Born in
Houston.
Built for
History.
Founded by Bill Quinn in 1941 as Quinn Recording, renamed Gold Star in 1950, and reborn as SugarHill in 1972 — every era of American music has passed through these doors.
From Quinn Recording
to SugarHill
Bill Quinn, a radio repairman from New Jersey, arrived in Houston in 1939 and opened Quinn Recording in 1941 inside a converted storefront on Telephone Road. He moved to 5628 Brock Street in 1950 — first floor of his own family home — and renamed it Gold Star Studios.
In 1972, producer Huey Meaux bought the shuttered facility at bankruptcy auction and renamed it SugarHill. That name was chosen deliberately: no genre, no era — wide open for everything.
Read the Full History"Like Houston itself, the Gold Star/SugarHill complex is a sprawling, seemingly unplanned and unrestricted, multicultural place."— Andy Bradley & Roger Wood, House of Hits (University of Texas Press, 2010)
Analog Warmth.
Modern Precision.
The Goldstar Room — built in 1964 and designed by Jack Clement, who also built Sun Studio in Nashville — is home to SugarHill's crown jewel: the Neve Genesys Black G32 console installed in 2018.
Ready to Make History?
Every legendary record has a starting point. Yours can start here.
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