Haydn Bendall

Career

Bendall started out at Orange Studios, moving on to Steinway & Sons as a piano tuner. He joined Ken Townsend's Abbey Road team in 1973 as a part-time assistant, taking on a full-time position a year later.

Initially partnering with Tony Clarke, Bendall worked on albums by Herbie Flowers, BeBop Deluxe, Steve Harley, Alan Parsons, Cliff Richard and Camel, developing a close working relationship with Sky. In the 1980-90s, he worked with Kate Bush on five albums, including Hounds of Love in 1985. Further Abbey Road work included engineering or producing for XTC, Bonnie Tyler, Tina Turner and Massive Attack. Film soundtrack work included The Long Good Friday and Ryuichi Sakamoto's pieces on the Oscar- and Grammy-winning soundtrack to The Last Emperor.

Leaving Abbey Road in 1991, Bendall became an independent producer/engineer. As an independent, Bendall has worked with The Pet Shop Boys, Everything but the Girl, Pat Metheny, Chris Botti, Leona Lewis, The Priests, Mike Batt and Katie Melua. In 1992, Bendall engineered the Grammy-award winning album Secret Story for Pat Metheny. He also worked with Eric Woolfson on the development of three musicals: Gaudi, Gambler and Poe.

He is currently based in Strongroom Studios, Shoreditch, London.

Recently Bendall mixed and engineered La Voce for Russell Watson and Noël for The Priests. Other projects include engineering and mixing the Vatican album Alma Mater featuring the voice of Pope Benedict XVI, recording orchestral tracks for Andrea Bocelli and mixing tracks for Siphiwo Ntshebe.

In 2012, in collaboration with Walter Afanasieff, Bendall recorded the Grammy-Award winning album 'Impressions' for Chris Botti. Bendall also recorded 'Secret Symphony' for Katie Melua.

Selected Discography

1979 Cliff Richard – Rock'n'Roll Juvenile1981 Camel – Nude1982 Sky – Sky 4: Forthcoming1982 Alan Parsons – Eye in the Sky1982 Kate Bush – The Dreaming1985 Kate Bush – Hounds of Love1985 Alan Parsons – Vulture Culture1986 Everything But the Girl – Baby, the Stars Shine Bright1986 Paul McCartney – Press to Play1987 Ryuichi Sakamoto – Last Emperor – Grammy Award1987 Marc Almond – Mother Fist and Her Five Daughters1989 Kate Bush – The Sensual World1990 a-ha – East of the Sun, West of the Moon1990 Kate Bush – This Woman's Work1990 Gary Moore – Still Got the Blues1990 Pet Shop Boys – Behaviour1991 Camel – Dust and Dreams1992 Pat Metheny – Secret Story – Grammy Award1999 XTC - Apple Venus Volume 12002 Everything But the Girl – Like the Deserts Miss the Rain2003 Pet Shop Boys – PopArt2004 Chris Botti – When I Fall in Love2005 Chris Botti – To Love Again: The Duets2005 Katie Melua – Piece by Piece2007 Leona Lewis – Spirit2008 Il Divo – Promise2009 Andrea Bocelli – My Christmas2010 Russell Watson – Il Voce2012 Chris Botti - Impressions - Grammy Award2012 Katie Melua - Secret Symphony2013 Sarah Brightman - Dreamchaser

Selected Singles

1981 Elton John and Kiki Dee – Don’t Go Breaking My Heart1981 Olivia Newton-John – Physical1986 Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush – Don’t Give Up1986 Freddie Mercury – Time and In My Defense1991 Tina Turner – Simply the Best1991 Massive Attack – Unfinished Sympathy

Soundtracks

Brazil (1985) – sound engineeringThe Last Emperor (1987) – co-production. The soundtrack received an Oscar for the best sound-recording and a Grammy award for the best album.Someone to Watch Over Me (1987) – sound engineering.Crusoe (1988) – sound engineering.Scandal (1989) – sound-engineering for the theme song ‘Nothing Has Been Proved’ with Dusty Springfield and Pet Shop Boys.Twin Peaks (1990) – sound engineering.Strike It Rich (1990) – sound engineering.White Squall (1996) – sound engineering.Victory (2009) – sound engineering.Touchback (2011) – sound engineering.