A&M Records
Encyclopedia
A&M Records is an American record label
owned by Universal Music Group
that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M
division.
and Jerry Moss
. Their first choice for a name was Carnival Records
, under which they released two singles before discovering another label had taken the Carnival name first. The company was subsequently renamed A&M, after Alpert's and Moss's initials. From 1966 to 1999, the company's headquarters were on the grounds of the historic Charlie Chaplin Studios
at 1416 North La Brea Avenue, near Sunset Boulevard
in Hollywood.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, A&M had such acts as Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, Baja Marimba Band
, Burt Bacharach
, Sérgio Mendes
& Brasil ’66, We Five
, The Carpenters
, Chris Montez
, Elkie Brooks
, Lee Michaels
, The Captain and Tennille, Quincy Jones
, Stealers Wheel
, Marc Benno
, Liza Minnelli
, Rita Coolidge
, Wes Montgomery
, Paul Desmond
, Cat Stevens
, Toni Basil
, and Paul Williams
. Folk artists Joan Baez
, Phil Ochs
, Laramy Smith, and Gene Clark
also recorded for the label during the 1970s. Billy Preston
joined the label in 1971, followed by Andre Popp
and Herb Ohta
in 1973.
In the late 1960s, through direct signing and licensing agreements, A&M added several British artists to its roster, including Cat Stevens
, Joe Cocker
, Procol Harum
, Humble Pie
, Fairport Convention
, Free
, The Move
, and Spooky Tooth
. In the 1970s, under its manufacturing and distribution agreement with Ode Records
, A&M released albums by Carole King
, Hummingbird, and the comedy duo Cheech & Chong. Other notable acts of the time included Nazareth
, Y&T
, the Tubes
, Styx
, Supertramp
, Rick Wakeman
, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils
, Chuck Mangione
, Squeeze, and Peter Frampton
. On March 10, 1977, A&M signed the Sex Pistols
after the band had been dropped by EMI
. However, A&M dropped the band within a week. A&M sustained its success during the 1980s with a roster of noted acts that included Henry Badowski
, Janet Jackson
, the Police
, Sting, The Brothers Johnson, Falco
, Atlantic Starr
, the Go-Go's
, Chris De Burgh
, Bryan Adams
, Suzanne Vega
, Brenda Russell
, Jeffrey Osborne
, Oingo Boingo
, Human League, Ozark Mountain Daredevils
, Sharon, Lois & Bram
, Annabel Lamb
, Jim Diamond
, Vital Signs
, Joe Jackson
, and Scottish rock band Gun
.
Within a decade of its inception, A&M became the world's largest independent record company . A&M releases were initially issued in the United Kingdom by EMI
's Stateside Records
label, and then under its own name by Pye Records
until 1967. A&M releases were also issued in Australia through Festival Records until 1989. A&M Records Ltd. was established in 1970, with distribution handled by other labels with a presence in Europe. A&M Records of Canada Ltd. was also formed in 1970, and A&M Records of Europe in 1977. In 1979, A&M entered a distribution agreement with RCA Records
(which later became BMG) in the USA, and with CBS Records
(whose successor Sony Music Entertainment
later absorbed BMG) in many other countries.
Over the years, A&M added specialty imprints: Almo International
for middle of the road; Omen Records (1964–1966)
for soul; Horizon Records
for jazz (1974–1978); AyM Discos
for Latin-American; Vendetta Records
for dance music (1988–1990); and Tuff Break Records for hip-hop music (1993–1995).
in 1989. Alpert and Moss continued to manage the label until 1993. The sale to PolyGram stipulated that Alpert and Moss had an integrity clause allowing them to control the label's image through 2009. In 1998, Alpert and Moss sued PolyGram for breach of the integrity clause.
In 1991, A&M launched Perspective Records
as a joint venture with producing team Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
. Jam and Lewis stepped down as CEO's of the imprint in 1997, but they remained on as consultants. In 1999, the label was absorbed into A&M. In the mid-1990s, A&M began distributing its PolyGram sister label Polydor Records
in the USA.
During the 1990s, the company continued to release albums by Soundgarden
, Extreme
, Amy Grant
, John Hiatt
, Sting, Blues Traveler
, Barry White
, and Aaron Neville
, as well as material from new artists Sheryl Crow
, Therapy?
, CeCe Peniston
, and the Gin Blossoms
. The company released the soundtracks Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
, The Three Musketeers
, Sabrina
, The Living Sea
, Demolition Man
, and Lethal Weapon 3
.
and merged with its MCA Records
family to create Universal Music
. A&M was subsequently merged into Universal Music Group's then newly formed Interscope-Geffen-A&M
label group. Its Canadian division was absorbed into Universal Music Canada that time, which included Jann Arden
alongside other artists from Canada. Bryan Adams
continued to record on that label.
