Reggae’s Greatest Console? Legendary Helios Desk Up for Sale

Nashville, TN (September 17, 2024)—The Helios analog mixing console used to record several landmark reggae tracks like Bob Marley, Burning Spear, Big Youth, Dennis Brown, Augustus Pablo, King Tubby, Bunny Wailer, Prince Far I, Yellowman, Horace Andy and many more has been brought to the U.S. and has been put up for sale online with a price that reflects its provenance.

The 20-input, 16-output Helios, believed to have been built in 1973, was the centerpiece of Harry J Studio in Kingston, Jamaica, and is emblazoned with the legend: Helios HJ-1 Dub Station. Finished in an unusual blue-green color, it is listed for sale by Nashville-based vintage gear auction site Retro Gear Shop. Said to be fully operational, the desk is being sold with a pair of Yamaha NS10 monitors painted the same color.

As the website points out, a complete Helios console that has not been parted out into modules is a rare find. “The Helios sound is absolutely legendary, with artists including Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Queen, Jimi Hendrix, Roxy Music and many more having recorded through Helios consoles,” the listing also notes.

Dick Swettenham, former technical director at London’s Olympic Studios, built the first Helios for Island Records’ Basing Street Studios in 1969. During 10 years in business, the company produced about four dozen desks, of which an estimated 20 may still be in existence.

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Until recently, the Helios HJ-1 was in a home recording studio. Retro Gear Shop states, “We went to Jamaica in person to acquire this desk.” Reggaeville, published in Germany, observes that the desk featured in a photo accompanying an interview the publication ran in 2016 with Jamaica-based Italian reggae vocalist and producer Alborosie.

“This console is an undeniable piece of recording history; you can hear the beautiful tone of this console through all the amazing music that’s been made with it,” the auction site also states. The history and specification of the desk includes a long, long list of releases believed to have been recorded using Harry J’s Helios, including Bob Marley’s first four albums. As has been documented elsewhere, however, some of these, as well as other albums on the list, were tracked and mixed at a variety of studios in Jamaica, including Dynamic Sound Studios and Randy’s Studio 17, both of which featured Sound Techniques consoles.

That said, the list is a who’s-who of reggae artists: Burning Spear, Big Youth, Dennis Brown, Augustus Pablo, King Tubby, Bunny Wailer, Prince Far I, Yellowman, Horace Andy and on and on. In fact, Harry J—former insurance salesman Harry Johnson—was a producer and artist in his own right, releasing “The Liquidator” under the name Harry J All Stars in 1969. The organ-led instrumental was a top-10 UK hit and was later covered by the Specials. It was adopted in 1970 as an anthem by Chelsea FC and is still a crowd favorite at soccer grounds across the UK.

Jamaican studios were reportedly still recording to two- or four-track machines when Johnson opened his 16-track facility in 1972. Stephen Stewart, an engineer, producer and musician who worked at Harry J’s beginning as a teenager, told Billboard, “Because he had the latest in technology, Harry J attracted the best artists of the day.” Harry J Studio closed and remained shuttered for much of the 1990s, but was refurbished by Stewart in 2000. Johnson, who retained ownership and looked after the business side, passed away in 2013.