Some Favourite Record Labels II

Introduction

I thought I would put together some songs from my favourite record labels. Although my tastes tend to be rock-based, I am very eclectic and sometimes things do cross over. I love soul, classical, folk, but I am not enamoured by happy techno, the stuff that comes from commercialised talent shows, and Eurovision, although there are obvious exceptions.

Now record labels, like everything else, are just soulless corporate entities, and so many people think that Spotify, iTunes and other streaming platforms are music, rather than the actual artists that produce the music.

Labels used to care for and nurture musicians, now it's just about making a quick buck.

This is a follow-up to this piece (which I took the image from):

So here we go, with some from the labels pictured and some from other excellent labels.

My friend Christ Morton was a designer for many of teh Stiff Records covers and you can check him out in my interview here.

This has some pictures and tunes from my Stiff collection

Nick Lowe - "So It Goes" from "Jesus of Cool"

I wasn't sure which Stiff record to feature, but I always loved this Nick Lowe song, which was the best Thin Lizzy song that they never wrote, in my opinion.

Factory records were formed by Tony Wilson and a few others and were a failed try of style over substance, but still gave us some amazing music.

Marcel King - "Reach For Love"

Shaun Ryder of The Happy Mondays and Black Grape said his favourite Factory record was Marcel King's "Reach For Love". I can't disagree with him and have three copies of it on twelve-inch vinyl.

I do have a lot of Motown records, but the label has been subsumed into the Universal Music conglomerate.

Frank Wilson - "Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)"

There are so many records I could have chosen, but this one nearly never saw the light of day and became the most expensive vinyl record you could buy at one point.

Since then, it has been released on digital formats, and I have my own vinyl reissue, which gets a lot of plays.

Here is the Wiki entry on the record.

Harry J All Stars - "Liquidator"

Some time in the early seventies, I worked on a fairground at Moor Park in Preston. This record was on almost constantly, mixed with other ska anthems. I loved it, and it didn't go well with my greaser friends, but my taste has always been eclectic.

This has been adopted by Chelsea Football Club, and was, of course, a favourite with the skinheads and mods that I knew.

I have written about the Charisma label before and have a lot of music on the label:

Cliffor T Ward - "Gaye" from "Home Thoughts From Abroad"

This was the first song I heard from Clifford T Ward, and I still love the beautiful guitar lines, although the song itself may be a little twee for some listeners. I still love it.

I chose it as a Charisma example because it has just finished on my player, and I might play it once more.

My article above contains a lot of information and songs from the Harvest label, and I still love the design of it.

The Move - "Do Ya" from "Message From The Country"

This is my Harvest choice, and is, in my opinion, Jeff Lynne's finest composition. He covered it with the Electric Light Orchestra, and Todd Rundgren's Utopia covered it on "Another Live".

Jeff Lynne developed the format with "Ma Ma Belle", but "Do Ya" is a perfect block chord song, which any new guitar player can pick up quickly.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading, and I hope you have found some music you like in here, or via one of the links.