MUSIC students from York St John University have made an album at Abbey Road Studios, which will aid a local mental health initiative.


The production students collaborated with professional musicians, including The Magic Numbers and The Blow Monkeys, as well as up-and-coming acts from BBC Introducing, to make compilation album Smoke Rainbows.


The album will raise funds for Music Minds Matter, an around the clock support service from Help Musicians UK, the leading UK charity for professional musicians.


It will was released on Friday to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Week.


The venture is part of a long-standing collaboration between the university and the famous London studios that provides third-year students with a professional learning experience.


Each student worked closely with one artist, guiding them through the production process and getting hands-on with the Abbey Road sound engineers and video production team.


The project was the brainchild of senior lecturer, Chris Johnson, who said: “Our music production degree develops students for a career in the modern music industry.


“This means the course is filled with real world projects, real clients, real artists and genuine production experiences.


“It is important that students understand the realities of freelance creative work and get to feel part of the community they are moving into.


“This project brings all of that together, partnering our students with high calibre artists and top engineers in a high-pressure production environment with a shared goal to support the mental health of our music industry.”


Other artists featured include Magic Lantern, Ren Harvieu, Penny Police, Matt Deighton, Pat Dam Smyth, Charlie Wood and The Leisure Society.


James Ainscough, CEO of Help Musicians UK, said: “This is an album of truly beautiful songs, where the passion and artistry of those involved in creating it shines through.


“At Help Musicians UK we want a world where musicians thrive.


“Supporting the mental health of musicians via the Music Minds Matter listening ear service is an important part of our work.The proceeds from this album will help us continue to reach more musicians in the years ahead, offering a lifetime of support when it is most needed.”


Smoke Rainbows was released on May 17.