The A&M lot on La Brea Avenue was shut down in January 1999. During the farewell celebration, the company's staff placed a black band over the A&M sign above the main entrance, indicating the death of the company. Most of the company's workforce, some of whom had been with the company for a decade or more, were let go, while many of its artists were dropped. Al Cafaro stated,
Alpert and Moss sued Universal Music Group in 2000, claiming that they had violated a contractual agreement stating that A&M Records would be allowed to retain its corporate culture . The suit was later settled.
The first multi-platinum A&M Records release under Universal Music Group and Interscope was Sting's 1999 album Brand New Day.
The old A&M studios and executive offices are now the home of Jim Henson Productions, which operates Henson Recording Studios
.
A&M catalog albums that did not fit the current pop music format (which also includes rock, rap, and R&B) of their new parent division were transferred to other Universal divisions for management - for example, Verve Records
now manages A&M's jazz catalog, not including Herb Alpert's recorded output which Alpert acquired in the settlement with Universal Music and are licensed to Shout! Factory
(however, Verve does manage the Horizon Records catalog).
In February 2007, Interscope-Geffen-A&M
partnered with Octone Records to relaunch the A&M label, now headed by James Diener
and called A&M/Octone Records
with worldwide distribution handled by parent Universal Music Group. The existing Octone roster was transferred to the A&M/Octone label and all new artist signings are made under the A&M/Octone joint venture.
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
owned by Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope-Geffen-A&M is an umbrella label, owned by Universal Music Group. The company was formed in 1999, when Geffen Records and A&M Records were merged into Interscope Records—the flagship imprint of the operation....
division.
Beginnings
A&M Records was formed in 1962 by Herb AlpertHerb Alpert
Herbert "Herb" Alpert is an American musician most associated with the group variously known as Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, Herb Alpert's Tijuana Brass, or TJB. He is also a recording industry executive — he is the "A" of A&M Records...
and Jerry Moss
Jerry Moss
Jerome S. "Jerry" Moss is an American recording executive, best known for being the co-founder of A&M Records, along with trumpeter and bandleader Herb Alpert....
. Their first choice for a name was Carnival Records
Carnival Records
Carnival Records was a record label started in 1961 by Jerry Moss and Herb Alpert.They released two records, one which was distributed via Dot Records outside California. Dore Alpert was the name Herb used as a vocalist in those days...
, under which they released two singles before discovering another label had taken the Carnival name first. The company was subsequently renamed A&M, after Alpert's and Moss's initials. From 1966 to 1999, the company's headquarters were on the grounds of the historic Charlie Chaplin Studios
Charlie Chaplin Studios
Charlie Chaplin Studios is a motion picture studio built in 1917 by silent film star Charlie Chaplin just south of the southeast corner of La Brea and Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California....
at 1416 North La Brea Avenue, near Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard is a street in the western part of Los Angeles County, California, that stretches from Figueroa Street in downtown Los Angeles to the Pacific Coast Highway at the Pacific Ocean in the Pacific Palisades...
in Hollywood.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, A&M had such acts as Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, Baja Marimba Band
Baja Marimba Band
The Baja Marimba Band was a popular musical group led by marimba player Julius Wechter, initially intended by producer Herb Alpert to cash in on the "south of the border" craze started by his own Tijuana Brass...
, Burt Bacharach
Burt Bacharach
Burt F. Bacharach is an American pianist, composer and music producer. He is known for his popular hit songs and compositions from the mid-1950s through the 1980s, with lyrics written by Hal David. Many of their hits were produced specifically for, and performed by, Dionne Warwick...
, Sérgio Mendes
Sergio Mendes
Sérgio Santos Mendes is a Brazilian musician. He has released over thirty-five albums, and plays bossa nova heavily crossed with jazz and funk....
& Brasil ’66, We Five
We Five
We Five was a 1960s folk rock musical group based in San Francisco, California. Their best-known hit was their 1965 remake of Ian and Sylvia's "You Were on My Mind", which reached #1 on the Cashbox chart, #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart...
, The Carpenters
The Carpenters
Carpenters were an American vocal and instrumental duo, consisting of sister Karen and brother Richard Carpenter. The Carpenters were the #1 selling American music act of the 1970s. Though often referred to by the public as "The Carpenters", the duo's official name on authorized recordings and...
, Chris Montez
Chris Montez
Chris Montez , is an American singer.-Early life:Montez grew up in Hawthorne, California, influenced by the Latino-flavored music of his community and the success of Ritchie Valens....
, Elkie Brooks
Elkie Brooks
Elkie Brooks is an English singer, formerly a vocalist with Vinegar Joe, and later a solo artist. Elkie has been nominated twice for Brit Awards' top female singer. She is known for her powerful husky voice...
, Lee Michaels
Lee Michaels
Lee Michaels plays the Hammond organ, piano, and guitar , and is best known for his 1971 Top 10 pop hit single, "Do You Know What I Mean."-Career:...
