Bizarre Records, self-identified simply as Bizarre, was a

production company A production company, production house or production studio is a studio that creates works in the fields of performing arts, new media art, film, television show, television, radio, comics, interactive arts, video games, websites, music, and video ...

and

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, ...

formed for artists discovered by rock musician

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American guitarist, composer, and bandleader. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa composed Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, jazz fusion, orchestra ...

and his business partner/manager

Herb Cohen Herbert Cohen (December 30, 1932 – March 16, 2010) was an American personal manager, record company executive, and music publisher, best known as the manager of Judy Henske, Linda Ronstadt, Frank Zappa, Tim Buckley, Odetta, Tom Waits, Geor ...

History

Bizarre was originally formed as a production company. In 1967 Zappa's label,

Verve Records Verve Records is an active American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Ca ...

, missed the deadline to renew their option on Zappa's recording contract after his second album, '' Absolutely Free'', recorded with his group

the Mothers of Invention The Mothers of Invention (also known as the Mothers) were an American rock music, rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Originally an ...

. This gave Zappa and Cohen the upper hand in negotiating their own production deal with Verve. The purpose of forming his own production company was to give Zappa complete creative control over his work and the works he planned to produce for others. The first albums associated with Bizarre were released in early 1968. These included '' We're Only in It for the Money'' by the Mothers of Invention and '' Lumpy Gravy'', Zappa's first solo album. Other Zappa-related releases were '' Cruising with Ruben & the Jets'' (1968) and the compilation album '' Mothermania'' (1969). The company also produced the late 1968 release ''Sandy's Album Is Here at Last'' by singer-songwriter Sandra Hurvitz, now better known as Essra Mohawk. These albums were all released by

with the Bizarre logo added to the label. In early 1969 Bizarre was established as a record label distributed by the Warner Bros. Records family of labels, which also included

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Green Day, En ...

. The Bizarre label was formed at the same time as a companion label,

Straight Records Straight Records, self-identified simply as Straight, was a record label formed in 1969 to distribute productions and discoveries of Frank Zappa and his business partner/manager Herb Cohen. Straight was formed at the same time as a companion l ...

, also distributed by Warner Bros. When the Bizarre and Straight labels were created, Zappa's intention was to release albums by avant-garde artists on Bizarre, and recordings by more mainstream artists on Straight. The first release in this series was a double album, ''The Berkeley Concert'', by Lenny Bruce. Early US pressings on Bizarre used a distinctive blue label design. Bizarre also released the double album debut of Wild Man Fischer, titled '' An Evening with Wild Man Fischer'', in early 1969. However, the original Bizarre concept failed to work out as expected due to issues with distribution and management. This led to some very unusual albums on the Straight label especially those by Captain Beefheart,

Alice Cooper Vincent Damon Furnier (born February 4, 1948), known by his stage name Alice Cooper, is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusion ...

and the GTOs. Zappa and the Mothers of Invention were the only artists who stayed with Bizarre. Zappa released eight of his own albums with and without the Mothers of Invention on Bizarre from 1969 to 1972. The only Zappa project not on Bizarre during this period was the '' 200 Motels'' film soundtrack album, released by

United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1958 ...

in 1971. By 1973 the original Bizarre and Straight distribution contracts with Warner ended. Many Bizarre and Straight recordings were re-issued by Warner and/or Reprise. Re-issues in the 1970s featured an orange Reprise Records label sometimes with a Bizarre logo. The same year Zappa and Cohen chose to launch a new company,

DiscReet Records DiscReet Records, self-identified simply as DiscReet, was a record label founded by Frank Zappa and his then business partner and manager Herb Cohen. The name of the label was a pun derived from disc and the Compatible Discrete 4 process of ...

, once again distributed by Warner Bros. The Zappa/Mothers titles on Bizarre were available on Reprise until 1981. The back catalog was remastered (some remixed and expanded) by Zappa and leased to

Rykodisc Rykodisc is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, operating as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance. History Claiming to be the first CD-only independent record label ...

for reissue between 1987 and 1993. After Zappa's death in 1993, his widow Gail Zappa's relationship with Ryko soured and she eventually struck a deal with

Universal Music Enterprises Universal Music Enterprises (UME, stylized as UMe) is the catalogue division of Universal Music Group. It includes Hip-O Records, Universal Chronicles, and UM3 or UMC (which is the international division of the company). Under various divisions, ...

in 2012 to yet again re-issue the entire back-catalog the following year. In 1988, Cohen licensed (from Warner Bros.) several of the albums that had been released on Bizarre and Straight and released them through Enigma Retro, including albums by

Tim Buckley Timothy Charles Buckley III (February 14, 1947 – June 29, 1975) was an American musician. He began his career based in folk rock, but subsequently experimented with genres such as psychedelia, jazz, the avant-garde, and funk paired with his ...

