Strange Fruit Records was an
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 ...
in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
.
The label, established by
Clive Selwood and
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...
in 1986, was the primary distributor of
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
recordings, including
Peel Sessions
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...
.
[Larkin, Colin (ed.) (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Indie & New Wave'', Virgin Books, ]
The name came from
the song written by
Abel Meeropol and famously performed by
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday made significant contributions to jazz music and pop ...
, itself a reference to racially motivated lynchings.
The label had the aim of generating sufficient revenue from recordings of 'big name' artists to allow the release of recordings by lesser-known artists.
The label's first release was
New Order's 1982 Peel Session, in July 1987, and was followed by sessions from some of the biggest names from the
punk rock
Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
and
post punk
Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...
eras. Recordings from as far back as the 1960s were also released by the likes of
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
and
Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band (also known as the Bonzo Dog Band or the Bonzos) was created by a group of British Art school, art-school students in the 1960s. Combining elements of music hall, trad jazz and psychedelic music, psychedelia with sur ...
. As well as individual sessions, the label also released albums compiling several sessions by the same artist.
Strange Fruit was sufficiently successful that it spawned subsidiary labels including Nighttracks (sessions from radio One's Evening Show),
Raw Fruit Records (concert recordings from the
Reading Festival
The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading, Berkshire, Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend ...
), and Band of Joy (BBC session recordings from the 1960s and 1970s).
In 1994, Peel's BBC colleague
Andy Kershaw started another subsidiary label, Strange Roots, which released session recordings by
world music
"World music" is an English phrase for styles of music from non-English speaking countries, including quasi-traditional, Cross-cultural communication, intercultural, and traditional music. World music's broad nature and elasticity as a musical ...
and
roots
A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients.
Root or roots may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusin ...
artists from his radio show.
Strange Fruit closed in 2004. It was part of the Zomba Group of companies and was shut down when the label merged with BMG. The last release the label put together was an album of New Order's complete Peel Sessions, fitting as the first release that came out was an EP of New Order's first Peel session. Six months later John Peel died.
Clive Selwood died in June 2020.
Cherry Red Records, ''Twitter.com'', 23 June 2020
/ref>
Strange Fruit Records catalogue (Peel Sessions, BBC)
;Individual artists
* SFPS001 New Order
* SFPS002 The Damned
* SFPS003 The Screaming Blue Messiahs
* SFPS004 Stiff Little Fingers
Stiff Little Fingers are a Northern Irish punk rock band from Belfast. They formed in 1977 at the height of the Troubles, which informed much of their songwriting. They started out as a schoolboy band called Highway Star (named after the Deep P ...
* SFPS005 Sudden Sway
* SFPS006 The Wild Swans
"The Wild Swans" () is a literary fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen about a princess who rescues her 11 brothers from a spell cast by an evil queen. The tale was first published on 2 October 1838 in Andersen's '' Fairy Tales Told for C ...
* SFPS007 Madness
* SFPS008 Gang of Four
The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes due to th ...
* SFPS009 The Wedding Present
The Wedding Present are an English indie rock group formed in 1985 in Leeds, England, by members of The Lost Pandas. The band has been led by vocalist and guitarist David Gedge, the band's only constant member.
Closely linked to the C86 scene ...
* SFPS010 Twa Toots
* SFPS011 The Ruts
* SFPS012 Siouxsie and the Banshees
Siouxsie and the Banshees ( ) were a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. Post-punk pioneers, they were widely influential, both over their contemporaries and later ...
* SFPS013 Joy Division
Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...
* SFPS014 The Primevals
* SFPS015 June Tabor
June Tabor (born 31 December 1947 in Warwick, England) is an English folk singer known for her solo work and her earlier collaborations with Maddy Prior and with Oysterband.
Early life
June Tabor was born and grew up in Warwick, England. ...
* SFPS016 The Undertones
The Undertones are a rock band formed in Derry, Northern Ireland in 1974. From 1975 to 1983, the Undertones consisted of Feargal Sharkey (vocals), John O'Neill (rhythm guitar, vocals), Damian O'Neill (lead guitar, vocals), Michael Bradle ...