, The Captain and Tennille, Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
, Stealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel are a Scottish folk rock/rock band formed in Paisley, Renfrewshire in 1972 by former school friends Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty.The band broke up in 1975 and re-formed without Egan and Rafferty in 2008.-Biography:...
, Marc Benno
Marc Benno
Marc Benno is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Benno was a member of The Asylum Choir with Leon Russell in the late 1960s, and launched a solo career in the early 1970s, with his 1972 effort Ambush being the most commercially successful...
, Liza Minnelli
Liza Minnelli
Liza May Minnelli is an American actress and singer. She is the daughter of singer and actress Judy Garland and film director Vincente Minnelli....
, Rita Coolidge
Rita Coolidge
Rita Coolidge is a multiple Grammy Award-winning American vocalist. During the 1970s and 1980s, she charted hits on Billboard's Pop, Country, Adult Contemporary and Jazz charts.-Career:...
, Wes Montgomery
Wes Montgomery
John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery was an American jazz guitarist. He is widely considered one of the major jazz guitarists, emerging after such seminal figures as Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian and influencing countless others, including Pat Martino, George Benson, Russell Malone, Emily...
, Paul Desmond
Paul Desmond
Paul Desmond , born Paul Emil Breitenfeld, was a jazz alto saxophonist and composer born in San Francisco, best known for the work he did in the Dave Brubeck Quartet and for penning that group's greatest hit, "Take Five"...
, Cat Stevens
Cat Stevens
Yusuf Islam , commonly known by his former stage name Cat Stevens, is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, philanthropist, and prominent convert to Islam....
, Toni Basil
Toni Basil
Antonia Christina Basilotta , better known by her stage name Toni Basil, is an American singer-songwriter, actress, filmmaker, film director, choreographer, and dancer, best known for her multi-million-selling worldwide #1 hit "Mickey" from 1982.-Early life:Basil was born Antonia Christina...
, and Paul Williams
Paul Williams (songwriter)
Paul Hamilton Williams, Jr. is an Academy Award-winning American composer, musician, songwriter, and actor. He is perhaps best known for popular songs performed by a number of acts in the 1970s including Three Dog Night's "An Old Fashioned Love Song", Helen Reddy's "You and Me Against the World",...
. Folk artists Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
, Phil Ochs
Phil Ochs
Philip David Ochs was an American protest singer and songwriter who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative lyrics, and haunting voice...
, Laramy Smith, and Gene Clark
Gene Clark
Gene Clark, born Harold Eugene Clark was an American singer-songwriter, and one of the founding members of the folk-rock group The Byrds....
also recorded for the label during the 1970s. Billy Preston
Billy Preston
William Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
joined the label in 1971, followed by Andre Popp
André Popp
André Charles Jean Popp is a French composer, arranger and screenwriter.Born in Fontenay-le-Comte, Vendée, he started his career as a church organist, filling the place of his father who had been called up to serve in World War II in 1939. Popp studied music at the Saint Joseph Institute...
and Herb Ohta
Herb Ohta
Herb Ohta Sr. is an American Ukulele player born in 1934 in Hawaii who has recorded solo, as a group and with Andre Popp on the A&M Records label, which was co-owned by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss. He is also known as "Ohta-San" in Japan and other Asian Countries, which is a title of respect for the...
in 1973.
In the late 1960s, through direct signing and licensing agreements, A&M added several British artists to its roster, including Cat Stevens
Cat Stevens
Yusuf Islam , commonly known by his former stage name Cat Stevens, is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, philanthropist, and prominent convert to Islam....
, Joe Cocker
Joe Cocker
John Robert "Joe" Cocker, OBE is an English rock and blues musician, composer and actor, who came to popularity in the 1960s, and is most known for his gritty voice, his idiosyncratic arm movements while performing, and his cover versions of popular songs, particularly those of The Beatles...
, Procol Harum
Procol Harum
Procol Harum are a British rock band, formed in 1967, which contributed to the development of progressive rock, and by extension, symphonic rock. Their best-known recording is their 1967 single "A Whiter Shade of Pale"...
, Humble Pie
Humble Pie (band)
Humble Pie was a rock band from England, finding success both in the UK and the US. They are remembered for songs such as "Black Coffee" "30 Days in the Hole", "I Don't Need No Doctor", and "Natural Born Bugie"...
, Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention are an English folk rock and later electric folk band, formed in 1967 who are still recording and touring today. They are widely regarded as the most important single group in the English folk rock movement...
, Free
Free (band)
Free were an English rock band, formed in London in 1968, best known for their 1970 signature song "All Right Now". They disbanded in 1973 and lead singer Paul Rodgers went on to become a frontman of the band Bad Company along with Simon Kirke on drums; lead guitarist Paul Kossoff died from a...
