Electro-Fi Records is a Canadian award-winning

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small and medium-sized enterprise, small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels ...

founded in 1996, based in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Canada, which specializes in the release of

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

records.

History

Electro-Fi Records was founded in 1996 by Andrew Galloway, with assistance from Gary Collver and Alec Fraser. Galloway started the label shortly before turning forty, following a career in corporate communications. Collver's background was in photography and media. Fraser, a bassist and vocalist, was a professional musician and record producer. Since its formation, the label has released over fifty albums of original blues material. It has specialized in releases which pair experienced American blues musicians, such as

Willie "Big Eyes" Smith Willie Lee "Big Eyes" Smith (January 19, 1936 – September 16, 2011) was an American electric blues vocalist, harmonica player, and drummer. He was best known for several stints with the Muddy Waters band beginning in the early 1960s. Biograp ...

and Curley Bridges, with Canadian musicians. The 2009 Electro-Fi release of ''Ramblin' Son'', by Julian Fauth, won the

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

for Blues Album of the Year, as did the 2004 Electro-Fi release of ''Painkiller'', by

Morgan Davis Morgan Davis is a Canadian blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He was born and spent his childhood in Detroit, Michigan, before relocating to Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 2001.Chris MartinWhat's in the air at ...

. Galloway and Fraser co-produced ''Ramblin' Son'' with Fauth, with the album also mixed and co-engineered by Fraser. In addition, Fraser, who co-produced the ''Painkiller'' album with Davis, won the 2004 Maple Blues Award for Producer of the Year. An earlier release by Electro-Fi, ''Blues Weather'', by Fathead, won the 1999 Juno Award for Blues Album of the Year. A 2001 Electro-Fi release by Mel Brown and The Homewreckers, ''Neck Bones & Caviar'', being Brown's debut record on the label, won the W.C. Handy Award for Comeback Album of the Year. The album was co-produced by Galloway and mixed by Fraser.

Artists recording for Electro-Fi

Billy Boy Arnold William "Billy Boy" Arnold (born September 16, 1935) is an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter. Arnold is a self-taught harmonica player and has worked with blues legends such as Bo Diddley, Johnny Shines, Otis Rush, Earl H ...

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...

* Bobby Dean Blackburn * Diana Braithwaite * Curley Bridges * Mel Brown * Enrico Crivellaro *

* Fathead * Fruteland Jackson *

Harmonica Shah Seward Daward Shah, known as Harmonica Shah (born March 31, 1946) is an American Detroit blues, Detroit and electric blues harmonica, harmonicist and singer. His playing was influenced by Junior Wells, Jimmy Reed, Little Walter, Lazy Lester, an ...

* Julian Fauth *

James Harman James Gary Harman (June 8, 1946 – May 23, 2021) was an American blues harmonica player, singer, and songwriter. The music journalist Tony Russell described Harman as an "amusing songwriter and an excellent, unfussy blues harp player". Biograp ...

Mark Hummel Mark Hummel (born December 15, 1955) is an American blues harmonica player, vocalist, songwriter, and long-time bandleader of the Blues Survivors. Since 1991, Hummel has produced the Blues Harmonica Blowout tour, of which he is also a featured pe ...

* Andrew "Jr. Boy" Jones * Harrison Kennedy * Johnny Laws * John Mays * Miss Angel *

Sam Myers Samuel Joseph Myers (February 19, 1936 – July 17, 2006) was an American blues musician and songwriter. He was an accompanist on dozens of recordings by blues artists over five decades. He began his career as a drummer for Elmore James but was ...

Paul Oscher Paul Allan Oscher (February 26, 1947 – April 18, 2021) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist. Primarily a harmonica player, he was the first permanent white member of Muddy Waters' band.Norman Darwen, "Obituary: Paul ...

Gary Primich Gary Primich (April 20, 1958 – September 23, 2007) was an American blues harmonica player, singer, guitarist and songwriter. He is best known for his 1995 album, ''Mr. Freeze''. Biography Gary Alan Primich was born in Chicago, Illinois, b ...

* Rip Lee Pryor *

Snooky Pryor James Edward "Snooky" Pryor (September 15, 1919 or 1921 – October 18, 2006) was an American Chicago blues harmonica player. He claimed to have pioneered the now-common method of playing amplified harmonica by cupping a small microphone in hi ...

Shakura S'Aida Shakura S'Aida is a Canadian blues vocalist, songwriter and actress. She is sometimes credited Shakura. History Shakura S'Aida was born in Brooklyn and lived in Switzerland before moving to Canada. S'Aida was lead singer of the 13-piece world ...

Little Mack Simmons Malcolm "Little Mack" Simmons (January 25, 1933 – October 24, 2000) was an American Chicago blues harmonica player, singer, and songwriter. Biography Simmons was born in Twist, Arkansas. In his youth, he befriended James Cotton, and both lear ...

George "Harmonica" Smith George "Harmonica" Smith (born Allen George Smith, April 22, 1924 – October 2, 1983) was an American electric blues harmonica player. Apart from his solo recordings, Smith is best known for his work backing both Muddy Waters and Big Mama Thornt ...

Finis Tasby Finis Tasby (February 1, 1939 – November 2, 2014) was a Los Angeles based blues singer and frontman for the group The Mannish Boys. Background and career There is some confusion over his birth details, depending on which source is referenced. ...

Lil' Dave Thompson David Lonzo Thompson (May 21, 1969 – February 14, 2010) was an American electric blues guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known by his stage name Lil' Dave Thompson. He is best known for his tracks "She Didn't Say Goodbye" and "I Got the B ...

Kenny "Blues Boss" Wayne Kenny "Blues Boss" Wayne (born Kenneth Wayne Spruell, November 13, 1944) is an American blues, boogie-woogie and jazz pianist, singer and songwriter. Music journalist, Jeff Johnson, writing in the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' stated, "There's no boogie ...

* Chris Whiteley * Sharrie Williams

References

{{Authority control Canadian independent record labels Record labels established in 1996