Long before Brian Wilson turned the studio into his own personal instrument on Pet Sounds and even longer before Pink Floyd broke new ground on Dark Side of the Moon, a Londoner at 304 Holloway Road by the name of Joe Meek was changing the way we would record music forever. Meek fostered his love of audio and electronics in the early 1950s while working as a radar technician for the Royal Air Force and later for the Midlands Electricity Board. He then transitioned to radio before settling on his true passion: recording.
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Meek was on the frontlines of the British invasion, writing and producing “Telstar”, the first No. 1 single in the U.S. recorded by a British rock group. But his work as an engineer would prove even more influential, changing the way we record music forever.
How Joe Meek Changed the Recording Industry Forever
Up to that point, recording music was largely a practice of recreating a particular room’s sound. All the musicians performed together live, and it was the engineer’s job to capture that performance as accurately as possible in one fell swoop. Meek wanted more control over his recordings, so he began separating instruments and implementing new mic techniques that would allow overdubbing and post-performance mixing. Rather than the whole band performing around a handful of microphones, Meek placed players in their own space to minimize bleed and make it easier for Meek to manipulate the recording’s sound in post.
This, along with his breakthroughs in sampling and reverb, completely revolutionized the recording industry. Engineers still utilize the techniques Meek pioneered in the early 1960s to this day, making his impact on the industry virtually unfathomable. Sadly, Meek’s story is as dark and tragic as it is influential and inventive. In an Icarian turn of events, Meek’s prolific career in the early 1960s came to a screeching halt in 1967, after years of worsening mental health, local crime, and fear finally caught up to the groundbreaking engineer.
Joe Meek suffered from bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and barbiturate abuse, all of which worsened in his 30s. He was also gay, which was cause for even more stress and paranoia as he attempted to navigate an overwhelmingly homophobic world. His fears were confirmed when he was convicted and later blackmailed for “importuning for immoral purposes” (per The Guardian) in London, causing Meek to start wearing sunglasses in public to avoid being recognized by those who might wish to do him harm. He was not immune from professional woes, either, and financial troubles deepened his psychosis as he began accusing bad agents of sabotaging him using microphones they hid in Meek’s walls.
Joe Meek Died in a Heartbreaking, Violent Tragedy on February 3, 1967
In addition to his real-world mental health and financial issues, the audio engineer had also developed a fascination with the paranormal and extraterrestrial, which began seeping into his delusions as well. Meek often set up microphones in graveyards to capture voices of the dead, one of whom he identified as Buddy Holly, who coincidentally died on the same day as Meek, eight years earlier. Eventually, Meek lost control over these beliefs and began seeing poltergeists in his apartment. He believed aliens were taking over his mind. Unfortunately, this toxic mix of mental and emotional stressors became lethal on February 3, 1967.
That morning, Meek’s landlord, Violet Shenton, visited his apartment to ask for his rent that was past due. The two began arguing, and shortly after, Meek grabbed a shotgun and shot Shenton in the back. He then reloaded and shot himself. It was a tragic, violent end to a man whose impact on the music industry would remain tangible decades after his death.
Patrick Pink, a 19-year-old tenant who lived in the same building as Meek, witnessed the entire crime. He was one landing below the altercation, catching Shenton in his arms when she fell down the stairs after being shot. Police questioned Pink for hours before releasing him. “I have never really come to terms with it,” he later told Express. “Because of my mum and dad, I got through it. But it will always be there. With someone like Joe, who was famous, it will never be put to bed, and I’ve learned to live with that.”
Photo by Tony Gibson/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
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