Capricorn Records | |
---|---|
Parent company | Universal Music Group (first incarnation catalogue) Sony Music Entertainment (second incarnation catalogue) |
Founded | 1969 |
Founder | Phil Walden, Frank Fenter |
Status | Defunct |
Distributor(s) | First Incarnation Atlantic Records (1969 - 1972) Warner Bros (1972 - 1977) PhonoDisc (1977 - 1979) Second Incarnation RED Distribution PolyGram The Island Def Jam Music Group Reissues Island Records/UMe (first incarnation catalogue) Volcano Entertainment/Legacy Recordings (second incarnation catalogue) |
Genre | |
Country of origin | U.S. |
Location | Macon, Georgia |
Capricorn Records was an independent record label founded by Phil Walden and Frank Fenter in 1969 in Macon, Georgia. Capricorn Records is often credited by music historians as creating the southern rock genre. [1] [ failed verification ]
In the early 60s, Phil Walden and his brother Alan Walden had made a family business of managing and representing R&B performers including Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Al Green, and Percy Sledge. [2] As Redding's fame grew internationally, the partners founded Redwal Music, purchased a four-building block in downtown Macon, [3] and opened a small office space a few blocks away on Cotton Avenue. [4] After Otis Redding's death in 1967, Phil Walden continued their shared dream for a recording studio, but the initial plan for an R&B driven label no longer held its original appeal without Redding. [5]
Walden and Frank Fenter approached Vice President of Atlantic Records Jerry Wexler about funding the project. Wexler liked Walden's idea of a studio with studio musicians but thought the studio should also include a record label. They decided to call the label and studio “Capricorn” after their shared astrological sign. With a monetary investment from Wexler and a distribution deal with Atlantic Records, [5] Capricorn Records was close to completion in 1969 with a production deal with Atlantic Records. Walden began looking for talent, both musicians and engineers.
Between the time Redding and the Walden brothers purchased the studio property and Phil Walden's partnership with Wexler, the studio was called the Otis Redding Memorial Studio. [6] Under both names, the space blended into its surroundings and from the outside looked like an old, abandoned storefront with no outside signage among other similarly vacant buildings. The inside of the space was reminiscent of a warehouse – high ceilings and open space. [7]
Jim Hawkins originally designed the main recording studio, [8] and a redesign followed in 1972 by Tom Hidley. According to docents at the Mercer Music at Capricorn, the Hidley redesign changed the studio walls from soundproof tiles to walls with a fabric-covered upper half and a stone and wood bottom half. Strips of cedar shingles placed strategically throughout the room covered lights and further diffused sound. Four echo chambers built under the studio connected directly to the control room to create popular vocal and instrumental echo effects.
Musicians remember the atmosphere of the studio referring to it as “home” or recollecting that anything could happen or anyone could stop by. Elvin Bishop called Capricorn Records "the only thing happening in town that was different from anything in a thousand other towns around the South at the time". [7]
Walden planned to model the studio after Stax Records and FAME Studios by offering an intimate recording experience with state-of-the-art equipment and a backing studio band. [9] The Capricorn Rhythm Section provided a distinctive full-band sound to artists or on tracks needing accompaniment. [7] Often referred to as CRS, the studio band members were drummer Johnny Sandlin, keyboardist Paul Hornsby, guitarist Pete Carr, and bassist Robert “Pops” Powell. [10]
When it came time to start recruiting talent, Walden tracked down Duane Allman, a guitarist who he heard on a FAME Studios recording of Wilson Pickett's cover of "Hey Jude," [5] ultimately purchasing Allman's contract. [2] Allman would go on to help Walden build what would become the Allman Brothers Band. Though the Allman Brothers' 1969 self-titled first release wasn't a best-seller, critics praised the effort for its mixing of country, jazz, blues, and rock genres. Music historians cite the group's third release, At Fillmore East , as the impetus of the rise of southern rock as a popular music genre. At Fillmore East was the first gold album for both the band and label. The partnership would garner more top-charting releases with Eat a Peach , Brothers and Sisters, and Win, Lose or Draw.
Between the years of 1969 and 1979, Capricorn produced nine platinum albums, seventeen gold albums, and five gold singles. [5] Other Capricorn-signed artists had chart-topping songs and albums, but the studio also held sessions for other artists including Razzy Bailey, Martin Mull, the Charlie Daniels Band, and Livingston Taylor just to name a few.
Other notable Capricorn artists during this era included:
When Warner Brothers could not successfully negotiate a buyout of the label in 1975, Capricorn made a new distribution deal with PolyGram. [2] In the following year Capricorn's most successful and prolific act, the Allman Brothers Band, would split up.
