We’ve created a soundtrack especially for your bank holiday, featuring reggae, lovers rock, synthpop, disco and funk tracks that were recorded or mixed at Tooting Music Centre (also know as T.M.C).

Located at 118A Mitcham Road, Tooting, the recording studio was known during the ’70s and ’80s for rolling out chart hits by an eclectic mix of names, and became a significant studio for the reggae and lovers rock scenes in particular. Artists such as Bunny “Striker” Lee, Sidney Rogers, Dillinger, Black Slate, Winston Groovy, Barrington Spence, Mikey Dread, Roy Shirley, and Leroy Smart recorded there. Legend has it that Bob Marley left his mark too, scrawling his signature on the wall.

Originally, the Tooting Music Centre sold instruments and music, but with 25 years experience in show business, owner Bernie Proctor decided to try his hand at running a recording studio alongside engineer Steve Vaughan when a larger premises became available up the road. Today, Mixed Blessings bakery stands in its place. The studio may be gone but the music lives on!

Sources:

https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Audio/Archive-Studio-Sound-IDX/IDX/70s/Studio-Sound-1971-12-OCR-Page-0027.pdf

Local historian Geoff Simmons leads a local tour exploring Tooting’s musical heritage, info here: https://summerstown182.files.wordpress.com/2020/06/tooting-magical-musical-history-tour-1.pdf