, The Move
The Move
The Move, from Birmingham, England, were one of the leading British rock bands of the 1960s. They scored nine Top 20 UK singles in five years, but were among the most popular British bands not to find any success in the United States....
, and Spooky Tooth
Spooky Tooth
Spooky Tooth are an English rock band principally active, with intermittent breakups, between 1967 to 1974. In recent years, the band has been reconstituted at various points, and continues to perform occasionally.-Career:...
. In the 1970s, under its manufacturing and distribution agreement with Ode Records
Ode Records
Ode Records was a record label, started by Lou Adler in 1967 after he sold Dunhill Records to ABC Records. It was distributed by CBS Records until 1969. Between 1970 and 1976 the label was distributed by A&M Records, from 1976 onward it was again distributed by CBS Records.Adler deactivated the...
, A&M released albums by Carole King
Carole King
Carole King is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. King and her former husband Gerry Goffin wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists during the 1960s, many of which have become standards. As a singer, King had an album, Tapestry, top the U.S...
, Hummingbird, and the comedy duo Cheech & Chong. Other notable acts of the time included Nazareth
Nazareth (band)
Nazareth is a Scottish hard rock band, founded in 1968, that had several hits in the UK in the early 1970s, and established an international audience with their 1975 album Hair of the Dog. Perhaps their best-known hit single was a cover of the ballad "Love Hurts", in 1975...
, Y&T
Y&T
Y&T is an American hard rock/heavy metal band formed in 1974. They hail from Oakland, California...
, the Tubes
The Tubes
The Tubes are a San Francisco-based rock band, whose 1975 debut album included the hit single, "White Punks on Dope". During its first fifteen years or so, the band's live performances combined quasi-pornography with wild satires of media, consumerism, and politics...
, Styx
Styx (band)
Styx is an American rock band that became famous for its albums from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Chicago band is known for melding the style of prog-rock with the power of hard rock guitar, strong ballads, and elements of American musical theater....
, Supertramp
Supertramp
Supertramp are a British rock band formed in 1969 under the name Daddy before renaming to Supertramp in early 1970. Though their music was initially categorised as progressive rock, they have since incorporated a combination of traditional rock and art rock into their music...
, Rick Wakeman
Rick Wakeman
Richard Christopher Wakeman is an English keyboard player, composer and songwriter best known for being the former keyboardist in the progressive rock band Yes...
, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils
Ozark Mountain Daredevils
The Ozark Mountain Daredevils are a Southern rock/country rock band formed in 1972 in Springfield, Missouri, USA. They are most widely known for their singles "If You Wanna Get To Heaven" in 1974 and "Jackie Blue" in 1975....
, Chuck Mangione
Chuck Mangione
Charles Frank "Chuck" Mangione is an American flugelhorn player and composer who achieved international success in 1977 with his jazz-pop single, "Feels So Good." Mangione has released more than thirty albums since 1960.-Early life and career:...
, Squeeze, and Peter Frampton
Peter Frampton
Peter Kenneth Frampton is an English musician, singer, producer, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist. He was previously associated with the bands Humble Pie and The Herd. Frampton's international breakthrough album was his live release, Frampton Comes Alive!. The album sold over 6 million copies...
. On March 10, 1977, A&M signed the Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
after the band had been dropped by EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
. However, A&M dropped the band within a week. A&M sustained its success during the 1980s with a roster of noted acts that included Henry Badowski
Henry Badowski
Henry Badowski is a British multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and composer, who was a member of several punk rock bands in the 1970s before embarking on a solo career.-Career:...
, Janet Jackson
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson is an American recording artist and actress. Known for a series of sonically innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows, television and film roles, she has been a prominent figure in popular culture for over 25 years...
, the Police
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
, Sting, The Brothers Johnson, Falco
Falco (musician)
Johann Hölzel , better known by his stage name Falco, was an Austrian pop and rock musician and rapper. He had several international hits: "Der Kommissar", "Rock Me Amadeus", "Vienna Calling", "Jeanny", "The Sound of Musik", "Coming Home " and posthumously, "Out Of The Dark"...
, Atlantic Starr
Atlantic Starr
Atlantic Starr was a 1980s R&B band. Among their biggest hits were "Always" and "Secret Lovers."- History :The group was started in 1976 in White Plains, New York by trumpeter Duke Jones , drummer Porter Carroll Jr., bassist Clifford Archer, percussionist and flautist Joseph Phillips, and three...
, the Go-Go's
The Go-Go's
The Go-Go’s are an all-female American rock band formed in 1978. They made history as the first all-female band that both wrote their own songs and played their own instruments to top the Billboard album charts....
, Chris De Burgh
Chris de Burgh
Chris de Burgh is a British/Irish singer-songwriter. He is most famous for his 1986 love song "The Lady in Red".-Early life:...
, Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...
, Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Nadine Vega is an American songwriter and singer known for her eclectic folk-inspired music.Two of Vega's songs reached the top 10 of various international chart listings: "Luka" and "Tom's Diner"...
, Brenda Russell
Brenda Russell
Brenda Russell is an American-Canadian singer-songwriter and keyboardist. Known for her eclectic musical style, her recordings have encompassed several different genres, including pop, soul, dance, jazz and adult contemporary...
, Jeffrey Osborne
Jeffrey Osborne
Jeffrey Linton Osborne is an American funk and R&B musician, songwriter, lyricist, and former lead singer of the band, L.T.D.-Early life and career:...
, Oingo Boingo
Oingo Boingo
Oingo Boingo was an American new wave band. They are best known for their influence on other musicians, their soundtrack contributions and their high energy Halloween concerts. The band was founded in 1972 as The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, a performance art group...
, Human League, Ozark Mountain Daredevils
Ozark Mountain Daredevils
The Ozark Mountain Daredevils are a Southern rock/country rock band formed in 1972 in Springfield, Missouri, USA. They are most widely known for their singles "If You Wanna Get To Heaven" in 1974 and "Jackie Blue" in 1975....
, Sharon, Lois & Bram
Sharon, Lois & Bram
Sharon, Lois & Bram is the name of a Canadian children's musical trio composed of Sharon Hampson , Lois Ada Lilienstein , and Bramwell "Bram" Morrison .-Group formation:Sharon Hampson, Lois Lillenstein, and Bram Morrison began their singing...
, Annabel Lamb
Annabel Lamb
-Career:Annabel Lamb has released eight albums to date. She had a British Top 30 hit in 1983 with her cover version of The Doors song, Riders on the Storm, her only hit in the UK singles chart. She appeared performing the song on Top of The Pops later that year. Her debut album, Once Bitten,...
, Jim Diamond
Jim Diamond (Scottish musician)
James "Jim" Diamond is a Scottish singer-songwriter. Diamond is best known for his three Top 5 hits. The first was "I Won't Let You Down" , as the lead singer in the trio Ph.D., with Tony Hymas and Simon Phillips. His solo performance, "I Should Have Known Better", was a United Kingdom number one...
, Vital Signs
Vital Signs (band)
Vital Signs were a Pakistani Pop rock band that formed in Rawalpindi in 1986. The group was formed by Rohail Hyatt and Shahzad Hasan , who were soon joined by Nusrat Hussain and Junaid Jamshed...
, Joe Jackson
Joe Jackson (musician)
Joe Jackson is an English musician and singer-songwriter now living in Berlin, whose five Grammy Award nominations span from 1979 to 2001...
, and Scottish rock band Gun
Gun (band)
Gun are a rock band from Glasgow, Scotland, best known for their cover of Cameo's "Word Up!".-Early career:Originally called Blind Allez then for a short time, 'Phobia', GUN were formed in 1987 by Giuliano Gizzi and Cami Morlotti , with Mark Rankin , Alan Thornton and David Aitken...
.
Within a decade of its inception, A&M became the world's largest independent record company . A&M releases were initially issued in the United Kingdom by EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
's Stateside Records
Stateside Records
Stateside Records is a British record label which initially released licenced American recordings and is now a reissue label....
label, and then under its own name by Pye Records
Pye Records
Pye Records was a British record label. In its first incarnation, perhaps Pye's best known artists were Lonnie Donegan , Petula Clark , The Searchers , The Kinks , Sandie Shaw and Brotherhood of Man...
until 1967. A&M releases were also issued in Australia through Festival Records until 1989. A&M Records Ltd. was established in 1970, with distribution handled by other labels with a presence in Europe. A&M Records of Canada Ltd. was also formed in 1970, and A&M Records of Europe in 1977. In 1979, A&M entered a distribution agreement with RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
(which later became BMG) in the USA, and with CBS Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
(whose successor Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....
later absorbed BMG) in many other countries.
Over the years, A&M added specialty imprints: Almo International
Almo Sounds
Almo Sounds is a record label which was started in 1994 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss after they sold A&M Records to PolyGram. The intent of the label was to recreate the initial concept of A&M Records as a small, "boutique" label....
for middle of the road; Omen Records (1964–1966)
for soul; Horizon Records
Horizon Records
Horizon Records was started as a folk and blues record label by Dave Hubert in 1960.It was originally distributed by World Pacific Records. When Vee-Jay Records acquired World Pacific in 1963, it also took over the distribution of Horizon....
for jazz (1974–1978); AyM Discos
for Latin-American; Vendetta Records
Vendetta Records
Vendetta Records was a dance record label subsidiary of A&M Records. It was launched in 1988, but it was shut down in 1990, shortly after its parent was purchased by PolyGram Records.-Artists:*Brat Pack*Denise Lopez*Reimy*Dirty South*The 28th Street Crew...
for dance music (1988–1990); and Tuff Break Records for hip-hop music (1993–1995).
