True Tone Records (Australian label)
Encyclopedia
True Tone Records was an Australia
n based record label
. It was founded by Michael Crawley in the 1980s. The label was distributed by Polygram Records.
but never recorded anything for True Tone and the band went on to sign with the UK label, Beggars Banquet Records
. True Tone did however provide the Australian release of the Go-Between's fifth album, Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express
(1986), as well as The Able Label Singles (1987).
True Tone also signed Rockmelons
, releasing the band's first singles, "Time Out (For Serious Fun)" (1985), "Sweat It Out", and "Rhymes" (1987), as well as their debut album, Tales of the City
(1988). When vocalist Peter Blakeley
left the band he was also signed by True Tone and released his 1987 mini-album Vicious.
In 1986, the label signed Ed Kuepper
(The Saints
), releasing his second and third solo albums, Rooms Of The Magnificent (1986) and Everybody's Got To (1988).
Stephen Cummings
then signed to the label in 1987, releasing the albums Lovetown (1988), New Kind of Blue (1989), and Good Humour (1991).
The label however went bankrupt in the early 1990s.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n based 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,...
. It was founded by Michael Crawley in the 1980s. The label was distributed by Polygram Records.
History
True Tone signed Gang Gajang and released the band's first single "Gimme Some Lovin'" in 1984, as well as their first two albums, Gang Gajang (1985) and Gang Again (1987). In 1985 the label signed The Go-BetweensThe Go-Betweens
The Go-Betweens were an indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Australia in 1977 by singer-songwriters and guitarists, Robert Forster and Grant McLennan. They were later joined by Lindy Morrison on drums, Robert Vickers on bass guitar and Amanda Brown on violin, oboe, guitar, and backing vocals,...
but never recorded anything for True Tone and the band went on to sign with the UK label, Beggars Banquet Records
Beggars Banquet Records
Beggars Banquet is an English independent record label that began as a chain of record shops owned by Martin Mills and Nick Austin, and is part of the Beggars Group of labels...
. True Tone did however provide the Australian release of the Go-Between's fifth album, Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express
Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express
Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express, the fourth album by The Go-Betweens, was released in 1986 in the UK on Beggars Banquet Records, the record label that would release the remainder of the original group's LPs through their breakup in 1989. The album was recorded at Berry Street Studios...
(1986), as well as The Able Label Singles (1987).
True Tone also signed Rockmelons
Rockmelons
Rockmelons, often referred to as the Rockies, are an Australian Pop/Dance/R&B group formed in 1983 in Sydney. They are based around Bryon Jones, his brother Jonathon Jones and Raymond Medhurst. They had two Top Five hit singles in the early 1990s with "Ain't No Sunshine" and "That Word ", both sung...
, releasing the band's first singles, "Time Out (For Serious Fun)" (1985), "Sweat It Out", and "Rhymes" (1987), as well as their debut album, Tales of the City
Tales of the City
Tales of the City refers to a series of eight novels written by American author Armistead Maupin. The stories from Tales were originally serialized prior to their novelization, with the first four titles appearing as regular installments in the San Francisco Chronicle, while the fifth appeared in...
(1988). When vocalist Peter Blakeley
Peter Blakeley
Peter Blakeley is an Australian White Soul/Adult Contemporary singer and songwriter.Blakeley was a lead singer for The Rockmelons in the mid-1980s. He launched a solo career in 1987 and had a massive hit single in Australia in 1990 with "Crying in the Chapel", which was not a remake of the 1950s...
left the band he was also signed by True Tone and released his 1987 mini-album Vicious.
In 1986, the label signed Ed Kuepper
Ed Kuepper
Ed Kuepper is an Australian guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. He co-founded the seminal punk band The Saints, the experimental post-punk group Laughing Clowns and later the grunge-like The Aints...
(The Saints
The Saints (band)
The Saints are an Australian rock band, which formed in Brisbane in 1974 as punk rockers. Founders were Chris Bailey , Ivor Hay , and Ed Kuepper . Alongside mainstay Bailey, the group has had numerous line-ups...
), releasing his second and third solo albums, Rooms Of The Magnificent (1986) and Everybody's Got To (1988).
Stephen Cummings
Stephen Cummings
Stephen Donald Cummings is an Australian rock singer-songwriter and writer. He was lead singer of Melbourne-based rock band, The Sports, during 1976–1981, followed by a solo career which has met with critical acclaim but has had limited commercial success...
then signed to the label in 1987, releasing the albums Lovetown (1988), New Kind of Blue (1989), and Good Humour (1991).
The label however went bankrupt in the early 1990s.
Artist roster
The label was responsible for releases by:- Gang Gajang
- The Go-BetweensThe Go-BetweensThe Go-Betweens were an indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Australia in 1977 by singer-songwriters and guitarists, Robert Forster and Grant McLennan. They were later joined by Lindy Morrison on drums, Robert Vickers on bass guitar and Amanda Brown on violin, oboe, guitar, and backing vocals,...
- RockmelonsRockmelonsRockmelons, often referred to as the Rockies, are an Australian Pop/Dance/R&B group formed in 1983 in Sydney. They are based around Bryon Jones, his brother Jonathon Jones and Raymond Medhurst. They had two Top Five hit singles in the early 1990s with "Ain't No Sunshine" and "That Word ", both sung...
- Ed KuepperEd KuepperEd Kuepper is an Australian guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. He co-founded the seminal punk band The Saints, the experimental post-punk group Laughing Clowns and later the grunge-like The Aints...
- Peter BlakeleyPeter BlakeleyPeter Blakeley is an Australian White Soul/Adult Contemporary singer and songwriter.Blakeley was a lead singer for The Rockmelons in the mid-1980s. He launched a solo career in 1987 and had a massive hit single in Australia in 1990 with "Crying in the Chapel", which was not a remake of the 1950s...
- The Celibate RiflesThe Celibate RiflesThe Celibate Rifles are a punk rock band from Sydney, Australia.The band was formed in 1979 and released their first album Sideroxylon in April 1983 on the Hot Records label...