A record label, or record company, or simply records, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing, promotion, and enforcement of copyright for sound recordings and music videos, while also conducting talent scouting and development of new artists, and maintaining contracts with recording artists and their managers. The term "record label" derives from the circular label in the center of a vinyl record which prominently displays the manufacturer's name, along with other information.
Lesley Sue Goldstein, better known with her family’s adopted surname as Lesley Gore, was an American singer and songwriter. At the age of 16, she recorded her first hit song "It's My Party", a US number one in 1963. She followed it up with ten further US Billboard top 40 hits including "Judy's Turn to Cry" and "You Don't Own Me". Gore said she considered "You Don't Own Me" her signature song.
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.
Apple Records is a British record label founded by the Beatles in 1968 as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mary Hopkin, James Taylor, Badfinger and Billy Preston. In practice, the roster had become dominated by the mid-1970s with releases of the former Beatles as solo artists. Allen Klein managed the label from 1969 to 1973, then it was managed by Neil Aspinall on behalf of the Beatles and their heirs. Aspinall retired in 2007 and was replaced by Jeff Jones.
Regal Zonophone Records was a British record label formed in 1932, through a merger of the Regal and Zonophone labels. This followed the merger of those labels' respective parent companies – the Columbia Graphophone Company and the Gramophone Company – to form EMI. At the merger, those records from the Regal Records catalogue were prefixed 'MR' and those from the Zonophone Records catalogue were prefixed 'T'. Record releases after the merger continued using only the 'MR' prefix.
Word Records is a Christian faith-based entertainment company based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is owned by Curb Records, and is a part of Word Entertainment. It is distributed by Warner Records.
Republic Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Based in New York City, it was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an imprint of the Universal Motown Republic Group, and was renamed Universal Republic Records after a reorganization in 2006 before going back to its original name in 2012.
Tracy Kristin Bonham is an American alternative rock musician. Born and raised in Eugene, Oregon, she is a classically trained violinist and pianist, and is also a self-taught guitarist.
James Louis McCartney is an English-American musician and songwriter. He is the son of singer, songwriter, and former Beatle, Paul McCartney. He has contributed to solo albums by his parents, including Flaming Pie (1997) and Driving Rain (2001) by Paul McCartney, and Wide Prairie (1998) by Linda McCartney. He has released two EPs and two albums. His most recent, The Blackberry Train, was released on 6 May 2016.
Shimmerplanet, an Indie band created by Soren Anders, released their debut album "Welcome To Shimmerplanet" in 2002. The Songwriters Hall of Fame bestowed special recognition on the first single from that album "No Safe". Welcome To Shimmerplanet was hailed as "one of the most original and enjoyable releases in recent memory".
Robert C. Ludwig is an American mastering engineer. He mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists, including Led Zeppelin, Lou Reed, Metallica, Queen, Jimi Hendrix, Bryan Ferry, Paul McCartney, Nirvana, Bruce Springsteen and Daft Punk, with more than 3,000 credits. He is the recipient of 13 Grammy and other awards. Ludwig retired in 2023.
Janita Maria, better known mononymously as Janita, is a Finnish-born, American singer-songwriter. Born in Helsinki, she started her career in Finland and later moved to Brooklyn at the age of 17 together with her then manager Tomi Ervi. Janita has released nine albums in her native Finland, some of which reached the top forty chart in Finland. Her third US album, Didn't You My Dear?, was released worldwide in March 2015 on ECR Music Group.
Terry Manning is an American photographer, composer, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, audio engineer, and visual artist. In a career spanning more than 50 years, he has worked with Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, Bryan Adams, ZZ Top, the Tragically Hip, Zeno, Jay Boy Adams, Booker T. & the MG's, Shakira, Isaac Hayes, Otis Redding, Rhino Bucket, Johnny Winter, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Big Star, Johnny Taylor, Jason and the Scorchers, the Staple Singers, Molly Hatchet, George Thorogood, Al Green, Widespread Panic, Shania Twain, Joe Cocker, Joe Walsh, and Lenny Kravitz, among others.
Harvey Phillip "Phil" Spector was an American record producer and songwriter best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s and his two trials and conviction for murder in the 2000s. Spector developed the Wall of Sound, a production style that is characterized for its diffusion of tone colors and dense orchestral sound, which he described as a "Wagnerian" approach to rock and roll. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in pop music history and one of the most successful producers of the 1960s.
Blake Morgan is an American musician, singer, music producer, record label owner, and activist based in New York City. After releasing the alternative rock solo album Anger's Candy (1997) on Phil Ramone's N2K Sony/Red label, he began producing music independently and founded the label Engine Company Records in 2002, which in 2012 became ECR Music Group. He helps record, produce, mix, and/or master all music released by the label, which has included artists such as James McCartney, Lesley Gore, Janita, Mike Errico, Patti Rothberg, David Cloyd, Terry Manning, David Poe, Tracy Bonham, Grace McLean, Miles East, Electronic Device, and Melissa Giges to name a few. His albums Anger's Candy, Burning Daylight,Silencer, Diamonds in the Dark, and Violent Delights were positively received.
Silencer is a 2006 acoustic album by American singer-songwriter Blake Morgan. It features Morgan on vocals and piano performing acoustic versions of both new and older material, dating back to 1996. A cover of "No Surprises" by Radiohead was also released as a digital bonus track.
Haunted is a solo LP released by Brooklyn-based Finnish singer-songwriter Janita. It was released on Blake Morgan's independent record label Engine Company Records in 2010.
David Cloyd is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, music producer, and music engineer. After playing for a decade in Brooklyn, New York in the indie rock scene, he was signed to ECR Music Group in 2008. He released his debut album as a singer-songwriter with Unhand Me, You Fiend! in 2009. The album peaked at No. 1 on eMusic's Album Charts, and according to a review, "took the indie rock scene by storm." His second album, I Could Disappear, included solo versions of his debut album, with Cloyd on vocals, piano, and guitar. Cloyd released a cover of Paul McCartney's 1971 song "Dear Boy" in September 2011. As of 2012, he is Executive Vice President of Creative Operations at ECR Music Group.
Unhand Me, You Fiend! is the debut album of singer-songwriter David Cloyd. It was released on January 20, 2009, on Engine Company Records.
I Could Disappear is the second solo album by singer-songwriter David Cloyd. It was released on June 29, 2010 on Engine Company Records. The nine studio tracks are all solo reworkings of the original pop and rock songs from his debut album, Unhand Me, You Fiend!. Cloyd performed vocals, alternating with piano and electric guitar. He also co-engineered and co-produced the album and did the cover. Blake Morgan co-produced and co-engineered with Cloyd, and also mixed and mastered.