The PolyGram years
A&M was bought by PolyGramPolyGram
PolyGram was the name of the major label recording company started by Philips from as a holding company for its music interests in 1945. In 1999 it was sold to Seagram and merged into Universal Music Group.-Hollandsche Decca Distributie , 1929-1950:...
in 1989. Alpert and Moss continued to manage the label until 1993. The sale to PolyGram stipulated that Alpert and Moss had an integrity clause allowing them to control the label's image through 2009. In 1998, Alpert and Moss sued PolyGram for breach of the integrity clause.
In 1991, A&M launched Perspective Records
Perspective Records
Perspective Records was an American record label, launched in 1991 by the producing team Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, through a joint venture with A&M Records—which Jam/Lewis had had a prosperous working relationship with throughout the 1980s, with several of its major acts including Janet Jackson, The...
as a joint venture with producing team Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III and Terry Steven Lewis are an American R&B and pop-music songwriting and record production team...
. Jam and Lewis stepped down as CEO's of the imprint in 1997, but they remained on as consultants. In 1999, the label was absorbed into A&M. In the mid-1990s, A&M began distributing its PolyGram sister label Polydor Records
Polydor Records
Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
in the USA.
During the 1990s, the company continued to release albums by Soundgarden
Soundgarden
Soundgarden is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984 by singer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...
, Extreme
Extreme (band)
Extreme is an American rock band, headed by frontmen Gary Cherone and Nuno Bettencourt, that reached the height of their popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s.Among some of Extreme's musical influences are Queen and Van Halen...
, Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
, John Hiatt
John Hiatt
John Hiatt is an American rock guitarist, pianist, singer, and songwriter. He has played a variety of musical styles on his albums, including New Wave, blues and country. Hiatt has been nominated for several Grammy Awards - although he has never won- and has been awarded a variety of other...
, Sting, Blues Traveler
Blues Traveler
Blues Traveler is a rock band, formed in Princeton, New Jersey in 1987. The band has been influenced by a variety of genres, including blues-rock, psychedelic rock, folk rock, soul, and Southern rock...
, Barry White
Barry White
Barry White, born Barry Eugene Carter , was an American composer and singer-songwriter.A five-time Grammy Award-winner known for his distinctive bass voice and romantic image, White's greatest success came in the 1970s as a solo singer and with the Love Unlimited Orchestra, crafting many enduring...
, and Aaron Neville
Aaron Neville
Aaron Neville is an American soul and R&B singer and musician. He has had four top-20 hits in the United States along with four platinum-certified albums...
, as well as material from new artists Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...
, Therapy?
Therapy?
Therapy? is an alternative metal band from Northern Ireland. The band was formed in 1989 by guitarist–vocalist Andy Cairns from Ballyclare and drummer-vocalist Fyfe Ewing from Larne, Northern Ireland. The band initially recorded their first demo with Cairns filling in on bass guitar...
, CeCe Peniston
CeCe Peniston
CeCe Peniston is an African American recording artist and former beauty queen. At the beginning of the nineties, she was considered to be one of the most successful dance club artists in the history of the U.S...
, and the Gin Blossoms
Gin Blossoms
Gin Blossoms is an American pop rock band formed in 1987, in Tempe, Arizona. They took their name from a photo of W.C. Fields which bore the caption "W.C. Fields with gin blossoms", referring to what appeared to be the actor's gin-ravaged nose, but was actually a skin condition known as rosacea...
. The company released the soundtracks Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves is a 1991 American adventure film directed by Kevin Reynolds. Kevin Costner heads the cast list as Robin Hood...
, The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers (1993 film)
The Three Musketeers is a 1993 film from Walt Disney Pictures and Caravan Pictures, directed by Stephen Herek from a screenplay by David Loughery and starring Charlie Sheen, Kiefer Sutherland, Chris O'Donnell, Oliver Platt, Tim Curry and Rebecca De Mornay....
, Sabrina
Sabrina (1995 film)
Sabrina is a 1995 romantic comedy-drama film adapted by Barbara Benedek and David Rayfiel, based on the 1954 screenplay of the same name, which in turn was based upon a play titled Sabrina Fair....
, The Living Sea
The Living Sea
The Living Sea is a 70mm American documentary film exploring marine locales intended to show the importance of protecting the ocean, released to IMAX theaters in 1995...
, Demolition Man
Demolition Man (album)
Demolition Man is an EP released by A&M on September 21, 1993 and November 1, 1993 in support of the Sylvester Stallone/Wesley Snipes film Demolition Man. It features a re-recording of The Police song "Demolition Man", as well as several live recordings. The live recordings were recorded at Villa...
, and Lethal Weapon 3
Lethal Weapon 3
Lethal Weapon 3 is a 1992 American action film directed by Richard Donner and starring Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci, Rene Russo and Stuart Wilson. It is a sequel to Lethal Weapon and Lethal Weapon 2, and it is part of the Lethal Weapon film series.The movie is set in 1992, six years after...
