State Records is a British

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- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

, established by Wayne Bickerton, Tony Waddington and John Fruin in 1975. The label released hits by many successful artists including The Rubettes, Mac & Katie Kissoon and

Delegation Delegation is the assignment of authority to another person (normally from a manager to a subordinate) to carry out specific activities. It is the process of distributing and entrusting work to another person,Schermerhorn, J., Davidson, P., Poole ...

. In July 2012, State released their back catalogue digitally for the first time; the release included over 100 of the label’s singles and over 30 albums and compilations, to coincide with the release State announced their first new single in almost thirty years. "Every Road I Take" by The Life was released on 2 July 2012.

History

Bickerton and Waddington's relationship began in the 1950s: they began supporting ex-

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

drummer Pete Best, making up the Pete Best Trio and touring around the world as a band, concluding with Bickerton and Waddington living in New York. Upon returning to Britain, Bickerton became a producer with

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

and Waddington joined

' publishing company - Burlington Music. Shortly afterwards the two were signed to Burlington Music as a songwriting duo. Their first gold disc came with the release of

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer * Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in ...

' "Can't Stop Loving You". In 1973, Bickerton and Waddington penned the song "

Sugar Baby Love "Sugar Baby Love", recorded in autumn 1973 and released in January 1974, is a bubblegum pop song, and the debut single of The Rubettes. Written by Wayne Bickerton and Tony Waddington and produced by Bickerton, engineered by John Mackswith at L ...

" and recorded it with some

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

s, releasing the record under the name The Rubettes, it quickly became a number one hit. Other Rubettes hits followed, plus chart success for Mac & Katie Kissoon. The label continued to enjoy success throughout the 1970s and early 1980s until 1983, when the label released their last single, "You Don't Care About I" by Elite. In total State released over 100 singles and over 20 albums between 1975 and 1983. State found success in the United States, most notably with the 1978 release "Oh Honey" by

, which peaked at number 6 in the US ''

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 advertise ...

'' R&B

chart A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tabu ...

. The song has gone on to be sampled countless times including by artists such as

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

(" Boy (I Need You)"), Dizzee Rascal ("Chillin' Wiv Da Mandem") and

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

("Wonder What It Do").

Notable artists

* The Rubettes * Mac & Katie Kissoon *

* Gary Benson * Liverpool F.C. Squad 1977

UK Top 40 singles

References

External links

Popmusic4synch.com
{{Authority control Record labels established in 1975 British independent record labels