Different Fur ARP 2600

[Bob Gonsalves]

>The Different Fur studios were located in the San Fransisco area, and during
>their heyday (the late 1970's and most of the 1980's), were owned and
>operated during by brilliant synthesist Patrick Gleeson.  A lot of
>high-profile major-label records were recorded there at the time, including
>releases by Santana, Journey, and Jefferson Starship.  I think some (if not
>all) of the soundtrack to "Apocalypse Now" was recorded there, as well (with
>Patrick playing some of the synthesizers).

I have a few stories from that era.

Most of the recording for Apocalypse Now was done at Francis' studio 
at Kearny St. in San Francisco, where Richard Beggs was the recording 
engineer, and at another larger studio. My girlfriend at the time, 
Kathy Austin (nee Morton) was Beggs' assistant. I helped a tiny bit, 
recording spears flying through the air by waving sticks around in 
front of expensive Schoeps microphone (careful, don't get too 
close!), and suggested other signal processing tricks they might want 
to use.

Also: Kathy at that time was living in an apartment attic in Buchla's 
house in Berkeley (a few blocks from where I currently live). Don was 
never around during the evenings, and I had never spoken to him 
(though I see him at parties) until New Year's Day this year. He told 
me that the Lightning controllers, beside being used in musical 
applications, has been used to study motor disorders in 
schizophrenics (I work in rehabilitation: see
  http://www.aphasia.com).

-Bob Gonsalves http://www.pinknoiz.com/