Janus Records was a

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the prod ...

owned by GRT Records, also known as General Recorded Tape. The label was in operation from 1969 to 1979.

History

Janus was founded in July 1969 as a joint venture of GRT and British label

Pye Records Pye Records was a British record label. Its best known artists were Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), the Searchers (1963–1967), the Kinks (1964–1971), Sandie Shaw (1964–1971), Status Quo (1968–1971) and Brothe ...

. In its early years of operation the bulk of Janus' acts were U.S. issues of Pye product. Its first major hit was " Baby Take Me in Your Arms" by Jefferson, in late 1969. Other acts in Janus' early years included Pye artists Status Quo,

Pickettywitch Pickettywitch was a British pop group. Fronted by singer Polly Brown (also billed as Polly Browne), the group became best known for its hit single, " That Same Old Feeling", which was written by Tony Macaulay and John Macleod. It reached n ...

and Sounds Orchestral. Up to the early 1970s, the label's president was Marvin Schlactner, who later ran the ill-fated U.S. Pye label, which by 1976 evolved into

Prelude Records Prelude Records was a New York-based independent record label that was active from 1976 to 1986. At one time, François Kevorkian held an A&R position at Prelude. The label's owner was Marvin Schlachter. History Prelude was first launched in 1 ...

. GRT assumed sole ownership of Janus in 1971, after Pye pulled out of the venture."Music Tapes Are Profitable"
(p. 16). ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'', September 25, 1971. Retrieved 2012-03-26. Ed Dejoy of Baltimore, MD followed Schlactner as President.

Allan Mason Allan Mason is an American record producer and A&R executive. Music career Mason was the vice president in charge of A&R when GRT Records assumed sole ownership of Janus Records in 1971, after Pye Records pulled out of the venture. Mason, a ...

was Vice President in charge of A&R. Artists who had hits on Janus included Potliquor,

Mungo Jerry Mungo Jerry are a British rock band, formed by Ray Dorset in Ashford, Middlesex in 1970. Experiencing their greatest success in the early 1970s, with a changing lineup always fronted by Ray Dorset, the group's biggest hit was " In the Summerti ...

The Whispers The Whispers is an American group from Los Angeles, California, who have scored hit records since the late 1960s. They are best known for their two number one R&B singles, " And the Beat Goes On" in 1980 and " Rock Steady" in 1987. The Whispe ...

Cymande Cymande (pronounced ) is a British funk group that was originally active in the early 1970s. The band name derives from a calypso word for "dove", which symbolises peace and love; "Dove" is also the title of one of their best-known songs. Wit ...

Charlie Charlie may refer to: Characters * "Charlie," the head of the Townsend Agency', from the ''Charlie's Angels'' franchise * Charlie, a character on signs for the CharlieCard, a smart card issued by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority * ...

Al Stewart Alastair Ian Stewart (born 5 September 1945) is a Scottish born singer-songwriter and folk-rock musician who rose to prominence as part of the British folk revival in the 1960s and 1970s. He developed a unique style of combining folk-rock so ...

, Ian Thomas, Dickie Goodman and

Ray Stevens Harold Ray Ragsdale (born January 24, 1939), known professionally as Ray Stevens, is an American country and pop singer-songwriter and comedian, known for his Grammy-winning recordings "Everything Is Beautiful" and "Misty", as well as novelty ...

on Barnaby Records. Janus also released

Scott English Sheldon David "Scott" English (January 10, 1937 – November 16, 2018) was an American songwriter, arranger and record producer. He is best known as the co-writer of " Brandy" which he wrote with Richard Kerr. This song became a No. 1 hit f ...

's original recording of " Brandy", which would be covered in 1974 by

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

as " Mandy".

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and r ...

was administered as a division of Janus in the early 1970s. Janus also distributed

Westbound Records Westbound Records was a Detroit-based record label founded by Armen Boladian in 1968. It had a distribution deal with Janus Records from 1970 to 1975, but then it switched distribution to 20th Century Records during 1975 and 1976, but again swit ...

from 1970 until 1975, and Barnaby Records from 1974 to 1979. In the early 1970s Janus also released American editions of recordings made by

Bill Haley & His Comets Bill Haley & His Comets were an American rock and roll band founded in 1947 that continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band was also known as Bill Haley and the Comets and Bill Haley's Comets. From late 1954 to late 1956, the group record ...

for the European

Sonet Records Sonet Records was a jazz, pop and rock record label operating as an imprint of Universal Music Sweden. It was founded in Sweden in 1956. Sonet Records was established by Sven Lindholm and Gunnar Bergström, who managed the label into the 1980s. ...

label (including the 1971 single "A Little Piece at a Time" (Janus 162), which would be Haley's final North American 45 rpm single release). They also released recordings by the British

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...

band

Camel A camel (from: la, camelus and grc-gre, κάμηλος (''kamēlos'') from Hebrew or Phoenician: גָמָל ''gāmāl''.) is an even-toed ungulate in the genus ''Camelus'' that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. ...

as well as titles by

Kayak A kayak is a small, narrow watercraft which is typically propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle. The word kayak originates from the Greenlandic word '' qajaq'' (). The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each ...

Harvey Mandel Harvey Mandel (born March 11, 1945) is an American guitarist best known as a member of Canned Heat. He also played with Charlie Musselwhite and John Mayall as well as maintaining a solo career. Early life Mandel was born in Detroit, Michigan, a ...

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

Lucifer's Friend Lucifer's Friend was a German rock band, formed in Hamburg in 1970 by guitarist Peter Hesslein, singer John Lawton, bassist Dieter Horns, keyboardist Peter Hecht, and drummer Joachim Reitenbach. The group was an early practitioner of heavy m ...

, and the Baker Gurvitz Army.

References

External links

Janus Records Discography
by Global Dog Productions
International Janus discography
at 45cat

History

References

External links

See also