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Bulldog Studios owner/producer Bryan Downey of Sag Harbor knew a challenge had been issued when the call arrived from Bay Burger’s John Landes.
Mr. Landes told Mr. Downey that the Old Whalers’ Church was going to be rented out for concerts by the new pastor, Rev. Mark Phillips. That one piece of information was enough to put a big idea into Mr. Downey’s mind.
“Mark told me the church has never been full for a musical event,” Mr. Downey explained in a recent interview. “It’s beautiful, 250 years old, and has a newly-restored organ and 800 seats, all pews, so cute. A great venue.”
Mr. Downey quickly put together a roster of performers, and designated the show as a dual benefit, after covering production costs, for the Old Whalers’ Community House Fund and public radio station 88.3 FM, formerly known at WLIU. Slated for Wednesday, August 25, at 7 p.m., and featuring, among others, The Lone Sharks, Caroline Doctorow, Nancy Atlas, Jim Turner and Incircles, it’s a must-have ticket, Mr. Downey says, for any fans of local music.
And while it’s a big undertaking, to be sure, it’s all in a good day’s work for Mr. Downey, a man known for taking action in the music scene of the East End.
A native of Liverpool, England, Mr. Downey spent years in France, San Francisco, and Nantucket before settling in Sag Harbor. Before moving to the U.S., he had a list of “Things I Want to Do in America,” with the top two being to work in film and still photography. In California, he learned how to shoot photos, and got a job working for the San Francisco Chronicle and Examiner. Soon after, he transitioned from still photography to film school.
Then, after experiencing what he terms a “mid-life crisis,” Mr. Downey decided he had to “get more serious” about life. He moved back East to his next successful venture, the construction firm of Bryan Downey Restorations.
But Mr. Downey’s creative side couldn’t rest for long.
A talented singer-songwriter in his own right, he dabbled in recording at local studios, but ran into the Goldilocks dilemma: one studio was too noisy, he said, while another was “too busy and too far away.” What ended up being “just right” for Mr. Downey would be his own studio—built into a shed in his yard.
“The shed had nothing more than a motorbike, windsurfing gear, and cobwebs in it,” Mr. Downey said with a laugh.
The renovated shed became Bulldog Studios, which opened in June 2009. A website for the new studio was created free of charge by Hamptons Web Design, and Mr. Downey suddenly found himself very busy behind the mixing board.
“HBO was looking for facilities in the Hamptons,” Mr. Downey explained. “They wanted a place for Liev Schreiber to do voiceover work. I started recording for HBO and it snowballed: Thalia recorded her radio show here, and Richard Gere was here on one of the hottest days of the summer doing voice work for a documentary on Tibet. We couldn’t have the air conditioning on because of the noise,” Mr. Downey said, chuckling at the recollection, “but he was a real trouper.”
Mr. Downey now records local musicians free of charge. “The voiceover jobs have made the studio self-supporting,” he explained, “so I, along with my two engineers, Chris Bonawandt and Mike Maz, invest time in new artists that we find worthy.” He also runs the acclaimed Bay Street Theatre Open Mic shows.
This week, he was hoping that perhaps another local trouper will show up for the Old Whalers’ Church show, namely one Billy Joel.
“It would be an honor if he’d stop by and play,” Mr. Downey said. “The motivation for the event is that I want to help the radio station and the church, but don’t get me wrong: I’m not Dudley Do-Right. I also simply want to put on a good concert with good local talent. This will be the first time these musicians have all shared a stage together, so now we just need to get people in there. People really need to hear local talent in a great setting, not just hidden behind a wine glass in some restaurant.”
The Locals Live! concert will be presented at the Old Whalers’ Church at 44 Union Street in Sag Harbor on Wednesday, August 25, at 7 p.m., hosted by 88.3 FM’s Bonnie Grice and Brian Cosgrove, and featuring performances by Gene Casey and the Lone Sharks, Caroline Doctorow and the Steamrollers, Jim Turner, Nancy Atlas and Telly, Shanna Polley, Incircles, and Robert Bruey. Tickets are $30, seniors/veterans/students, $25; available online at oldwhalerschurch.org, or by calling 631-725-0894.
on Aug 17, 2010