Command Records was a

record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...

founded by

Enoch Light Enoch Henry Light (August 18, 1907 – July 31, 1978) was an American classically trained violinist, danceband leader, and recording engineer. As the leader of various dance bands that recorded as early as March 1927 and continuing through a ...

in 1959 and, in October that year, was acquired by

ABC-Paramount Records ABC Records was an American record label founded in New York City in 1955. It originated as the main popular music label operated by the Am-Par Record Corporation. Am-Par also created the Impulse! Records, Impulse! jazz label in 1960. It acquire ...

. Light produced a majority of the releases in the label's catalog.

Origin and history

After

Grand Award Records Grand Award Records was a pop, jazz, and gospel music record label founded by violinist and conductor Enoch Light in Harrison, New Jersey in 1955. Light used the liner notes to describe how the records were made and to advertise their importanc ...

, the company focused on producing records targeted at audiophiles. Light and sound engineer Bob Fine handled the recording and engineering responsibilities, employing the technique of multiple microphone pickups. They used different types of microphones whose characteristics were best suited to reproduce the sounds of a particular instrument. Command Records often featured abstract covers. In the early years, all covers were designed by

Josef Albers Josef Albers ( , , ; March 19, 1888March 25, 1976) was a German-born American artist and Visual arts education, educator who is considered one of the most influential 20th-century art teachers in the United States. Born in 1888 in Bottrop, Westp ...

, whose student Charles E. Murphy served as design director. Several are in the collection of the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

in New York City. Later covers appeared to be imitations of Albers' work. In 1966, Light left Command to form Project 3 Records.

Recording technique

While the recording industry had made

magnetic tape Magnetic tape is a medium for magnetic storage made of a thin, magnetizable coating on a long, narrow strip of plastic film. It was developed in Germany in 1928, based on the earlier magnetic wire recording from Denmark. Devices that use magnetic ...

the standard for recording music for release on vinyl, Command's albums were recorded onto magnetic 35mm film. Light used the width of the film strip to create

multitrack recording Multitrack recording (MTR), also known as multitracking, is a method of sound recording developed in 1955 that allows for the separate recording of multiple sound sources or of sound sources recorded at different times to create a cohesive who ...

s, as opposed to the more limited two or three tracks offered by most recording studios at the time; the slightly higher linear speed provided an advantage in analog fidelity and the sprocket-driven film limited the "wow and flutter" problems associated with tape recording. This enabled Light to record more instruments individually and adjust their audio input levels, as well as their stereo position.

Command test record

The Command test record (Stereo Check Out) was an

LP album The LP (from long playing or long play) is an analog sound storage medium, specifically a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specificati ...

produced by Command Records in 1960. It contained recordings designed to allow users to test their

stereo Stereophonic sound, commonly shortened to stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configurat ...

equipment.

Album details

Like many other Command records, the Stereo Check Out came in a

gatefold A gatefold cover or gatefold LP is a form of packaging for gramophone record, LP records that became popular in the mid-1960s. A gatefold cover, when folded, is the same size as a standard LP cover (i.e., a 12½-inch 2.7-centimetresquare). ...

cover with extensive liner notes and full technical data inside. Charles Stark narrated both sides, providing both technical details and information about the musical instruments used on the tracks on Side Two.

Side one

Side One of this LP consists of turntable tests. An

oscilloscope An oscilloscope (formerly known as an oscillograph, informally scope or O-scope) is a type of electronic test instrument that graphically displays varying voltages of one or more signals as a function of time. Their main purpose is capturing i ...

is a useful tool when used in conjunction with these tests: # Stereo Balance Check # Left and Right Channel Check #

Volume Volume is a measure of regions in three-dimensional space. It is often quantified numerically using SI derived units (such as the cubic metre and litre) or by various imperial or US customary units (such as the gallon, quart, cubic inch) ...

