VIA PRESS RELEASE | Craft Recordings and Jazz Dispensary are thrilled to announce Dream a Dream with Studio G: Cratedigger’s Archive (1970–2009), a brand-new compilation culling 25 of some of the most compelling, sexy, and psychedelic mood-music cues famed UK music library production house Studio G ever produced.
Out August 22nd, on vinyl and hi-res digital formats, Dream a Dream assumes the role of a surreal soundtrack scene-setter, casting moods in two distinct directions: morning and night. The limited-edition Opaque Red LP set comes housed in a gatefold jacket and features commentary from Saint Etienne founding member Bob Stanley, liner notes by musician, producer, and dee-jay Ryan Jebavy (aka Leslie Saucer), and illustrations by renowned gig poster artist Ivan Minsloff—known for his work with New York Dolls, Willie Nelson, Queens of the Stone Age, and SXSW. Pre-order/pre-save the album today.
Established by John Gale in London in 1966, Studio G produced a wide range of genres and styles, geared toward local TV, sports programming, and adverts. As Ryan Jebavy, producer of Dream a Dream, explains in his liner notes, it unleashed “pastoral folk, maniacal horror, funk-spat jazz, quixotic pop, alluring electro and the usual novelty side spells of national anthems, children’s music and whatever other utilitarian cues society demanded of the moment” upon the commercial space.
Even as more sizable outfits such as KPM, Bruton, De Wolfe and Chappell consumed the majority of the marketplace, Studio G offered a truly fetching alternative—sleek, hip art not previously seen on mostly unremarkable album covers released by neighboring companies, not to mention bold, daring and adventurous music cues unique to Studio G.
Jebavy continues, “What separated Studio G from the rest of the pack…was Gale’s undying drive and commitment towards minimalistic, psychedelic-leaning production, by way of oceans of reverb and delay, and in some cases even tape loops, not to mention a sense of artistic style and design not previously harnessed from competing production companies.”
In addition to serving as a fabled fountain of musical delights for several prominent British television programmes—including Doctor Who, Vision On, The Snooker, Bowling, The Darts Show, and Top Crown—Studio G’s music has also been sampled by a slate of cutting-edge artistss, from the Chemical Brothers and U.N.K.L.E. to Tyler, the Creator and Knxwledge. Monty Python incorporated several cues for their witty third LP, Previous Record, back in 1972. And just recently, Aphex Twin shared his love for the label, including a cut in his latest playlist for Supreme.
Dream a Dream with Studio G: Cratedigger’s Archive (1970–2009) veers far from the typical compilation, aimed instead at re-imagining portions of the catalog as a stand-alone pseudo-soundtrack. Jebavy describes Side A (Dream A—dubbed “Psychotropic Hopping Morning”) as radiating “melodic synergy, yacht-friendly jazz, Mort Garson-flattering psychedelia (featuring “Flower Garden,” a cut used by prolific hip-hopper Knxwledge for 2012’s anthrdreem), and endearing folk.”
Side B (Dream B—titled “Space Temple Midnight”) begins with a slow-motion, alien crash-landing, followed by “exotic world trance, airy synth reflections, warped, fusion-kicked funk (including “Workload,” sampled by Tyler, the Creator for his 2021 track “CORSO”), sludgy swamps of supreme fantasy, and haunting, pensive mystery,” Jebavy adds. Two stand-out orchestral pieces alone—“Pastoral Reflections” and “Barcarolle Blues”—are simply stunning.
Founding Saint Etienne member and respected music journalist Bob Stanley offers insight into his own curious entry point into library music: “As a kid in the ’70s, I was obsessed with music on the testcard, something that was on TV when there were no programmes. It was there to help engineers to ‘tune’ a TV set. Most often, it was a peculiar picture of a young girl holding a rather creepy toy clown, and they were sat in front of a blackboard.”), as well as his experiences as a savvy and highly influential sampler (“The Cortex album ([Troupeau bleu’s1975] French prog/jazz beauty) is one of the records I’ve discovered through samples (Tyler, the Creator; Wiz Khalifa) in recent years. Much earlier, pre-internet, it was always a thrill to stumble across the original source of a sample…”).
