Compass Point Studios was built in 1977 in
Nassau, Bahamas, by
Chris Blackwell, founder of
Island Records. In 1980, Blackwell assembled a recording band with Jamaican reggae foundations, based around
Sly and Robbie, who had been signed to Island Records in the 1970s. The band consisted of
Sly Dunbar (drums),
Robbie Shakespeare (bass),
Mikey Chung (guitar),
Uziah "Sticky" Thompson (percussion), and British guitarist
Barry Reynolds, formerly a session for
Marianne Faithfull, another Island Records artist, along with synth-keyboards from French-African
Wally Badarou (later of
Level 42), and then
Tyrone Downie (formerly of
The Wailers). Under Blackwell's direction, and with co-producer, engineer and mixer
Alex Sadkin, the group created the "Compass Point Sound", providing backing for albums including
Warm Leatherette,
Nightclubbing and
Living My Life by
Grace Jones and
Sheffield Steel by
Joe Cocker. This backing band later became known as the "Compass Point All Stars" (CPAS). Blackwell said that he "wanted a new, progressive-sounding band, a Jamaican rhythm section with an edgy mid-range and a brilliant synth player. And I got what I wanted, fortunately". One resident musician in the early period of the studios was
Robert Palmer, who provided backing vocals on Joe Cocker's "Sweet Little Woman", along with
Jimmy Cliff. Sly and Robbie used some of the CPAS for
Black Uhuru and
Gwen Guthrie projects, eventually adding Darryl Thompson,
Spaceman Patterson, and Monte Brown (guitars) to the core of the band. An attempt to record a CPAS album ended up as Sly and Robbie's
Language Barrier. Compass Point residents later included
Chris Frantz (drums) and
Tina Weymouth (bass) of
Talking Heads, who went on to start
Tom Tom Club with co-producer
Steven Stanley engineering and mixing. The studios developed into a musical community, and through the 1980s, the label of "Compass Point All Stars" was given to many creative projects recorded at or simply connected to the studio, including productions by
Bill Laswell, remixes by
Larry Levan and
François Kevorkian, and resident or non-resident artists of various genres, such as
the B-52's. This community is showcased on the compilation
Funky Nassau/The Compass Point Story/1980-1986 released by Strut Records, including tracks from
Chaz Jankel,
Cristina,
Will Powers, and
Guy Cuevas, as well as extensive interviews by
David Katz. In 1987, for Island Records' 25th belated anniversary, some of the initial CPAS performed live for the first time at
Pinewood Studios in London, backing
Eric Clapton on "
I Shot the Sheriff". Mikey Chung and Sticky Thompson did not participate. A video was released as
Island 25: Alright Now. ==Artists==