Reference Check #

Frequency Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. Frequency is an important parameter used in science and engineering to specify the rate of oscillatory and vibratory phenomena, such as mechanical vibrations, audio ...

Run Check # Output Balance Check # Flutter or Wow Check #

Phasing A phaser is an electronic sound processor used to filter a signal by creating a series of peaks and troughs in the frequency spectrum. The position of the peaks and troughs of the waveform being affected is typically modulated by an intern ...

Check #

Acoustical Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including topics such as vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician ...

Check # Rumble Check

Side two

Side Two of this LP consists of musical selections from the Command catalogue: #

Hernando's Hideaway "Hernando's Hideaway" is a tango show tune, largely in long metre, from the musical ''The Pajama Game'', written by Jerry Ross and Richard Adler and published in 1954. It was sung in the stage and film versions of the musical by Carol Haney. The ...

(from

Provocative Percussion ''Provocative Percussion'' is a studio album by Enoch Light and The Light Brigade, also known as the Command All-Stars. It was released in 1959 on Command Records (catalog no. RS 806-SD).Liner notes on back cover and inside the gatefold of the "Pr ...

Vol II) # Cumana (from Provocative Piano) #

Tenderly "Tenderly" is a popular song published in 1946 with music by Walter Gross and lyrics by Jack Lawrence. Written in the key of E as a waltz in time, it has since been performed in and has become a popular jazz standard. Notable versions have bee ...

(from

bongos Bongos (Spanish language, Spanish: ''bongó'') are an Afro-Cubans, Afro-Cuban percussion instrument consisting of a pair of small open bottomed hand drums of different sizes. The pair consists of the larger ''hembra'' () and the smaller ''macho'' ...

) # Enjoy Yourself Cha-Cha (from Pertinent Percussion Cha-Cha's)

Selected albums

# Enoch Light...And His Orchestra – A Discothèque Dance...Dance...Dance # Enoch Light...And His Orchestra – Paperback Ballet # Enoch Light...And The Light Brigade – Big Bold And Brassy # Enoch Light...And The Light Brigade – Vibrations # Enoch Light...Big Band Bossa Nova – The New Beat From Brazil # Enoch Light...And The Light Brigade - Happy Cha Cha # Enoch Light...Command Performances # Los Admiradores - Bongos/Flutes/Guitars RS 812 SD 1960 # Off Beat Percussion – Don Lamond and His Orchestra # Terry Snyder And The All Stars –

Persuasive Percussion ''Persuasive Percussion'' was an LP album performed by Terry Snyder and the All Stars and released in 1959 by Command Records (run by Enoch Light). The packaging includes the first use of the gatefold cover which, upon being unfolded, lists info ...

# Terry Snyder And The All Stars – Persuasive Percussion Volume 2 # Terry Snyder And The All Stars – Persuasive Percussion Volume 3 # Enoch Light...And The Command All Stars – Persuasive Percussion Volume 4 # Enoch Light...And The Light Brigade –

# Enoch Light...And The Light Brigade – Provocative Percussion Volume 2 # Provocation Piano – Dick Hyman and His Orchestra # The Man From O.R.G.A.N. – Dick Hyman # Spanish Guitar – Tony Mottola and his orchestra (1962) # Persuasive Trombone of Urbie Green Volume 1 # Persuasive Trombone of Urbie Green Volume 2 # Enoch Light...& The Light Brigade – A New Concept of Great Cole Porter Songs CQD40002 1971 # Doc Severinsen...His Trumpet and Orchestra Fever! CQD40003 1971 # Ravel – Daphnis Et Chloe, Suite No.2 -Pierre Dervaux Command Classics CC33-11005 1961 # Ravel Bolero – Rapsodie Espagnole- Pierre Dervaux Command Classics CC33-11007 1961 # Tony Mottola And His Orchestra – Roman Guitar RS 816 SD

References

{{Authority control Defunct record labels of the United States American jazz record labels American companies established in 1959 Mass media companies established in 1959