frame. It’s reflected in the recording. The faster and faster we were pushed, the more we hit the wrong notes.”

Being a musician himself, Youngwood knows what it means to have a studio that’s not, well, a studio.
“Sleeping Wolf Productions is built for musicians,” said Youngwood. “I hope the feedback is positive and people have the same look in their eye as you [pointing to me] did when you walk through the door. I want it to be like coming into a living room.”

Youngwood is known around the area for having huge spurts of creativity. The problem was that he had no place to “bottle” that spontaneity if the right mood struck him in the middle of the night.

“I started thinking about my own studio after constantly getting up at 3 a.m., having this wonderful idea in my head and having nowhere to put it down. At first, we had it my basement. A lot of other musicians started coming by and before I knew it, we had outgrown the basement ... The next obvious choice was to build a full studio. I grew up around music and I thought about all the studios that did it right.”

Building a state of the art studio is not like slap dashing a few condos on the side of a hill. Michael’s vision required support, and he soon found many takers. The SWC Commission, a company whose main purpose is to help small businesses, told Michael to write a 40-page proposal on how he thought his business would do. After writing his “financial novella,” Michael took it to a loan officer at Carolina Community Bank to see if the proposal was feasible. Youngwood got more than he bargained for.

“To our pleasant surprise, Mike (the loan officer) said he would fund the venture if SWC didn’t.”

SWC was as impressed as Youngwood was and agreed to fund the studio. Having the backing of two institutions made the musician realize that this project was out of the pipe and into reality. And the support kept coming like an infinite cloudburst. Area builder Richard Coker constructed the studio with Michael putting in 40 hours a week himself. In addition, local support adorns every inch of the studio.
The furniture is straight from Massie, the drums from Strains of Music, and the window treatments are made by Custom Craft Draperies.

Fortunately, Youngwood didn’t have to fret about tightroping the financial without a net. The Haywood Arts Council and the Library wrote letters of recommendation — “This community has been so good to me,” said Michael. “If you’re given a gift, you need to be a good steward. I want to pay forward, not back.”

Other aid has come from as far away as South Africa, the original home of Paul Petersen. Paul, who now resides in Kentucky, is a nasty guitar player in his own right. He currently performs with the world music sextet Capetown, an up-and-coming band that just finished three nights at the prestigious Lake Eden Arts Festival in Camp Rockmont. Petersen also has an adept ear for the mixing side of things. The guitarist decided to take a few days off and wander down to WNC to help Michael record in the studio.

“Recording music is a huge give and take process,” said Petersen. “With sound, you’re going to try a lot of things — some work and some are absolutely ridiculous. Unfortunately, in some places I’ve recorded, I’ve worked with people who bitch and moan about every little sound. And there’s no room to create because you have those producers with an attitude like, ‘I’m the producer. Take it or leave it!’ Not here.”

“If I’m standing over you (in a recording session), it’s just to set the mics up,” continued Youngwood. “Once they’re ready, the room is yours.”

So, does constructive (tongue-lashing) criticism ever materialize?

“You gotta be really bad,” said Michael with a laugh. “Everyone’s input is necessary. I’m not a producer that has such a stubborn streak that I can’t learn from each individual.”

This cavernous attitude (“we want to accommodate anyone who comes down the pike”) will allow for all sorts of different musical and sound extensions. Youngwood’s next goal is to take in Audio Post Production for film, documentaries, TV jingles, and Foley Sound Effects. Regional bands have already caught wind of the place, with Asheville’s own Sons of Ralph tentatively scheduled to record their next album here. Not bad for a place that doesn’t even have an Open sign yet.

In addition, crooners and pluckers of every genre will be flocking here soon — “(The studio) lends itself well for jazz trios, quartets and classical,” said Petersen. “It’s also perfectly suitable for a band situation, or for the intimate confines of a singer/songwriter. It captures a performance rather than a recording.”

As I drove away, I began to feel a tinge of envy for those future troubadours who will find their way to this “house of mellowdy.” That ability to create without a “harness” will have the inspirations bubbling out the windows. Plus you have a sound traffic controller who actually enjoys coming to work —“ This is the hardest work I’ve ever done,” confided Youngwood. “But, I get up and look forward to it everyday.”

Relax and Work. Work and Relax. I never knew that opposite words could mesh together so well. I hope to make it back soon to the land where work is as treasured as leisure. Next time, I’ll remember to leave my Timex at the door.

 

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