Tradition Records
Encyclopedia
Tradition Records was an American
record label
that existed from 1955
to 1961
.
The label was founded (and funded) by Guggenheim heiress Diane Hamilton
in 1956. Its first president and director was Patrick "Paddy" Clancy
, who was soon to join his brothers and Tommy Makem
, as part of the new Irish folk group, The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. The label may possibly have originally begun as a non-commercial exercise, but once popular artists and groups like The Clancy Brothers
, Odetta
, and Jean Ritchie
recorded on the Tradition Label, it began to generate profits. When The Clancy Brothers signed with Columbia Records in 1961, the label ceased to be viable, and the catalogue was sold to "Everest Records". Some Tradition recordings were issued without any notes in haphazard permutations. Later Rykodisc
bought the rights, and issued several recordings under the "Tradition" logo. Some of these were actually from the Everest catalogue. The history is cloudy, but Dizzy Gillespie, Erroll Garner, Coleman Hawkins and Jimmy Witherspoon almost certainly never recorded for Tradition, though recent issues would suggest they did.
For many years John Jacob Niles
received little acclaim, but following the broadcast of the Bob Dylan documentary No Direction Home
, there was a surge in the demand for his albums. His two albums on "Tradition" were accordingly reissued.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
record label
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,...
that existed from 1955
1955 in music
-Events:*January 1 – RCA Victor announces a marketing plan called "Operation TNT." The label drops the list price on LPs from $5.95 to $3.98, EPs from $4.95 to $2.98, 45 EPs from $1.58 to $1.49 and 45's from $1.16 to $.89...
to 1961
1961 in music
-Events:*January 15 – Motown Records signs The Supremes.*January 20 – Francis Poulenc's Gloria receives its premiėre in Boston, USA.*February 12 – The Miracles' "Shop Around" becomes Motown's first million-selling single....
.
The label was founded (and funded) by Guggenheim heiress Diane Hamilton
Diane Hamilton
Diane Hamilton was the pseudonym of Diane Guggenheim , an American mining heiress, folksong patron and founder of "Tradition Records".-Personal life:...
in 1956. Its first president and director was Patrick "Paddy" Clancy
Patrick Clancy
Patrick Clancy , usually called "Paddy" or "Pat" Clancy, was an Irish folk singer best known as a member of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem....
, who was soon to join his brothers and Tommy Makem
Tommy Makem
Thomas "Tommy" Makem was an internationally celebrated Irish folk musician, artist, poet and storyteller. He was best known as a member of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. He played the long-necked 5-string banjo, guitar, tin whistle, and bagpipes, and sang in a distinctive baritone...
, as part of the new Irish folk group, The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. The label may possibly have originally begun as a non-commercial exercise, but once popular artists and groups like The Clancy Brothers
The Clancy Brothers
The Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk music singing group, most popular in the 1960s, they were famed for their woolly Aran jumpers and are widely credited with popularizing Irish traditional music in the United States. The brothers were Patrick "Paddy" Clancy, Tom Clancy, Bobby Clancy...
, Odetta
Odetta
Odetta Holmes, known as Odetta, was an American singer, actress, guitarist, songwriter, and a human rights activist, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and spirituals...
, and Jean Ritchie
Jean Ritchie
Jean Ritchie is an American folk singer, songwriter, and Appalachian dulcimer player.- Out of Kentucky :Abigail and Balis Ritchie of Viper, Kentucky had 14 children, and Jean was the youngest...
recorded on the Tradition Label, it began to generate profits. When The Clancy Brothers signed with Columbia Records in 1961, the label ceased to be viable, and the catalogue was sold to "Everest Records". Some Tradition recordings were issued without any notes in haphazard permutations. Later Rykodisc
Rykodisc
Rykodisc Records is an American record label. It is owned by Warner Music Group, operates as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and is distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance.-Company history:...
bought the rights, and issued several recordings under the "Tradition" logo. Some of these were actually from the Everest catalogue. The history is cloudy, but Dizzy Gillespie, Erroll Garner, Coleman Hawkins and Jimmy Witherspoon almost certainly never recorded for Tradition, though recent issues would suggest they did.
For many years John Jacob Niles
John Jacob Niles
John Jacob Niles was an American composer, singer, and collector of traditional ballads. Called the "Dean of American Balladeers", Niles was an important influence on the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, with Joan Baez, Burl Ives, and Peter, Paul and Mary, among others,...
received little acclaim, but following the broadcast of the Bob Dylan documentary No Direction Home
No Direction Home
No Direction Home is a documentary film by Martin Scorsese that traces the life of Bob Dylan, and his impact on 20th century American popular music and culture. The film does not cover Dylan's entire career; it concentrates on the period between Dylan's arrival in New York in January 1961 and his...
, there was a surge in the demand for his albums. His two albums on "Tradition" were accordingly reissued.
Selected Tradition Records releases
- The Lark in the MorningThe Lark in the Morning (album)The Lark in the Morning is an album by Liam Clancy, Tommy Makem, family and friends.It has the distinction of being the first album-length recording of Irish music to be recorded in Ireland. It was recorded by Diane Hamilton and Catherine Wright on portable equipment, between August and December...
by Liam ClancyLiam ClancyWilliam "Liam" Clancy was an Irish folk singer and actor from Carrick-on-Suir, County Tipperary. He was the youngest and last surviving member of performing group The Clancy Brothers. The group were regarded as Ireland's first pop stars...
