The recording industry looks nothing like when I first started listening to music. Actually, there weren’t a lot of labels, then an explosion happened in the 1960’s that lasted until the 1980’s when the big fish bought the little fish and now there are a few massive conglomerates and a bunch of small fish again. Some of these labels listed below arms of big conglomerates, others defunct and maybe one was spun off and is independent but looks nothing like its namesake.
It’s interesting in that A&M and Island, the largest of this group, served to distribute the products of numerous independents, including several on this list.
A&M Records
Founded by musician Herb Alpert and businessman Jerry Moss in 1962 in L.A. “The Lonely Bull”, by Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, provided A&M with its first hit. Later artists included Carole King, Burt Bacharach, Joe Cocker, Cat Stevens, the Carpenters, Supertramp, the Police and Janet Jackson, as Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, Baja Marimba Band, Burt Bacharach, Antônio Carlos Jobim, Sérgio Mendes & Brasil ’66, the Sandpipers, Boyce & Hart, the Carpenters, Lee Michaels, Captain and Tennille, the Flying Burrito Brothers, Quincy Jones, Lucille Starr, Stealers Wheel, Hoyt Axton, Gallagher and Lyle, Barry DeVorzon, Perry Botkin, Jr., Marc Benno, Liza Minnelli, Rita Coolidge, Gino Vannelli, Wes Montgomery, Hummingbird, Toni Basil, Paul Williams,
Procol Harum, Humble Pie, Fairport Convention, Free, the Move, Strawbs and Spooky Tooth, Cheech & Chong, Nazareth, Y&T, the Tubes, Styx, Joan Armatrading, Chris de Burgh, Rick Wakeman, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Chuck Mangione, Squeeze, and Peter Frampton, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Janet Jackson, the Police, Sting, the Brothers Johnson, Falco, Atlantic Starr, the Go-Go’s, Bryan Adams, Suzanne Vega, Brenda Russell, Jeffrey Osborne, Oingo Boingo, the Human League, Joe Jackson, and folk artists Joan Baez, Phil Ochs and Gene Clark.
A&M was the place for jazz, folk, rock, pop, Latin, New Wave and emerging artists. A&M was arguably the largest and most successful of the independent labels, and provided distribution for many smaller labels.
Interesting fact: A&M was headquartered at the former Charlie Chaplin studios on La Brea Avenue.
On October 11, 1989, Philips subsidiary PolyGram announced its acquisition of A&M Records for $500 million. Alpert and co-owner/business partner Jerry Moss later received an extra $200 million payment for PolyGram’s breach of the terms of the deal.
Island Records
Island Records was co-founded by Chris Blackwell in 1959. Blackwell, a Jamaican-British born manager of jukeboxes, he travelled to the U.S. to get records and wound up wanting to export the sounds on Jamaica to the world. From selling records from the truck of his car, he would sign and record Toots and the Maytals, Bob Marley and the Spencer Davis Group, his first successes for his new label. Then came Traffic, King Crimson, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Jethro Tull, Cat Stevens, John Cale, Free, Fairport Convention, Nico, Heads, Hands and Feet, John Martyn, Sparks, Spooky Tooth, Nick Drake, Roxy Music, Grace Jones, Ultravox, Eddie and the Hot Rods, Robert Palmer, Jess Roden, Marianne Faithfull, The Buggles, Etta James, Melissa Etheridge, Julian Cope, The Cranberries, Womack and Womack, and U2.
Island Records became one of the most successful of the independents. Blackwell began selling his assets in 1989, moving into film and other creative endeavors before buying into hotels and resorts, and selling his own brand of rum.
Interesting fact: Blackwell has owned GoldenEye for many years, the coastline home of 007 writer Ian Fleming. Bob Marley owned the estate before Blackwell purchased the property. It is part of his vast hotel and resort holdings. Blackwell’s mother had a long love affair with Fleming.
