Abbey road Studios was originally built in 1813 to serve as a georgian town house. It was purchased in 1931 by The gramophone company which later amalgamated with Columbia Graphophone company to form EMI, and the studio subsequently developed a reputation for housing some of musics all time greatest artists.

It was originally used by the Gramophone company as a studio for classical music and on the opening of the studios in 1931 the the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted Sir Edward Elgar recorded a live session of his music.

It later opened its doors to rock & pop musicians and became closely associated with The Beatles who recorded of 90% of their albums and singles there between 1962 & 1970.

The Beatles named their 1969 album, Abbey Road, after the street where the studio is located, but it was not until the following year that EMI renamed the studio to Abbey Road. The cover for the Abbey Road Album was taken by Iain Macmillan and famously shows the band walking across the Zebra crossing. This soon became a place for Beatles fans from all around the world to visit. The crossing is no longer at the same location having been moved further to the east in the 1970's. It has been a long-standing tradition for visitors to pay homage to the band by writing on the studio fence in front, although it is painted over monthly.

The Shadows also named their Live at Abbey Road album after the studio, with the cover spoofing The Beatles' album. American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers included a photograph of themselves walking across the zebra crossing naked, except for the infamous socks, used to cover vital parts of their anatomy, on the front of The Abbey Road EP, released in 1988.

The Studios have now been used by countless greats such as U2, Iron Maiden, Pink Floyd, Sigur Rós and many more.