FTI’s CD cover
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9/16/26
I operated a recording studio in Rockville, Maryland, from 1984 to 2019, where I recorded about five hundred projects of all kinds. Many of those sessions were memorable for the great musicians who participated and trusted me to capture their art for the world to hear. But occasionally, there were sessions that were memorable because of the characters that came through my studio door and what they did, once inside.
The Go-go Band
I was working at the studio late one night when I heard pounding on the front door. I ignored it as long as I could, but it wouldn’t stop, so I opened the door to find entire band of black teens with instruments. The leader of the group told me they had a chance to get an important gig but needed a demo by the next day. It was already ten o’clock and I was ready to go home, but they seemed desperate, so I said “Come on in.” They were a Go-go band. Go-go is a style of funk mixed with rap that originated in and is played primarily in Washington, DC. The band in my studio that night had a drummer with a standard kit, a percussionist with various gadgets, two keyboards, bass, guitar, and two rappers. By the time I got the studio set up, it was a little after midnight. They recorded three takes each of the two numbers they needed for their demo. We mixed, mastered, and burned them onto CDs. They paid in cash and left at 5 am, demos in hand. I hope they got the gig.
The Stalker-Songwriter
A singer-songwriter wanted to record some of his originals. He had me hire a pianist, guitarist, a bass player, and a vocal trio. He indicated that he wanted a vocalist who could sing an octave below the lead, so I contracted an additional bass singer. On the day of the session, I knew there were going to be problems when he told us the first song was in 7/5 time. The piano man, trying to be diplomatic, asked for an example of 7/5 time. The songwriter rolled his eyes and said, “You know, 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 - 1,2,3,4,5.” Well, alrighty then! It turned out that by an octave down, he meant baritone, so the lowest vocal part was at the very top of the bass singer’s range. After the songs were done and the musicians left, he tried to book another session to add violin. He asked if I could find a female violinist but wanted to see her picture before I hired her. There was never a second session.
The Junkie
A bass player in a rock band went into the bathroom with a bandana tied around his head and came back out with it tied around his arm. That guy had to Go! I told the bandleader that if they wanted to continue their album, they would have to get another bass player, as I didn’t want anyone shooting up in the studio. He didn’t seem very upset, just said “Okay.” The next day, they had a new bass man. I think maybe they were looking for an excuse to can that fellow.
The Outstanding Bass
I was recording a classic rock band. The bass guitar was tuned sharp compared to the other instruments. I asked him to tune, and he told me he always tuned sharp so the bass would stand out and not be covered up by the guitar’s notes.
FTI
A rapper came in to record his vocals. He already had his beats on a drum machine he had brought along. He said his name was FTI. When I asked what that stood for, he said, “It don’t stand for nothin’, it’s my name” Me: “If I call your house and your mama answers, do you want me to ask for FTI?” FTI: “No, ask for Charles.” FTI recorded his leads and we mixed and mastered them. He paid me for the studio time and asked about CDs I let him know that the minimum order was twenty-five. He wanted me to make the minimum and hold them to be bought as needed. Well alright – he was nice kid and all. His initial purchase was six CDs. About two months later, I spotted FTI walking up the street toward the studio. When he arrived, he said, “I need two more CDs.” I sold them to him. That’s the last I ever saw of FTI. I’m still holding the remaining CDs for him.
Backsliders
A Christian rock band consumed about four cases of beer during their three-day recording session.
Love in the Morning
I had a sofa bed in the control room in case anyone had to crash for the night. One morning, a traditional bluegrass band was scheduled to record. I was a little late getting to the studio and they were all standing by the door. When we all went in together, my young employee and his girlfriend were sound asleep on the sofa bed. Their clothes were in a pile on the floor.
Starting at the End
My good friend Joe Lee was producing an album at Patuxent. Every once in a while, Joe went out to his car and was absent for about ten minutes. One time, he came back inside and told me to take the fade-out ending from the song we were working on and make it the song’s intro. Me: “Are you sure you want to do that, Joe?” Joe: ”You heard me!” The next day, I played it back for Joe and he said, “It sounds like the end of the song was pasted on the beginning.” I undid the change and Joe said, “That’s much better.”
The Covenant Guitar
A guitarist named Abdul came in and said he had invented a new type of guitar and wanted to record it. It had a bass neck and a standard guitar neck, 180 degrees apart. He played both simultaneously by tapping. Take a look at the picture, as my description doesn’t do it justice.
If you like these, I’ll post more as I remember them.
Tom Mindte
September 2026
FTI’s CD cover
Joe Lee
Abdul and his Covenant guitar