Elektra Records
Elektra was formed in 1950 in L.A., as the Elektra-Stratford Record Corporation, with a singles label called Stratford Records, by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt in Holzman college dorm room. Early on, Elektra focused on folk music artists including by Theodore Bikel, Ed McCurdy, Oscar Brand, and Judy Collins, along with Phil Ochs and Tom Paxton. Next signed were the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Love, The Doors, The Stooges and MC5. Tim Buckley and Bread.
Elektra had great success with Carly Simon, Linda Ronstadt, Renaissance, Joni Mitchell, Etta James, Emmylou Harris, David Gates, Nancy Griffith, Glenn Frey (solo), Delaney & Bonnie, Harry Chapin, Karla Bonoff, Tom Waits, Grover Washington, Jr., Phoebe Snow, David Sanborn, Neil Sedaka and others. These were pop, country, blues and singer-songwriters who developed loyal followings and released songs of depth and reflection. Elektra under Holzman was very hands-on, selecting and guiding his artists, nurturing and support when needed.
Holzman remained in charge of Elektra until 1972, when it merged with Asylum Records to become Elektra/Asylum Records. Elektra lost that personalized touch as it became just another label of dollars and chart hits.
Asylum Records
Founded in 1971 by David Geffen and partner Elliot Roberts. It was taken over by Warner Bros. in 1972, and later merged with Elektra Records to become Elektra/Asylum Records. Another label that believed in their artists, stuck with them and allowed them to grow. Founded in partnership with Atlantic Records, Roberts would leave and focus on his artists management company. Geffen stayed in charge, but moved over to a lofty position in the Warner conglomerate before leaving to start Geffen Records.
Asylum’s roster included Eagles, Warren Zevon, John Fogerty, Tom Waits, Joni Mitchell, John Davis Souther, Judee Still, Jo Jo Gunne, Jackson Browne, The Byrds, Gene Clark, Andrew Gold, Emmylou Harris, Orleans, Souther–Hillman–Furay Band, Joe Walsh, Jimmy Webb, and Bob Dylan.
Asylum wasn’t quite the reality of its name, many Laurel Canyon residents either recorded with the label or were managed by Geffen or Roberts. Both were shrewd businessmen who made great deals for their clients, particularly if your name was Neil Young, Joni Mitchell or Tom Petty.
Chrysalis Record
Chrysalis Records was founded in 1968 in London, by Chris Wright and Terry Ellis, who had an artists management company.
Wikipedia explains the complicated life of Chrysalis: In 1989, 50% of the Chrysalis Records label was sold, then the remaining half in 1991 to Thorn EMI, with the Chrysalis Group (primarily a music publisher with other interests in radio and television production) setting up new indie labels such as Echo and Papillon in the mid-1990s. Chrysalis Records was folded into EMI subsidiary and flagship label EMI Records in 2005.
Chrysalis would be bought, sold, merged and eventually emerge as a standalone label in the 2000’s, but its back catalog of music would have a variety of owners.
Early label artists would include Jethro Tull, Ten Years After, Procol Harum, Steeleye Span, guitarist Robin Trower, Leo Sayer, and UFO. Later, Ultravox, Generation X (featuring Billy Idol), and Blondie, Madness, the Specials, Spandau Ballet, Benatar, Huey Lewis & the News, and Billy Idol would sign on.
Stiff Records
Founded by Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera in 1976 in London. Stiffwas born with a £400 loan from the Feelgoods’ frontman Lee Brilleaux. Made up of the remnants of the punk era, Stiff artists had a hard-rocking, wry attitude with voices like Elvis Costello, Madness, Nick Lowe and Graham Parker that would last for decades.
Label artists included The Belle Stars, The Bongos, Billy Bremner, Joe “King” Carrasco & the Crowns, Elvis Costello, The Damned, Desmond Dekker, Devo, Dr. Feelgood, Ian Dury and the Blockheads, The Feelies, Fingerprintz, Ian Gomm, Richard Hell and The Voidoids, Lene Lovich, Nick Lowe, Kirsty MacColl, Madness, The Members, Motörhead, Graham Parker and The Rumour, Plasmatics, The Pogues, The Dubliners, Dave Stewart, Rachel Sweet, Bobby Tench, The Stiffs, Tracey Ullman, Wreckless Eric, Yachts, Yello
Sadly, Stiff petered out (pardon the pun) and the assets were sold for a measly £300,000 later on.
