LHI Records was an American

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

Lee Hazlewood Barton Lee Hazlewood (July 9, 1929 – August 4, 2007) was an American country and pop singer, songwriter, and record producer, most widely known for his work with guitarist Duane Eddy during the late 1950s and singer Nancy Sinatra in the 1960s ...

. LHI stood for ''Lee Hazlewood Industries''. The label was first distributed by

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

then by

ABC 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! jazz label in 1960. It acquired many labels bef ...

(both labels were eventually absorbed by

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...

). By 1969, LHI was distributed independently with tape distribution by

Ampex Ampex Data Systems Corporation is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff as a spin-off of Dalmo-Victor. The name ''AMPEX'' is an acronym, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excell ...

. The label lasted until 1971.

Notable releases

* In 1966 Donnie Owens was named executive producer of the LHI country product. Their first single was "Crying Shade" and "Out of My Hands" by Virgil Warner. * In 1967 they released an album by

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock music that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is ...

band The Kitchen Cinq. In total one album and four singles of the group were released during 1967. The label issued a cameo single release of the group under the name A Handful. * The 1967 album ''Lee Hazlewood Presents The 98% American Mom & Apple Pie 1929 Crash Band'' consisted of

honky-tonk A honky-tonk (also called honkatonk, honkey-tonk, honky tonk, or tonk) is either a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons or the style of music played in such establishments. It can also refer to the type of piano ...

instrumental versions of highly commercial successful songs and compositions from Lee Hazlewood from the period 1965–1967. * Country singer

Sanford Clark Sanford Clark (October 24, 1935 – July 4, 2021) was an American country music, country-rockabilly singer and guitarist, best known for his 1956 hit "The Fool (Sanford Clark song), The Fool". Biography Clark was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Tulsa ...

covered Hazlewood's composition ''

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

'' in 1964. The two singles releases on the label ''The Black Widow'' b/w ''

The Son of Hickory Holler's Tramp "The Son of Hickory Holler's Tramp" is a song written by Dallas Frazier and first recorded by country musician, Johnny Darrell in 1968. The song tells the story of a woman with 14 children who is abandoned by her worthless alcoholic husband and tur ...

'' in 1967, and ''Farm Labor Camp #2'' were followed by the album ''Return of The Fool'' in 1968. These would be his last released recordings. * In 1967,

The International Submarine Band The International Submarine Band (ISB) was a country-rock band formed by Gram Parsons in 1965, while a theology (?) student at Harvard University and John Nuese, a guitar player for local rock group, The Trolls. Nuese is credited with having pe ...

recorded '' Safe At Home'' for the label, which some consider to be the first

country rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal sty ...

album. Its release was in 1968, including the releasing of two singles spinning off. * In 1968, US girl group Honey Ltd. released their debut album on LHI. Another album and five singles releases followed until 1970. After getting a second chance under the name Eve, releasing an album and two singles, Hazlewood dropped the group. * Hazlewood revived The Shacklefords in 1967 and recorded, being a member, three singles with them. * Hazlewood's then girlfriend Suzi Jane Hokom continued her services as demo-singer and assistant record producer, incidentally releasing records, some being duets. * In 1967, Hazlewood signed

Mike Condello Michael Condello (May 6, 1946 – August 17, 1995) was an American rock musician, producer, and songwriter. Early life Mike Condello was born in Brooklyn, New York May 6, 1946 and moved to Phoenix, Arizona when he was 7. By the time he was 14, Co ...

's band, named them Last Friday's Fire, and released three

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

s with them. * Swedish-American actress and singer

Ann-Margret Ann-Margret Olsson (born 28 April 1941), credited as Ann-Margret, is a Swedish-American actress and singer with a career spanning seven decades. Her many screen roles include '' Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), '' Bye Bye B ...

released one album, three solo singles and two duets with Hazlewood in 1969. * In 1969 and 1970 Barbara Randolph issued two singles: "Woman To That Man" and "Miracle On 19th Street", but both never got beyond the status of

promotional recording A promotional recording, promo, or plug copy is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as mus ...

s. After that it lasted until 1979 for her to record again, for

Tamla Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''motor'' ...

. * In a last attempt to revive their career The Surprise Package recorded an album ''Free Up'' in 1968, which spun off the title track as well as their version of the song "

MacArthur Park MacArthur Park (originally Westlake Park) is a park dating back to the late 19th century in the Westlake, Los Angeles, Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. In the early 1940s, it was renamed after General Douglas MacArthur, and la ...

" as singles releases during 1969. * Other releases included works from artists such as Malibu's Kazoos, Buddy Long, Danny Michaels, Virgil Warner, Billie Dearborn, Michael Gram, Hamilton Streetcar, The Aggregation, Arthur Lee Harper, Lynn Castle, Linda Owens, Bob Kaufmann, Phoenix 70, Barney Carl, Ray Chafin, Jon Christian, Raul Danks and Jon Taylor. * In 2012, the double album ''The LHI Years: Singles, Nudes & Backsides (1968–71)'', containing rarities (

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

demos Demos may refer to: Computing * DEMOS, a Soviet Unix-like operating system * DEMOS (ISP), the first internet service provider in the USSR * Demos Commander, an Orthodox File Manager for Unix-like systems * Plural for Demo (computer programming ...

etc.) from the label's historical shelves, was released on the Light In The Attic label.

References

External links

LHI Records from BSN Pubs
Defunct record labels of the United States Lee Hazlewood {{US-record-label-stub

Notable releases

See also

References

External links