Era Records was an independent 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, ...

located in

Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and district in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. ...

History

Era Records was founded by Herb Newman and Lou Bedell in March 1955 as a

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

and

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

outlet. The label later expanded into the

country and western A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, or d ...

, and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

genres. Newman formed Era after resigning his sales position at

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 ...

. Era had a No. 1 hit in 1956 with

Gogi Grant Myrtle Audrey Arinsberg (September 20, 1924 – March 10, 2016), known professionally as Gogi Grant, was an American pop singer. She had a No. 1 hit in 1956 with " The Wayward Wind". Life and career Grant was born Myrtle Audrey Arinsberg in P ...

's "

The Wayward Wind "The Wayward Wind" is a country song written by Stanley Lebowsky (music) and Herb Newman (lyrics), and first recorded by American singer Gogi Grant in 1955, and released in 1956. Grant's version reached No. 1 on both the ''Cash Box'' charts, ...

," for which Newman wrote the lyrics. In 1959 Bedell sold his interest in the label to Newman. Musicians with hits on Era include Ketty Lester ("

Love Letters A love letter is a romantic way to express feelings of love in written form. Love Letter(s) or The Love Letter may also refer to: Film and television Film * ''Love Letters'' (1917 film), an American drama silent film * ''Love Letters'' ( ...

"), Larry Verne (" Mr. Custer"),

Donnie Brooks Donnie Brooks (born John Dee Abohosh; February 6, 1936 – February 23, 2007) was an American pop music singer. Brooks is a member of the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. Early life Born in Dallas, Texas, Abohosh moved to Ventura, California in his ...

(" Mission Bell"), Dorsey Burnette ("Tall Oak Tree"), Art & Dotty Todd ("Chanson D' Amour"), and The Castells ("So This Is Love"). Era distributed other labels, including Monogram, Gregmark, and Eden. From 1969 to 1971, Era was associated with Happy Tiger, which reissued and distributed some of Era's oldies. In 1972, Newman added the RTV label which released the psychedelic album ''Mu''. In the mid-1970s Newman sold the Era label and catalog to

K-tel K-tel International Ltd is a Canadian company which formerly specialized in selling consumer products through infomercials and live demonstration. Its products include compilation music albums, including ''The Super Hits'' series, ''The Dynamic ...

. In 1993, K-tel began reissuing some of the early Era material using the original Era label and logo.

Notable artists

Jewel Akens Jewel Eugene Akens (September 12, 1933 – March 1, 2013) was an American singer and record producer. Career He recorded with The Medallions on Dootone, with the Four Dots on Freedom, and then with singer Eddie Daniels as "Jewel and Eddie" on ...

Dorsey Burnette Dorsey William Burnett Jr. (December 28, 1932 – August 19, 1979) was an American early rockabilly singer. With his younger brother Johnny Burnette and a friend named Paul Burlison, he was a founding member of The Rock and Roll Trio. He is ...

The Castells The Castells were a male vocal quartet from Santa Rosa, California best remembered for their hits "Sacred" (No. 20 in 1961) and "So This Is Love" (No. 21 in 1962), both released as singles by Era Records.Joel Whitburn, ''The Billboard Book of ...

The Crescents The Crescents were a vocal harmony group which formed in Sydney, Australia in late 1958 under the name The 4 Tops (not associated with American quartet, the Four Tops). The Crescents were best known for their Top 10 hit "Mr. Blue" and for thei ...

* Keith Colley *

Ketty Lester Ketty Lester (born Revoyda Frierson; August 16, 1934) is an American singer and actress known for her 1961 hit single " Love Letters", which reached the top 5 of the charts in the U.S. and the UK. She is also known for her role as Hester-Sue Ter ...

Colleen Lovett Colleen Lovett (born November 3, 1946, in Texas) is an American singer, composer, and arranger who, since the age of six, has flourished as a recording artist and performer in North America, Asia Pacific, and Europe in nightclubs, musical theater, ...

* The Moments *

Johnny Rivers Johnny Rivers (born John Henry Ramistella; November 7, 1942) is a retired American musician. He achieved commercial success and popularity throughout the 1960s and 1970s as a singer and guitarist, characterized as a versatile and influential art ...

The Sentinals The Sentinals were a surf rock band from San Luis Obispo, California (1961–1965). The band is notable for a Latino influence in some works, such as "Latin'ia" (1962). Notable band members included Tommy Nuñes, drummer John Barbata (later of ...

* Mike Smith *

Larry Verne Larry Vern Erickson (February 8, 1936 – October 8, 2013) was an American novelty song vocalist. Biography Verne recorded two U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart hit singles in 1960, "Mister Livingston" (No. 75) and " Mr. Custer" (No. 1, and No. ...

* Ty Wagner *

Bob Wilson Bob Wilson may refer to: Association footballers *Bob Wilson (footballer, born 1867) (1867–?), Irish international footballer of the 1880s *Bob Wilson (footballer, born September 1898) 1920s, Scottish footballer with Third Lanark and Fall Ri ...

* Glen Glenn

Other labels

Dore Records Dore or Doré may refer to: Geography Places *Dore, South Yorkshire, England **Dore and Totley, electoral ward that includes this village * Abbey Dore, village in Herefordshire, England *Dore, in the district of Gweedore, Ireland * Dore Lake, ...

(

Teddy Bears A teddy bear, or simply a teddy, is a stuffed toy in the form of a bear. The teddy bear was named by Morris Michtom after the 26th president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt; it was developed apparently simultaneously in the first deca ...

, Jan & Dean, Hudson & Landry) *

Happy Tiger Records Happy Tiger Records was an independent American record label that was owned by the Flying Tiger Line air freight company. Happy Tiger operated from 1969 to 1971. During this time the label produced more than two dozen albums by Count Basie, Mason ...

(

Mason Proffit Mason Proffit was an American country rock band from Indianapolis, Indiana, that released five albums between 1969 and 1973. They are known for their song "Two Hangmen", which garnered a significant amount of Album Oriented Rock airplay. Histor ...

Them Them or THEM, a third-person singular or plural accusative personal pronoun, may refer to: Books * ''Them'' (novel), 3rd volume (1969) in American Joyce Carol Oates' ''Wonderland Quartet'' * '' Them: Adventures with Extremists'', 2003 non-fict ...

) *Monogram Records (

Chris Montez Chris Montez (born Ezekiel Christopher Montañez; January 17, 1943) is an American guitarist and vocalist, whose stylistic approach has ranged from rock & roll to pop standards and Latin music. His rock sound is exemplified in songs such as hi ...

Kathy Young Kathy Young (born October 21, 1945) is an American musician; she was a teen pop singer during the early 1960s, whose rendition of " A Thousand Stars", at age 15, rose to No. 3 on ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Biography A native of Southern C ...

) *RTV *Trey Records *Zen Records (Pastel Six)

References

Record labels established in 1955 Defunct record labels of the United States Pop record labels American country music record labels American jazz record labels American independent record labels Companies based in Los Angeles County, California 1955 establishments in California {{US-record-label-stub

History

Notable artists

Other labels

See also

References