The Label: The Story of Columbia RecordsFrom Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday to Janis Joplin and Michael Jackson, Columbia Records has discovered and nurtured a mind-boggling spectrum of talents and temperaments over the past 100-plus years. Now, with unprecedented access to the company's archives — memos, personal correspondence, recording contracts, sales reports and job sheets, as well as rich musical and literary material excavated from the Teo Macero Collection — The Label tells the never-before-told stories behind the groundbreaking music distributed by Columbia Records. More often than not, the music was created not just by the artists themselves but forged out of conflict with the men and women who handled them — executives, producers, Artists and Repertoire men, arrangers, recording engineers, and, yes, even publicists. And at almost every narrative crossroads in The Label is an undercurrent of racial tension — a tension that not only influenced twentieth century music, but also mirrored and at times prompted major changes in American culture. This vibrant account of Columbia Record's often tumultuous relationships with artists, businesspeople, and popular culture is sure to enlighten, entertain, and even shock. |
Contents
1 | xxii |
Litigation vs Innovation | 19 |
Foxtrotting In and Out of War | 37 |
Copyright | |
18 other sections not shown
Common terms and phrases
album Alexenburg American Graphophone American Record Andre Kostelanetz Avenue band became Ben Selvin Bennett Berg Bessie Smith Blues Bob Dylan Bridgeport Broadcasting Broadway Brubeck Brunswick catalog CBS Records classical Clive Davis Columbia Phonograph Columbia Records composer decade Decca director disk Dylan Easton Edison Ellington Epic George Avakian Goddard Lieberson going Goldmark Goodman Gramophone Howard Scott Hunstein Irving Townsend Ishlon jazz JH Papers John Hammond Johnny Johnson Kapralik knew Kostelanetz label later Lippincott listen long-playing manager Manhattan Masterworks Meat Loaf Mitch Miller movie musicians Okeh orchestra original cast recording Paul Percy Faith Peter Munves Phonograph Company pianist piano played popular president producer promotion radio record company released rock Shepard Sinatra singer singing Smith sold songs sound star Steinweiss Sterling Streisand studio Szell tape Teo Macero took Victor vinyl Wallerstein Walter wanted who'd Williams wrote Yetnikoff York