.
Universal Music Group
In 1998, PolyGram was bought by SeagramSeagram
The Seagram Company Ltd. was a large corporation headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that was the largest distiller of alcoholic beverages in the world. Toward the end of its independent existence it also controlled various entertainment and other business ventures...
and merged with its MCA Records
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
family to create Universal Music
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
. A&M was subsequently merged into Universal Music Group's then newly formed Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope-Geffen-A&M is an umbrella label, owned by Universal Music Group. The company was formed in 1999, when Geffen Records and A&M Records were merged into Interscope Records—the flagship imprint of the operation....
label group. Its Canadian division was absorbed into Universal Music Canada that time, which included Jann Arden
Jann Arden
Jann Arden is a Canadian singer-songwriter.-Life and career:Arden was born and raised near Calgary in Springbank, Alberta and attended Springbank Community High School. Her breakthrough came with her critically acclaimed 1993 debut album Time for Mercy and her first single "I Would Die For You"...
alongside other artists from Canada. Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...
continued to record on that label.
The A&M lot on La Brea Avenue was shut down in January 1999. During the farewell celebration, the company's staff placed a black band over the A&M sign above the main entrance, indicating the death of the company. Most of the company's workforce, some of whom had been with the company for a decade or more, were let go, while many of its artists were dropped. Al Cafaro stated,
"This isn't about Universal or Seagram. The record business is changing fundamentally. Don't think that there are calm seas on the other side of this threshold. If the quake that devoured A&M and Geffen is a 6.0 on the Richter scale, there is a 7.0 coming in this industry. It's a Wall Street world now. Get ready."
Alpert and Moss sued Universal Music Group in 2000, claiming that they had violated a contractual agreement stating that A&M Records would be allowed to retain its corporate culture . The suit was later settled.
The first multi-platinum A&M Records release under Universal Music Group and Interscope was Sting's 1999 album Brand New Day.
The old A&M studios and executive offices are now the home of Jim Henson Productions, which operates Henson Recording Studios
Henson Recording Studios
Henson Recording Studios was established in 2000 at the former A&M Studios. The remake of We Are the World was recorded at Henson Recording Studios in February 2010 to benefit the Haiti earthquake victims....
.
A&M catalog albums that did not fit the current pop music format (which also includes rock, rap, and R&B) of their new parent division were transferred to other Universal divisions for management - for example, Verve Records
Verve Records
Verve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve...
now manages A&M's jazz catalog, not including Herb Alpert's recorded output which Alpert acquired in the settlement with Universal Music and are licensed to Shout! Factory
Shout! Factory
Shout! Factory is an entertainment company founded in 2003 that was started by Richard Foos , Bob Emmer and Garson Foos initially as a specialty music label...
(however, Verve does manage the Horizon Records catalog).
In February 2007, Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope-Geffen-A&M is an umbrella label, owned by Universal Music Group. The company was formed in 1999, when Geffen Records and A&M Records were merged into Interscope Records—the flagship imprint of the operation....
partnered with Octone Records to relaunch the A&M label, now headed by James Diener
James Diener
James Diener is the CEO-President of A&M/Octone Records, a joint venture between Octone Records and Universal Music Group. Headquartered in New York City, A&M/Octone Records is home to worldwide multi-platinum pop-rock superstars Maroon 5, platinum modern-rock act Flyleaf, gold-selling modern...
and called A&M/Octone Records
A&M/Octone Records
A&M/Octone Records is an American record label and a joint venture between Universal Music Group and Octone Records, also known as OctoScope Music...
with worldwide distribution handled by parent Universal Music Group. The existing Octone roster was transferred to the A&M/Octone label and all new artist signings are made under the A&M/Octone joint venture.
Former
- 1500 Records (1998–2001)
- ANTRA RecordsAntra RecordsAntra Records is a vanity label imprint of West Coast hip hop artist Kurupt. His first solo album, Kuruption! , was released in conjunction with A&M Records; the next two, Tha Streetz Iz a Mutha and Space Boogie: Smoke Oddessey were with Danny Goldberg's independent Artemis Records...
(1998) - AM:PM (1990–2002, UK imprint for R&B, hip-hop and dance music)
- Breakout Records (1987–1990, UK imprint for R&B and Hip-Hop music)
- CTI RecordsCTI RecordsCTI Records was a jazz record label founded in 1967 by producer/A&R manager Creed Taylor. Initially, CTI was a subsidiary of A&M Records, but the label went independent in 1970...
(1967–1970) - Cypress RecordsCypress RecordsCypress Records is a record label which was distributed by A&M Records between 1988 and 1990.-External links:* Label history, artist roster, Billboard performance.*...
