hˈɑːɹdɪŋ stˈɑːɹɾᵻd ɪnðə mjˈuːzɪk ˈɪndʌstɹi ˈeɪdʒd sˈɪkstiːn æt lˈʌndənz mɑːɹkˈiː stˈuːdɪˌoʊz ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti θɹˈiː, wˌɛɹ hiː ɡɑːt tə wˈɜːk æz ɐn ɐsˈɪstənt ˌɛndʒɪnˈɪɹ ˌʌndɚ ðə ɡˈaɪdəns ʌv tˈɑːp pɹədˈuːsɚz ˌɔn ˈælbəmz fɔːɹ ˈɑːɹɾɪsts sˈʌtʃ ɐz ˈɛltən dʒˈɑːn, kˈɪki dˈiː ænd bˈæɹi blˈuː.
Harding started in the music industry aged 16 at London's Marquee Studios in 1973, where he got to work as an assistant engineer under the guidance of top producers on albums for artists such as Elton John, Kiki Dee and Barry Blue.