Charlie Peacock unearths early recordings from legendary San Francisco studio

In 1980, at the beaming dawn of a budding musical career, an energized 23-year-old singer/musician from Sacramento named Charlie Peacock walked into San Francisco’s legendary Automatt recording studio to record some songs in his hunt for a record deal.

The recording studio at 827 Folsom, founded by producer David Rubinson, who operated it from 1976 to 1984, had already recorded the likes of Santana, Journey and Sister Sledge. Peacock, born Charles Ashworth, hoped to similarly add his name to those lofty names of the music industry.

During his days inside the Automatt, Peacock would rub elbows with stars and other up-and-comers. He’d encounter a young Wynton Marsalis and several professional basketball players. The upper floor of the building was leased to Francis Ford Coppola’s Zoetrope