Jac Holzman
Encyclopedia
Jac Holzman was the founder, chief executive officer and head of both Elektra Records
and Nonesuch Records
.
in his St. John's College
dorm room in 1950 and Nonesuch Records
in 1964. He signed such acts as The Doors
, Queen
(US only), Love
, Carly Simon
, The Stooges
, Harry Chapin
, and Bread
to Elektra and discovered folk singer Judy Collins
. In 1970 he merged his music
interests with Warner Communications
(WCI) and continued his association with the labels he created for three additional years. While a part of the Warner Music Group, Holzman helped to establish both the WEA Distributing Corp (Warner-Elektra-Atlantic Distributing Corp) and WEA International.
In 1973, Holzman was appointed senior vice president and chief technologist for WCI. Holzman guided the company into home video
and the first interactive cable television
system, QUBE
. Until 1972, he was a director of Pioneer Electronics Japan, helping that company, and Warner, adopt the compact disc
and Laserdisc
. Holzman was a member of the board of Atari
, one of the first videogame companies, which was acquired by WCI in 1976.
In 1979 Holzman became the nexus between ex-Monkee Michael Nesmith
and John Lack of Warner Cable. He persuaded Lack to meet with Nesmith who had been nursing an idea for a program he called PopClips. Holzman thought that Nesmith's notion of building a TV structure around that idea made real sense.
In 1982, following the death of President and founder Robert Gottschalk, Holzman took charge of Panavision
, a wholly owned subsidiary of Warner Communications and turned that financially troubled company around.
In 1986 he formed FirstMedia, an investment firm which acquired Cinema Products Corporation
, the maker of the Oscar winning Steadicam
camera stabilization system.
In 1991, through FirstMedia, Holzman acquired the Discovery, Trend and Musicraft jazz labels from the estate of Albert Marx, which was also acquired by Warner Music Group in 1993.
After Edgar Bronfman, Jr.
and a group of investors acquired Warner Music Group from Time Warner Inc. in 2004, Bronfman brought Holzman back to WMG, reuniting him with the company that he had helped to found with Ahmet Ertegun
and Mo Ostin
. Although Holzman's work at Warner Music covers a range from mentoring executives and future planning, his first project was the creation of an on-line label, Cordless Recordings
, introduced in late 2005. Cordless gives bands space to hone their art and grow without the expectations and cash outlays associated with a major label.
In 2008 Holzman received the NARAS Grammy Trustees Award
.
On December 15, 2010, it was announced that Holzman will be awarded the Ahmet Ertegun
Award (along with Specialty Records
founder Art Rupe
) by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
.
Holzman is the father of Adam Holzman, a jazz-rock keyboardist who has played with Miles Davis
, Jaclyn Easton, writer and Internet entrepreneur, and Marin Sander-Holzman, editor and filmmaker.
Jac Holzman was inducted into the non-performer category of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Monday, March 14, 2011.
Elektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
and Nonesuch Records
Nonesuch Records
Nonesuch Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:Nonesuch was founded in 1964 by Jac Holzman to produce "fine records at the same price as a trade paperback", which would be half the price of a normal LP...
.
Biography
He founded Elektra RecordsElektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
in his St. John's College
St. John's College, U.S.
St. John's College is a liberal arts college with two U.S. campuses: one in Annapolis, Maryland and one in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Founded in 1696 as a preparatory school, King William's School, the school received a collegiate charter in 1784, making it one of the oldest institutions of higher...
dorm room in 1950 and Nonesuch Records
Nonesuch Records
Nonesuch Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:Nonesuch was founded in 1964 by Jac Holzman to produce "fine records at the same price as a trade paperback", which would be half the price of a normal LP...
in 1964. He signed such acts as The Doors
The Doors
The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...
, Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
(US only), Love
Love (band)
Love was an American rock group of the late 1960s and early 1970s. They were led by singer/songwriter Arthur Lee and lead guitarist Johnny Echols...
, Carly Simon
Carly Simon
Carly Elisabeth Simon is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records, and has since been the recipient of two Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for her work...
, The Stooges
The Stooges
The Stooges are an American rock band from Ann Arbor, Michigan first active from 1967 to 1974, and later reformed in 2003...
, Harry Chapin
Harry Chapin
Harry Forster Chapin was an American singer-songwriter best known in particular for his folk rock songs including "Taxi", "W*O*L*D", and the number-one hit "Cat's in the Cradle". Chapin was also a dedicated humanitarian who fought to end world hunger; he was a key player in the creation of the...
, and Bread
Bread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
to Elektra and discovered folk singer Judy Collins
Judy Collins
Judith Marjorie "Judy" Collins is an American singer and songwriter, known for her eclectic tastes in the material she records ; and for her social activism. She is an alumna of the University of Colorado.-Musical career:Collins was born and raised in Seattle, Washington...
. In 1970 he merged his music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
interests with Warner Communications
Warner Communications
Warner Communications or Warner Communications, Inc. was established in 1971 when Kinney National Company spun off its non-entertainment assets, due to a financial scandal over its parking operations and changed its name....
(WCI) and continued his association with the labels he created for three additional years. While a part of the Warner Music Group, Holzman helped to establish both the WEA Distributing Corp (Warner-Elektra-Atlantic Distributing Corp) and WEA International.
In 1973, Holzman was appointed senior vice president and chief technologist for WCI. Holzman guided the company into home video
Home video
Home video is a blanket term used for pre-recorded media that is either sold or rented/hired for home cinema entertainment. The term originates from the VHS/Betamax era but has carried over into current optical disc formats like DVD and Blu-ray Disc and, to a lesser extent, into methods of digital...
and the first interactive cable television
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
system, QUBE
QUBE
QUBE was a cable television system that played a pivotal role in the history of American cable television. Launched in Columbus, Ohio in December 1977, QUBE introduced viewers, and the international press, to several concepts that became central to the future development of cable television:...
