Tear Drop Records

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Tear Drop Records was a record label founded in Winnie, Texas, United States, in the early 1960s by recording pioneer and radio personality, Huey P Meaux. As a deejay, Meaux was known as the "Crazy Cajun", a name that stuck with him throughout his long, music career.

Winnie, Texas CDP in Texas, United States

Winnie is a census-designated place (CDP) in Chambers County, Texas, United States. The population was 3,254 at the 2010 census.

Texas State in the United States

Texas is the second largest state in the United States by area and population. Located in the South Central region, Texas shares borders with the states of Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the west, and the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the southwest, and has a coastline with the Gulf of Mexico to the southeast.

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In 1964, Meaux moved his Tear Drop label and his Crazy Cajun Enterprises to Conroe, Texas, where he partnered with a seasoned record producer, Foy Lee. They not only continued to release new material, but also started various subsidiary labels including Capri Records, Tribe Records, and Eric Records. Together, Meaux and Lee produced many chart singles on the Tear Drop label. They became nationally distributed by Jay Gee Records (J/G) which was owned by Jamie Records in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Conroe, Texas City in Texas, United States

Conroe is a city in Texas, United States. It is the seat of Montgomery County and a principal city in the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area. It is about 40 miles (64 km) north of Houston.

Capri Records was a rock and roll record label established in Conroe, Texas by Huey P. Meaux and Foy Lee in the early 1960s. It started the careers of many Texas musicians and furthered the careers of Gene Summers, Gaylon Christie, Scotty McKay, and Pat Minter.

Jamie Records was a record label founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1957 by Harold Lipsius (1913–2007) and Allan Sussel (1924–2003). Their first 45rpm single, "It's Great to Fall in Love"/"Truly" by Marian Caruso, was issued in 1957. The label was named after Allan Sussel's eldest daughter, Jamie Sussel Turner.

Tear Drop's biggest hit was "Talk to Me" by Sunny & the Sunglows from San Antonio, Texas, which broke into the Billboard Top 100. Meaux and Lee also scored another hit in 1964 by Gene Summers & the Tom Toms entitled "Big Blue Diamonds" on their newly formed Capri Records label and later released Summers' rockabilly classic, "Alabama Shake", also on Capri.

"Talk to Me", or "Talk to Me, Talk to Me", is a song written by Joe Seneca. Originally recorded in 1958 by Little Willie John, whose version charted #5 R&B and #20 Pop, "Talk to Me" was also recorded by Seneca himself in 1960 and covered by numerous other performers, including Sunny & the Sunglows (1963) and The Beach Boys (1976).

Sunny & the Sunglows an American musical group in 1959 and later known as Sunny & the Sunliners after moving to San Antonio, Texas.

Gene Summers is an American rock/rockabilly singer. His recordings include "School of Rock 'n Roll", "Straight Skirt", "Nervous", "Gotta Lotta That", "Twixteen", "Alabama Shake", "Fancy Dan" and his biggest-selling single "Big Blue Diamonds". Summers was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 1997 and The Southern Legends Entertainment & Performing Arts Hall of Fame in 2005. He still performs worldwide and celebrated his 50th anniversary as a recording artist in 2008 with the release of Reminisce Cafe.

In the 1970s, Meaux reactivated the Crazy Cajun record label and began to produce records by early-1960s rocker, Freddy Fender. He scored the biggest hit of his career when Fender's "Before The Next Teardrop Falls" single broke through all chart boundaries and went platinum selling over a million copies. By this time, Meaux had purchased both the SugarHill Recording Studios in Houston, Texas, and the TNT Records pressing plant in San Antonio.

Freddy Fender American musician

Freddy Fender was an American Tejano, country and rock and roll musician, known for his work as a solo artist and in the groups Los Super Seven and the Texas Tornados. He is best known for his 1975 hits "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" and the subsequent remake of his own "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights".

Select discography

Albums

Extended Play (EP)

Singles

Note: Kenny James (#3002) is actually Jimmy Donley

Sources

"Down in Houston: Bayou City Blues"
Osborne's Record Guide
Texas Monthly Magazine
A Guide to the Huey Meaux Papers, 1940-1994
Texas Music Industry Directory (published by The Texas Music Office) Office of the Governor, Austin, Texas
Born To Be A Loser: The Jimmy Donley Story by Johnnie Allan and Dr Bernice Larson Webb; Copyright 1992 by Jadfel Publishing Lafayette, LA
Chicano Soul: Recordings and History of An American Culture by Ruben Molina; Copyright 2007 by Mictlan Publishing; 1st Edition.
Review: 'South Texas" Collects Producer's Checkered Career, (Huey P. Meaux). (NPR Web Site:Playlist-Transcript; 08-12-13).
Houston Bound: Culture And Color In A Jim Crow City by Tyina L. Steptoe; Copyright 2015 by University Of California Press Oakland, California.
House Of Hits: The Story Of Houston's Gold Star/Sugar Hill Recording Studios by Andy Bradley and Roger Wood: Copyright 2010 by University Of Texas Press Austin, Texas.

See also

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