Driving north on the 5 freeway past Disneyland, you can almost smell the money. Not too far off, Howard Hughes headquartered an aerospace empire, Walt Disney created a fantasy land, and glistening office towers scrape the sky, their inhabitants generating billions upon billions of dollars in revenue annually. More than just the First World, Orange County, California represents the upper crust of the First World -- where else would you expect to find the "Happiest Place on Earth?” In 1982, when the crush of traffic chewed up much less precious time, it was a twenty minute drive from Disneyland to the Casbah recording studio in Fullerton, California. And while Walt’s creative offspring were entertaining the world, artists at the Casbah were producing their own exports -- popular music for the masses. Berlin, Stacey Q, and Social Distortion, all Billboard top 100 artists at various times, recorded early works there, most notable perhaps being Berlin’s Pleasure Victim EP (1982) featuring the hit “Sex,” and the “Q” EP (also 1982) featuring a pre-“Two of Hearts” Stacey Swain.

Purchased by Jon St. James in 1977 with money borrowed from his parents (his father spent his productive years driving a big rig), the early Casbah boasted a mere 8-channel Teac reel-to-reel machine using half-inch tape, though eventually Jon upgraded to a 16 track Teac with 1-inch tape. His initial ventures included a full length album of electronic music, and a series of sound-alike jingles for the now-defunct Los Angeles rock and roll station KMET 94.7 FM. The multi-instrumental St. James played virtually all of the instruments and sang on these as well. Examples included a reworking of the Beatles “I Saw Her Standing There” (How can I dance to another, since I heard K-M-E-T?) and a dead-on snippet of Bowies' Suffragette City (Hey Man, You know it's K-M-E-T).

When, in late 2004, I asked producer and engineer Michael Hutchinson how the Casbah fared in comparison to other studios, he told me: “Considering it wasn’t a five star studio...you could consider it a three star. They had the basics. I mean, they had some sort of a plate or spring reverb unit, some delays and a couple of chorus boxes, and things like that. Most of that stuff was done on a really tight budget. You have to give kudos to the guy who did the Berlin record (Dan Van Patten) because it sounds like it was done on much more expensive gear.” Hutchinson, whose credits include Billy Idol, Chicago, Warrant, Poison, Manhattan Transfer, and Berlin, was referring the groundbreaking Pleasure Victim EP, which was released in 1982 and went platinum in 1993. Early on, St. James brought a partner in; that was Chaz Ramirez, guitarist for Eddie and the Subtitles, a punk group whose leader lived literally just down the street and around the corner from the studio. “Most punk bands wanted to go there and record,” Hutchinson told me. “Mostly, I think because of the vibe, and because of Chaz. Chaz always cared that everybody got what they wanted and had a good time.” The first thing that caught one’s eye upon entering the waiting area from the parking lot was the bald, female department store mannequin known as Babs, whose attire was frequently revised. "I do remember the mannequin,” Hutchinson told me. “That was frightening the first time I showed up there.”

"It was such a blur sometimes; you’re not always aware if you’re working on something that might end up on a specific band’s record,” said Hutchinson. Despite the Casbah’s reputation as a place of wild fun, a line should be drawn between the more casual gatherings sponsored by Ramirez, and the more commercial ventures of St. James. Part of the excitement seemed to come from the two distinct cultures; one typified by Chaz and his cronies’ slacker ethos, the other by St. James and his keen awareness of musical trends. Of the pair, Hutchinson says: “I don’t think they shared musical tastes; I don’t know how excited Chaz was about Berlin – he was more excited about punk stuff.” Nevertheless, Hutchinson credits Chaz with being an “unsung hero” for his work on Pleasure Victim. Ramirez and St. James are listed as assistant engineers on the disc, with Dan Van Patten headlining the affair as producer and engineer.

“Those were heady days; if we were sober, it was an event,” Hutchinson recalled of time spent at the studio. “There was a hell of a lot of beer, and everybody was smoking.” No doubt there were clashes; St. James had laid down a strict “no smoking” rule in the equipment room, a rule not always honored. He expressed irritation to me on one occasion over the lack of concern for conventional etiquette exhibited by Chaz and his punk cronies, upon entering the control room and noticing the distinct smell of partying that had gone on the previous night.

Often at the apartment shared by Chaz and Eddie Egan (aka Eddie Subtitle), grizzled veterans of the music scene, as well as relative newcomer Stacey Swain (soon to be known as Stacey Q) sat around trading war stories. Their Christmas tree one December in the early 1980’s was festooned with dozens of Marlboro boxes; these guys weren’t afraid of thumbing their noses up at the spirit of Christmas itself. (Sadly, Chaz died in the late 90’s in a bizarre accident, in which he fell from the rafters of a warehouse while picking through electronic odds and ends.) In the midst of this chaotic mixture of talent and excess, St. James steadily pursued his dreams. Jon cultivated his public image carefully, seemingly knowing what success lay ahead.He drove a turquoise Karmann Ghia, though his heart was set on a Porsche (he later achieved that goal.) He dressed like he owned shares in The Gap, and was a perfectionist in all areas of his life, but particularly in regards to music, with a penchant for experimenting with new devices. (continued here)