7. Electric Lady Studios
After Jimi Hendrix and Michael Jeffrey, the other co-owner of Electric Lady Studios, enjoyed jamming and hanging out in Greenwich Village’s Generation Club, they decided they wanted to buy the space. Hendrix originally wanted to build a nightclub in the space, with plans to hire architect John Storyk and audio engineer Eddie Kramer, but the sound engineer had a new idea as soon as he walked into the studio. According to Mastropolo, Kramer told PBS that he thought, “‘Get out of here; this is nuts. Let’s build Jimi a recording studio. We’ll make the best recording studio in the world.’”
Though Hendrix co-founded Electric Lady Studios in August 1970, once he left the studio’s launch party for a performance in the UK, he never returned. Hendrix died tragically young at the age of 27, but the recording studio that he invested time and money into lives on as a testament to his rockstar potency and contribution to the realm of rock n’ roll. Since its inception, rock n’ roll stars including Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, AC/DC, the Clash, David Bowie, and John Lennon. have recorded in Electric Lady Studios.