The 1970s recession affected Capricorn record sales, especially later in the decade. Between July and September 1979, the label faced numerous foreclosure and debt charges including a possible buyout and contract renegotiation from PolyGram [11] forcing the label to close its Los Angeles office and cut positions in Macon. [12] When renegotiations were unsuccessful, PolyGram filed a lawsuit [11] seeking all label and studio assets as collateral on a $5 million loan [13] made to the company in 1977. [12]
At this point, many artists terminated their contracts with Capricorn including Sea Level, Stillwater, and Dixie Dregs [14] and the Allman Brothers filed suit to stop the release of a greatest hits album. [12]
Together, Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and the reorganization of Capricorn Records took a total of 18 months. [15] The reorganization allowed Walden to retain the label name, studio, Cotton Avenue office, and both Rear Exit and No Exit Music Companies. [16] Polygram received all master recordings, musical copyrights, existing tapes, records, and other property. [15] Another stipulation of the final agreement was the creation of a special fund to pay off other creditors over the next seven years. [16] Walden received 100% of the company stock after reorganization, leaving Fenter out. [16]
In January, 1983, Walden and Fenter restructured their business partnership and announced that Capricorn was releasing its first record in three years with the CBS Columbia Label album Sweet Young Thing by Rick Christian. [17] The album did not revive the label's name recognition as Walden and Fenter had hoped, but neither partner was deterred. Fenter made an attempt in July 1983 to revive the label, but that effort dissolved when he had a heart attack in the midst of completing negotiations with Warner Bros. Records and died at 47.
A Capricorn Records liquidation sale event at the Macon Coliseum in the summer of 1986 saw the sale of assets including gold records, personal effects, and filing cabinets containing financial documents, press, and promotional pieces, and contracts. [18]
The label relaunched in Nashville, Tennessee as a joint venture with Warner Brothers, this time through the partnership of Walden and his son. The first act to sign onto the resurrected label was Athens, Georgia's Widespread Panic and they released their first album on the label in the summer of 1991. [5]
Cake and 311 were the most commercially successful artists to come out of Capricorn during this period with Cake's third album Prolonging the Magic going platinum and 311's Soundsystem going gold. [19] Capricorn's Nashville division signed a then-unknown Kenny Chesney [20] while the Atlanta division signed various rock acts including jam band favorites like Gov't Mule and Col. Bruce Hampton and the Aquarium Rescue Unit. [21]
Throughout the label's run in the 1990s, distribution changed from Sony Music's independent RED Distribution [22] network to PolyGram by way of its flagship label Mercury Records. In 1997, Capricorn closed its Nashville office moving all operations to its downtown Atlanta office. [23] Walden sold Capricorn to Volcano Records in 2000 for $13 million and began work on a new independent label project, Velocette Records, [24] which featured Georgia artists including Vic Chesnutt, Kevn Kinney, and Jucifer. [25]
In 2010, the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation listed the Capricorn Recording Studio among its annual “Places in Peril.” Leading up to this announcement, the Capricorn Sound Studios sat vacant during the decades after the label declared bankruptcy, surviving a fire that destroyed neighboring buildings. [26] The studio remained untouched while the rest of the property fell into further disrepair throughout the early 2000s. [27] Studio tours were available to fans through special reservations as featured in an episode of NPR's All Things Considered . [28]
In 2015, a multi-million dollar renovation project through a partnership between Mercer University, NewTown Macon, Sierra Development, and Southern Pines Plantations announced plans to fully restoring the original studio space, early plans included a large recording studio for film score and orchestral recordings, a Capricorn museum, and loft apartments on the upper floors. [29]
While the record label is defunct, the legacy of Capricorn lives on through Mercer Music at Capricorn. On December 3, 2019, on the 50th anniversary of the original studio opening, the original studio space reopened. Grants from the Peyton Anderson Foundation and John S. and James L. Knight Foundation [30] along with historic tax credits and donations made up the $4.3 million project's funding. [31]
In addition to the loft apartments on the upper floors, the four-building remodel includes a small bar and lounge-style entrance, a museum with interactive kiosks, a music incubator space designed for musicians to collaborate creatively or store equipment, rental office space, and two recording studio spaces. Studio B is both a performance venue and large studio space designed acoustically for choirs, orchestral recording, and film scoring. Studio A, the original historic Capricorn recording studio, remains unchanged from Hidley's 1972 studio redesign. [26] The main control room remains mostly unchanged except for a custom 40-channel API console based on the original soundboard. [32]