(1988–1990) - Dark Horse RecordsDark Horse RecordsDark Horse Records is a record label founded by George Harrison in 1974.-History:Harrison had recorded for EMI under a contract which expired in 1976. All his subsequent recordings were released through Dark Horse Records, starting with Thirty Three & 1/3 in 1976 and ending with Live in Japan in 1992...
(1974–1976) - Delos International (1988–1990)
- DenonDenonis a Japanese electronics company that was involved in the early stages of development of digital audio technology, while specializing in the manufacture of high-fidelity professional and consumer audio equipment. For many decades, Denon was a brand name of Nippon-Columbia, including the Nippon...
(1988–1992) - DV8 Records (1995–1998)
- Flip (1996–1998)
- Gold Mountain Ltd. (1983–1985)
- Heavyweight Records (1998)
- I.R.S. RecordsI.R.S. RecordsI.R.S. Records was a record label, started in the United States in 1979 by Miles Copeland III along with Jay Boberg and Carl Grasso. Miles was also the manager of Wishbone Ash, The Police, and later, Sting, as well as other bands. I.R.S. was the sister label of Copeland's Illegal Records .I.R.S...
(1979–1985) - Nimbus RecordsNimbus RecordsNimbus Records is a British record company specializing in classical music recordings.Nimbus was founded in 1972 by the late bass singer Numa Labinsky and the brothers Michael and Gerald Reynolds and has traditionally been based at the Wyastone Leys mansion site, near Monmouth and the English/Welsh...
(1987–1990) - Ode RecordsOde RecordsOde Records was a record label, started by Lou Adler in 1967 after he sold Dunhill Records to ABC Records. It was distributed by CBS Records until 1969. Between 1970 and 1976 the label was distributed by A&M Records, from 1976 onward it was again distributed by CBS Records.Adler deactivated the...
(1970–1975) - Polydor RecordsPolydor RecordsPolydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
(1995–2000) - Shelter RecordsShelter RecordsShelter Records was a U.S. record label started by Leon Russell and Denny Cordell that operated from 1969 to 1981. The company established offices in both Los Angeles and Tulsa, Russell's home town, where the label sought to promote a "workshop atmosphere" with a recording studio in a converted...
(In Great Britain, early 1970s) - Shoreline Records
- Tabu RecordsTabu RecordsTabu Productions was an American record label founded by Clarence Avant in 1975. The label focused on R&B and funk.-Founding:Avant founded the label after Sussex Records went out of business in June 1975. Tabu's flagship release, “Stormin'” by Brainstorm, was released in 1977...
(1991–1993) - Tuff Break Records (1993–1995)
- TwinTone (1987–1989)
- T.W.Is.M (1996–1998)
- Vendetta Records (1988–1991)
- Windham Hill RecordsWindham Hill RecordsWindham Hill Records is a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment specializing in Acoustic, New Age and Folk music. Originally founded in 1976 as an Independent record label by guitarist and carpenter William Ackerman and his then-wife Anne Robinson, Windham Hill was a successful and well-respected...
(and its subsidiary labels) (1982–1985) - Word RecordsWord RecordsWord Records is a Christian record label based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a division of Word Entertainment , which, itself is co-owned by Warner Music Group and Curb Records...
(and its subsidiary labels: Exit, Myrrh, Live Oak) (1985–1990)
Current
- A&M/Octone RecordsA&M/Octone RecordsA&M/Octone Records is an American record label and a joint venture between Universal Music Group and Octone Records, also known as OctoScope Music...
- A&M Records UK (reactivated as a front-line label by Polydor RecordsPolydor RecordsPolydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
.) - Tropical Records
- will.i.am music groupWill.i.am music groupwill.i.am music group is a vanity label founded by hip hop artist will.i.am of the The Black Eyed Peas. Other than will.i.am, there are popular artists such as Fergie, Macy Gray and Sérgio Mendes signed to the label...
See also
- A&M/Octone RecordsA&M/Octone RecordsA&M/Octone Records is an American record label and a joint venture between Universal Music Group and Octone Records, also known as OctoScope Music...
- A&M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc.
- List of record labels
- Charlie Chaplin StudiosCharlie Chaplin StudiosCharlie Chaplin Studios is a motion picture studio built in 1917 by silent film star Charlie Chaplin just south of the southeast corner of La Brea and Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California....
- List of current A&M Records artists
- List of former A&M Records artists
External links
- Interscope Records official website - A&M Records is included within the Interscope site and is part of Interscope-Geffen-A&MInterscope-Geffen-A&MInterscope-Geffen-A&M is an umbrella label, owned by Universal Music Group. The company was formed in 1999, when Geffen Records and A&M Records were merged into Interscope Records—the flagship imprint of the operation....
- A&M Records US/UK A&R contact list
- On A&M Records - Search every artist and recording by A&M Records and its affiliated labels
- A&M Corner - Since 1995 the internet's original A&M Records free collector/listener resource