I.R.S. Records
I.R.S. stood for the International Record Syndicate. Founded in 1979 by Miles Copeland III, Jay Boberg, and Carl Grasso. Copeland was manager of The Police at the time who were signed to A&M Records. Early label signees included R.E.M., The Go-Go’s, The English Beat, and Fine Young Cannibals. Other artists included Concrete Blonde, The Alarm, General Public, Wall of Voodoo, Oingo Boingo, Timbuk 3, and The dB’s, Black Sabbath, John Cale, Belinda Carlisle, the Cramps, Marillion, The Damn, The Fall, The Fleshtones, The Stranglers, Renaissance, Gary Numan, Magazine, Let’s Active, Jools Holland and others. The best selling albums were by R.E.M, The Go-Go’s and Fine Young Cannibals.
I.R.S. had a publishing arm, offshoot labels and dabbled into music television with an MTV.
I.R.S. landed a distribution deal through A&M Records (1979-1985), then MCA Records (1985-1990). The label closer in 1996, but was later revived by EMI in 2011.
Windham Hill Records
Windham Hill was a record label founded in 1976 in California by Will Ackerman and his then-girlfriend Anne Robinson to release the Ackerman’s acoustic music, and later their friends’ music. Known for its intimate, acoustic, and instrumental music, often blending folk, jazz, and classical influences. Otherwise known as “New Age” music. Ackerman handled the music side and Robinson the marketing and album design and artwork.
Such artists as George Winston, Michael Hedges, Shadowfax, Nightnoise, Mark Isham, Vangelis, Liz Story and many others recorded and found success with Windham Hill. Winston enjoyed the greatest success as his albums reached gold or platinum level, and often topped the jazz charts.
Windham Hill entered into a distribution agreement with A&M Records, which allowed the tiny label to expand their operation. Purchased by BMG in the 1990s, Windham Hill is currently a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment,
Rhino Records
Rhino started as an L.A. record store in 1973 and became a record distributor in 1978. Known as a novelty and reissue label, Rhino gained the rights for reissuing many old artists and comedy records. It was a niche company at first, in part by securing albums long out of print, and then under the supervision of Bill Inglot, Rhino became known for remastering and improving the quality of the material.
Rhino expanded into video and film, began signing new artists and entered into partnership with Warner Bros. Records. Rhino continued its remastering and reissuing business, now with greater access to Warner artists and their back catalogs including film soundtracks. Music the Monkees, Eric Burdon, Fanny, Dannii Minogue, the Ramones, The Grateful Dead, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, the Beach Boys, Yes, the Doobie Brothers, the Cars, Chicago, Tom Paxton, Third Eye Blind, the Doors, War, Spirit of the West and The Bee Gees was released with improved sound in a growing market for legacy releases. In 1998, Warner bought the rest of Rhino and made it fully a subsidiary of the company.
Interesting fact: Richard Foos and Bob Emmer, the Rhino’s co-founders, went on to found Shout Factory! which releases legacy films, TV series, music, sports games and events, and other media through licensing agreements with a wide variety of rights holders.
Shelter Records
Founded by Denny Cordell and Leon Russell, with offices in Tulsa, OK and Los Angeles. Besides Russell, the label signed Tom Petty, Dwight Twilley, J.J. Cale amongst others.
Begun in 1969, Cordell and Russell served as in-house producers and operated the label and publishing arm on a shoestring budget. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers became breakout artists for the label. Russell left in 1976; Cordell operated the company solo, and through a series of deals, the company landed with MCA in 1981, which started Petty’s legal battles with MCA.
Thoughts…
These record labels were all big players at one time, even if that time was short. These labels ushered in a lot of new artists and opened the door to reggae, ska, New Wave, progressive rock, post-punk rock, jazz-fusion and other hyphenated genres.
The recording industry is so different today, the business and distribution models in the digital and internet age have done as much to harm music as advance it. My thoughts.
Ticket 2 Ride 
Leave a comment