From the early to mid-1970s, Capricorn's economic impact on Macon and the surrounding area included more than just the studio and label. The southern city had gained notoriety as having a vibrant music scene, keeping small venues like Grant's Lounge, historic halls like the Grand Opera House and the Macon City Auditorium, and large venues like the Macon Coliseum filled with internationally known acts and up-and-coming talent. As a company, Capricorn invested in local real estate including Capricorn Park on Cotton Avenue. [33]
Further putting Macon and Capricorn Records in the spotlight was Phil Walden's involvement in the 1976 presidential campaign of then Georgia governor Jimmy Carter. [5] Capricorn label bands including the Allman Brothers Band and Marshall Tucker Band played rallies and benefit concerts and Carter chose "The South's Gonna Do It" by the Charlie Daniels Band to be his campaign song. [34]
Walden's interest in politics wasn't the only activity bringing attention to his company or hometown. His annual Barbecue and Summer Games held at his lakeside home [5] from 1972 to 1978, attracted both fans and stars. [35] Notable attendees throughout the years included Carter, Don King, Bette Midler, and Andy Warhol. [5]
Internationally, a special production of the Old Grey Whistle Test called "Macon Whoopee" featured performances by the Marshall Tucker Band, Wet Willie, Bonnie Bramlett, Stillwater, and others. [7]
The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969. Its founding members were brothers Duane Allman and Gregg Allman, as well as Dickey Betts, Berry Oakley (bass), Butch Trucks (drums), and Jai Johanny "Jaimoe" Johanson (drums). Subsequently based in Macon, Georgia, they incorporated elements of blues, jazz and country music and their live shows featured jam band-style improvisation and instrumentals.
Eat a Peach is the third studio album and the first double album by American rock band the Allman Brothers Band. Produced by Tom Dowd, the album was released on February 12, 1972, in the United States by Capricorn Records. It was the band's fourth album since their debut The Allman Brothers Band in 1969; released as a double album, it constitutes both their third studio album and second live album, containing a mix of live and studio recordings released in 1972. Following their artistic and commercial breakthrough with the July 1971 release of the live album At Fillmore East, the Allman Brothers Band got to work on their third studio album. Drug use among the band became an increasing problem, and at least one member underwent rehab for heroin addiction. On October 29, 1971, lead and slide guitarist Duane Allman, group leader and founder, was killed in a motorcycle accident in the band's adopted hometown of Macon, Georgia, making it the final album to feature him.
Howard Duane Allman was an American rock and blues guitarist and the founder and original leader of the Allman Brothers Band, for which he was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995.
Georgia's musical history is diverse and substantial; the state's musicians include Southern rap groups such as Outkast and Goodie Mob, as well as a wide variety of rock, pop, blues, and country artists such as the late Ray Charles, Otis Redding, James Brown, and The Allman Brothers Band. The music of Athens, Georgia is especially well known for a kind of quirky college rock that has included such well-known bands as R.E.M., The B-52's, and Pylon.
The Allman Brothers Band is the debut studio album by American rock band the Allman Brothers Band. Produced by Adrian Barber, it was released in the United States on November 4, 1969, by Atco Records subsidiary Capricorn. Formed in 1969, the Allman Brothers Band came together following various musical pursuits by each individual member. Guitarist and bandleader Duane Allman moved to Jacksonville, Florida where he led large jam sessions with his new band, one he had envisioned as having two guitarists and two drummers. After rounding out the lineup with the addition of his brother, Gregg Allman, the band moved to Macon, Georgia, where they were to be one of the premiere acts on Capricorn.
Idlewild South is the second studio album by American rock band the Allman Brothers Band. With the exception of one song, the album was produced by Tom Dowd and was released on September 23, 1970 in the United States, by Atco Records and Capricorn Records. Following the release of their 1969 debut, the Allman Brothers Band toured the United States extensively to promote the album, which had little commercial success. Their performances, however, did create positive word of mouth exposure that extended to more famous musicians, such as Eric Clapton, who invited group leader Duane Allman to contribute to his 1970 album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.
Brothers and Sisters is the fourth studio album by American rock band The Allman Brothers Band. Co-produced by Johnny Sandlin and the band, the album was released in August 1973 in the United States, by Capricorn Records. Following the death of group leader Duane Allman in 1971, the Allman Brothers Band released Eat a Peach (1972), a hybrid studio/live album that became their biggest-selling album to date. Afterwards, the group purchased a farm in Juliette, Georgia, to become a "group hangout". However, bassist Berry Oakley was visibly suffering from the death of Duane, excessively drinking and consuming drugs. In November 1972, after nearly a year of severe depression, Oakley was killed in a motorcycle accident, making it the last album on which he played.
