IT TAKES MORE THAN GUITARS, bass, and drums to make rock music. You also need dozens of input channels, a small army of knobs, dials, and switches, and someone who knows how to work all of it. Well, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, and Bob Marley needed those things. They are only a few of the iconic artists who recorded music on the HeliosCentric console going up for auction next month at Bonhams, in London. In its current state, the console is a composite of two historic recording control centers, both designed by Helios Electronics, that saw action during the 1970s. After years in retirement, the two units were merged in the 1990s. The console still works, and is expected to fetch six figures when it hits the block, says Bonhams specialist Claire Tole-Moir. The older part of the HeliosCentric dates to 1970, and sat in Island Records’ Basing Street Studio 2, in West London, until 1974. During that time, it saw Cat Stevens record “Peace Train,” the Rolling Stones add strings to “Angie,” and Bob Marley and the Wailers lay down “Get Up, Stand Up” and “I Shot the Sheriff.” Stephen Stills also used the console to record his eponymous debut solo album in 1970—the only album ever to feature guitar contributions from both Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton.
