Recorded in NoHo: Christopher Cross' Debut Album

Some of the greatest albums of all time have been recorded right here in NoHo, and it continues to be a central location for music recording today. Many people who live here drive by the studios everyday, unaware that some of the most famous artists in the world are right behind the walls.

One of the top recording venues for many years was Amigo Studios/Warner Brothers Recording Studio, which is no longer in existence. However, it's memory lives on in the parking garage of the NoHo Commons at Lankershim Boulevard and Weddington Street, which is near where the studio used to be located at 11114 Cumpston Ave. The parking garage features the , which pays tribute to Amigo and the great artists that recorded there.

Few debuts in the history of modern music have achieved the commercial and critical success of Christopher Cross' self titled album, which was recorded at Amigo Studios. Released in late 1979 by Warner Bros., Chirstopher Cross made an instant star out of the soft rocker, as the album produced a number of Billboard Top 20 hits, including the No. 1 "Sailing" and the No. 2 "Ride Like the Wind."

Cross then won a record-setting five Grammys in 1981, including Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Album of the Year and Best New Artist. For Album of the year, Cross beat out none other than Frank Sinatra (Trilogy: Past, Present, Future), Billy Joel (Glass Houses), Barbra Streisand (Guilty) and Pink Floyd (The Wall).

He followed up the album with another No. 1 single, as as well as an Academy Award, for the 1981 song Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do), from the film Arthur.

Cross' chill, mature, relaxed sound came around at the right time and struck a chord with millions of people.

"Before I came along there had been disco, then a lot of chainsaw radio and punk, Cross said, according to IMDB. "People of the age group that buy my records were a little tired of that...saying I`d sure like to hear a song now and then."

He also said: "I'm a very nonpolitical and nonintellectual lyricist. But people have so many demands on them already in their lives. I'm just trying to give them a little enjoyment and relaxation."

Cross recorded Christopher Cross and its followup, Another Page, with longtime collaborator Chet Hines, who was his sound engineer.

Hines discussed his work with Cross on his website: Acknowledged today as technologically innovative, and having all the necessary tools, Chet combined the best aspects of digital and analog recording, resulting in a flexible recording technique for protecting and assembling the best from analog masters digitally, keeping the sound of analog while using the advanced technology of digital (now widely used throughout the recording industry).

Hines liked recording at Amigo so much he bought it from Warner Bros., according to his website.

Another Page, which was also recorded at Amigo, was released in 1983 and failed to match the commercial success of Christopher Cross. It scored one top 10 hit which, surprisingly, was his last entry into the top ten. Cross' star crashed back to earth almost as fast as it had risen, and while some later albums were well received by critics, he has never come close to matching the mass success of his debut. His 1988 album Back of My Mind failed to chart altogether, and Cross was dropped by Warner Bros., according to allmusic.com.