Rockfield: The Studio On The Farm, the riveting new feature-length music documentary from award-winning Welsh production company ie ie Productions, and director Hannah Berryman (The Brick in the Wall Kids), in her feature debut, produced by Catryn Ramasut (American Interior, Queerama), had its World TV Premiere on BBC Four and simultaneously on BBC Wales on 18th July 2020.
Black Sabbath, Queen, The Stone Roses, Oasis, Coldplay, Simple Minds, Robert Plant, Manic Street Preachers are some of the greatest bands and musicians of our time, but what is the one thing these titans of music have in common?
They’ve all created music at Rockfield, a recording studio on a farm in Wales, run by two farming brothers who had a dream…a dream that led to Rockfield becoming the birthplace of some of the biggest hits ever made. It’s where Queen recorded their seminal Bohemian Rhapsody and featured in the Hollywood blockbuster of the same name, but Rockfield’s own story has never been told…until now.
Rockfield: The Studio On The Farm features the studio’s founders, Kingsley and Charles Ward, recounting how their humble farm became the stuff of legend. They’re joined by a cast featuring some of the biggest names in rock history through the ages, from heavy metal and psychedelic rock, punk and new wave, to Madchester, Britpop and beyond. The film takes us to this unlikely inner sanctum of rock n roll history, where songs everybody knows and loves were made, songs such as I Am The Resurrection, Wonderwall, Yellow, If You Tolerate This, to name but a few…
A starry cast, including Ozzy Osbourne, Liam Gallagher, Chris Martin, Robert Plant, Dave Brock, Jim Kerr, Tim Burgess and James Dean Bradfield, give us the inside story of their wild – and hugely creative – sessions in the middle of nowhere in Wales. The course did not always run smoothly, for the bands or the family at the helm, and the film tells the tale of struggles stuck on this isolated farm. But maybe this was the key to creating these moments of musical genius, this isolation surrounded by awe-inspiring nature: “It’s about being a part of something way bigger than you… Very important for rock stars!” says studio front-of-house Lisa Ward.
This is the unlikely tale of how two Welsh farming brothers turned their dairy farm into one of the most successful recording studios of all time, producing four decades of legendary rock music.
Fifty years ago, deep in the Welsh countryside, brothers Kingsley and Charles Ward were starting out in the family dairy farming business. But they yearned to do something different – they wanted to make music. So they built a studio in the attic of their farmhouse and started recording with their friends. Kingsley’s new wife, Ann, left her job in the local bank to do the books, and they continued farming all the while. Animals were kicked out of barns and musicians were moved into Nan’s spare bedroom. Inadvertently, they’d launched the world’s first independent residential recording studio: Rockfield.
Members of Heavy Metal group Black Sabbath relaxing in the scenic Wye Valley. Tony Iommi and Ozzy Osbourne (holding a gun) 10th August, 1977 Mandatory Credit: Photo by Andre Csillag/REX/Shutterstock (442648h) FREDDIE MERCURY WITH JOHN DEACON, ROGER TAYLOR AND BRIAN MAY AT ROCKFIELD STUDIOS – 1975 VARIOUS QUEEN 
Rockfield ROCKS!
I have to say that I’m a fan of many of the bands that have recorded their work at the Welsh farm/recording studio and to get an in-depth documentary about the two brothers that have worked with the massive names in rock including Black Sabbath, Queen, The Stone Roses, Oasis, Coldplay, Simple Minds, Robert Plant, Manic Street Preachers to name but a few is a fascinating watch.
The documentary takes us to the beginning of it all to see how the brothers decided to start the studio and some of the antidotes of the bands that have been there, such as recording Oasis and sitting on a wall recording Wonderwall outside in the courtyard of the farm.
Many of the bands/artists that recorded at the studio are included in the documentary such as Ozzy Osbourne, Coldplay, Oasis and Simple Minds all taking us back in time to the antics they got up to during the time they spent recording some of there top albums.
In today’s age of bedroom recording, it’s a shame that studios such as Rockfield have been hit by the reduction of bands recording in the studios, the times of lots of bands recording there may have slumped but they still have bands that want the sound that can be produced at Rockfield with many simple tricks to get certain sounds, many of which are shown in the documentary.
Rockfield: The Studio On The Farm is a must-see for any music fan, it’s an affectionate look at the music/recording world and how it used to be, it’s very much “Drugs and Rock & Roll”, well worth watching, so kick back and enjoy the 1h 30min documentary and take a trip back to the 60s onwards at Rockfield.
Rockfield: The Studio On The Farm on BBC iPlayer.
The Studio On The Farm
Movie title: Rockfield: The Studio On The Farm
Movie description: Documentary celebrating the legendary Rockfield Studios with appearances from those who have recorded within its hallowed walls.
Date published: July 18, 2020
Country: UK
Duration: 1h 30min
Director(s): Hannah Berryman
Actor(s): Guy Berryman, James Dean Bradfield, Dave Brock
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
