Records Shorts
Description: Reprise Records was formed in 1960 by Frank Sinatra in order to allow more artistic freedom for his own recordings. Soon thereafter, he garnered the nickname "The Chairman of the Board". Because of dissatisfaction with Capitol Records, and after trying to buy Norman Granz's Verve Records, the first album Sinatra released on Reprise was Ring-a-Ding-Ding! As CEO of Reprise, Sinatra recruited several artists for the fledgling label, such as fellow Rat Pack members Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr.
Description: Parrot Records was an American record label, a division of London Records, which started in 1964. The label usually licensed (or leased) recordings made by Decca Records, England, for release in the United States and Canada, most notably by the Zombies, Tom Jones, Engelbert Humperdinck, Them, Jonathan King, Hedgehoppers Anonymous, Lulu, Savoy Brown and Alan Price. Other artists included the Detroit-based Frijid Pink, Love Sculpture (reissued from EMI) and Bobby "Boris" Pickett (reissued from Garpax). Parrot's biggest hit was "She's A Lady" by Tom Jones, peaking at #2 on the Billboard charts in early 1971.
Description: A bold salute to the revolutionary ska-punk movement that shook the UK in the late ’70s and early ’80s! This design channels the iconic 2 Tone Records aesthetic — checkerboard patterns, sharp suits, and the legendary Walt Jabsco logo — all wrapped in a message of racial unity, rebellion, and rhythm. Featuring nods to The Specials, Madness, The Selecter, and more, this tee celebrates music that didn’t just make you dance… it made you think.
Description: From its walls festooned with posters, photographs, and rare LPs, to the sound system blasting anything from deep soul to death metal, a visit to Bleecker Bob's was a genuine rock 'n' roll experience even if you were "just looking." Musicians from the Patti Smith Group and New York Dolls are among those who have manned the cash register at Bleecker Bob's, which was finally pushed out by the outrageous Greenwich Village rent. Bob Plotnik passed away on November 29, 2018, leaving behind the kind of legacy few record store owners could even dream of.
Description: (Est. 1957, includes Volt Records and other subsidiary labels) Stax Records is synonymous with Southern soul music. Originally known as Satellite, the Memphis company was founded in 1957 by Jim Stewart and co-owned with his sister, Estelle Axton, and took its new name in 1961 from the first two letters of their last names. Among the many artists who scored hits on Stax and its Volt subsidiary during the Sixties were Rufus and Carla Thomas, Booker T. & the MGs (an interracial instrumental quartet that also served as the company’s rhythm section and house band), Sam and Dave, Johnnie Taylor, Albert King, and Otis Redding. Redding’s death in 1967 signaled the end of the first Stax era (to which Atlantic retains distribution rights).
Description: Skunk Records is a Long Beach, California based record label that was founded by Michael "Miguel" Happoldt and Bradley Nowell in 1990. Skunk is affiliated with the spinoff label Cornerstone R.A.S. The inspiration for forming a record label came to Happoldt in 1989 as a way to release music for his band the Ziggens. Happoldt met Nowell shortly thereafter, who insisted on having Sublime backed by the nascent label. Happoldt was selective in choosing other acts, which later included Slightly Stoopid, Juice Bros, Philieano, Toko Tasi, and Paulie Nugent.
Description: Death Records is a San Francisco-based Lo-Fi/Outsider Pop record label. Founded by Brian Wakefield & Colin Arlen in 2014, the label was created to "Represent the 'misfits of this city' who have been left behind to fend for themselves". The label has started an annual festival, Deathstock, to celebrate the labels "birthday". Acts such as Gary Wilson, Tomorrow's Tulips & The Memories played the inaugural year.
Description: Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and roll, and jazz and comedy recordings, released on the Chess and its subsidiary labels Checker and Argo/Cadet. The Chess catalogue is owned by Universal Music Group and managed by Geffen Records and Universal Music Enterprises.
Description: Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Alvin Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals. Liberty's early releases focused on film and orchestral music. Its first single was Lionel Newman's "The Girl Upstairs". Its first big hit, in 1955, was by Julie London singing her version of the torch song, "Cry Me a River", which climbed to No. 9 in the Billboard Hot 100. It helped Liberty sell her first album, Julie Is Her Name.
Description: The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American record company and phonograph manufacturer. The company was founded by engineer Eldridge R. Johnson, who had been manufacturing gramophones for inventor Emile Berliner, to play his disc records. After a series of legal issues between Berliner, Johnson and their former business partners, the two joined to form the Consolidated Talking Machine Co. in order to combine Berliner's patents for the disc record and Gramophone, along with Johnson's patents for improving its performance and fidelity. The Victor Talking Machine Co. was incorporated officially on October 3, 1901 shortly before an agreement with Columbia Records to share their various disc record patents.
