Harry J Studio’s Vintage Mixing Console Surfaces On eBay For Staggering US$2.5 Million
A piece of Reggae music history has surfaced on eBay.
The Helios HJ-1 Dub Station 20-channel mixing console—reportedly used to record Bob Marley & The Wailers’ first four studio albums and scores of other legendary 1970s recordings at Harry J’s Studio in Jamaica—is up for sale on the auction site for a staggering US$2.5 million.
The vintage blue and green console, estimated to be built in 1973, was listed by Retro Gear Shop, a high-end boutique music equipment store located in Nashville, Tennessee. In addition to recording Bob Marley and the Wailers’ albums Catch a Fire, Burnin’, Natty Dread and Rastaman Vibration, the console was also used by many other legendary Jamaican reggae artists, including Burning Spear, Big Youth, Dennis Brown, Augustus Pablo, Bunny Wailer, U Roy, Horace Andy, Barrington Levy, and Yellowman.
“This console is an undeniable piece of recording history. You can hear the beautiful tone of this console through all the amazing music that’s been made with it,” states the eBay listing description.
Retro Gear Shop said they went to Jamaica in person to acquire the 20-input, 16-output analog console.
“Helios consoles are very rare to come by, who knows [how] many other complete Helios consoles are still left available in the world. Rough estimates put it at only a couple dozen,” the listing continued. “Most have been parted out for their amazing analog preamp/equalizer channels. The Helios sound is absolutely legendary, with artists including Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Queen, Jimi Hendrix, Roxy Music and many more having recorded through Helios consoles.”
The listing also includes an exhaustive list of albums and songs recorded on the desk from 1972 through the 1990s by a wide range of notable Jamaican artists. However, Reggaeville notes that “some of the albums stated were recorded at more than one studio.”
The sale includes the desk’s external power supply and a pair of Yamaha NS10 studio monitors in a matching color. Professional crating and freight shipping are included in the price.
Other historical items currently in Retro Gear Shop’s catalog include an MCI console, used to record several top-selling albums, including the Eagles’ Hotel California and the Bee Gees’ Saturday Night Fever, for US$1 million, and a Fairchild stereo tube limiter, used on dozens of Gold records and Grammy-winning recordings, for US$285,000.
Harry ‘Harry J’ Johnson
Harry ‘Harry J’ Johnson was a former insurance salesman who became a top Reggae producer in the 1970s. His first success was the Harry J All Stars’ 1969 classic The Liquidator, which reached No. 9 on the UK Singles Chart and today remains a favorite at football grounds around the UK. He scored again with vocalists Marica Griffiths and Bob Andy, who covered Nina Simone’s Young Gifted and Black, which reached No. 5 on the UK chart.
However, he remains best known for his Harry J Studio, a sixteen-track studio set up in 1972 on Roosevelt Avenue, Kingston. Sid Bucknor and later Sylvan Morris were among the resident recording engineers at the studio, which continued to operate until the 1990s.
In 2000, after seven years of inactivity, Stephen Stewart, who had worked alongside Morris as a teenager in the early years, refurbished and re-equipped the Harry J Studio, with Harry J retaining ownership of the premises.
“Back then, we were recording two-track and four-track sessions so it took great foresight for someone to go all the way to 16-tracks, which brought us on par with the rest of the world. Because he had the latest in technology Harry J attracted the best artists of the day,” Stewart told Billboard.
“People come here to capture that live session chemistry where recording is more than just one person using a computer program,” he added. “The legacy of the musicianship that has come through here makes Harry J studios really special. It’s part of the vision Harry brought to Jamaican music.”
Harry J died in 2013 at age 68, while Sylvan Morris died in 2023 at age 74.