Charles Alfred Leavell is an American musician. A member of the Allman Brothers Band throughout their commercial zenith in the 1970s, he subsequently became a founding member of the band Sea Level. He has served as the principal touring keyboardist and musical director of the Rolling Stones since 1982. As a session musician, Leavell has performed on every Rolling Stones studio album released since 1983 with the exception of Bridges to Babylon (1997). He has also toured and recorded with Eric Clapton, George Harrison, David Gilmour, Gov't Mule, Train, and John Mayer.
Sea Level was an American rock band from Macon, Georgia. Formed in 1976, the band was an offshoot of the Allman Brothers Band. Between 1977 and 1980, the band released five studio albums which incorporated elements of funk, blues and Latin music.
Enlightened Rogues is the sixth studio album by American rock band the Allman Brothers Band. Produced by Tom Dowd, the album was released in February 1979 in the United States by Capricorn Records and PolyGram Records elsewhere. The Allman Brothers Band had broken up in 1976 following internal turmoil, amplified by escalating drug use. The band members splintered into different acts — among those Great Southern, Sea Level, and the Gregg Allman Band. Guitarist Dickey Betts approached his bandmates in 1978 with the prospects of a reunion. It is the first to feature guitarist Dan Toler and bassist David Goldflies. Living together in Sarasota, Florida, they rehearsed and wrote the material for their next album in fall 1978.
Phil Walden was a co-founder of the Macon, Georgia-based Capricorn Records, along with former Atlantic Records executive Frank Fenter.
White Witch was an American hard rock band from Tampa, Florida, United States, that made two albums for Capricorn Records in the early 1970s. Their name was a paean to "white magic", contrary to the "black magic" of groups like Black Sabbath. As the band announced before their shows: "To bring good where there once was evil, to bring love where there once was hate, to bring wisdom where there once was ignorance; this is the power of White Witch".
Frank Fenter was a South African music industry executive.
"Midnight Rider" is a song by the American rock band the Allman Brothers Band. It was the second single from their second studio album, Idlewild South (1970), released on Capricorn Records. The song was primarily written by vocalist Gregg Allman, who first began composing it at a rented cabin outside Macon, Georgia. He enlisted the help of roadie Robert Kim Payne to complete the song's lyrics. He and Payne broke into Capricorn Sound Studios to complete a demo of the song.
Grinderswitch was a southern rock band formed near Macon, Georgia in 1973. Formed from a collaboration of musicians through word of mouth and connections to already established bands and musicians, Grinderswitch became a known act during the peak of the southern rock era. They recorded two albums for Capricorn Records in the mid-1970s, but never achieved the widespread recognition enjoyed by some of the label's other artists, such as The Allman Brothers Band and Marshall Tucker Band. In the UK, they are perhaps best known for their recording "Pickin' the Blues", which was used for many years by the disc jockey John Peel as the theme tune for his BBC radio shows.
Atlantic Studios is the recording studio network of Atlantic Records. Although the historic recording studio was located at 1841 Broadway, in New York City, Atlantic Recording Studios was initially located at 234 West 56th Street from November 1947 until mid-1956. When the Shorty Rogers and His Giants disc of 33.33 rpm called Martians Come Back! was issued in August 1956, the address of Atlantic Recording Studios had relocated to 157 W 57th Street. The studio was the first to record in stereo due to the efforts of Tom Dowd. The new Atlantic Studios includes a network of label-operated studios spanning New York, Atlanta, and California.
Alan Walden is an American manager, publisher, booking agent, and promoter.
Cowboy was an American country rock and southern rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969. The group's main members consisted of songwriters Tommy Talton and Scott Boyer, alongside a rotating group of musicians. They released four albums on the Capricorn Records label in the 1970s: Reach for the Sky (1970), 5'll Getcha Ten (1971), Boyer and Talton (1974), and Cowboy (1977). The song "Please Be with Me"–perhaps their best-known song–featured a performance from Duane Allman. It was also later covered by Eric Clapton on his album 461 Ocean Boulevard (1974).
5'll Getcha Ten is the second studio album by American rock band Cowboy. Produced by Johnny Sandlin, the album was released in October 1971 by Capricorn Records. Cowboy formed in 1969 by songwriters Tommy Talton and Scott Boyer. The group was signed to Macon, Georgia-based Capricorn Records by the suggestion of Duane Allman, guitarist and leader of the Allman Brothers Band. Cowboy's first album, Reach for the Sky, was released in 1970, and they supported the Allman Brothers on a national tour between 1970–71. 5'll Getcha Ten was recorded at both Capricorn's studio in Macon and Muscle Shoals Sound Studios in Sheffield, Alabama, as the former was still under construction at the time.
Paragon Booking Agency was a musical talent management company based in Macon, Georgia, United States. It was one of the largest booking agencies in the Southeast. In the late 1970s, Ian Copeland, a music promoter, and Bill Berry, future member of R.E.M., worked for the company.