. Until 1972, he was a director of Pioneer Electronics Japan, helping that company, and Warner, adopt the compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
and Laserdisc
Laserdisc
LaserDisc was a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium. Initially licensed, sold, and marketed as MCA DiscoVision in North America in 1978, the technology was previously referred to interally as Optical Videodisc System, Reflective Optical Videodisc, Laser Optical...
. Holzman was a member of the board of Atari
Atari
Atari is a corporate and brand name owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by Atari Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French publisher Atari, SA . The original Atari, Inc. was founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. It was a pioneer in...
, one of the first videogame companies, which was acquired by WCI in 1976.
In 1979 Holzman became the nexus between ex-Monkee Michael Nesmith
Michael Nesmith
Robert Michael Nesmith is an American musician, songwriter, actor, producer, novelist, businessman, and philanthropist, best known as a member of the musical group The Monkees and star of the TV series of the same name...
and John Lack of Warner Cable. He persuaded Lack to meet with Nesmith who had been nursing an idea for a program he called PopClips. Holzman thought that Nesmith's notion of building a TV structure around that idea made real sense.
In 1982, following the death of President and founder Robert Gottschalk, Holzman took charge of Panavision
Panavision
Panavision is an American motion picture equipment company specializing in cameras and lenses, based in Woodland Hills, California. Formed by Robert Gottschalk as a small partnership to create anamorphic projection lenses during the widescreen boom in the 1950s, Panavision expanded its product...
, a wholly owned subsidiary of Warner Communications and turned that financially troubled company around.
In 1986 he formed FirstMedia, an investment firm which acquired Cinema Products Corporation
Cinema Products Corporation
Cinema Products Corporation was an American manufacturer of motion picture camera equipment.-History:The company was formed in 1968 by Ed DiGiulio, a former director and vice-president of the Mitchell Camera Corporation...
, the maker of the Oscar winning Steadicam
Steadicam
A Steadicam is a stabilizing mount for a motion picture camera that mechanically isolates it from the operator's movement, allowing a smooth shot even when moving quickly over an uneven surface...
camera stabilization system.
In 1991, through FirstMedia, Holzman acquired the Discovery, Trend and Musicraft jazz labels from the estate of Albert Marx, which was also acquired by Warner Music Group in 1993.
After Edgar Bronfman, Jr.
Edgar Bronfman, Jr.
Edgar Miles Bronfman, Jr. , is the Chairman of Warner Music Group. He previously served as CEO of the company from 2004 to 2011. In May, 2011, the sale of WMG was announced; Bronfman would continued as CEO in the transaction. In August 2011, he became Chairman of the company as Stephen Cooper...
and a group of investors acquired Warner Music Group from Time Warner Inc. in 2004, Bronfman brought Holzman back to WMG, reuniting him with the company that he had helped to found with Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegün was a Turkish American musician and businessman, best known as the founder and president of Atlantic Records. He also wrote classic blues and pop songs and served as Chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and museum...
and Mo Ostin
Mo Ostin
Mo Ostin is a record executive who has worked for several companies, including Verve, Reprise Records, Warner Bros. Records, and DreamWorks. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003 by Paul Simon, Neil Young, and Lorne Michaels...
. Although Holzman's work at Warner Music covers a range from mentoring executives and future planning, his first project was the creation of an on-line label, Cordless Recordings
Cordless Recordings
Cordless Recordings is a netlabel owned by Warner Music Group. The label was founded in 2005 by Jac Holzman, who also founded Elektra Records and Nonesuch Records.-Affiliation with Rykodisc - Present:...
, introduced in late 2005. Cordless gives bands space to hone their art and grow without the expectations and cash outlays associated with a major label.
In 2008 Holzman received the NARAS Grammy Trustees Award
Grammy Trustees Award
The Grammy Trustees Award is awarded by the Recording Academy to "individuals who, during their careers in music, have made significant contributions, other than performance, to the field of recording". Through 1983, performers could also receive this award...
.
On December 15, 2010, it was announced that Holzman will be awarded the Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegün was a Turkish American musician and businessman, best known as the founder and president of Atlantic Records. He also wrote classic blues and pop songs and served as Chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and museum...
Award (along with Specialty Records
Specialty Records
Specialty Records was an American record label based in Los Angeles. It was originally launched as Juke Box Records in 1946, but later renamed by its owner Art Rupe when he parted company with a couple of his original partners...
founder Art Rupe
Art Rupe
Arthur N. "Art" Rupe is an American music industry executive and record producer. He started Specialty Records, noted for its rhythm & blues, blues, gospel and early rock and roll music recordings, in Los Angeles in 1946.-Career:Born in the Pittsburgh suburb of Greensburg, Pennsylvania, Rupe...
) by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
.
Holzman is the father of Adam Holzman, a jazz-rock keyboardist who has played with Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
, Jaclyn Easton, writer and Internet entrepreneur, and Marin Sander-Holzman, editor and filmmaker.
Jac Holzman was inducted into the non-performer category of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Monday, March 14, 2011.
External links
- Word 152 - 2010-10-21 - David Hepworth talks to Jac Holzman, on Elektra's 60th. RSS feed
- Who is Jac Holzman?
- Blast from the Past Seeks Next Big Thing
- http://www.digitalmusicforum.com/west/speakers09.shtml
- Becoming Elektra, Elektra’s early years by Mick Houghton
- Follow the Music - Holzman & Daws (ISBN 0-9661221-1-9) (paperback, ISBN 0-9661221-0-0).
- Sound Opinions March 2011 interview with Holzman