Abbey Road photography exhibition ‘explores almost a century of music history’

A new Abbey Road photography exhibition will explore “almost a century of music history”.

The world-famous Abbey Road recording studio is synonymous with The Beatles, but has also hosted acts including Pink Floyd, Oasis, Stevie Wonder, Frank Ocean and Stormzy over the past 95 years.

It is now also the focus of the exhibition Abbey Road: Reframed, which presents three interconnected perspectives: The Art Of Recording, Iconic Image Makers and the Abbey Road Music Photography Accelerator.

Nile Rodgers’ 1960 Fender Stratocaster guitar in Olympic White is among the captured items to be feature in a new Abbey Road photography exhibition (Rick Guest/Legacy/PA)

Together, they explore the artistry in the recording process, celebrate the photographers whose work has shaped music culture, and champion the next generation of image-makers defining its future.

Abbey Road has said the exhibition is a “reflection on how music photography not only captures moments of creation, but shapes how music is seen, felt and remembered in our own lives”.

It will also offer a “rare opportunity” to see photographs of items from the Abbey Road collection which have never been exhibited.

Some of the photographed items include the Neumann U47 microphone, the studio’s Mrs Mills piano, and studio documents handwritten by Abbey Road engineers.

Other items captured include The Hitmaker, Nile Rodgers’ 1960 Fender Stratocaster guitar in Olympic White, which he used on a string of hits including David Bowie’s Let’s Dance.

For the first time, fans will get a look at the inside of the Sgt Pepper mono master tape (Rick Guest/Legacy/PA)

Another is the Hammond RT-3 Organ which Richard Wright used throughout Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side Of The Moon album.

For the first time, fans will also get a look at the inside of the Sgt Pepper mono master tape, alongside the famous Neumann U48 microphone used on countless vocals, the Studer J37 4-track machine that committed it all to tape, and the piece of pop-art history that is the Sgt Pepper drum designed by Sir Peter Blake.

The exhibition will also feature a collection of images taken at Abbey Road Studios by photographers including Jill Furmanovsky, Norman Parkinson and Terry O’ Neill, as well as images from finalists and award winners of the Music Photography Awards.

Photography has never simply documented music; it has shaped its mythology, captured its most enduring moments and transformed sound into culture.

Sally Davies

Abbey Road managing director Sally Davies said: “For the first time, this exhibition explores almost a century of music history through the tools brought to life by legends and the images that define the Abbey Road story.

“Photography has never simply documented music; it has shaped its mythology, captured its most enduring moments and transformed sound into culture.

“Since launching the Music Photography Awards in 2022, we’ve deepened our commitment to the art form and re-examined how we interact with visual culture. Whether it’s the detail in a fine art photograph, honouring our roots with iconic image-makers, or working with a new wave of creators, we hope to present an Abbey Road, reframed.”

There will also be a selection of photography on sale at the exhibition.

Abbey Road: Reframed will be showing at London’s Iconic Images Gallery from August 11 to 22. Entry to the exhibition is free.