NYC Rock Star Studio for Sale

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Some of the recordings Avatar Studios has been involved with over the years

Want to own a working (and profitable) piece of classic rock history? Well, for a mere cool $27 million, you can purchase a Manhattan recording studio where Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Madonna, Roxy Music, Cyndi Lauper, Paul Simon, Sheryl Crow, John Mayer, Norah Jones, Kings of Leon and more made music. Avatar Studios on West 53rd St. in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen, formerly known as the Power Station, is up for sale.

It’s where Madonna recorded her breakthrough Like A Prayer album and Lady Gaga furthered the modern pop music diva style. Jon Bon Jovi used to sweep the facility’s floors; his cousin Tony Bongiovi owned the Power Station. It even lent its name to a supergroup formed by Robert Palmer, John and Andy Taylor of Duran Duran and Bernard Edwards of Chic that scored a #6 hit in 1985 with “Some Like It Hot.” The music Springsteen is playing on his The River Tour was tracked here.

According to this clip, over 400 Gold and Platinum albums have been recorded there…

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The current owners of Avatar Studios have decided to sell the business, which these days hosts soundtrack sessions by day and album recordings by night. “It’s really a one-of-a-kind building that houses a one-of-a-kind studio,” says co-owner Kirk Imamura. “If this building goes away for whatever reason, it’s irreplaceable. It would be a real shame.”

The news sent ripples through the record and recording industries, as many large recording facilities have closed their doors as a result of digital media making home recording a professional option and the downturn in record sales. The rising value of and demand for Manhattan real estate has also decimated what was a thriving New York City studio industry.

“Sony Music studios used to be next door — they’re now condos. There used to a studio called Hit Factory, one block over. They’re condos, ” says Imamura. “You know there used to be a lot of studios here but they’re all pretty much gone, we’re probably the only ones standing here.”

The owners hope they can find a buyer who will keep operating the recording facility housed in what had been an electrical power station. “I think that it’s my job to find someone who can keep the studio [running],” says co-owner Chieko Imamura.