, Alice Cooper, and Beefheart, and called the label "Bizarre/Straight Records". Bizarre/Straight also released Lenny Bruce's ''The Berkeley Concert'' on CD and cassette. After Enigma went out of business in 1991, the label moved to

Rhino Records A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...

for several years. Several of the albums that had been released on Bizarre/Straight eventually were re-released on

Manifesto Records Manifesto Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles, California that has released records by Dead Kennedys, Tim Buckley, Cinerama (band), Cinerama, Concrete Blonde, Cranes (band), Cranes, The Czars, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Lilys, ...

, established in 1995 and run by Evan Cohen, who is Herb Cohen's nephew. '' An Evening with Wild Man Fischer'' was finally released on CD in March 2016. On April 1, 2018, Frank Zappa's official

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

presence announced an impending reissue of Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band's '' Trout Mask Replica'' (originally a Straight release), in a deluxe package released by Third Man Records. The press release also mentioned the impending relaunch of the Bizarre imprint, but no further information is currently available on said relaunch.

Discography

Albums

* Sandy Hurvitz – ''Sandy's Album Is Here at Last'' - December 9, 1968 - V6-5064 * Lenny Bruce – ''The Berkeley Concert'' - February 17, 1969 - 2XS-6329(1) * The Mothers of Invention – '' Mothermania: The Best of The Mothers'' - March 24, 1969 - V6-5068 * The Mothers of Invention – '' Uncle Meat'' - April 21, 1969 - 2MS-2024(2)data retrieved from ''BSN Pubs.com'' sit

retrieved October 21, 2014. * Wild Man Fischer – '' An Evening with Wild Man Fischer'' - April 28, 1969 - 2XS-6332(1) * Frank Zappa – '' Hot Rats'' - October 15, 1969 - RS-6356(1) * Various – ''Zappéd'' - November 10, 1969; February 3, 1970 - PRO368 * The Mothers of Invention – '' Burnt Weeny Sandwich'' - February 9, 1970 - RS-6370(1) * The Mothers of Invention – '' Weasels Ripped My Flesh'' - August 10, 1970 - MS-2028(2) * Frank Zappa – '' Chunga's Revenge'' - October 23, 1970 - MS-2030(2) * The Mothers of Invention – '' Fillmore East – June 1971'' - August 2, 1971 - MS-2042(2) * The Mothers of Invention – '' Just Another Band from L.A.'' - March 26, 1972 - MS-2075(2) * Frank Zappa – '' Waka/Jawaka'' - July 5, 1972 - MS-2094(2) * The Mothers – '' The Grand Wazoo'' - November 27, 1972 - MS-2093(2) data retrieved from ''Globalia.net'' site, ''Zappa Related Labels Discography'' sectio

retrieved October 21, 2014. (1): ''Reprise Records 2000 Series Numbering'' (2): ''Reprise Records 6000 Series Numbering''

Singles

* Wild Man Fischer – ''The Circle/Merry-Go-Round'' (7" single) - September 10, 1968 - 0781 * The Mothers of Invention – ''My Guitar/Dog Breath'' (7" single) - September 1, 1969 - 0840 * The Mothers of Invention – ''WPLJ/My Guitar'' (7" single) - February 23, 1970 - 0892 * Frank Zappa – ''Tell Me You Love Me/Will You Go All The Way for the U.S.A.?'' (7" single) - November 9, 1970 - 0967 * The Mothers – ''Tears Began To Fall/Junier Mintz Boogie'' (7" single) - October 20, 1971 - 1052 * The Mothers – ''Cletus Awreetus-Awrightus/Eat That Question'' (7" single) - November 6, 1972 - REP1127

List of Bizarre Records artists

The Mothers of Invention The Mothers of Invention (also known as the Mothers) were an American rock music, rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Originally an ...

* Wild Man Fischer * Lenny Bruce * Sandy Hurvitz

References

External links

Discography of Zappa related record labels
{{Authority control Defunct record labels of the United States Frank Zappa Vanity record labels Record labels based in California Record labels disestablished in 1974