, Tommy MakemTommy MakemThomas "Tommy" Makem was an internationally celebrated Irish folk musician, artist, poet and storyteller. He was best known as a member of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. He played the long-necked 5-string banjo, guitar, tin whistle, and bagpipes, and sang in a distinctive baritone...
, Family and Friends (1955) - A Ballad Singer's Choice by Ed McCurdyEd McCurdyEd McCurdy was an American folk singer, songwriter, and television actor. His anti-war classic, "Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream" , inspired and gave hope to those in the peace movement.-Career:...
(1956) - Odetta Sings Ballads and BluesOdetta Sings Ballads and BluesOdetta Sings Ballads and Blues is the debut solo album by American folk singer Odetta, first released in 1956.Like much of Odetta's early work, Ballads and Blues combines traditional songs with blues covers...
(1956) - At the Gate of HornAt the Gate of HornAt the Gate of Horn is the second solo album by American folk singer Odetta, first released in 1957. It was named for the Gate of Horn club in Chicago.Odetta is joined by bassist Bill Lee...
(1957) - Children's Songs by Ed McCurdy (1958)
- The Tradition Years: I Wonder as I Wander by John Jacob NilesJohn Jacob NilesJohn Jacob Niles was an American composer, singer, and collector of traditional ballads. Called the "Dean of American Balladeers", Niles was an important influence on the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, with Joan Baez, Burl Ives, and Peter, Paul and Mary, among others,...
(1958) - The Rising of the Moon: Irish Songs of RebellionThe Rising of the Moon (album)The Rising of the Moon: Irish Songs of Rebellion is a collection of traditional Irish folk songs performed by The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. It was initially recorded in 1956. During the original recording, the only instrument used was Paddy's harmonica and there was little harmonization,...
by The Clancy BrothersThe Clancy BrothersThe Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk music singing group, most popular in the 1960s, they were famed for their woolly Aran jumpers and are widely credited with popularizing Irish traditional music in the United States. The brothers were Patrick "Paddy" Clancy, Tom Clancy, Bobby Clancy...
with Tommy MakemTommy MakemThomas "Tommy" Makem was an internationally celebrated Irish folk musician, artist, poet and storyteller. He was best known as a member of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. He played the long-necked 5-string banjo, guitar, tin whistle, and bagpipes, and sang in a distinctive baritone...
(1956 and 1959 re-recording) - Come Fill Your Glass with UsCome Fill Your Glass with UsCome Fill Your Glass with Us - Irish Songs of Drinking & Blackguarding is a collection of traditional Irish drinking songs performed by The Clancy Brothers with often time collaborator Tommy Makem...
by The Clancy Brothers with Tommy Makem (1959) - An Evening With John Jacob Niles by John Jacob NilesJohn Jacob NilesJohn Jacob Niles was an American composer, singer, and collector of traditional ballads. Called the "Dean of American Balladeers", Niles was an important influence on the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, with Joan Baez, Burl Ives, and Peter, Paul and Mary, among others,...
(1959) - Classic Scots Ballads by Ewan MacCollEwan MacCollEwan MacColl was an English folk singer, songwriter, socialist, actor, poet, playwright, and record producer. He was married to theatre director Joan Littlewood, and later to American folksinger Peggy Seeger. He collaborated with Littlewood in the theatre and with Seeger in folk music...
and Peggy SeegerPeggy SeegerMargaret "Peggy" Seeger is an American folksinger. She is also well known in Britain, where she lived for more than 30 years with her husband, singer and songwriter Ewan MacColl.- The first American period :...
(1959) - Heather and Glen: Songs and Melodies of Highland and Lowland Scotland by Alan LomaxAlan LomaxAlan Lomax was an American folklorist and ethnomusicologist. He was one of the great field collectors of folk music of the 20th century, recording thousands of songs in the United States, Great Britain, Ireland, the Caribbean, Italy, and Spain.In his later career, Lomax advanced his theories of...
, Calum McLean and Hamish HendersonHamish HendersonHamish Scott Henderson, was a Scottish poet, songwriter, soldier, and intellectual....
(1959) - The Tradition Folk Song Sampler (1959)
- Carols for All SeasonsCarols for All SeasonsCarols For All Seasons is an album by Jean Ritchie. It was recorded with two classical musicians, which is not unusual for the late 1950s. The sound anticipates the slightly baroque arrangements that Shirley Collins would later use on Anthems in Eden...
by Jean RitchieJean RitchieJean Ritchie is an American folk singer, songwriter, and Appalachian dulcimer player.- Out of Kentucky :Abigail and Balis Ritchie of Viper, Kentucky had 14 children, and Jean was the youngest...
(1959) - Anthology of American Folk Songs by Barbara DaneBarbara DaneBarbara Dane is an American folk, blues, and jazz singer.-Early life:Barbara Dane's parents arrived in Detroit from Arkansas in the 1920s. Out of high school, Dane began to sing regularly at demonstrations for racial equality and economic justice. While still in her teens, she sat in with bands...
(1959) (originally When I Was a Young Girl on Everest, reissued in 1997 on Ryko/Tradition) - Pie in the Sky by Oscar BrandOscar BrandOscar Brand is a folk singer, songwriter, and author. In his career, spanning over 60 years, he has composed at least 300 songs and released nearly 100 albums, among them Canadian and American patriotic songs...
(1960) - The Folk Songs Tradition (1960) (reissued 2005)
- The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem by The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem (1961)