* SFPS017 Xmal Deutschland
* SFPS018 The Specials
The Specials, also known as the Special AKA, were an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, J ...
* SFPS019 Stump
* SFPS020 The Birthday Party
* SFPS021 The Slits
The Slits were a punk/post-punk band based in London, formed there in 1976 by members of the groups the Flowers of Romance and the Castrators. The group's early line-up consisted of Ari Up (Ariane Forster) and Palmolive (a.k.a. Paloma Rom ...
* SFPS022 Spizz Oil
* SFPS023 The June Brides
The June Brides are an English indie pop group, formed in London in 1983, by Phil Wilson and Simon Beesley of International Rescue. Influenced by Postcard-label bands such as Josef K (band), Josef K and punk-era bands such as Buzzcocks, The D ...
* SFPS024 Culture
Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...
* SFPS025 The Prefects
* SFPS026 Yeah Yeah Noh
* SFPS027 Billy Bragg
Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, author and political activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic th ...
* SFPS028 The Fall
* SFPS029 Girls at Our Best!
* SFPS030 The Redskins
* SFPS031 T.Rex
* SFPS032 Tubeway Army
Tubeway Army were a London-based new wave music, new wave band led by lead singer Gary Numan. Formed at the height of punk rock in 1977, the band gradually changed to an electronic music, electronic sound. They were the first band of the elect ...
* SFPS033 Joy Division
Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...
* SFPS034 The Adverts
The Adverts were an English punk rock band formed in 1976 that existed until late 1979. They were one of the first punk bands to achieve mainstream success in the UK; their 1977 Single (music), single "Gary Gilmore's Eyes" reached No. 18 on the ...
* SFPS035 The Mighty Wah
* SFPS036 The Triffids
* SFPS037 Robert Wyatt
Robert Wyatt (born Robert Wyatt-Ellidge, 28 January 1945) is an English retired musician. A founding member of the influential Canterbury scene bands Soft Machine and Matching Mole, he was initially a kit drummer and singer before becoming para ...
* SFPS038 That Petrol Emotion
* SFPS039 New Order
* SFPS040 The Damned
* SFPS041 Wire
file:Sample cross-section of high tension power (pylon) line.jpg, Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample d ...
* SFPS042 Electro Hippies
* SFPS043 Syd Barrett
Roger Keith "Syd" Barrett (6 January 1946 – 7 July 2006) was an English singer, guitarist and songwriter who co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd in 1965. Until his departure in 1968, he was Pink Floyd's frontman and primary songwriter, ...
* SFPS044 Buzzcocks
Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band that singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto formed in Manchester in 1976. During their career, the band combined elements of punk rock, power pop, and pop punk. The ...
* SFPS045 Cud
* SFPS046 The Very Things
* SFPS047 Ultravox
Ultravox (earlier styled as Ultravox!) were a British new wave band, formed in London in April 1974 as Tiger Lily. Between 1980 and 1986, they scored seven Top Ten albums and seventeen Top 40 singles in the UK, the most successful of which wa ...
* SFPS048 Extreme Noise Terror
* SFPS049 Napalm Death
Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in Meriden, West Midlands, in 1981. None of the band's original members have been in the group since 1986, but since ''Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mi ...
* SFPS050 The Cure
The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...
* SFPS051 The Bonzo Dog Band
The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band (also known as the Bonzo Dog Band or the Bonzos) was created by a group of British art-school students in the 1960s. Combining elements of music hall, trad jazz and psychedelia with surreal humour and avant-garde a ...
* SFPS052 The Nightingales
Nightingales (a.k.a. The Nightingales) are a British post-punk/alternative rock band, formed in 1979 in Birmingham, England, by four members of Birmingham's punk group The Prefects. They had been part of The Clash's 'White Riot Tour', recorde ...
* SFPS053 Intense Degree
* SFPS054 Stupids
* SFPS055 The Smiths
The Smiths were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1982, composed of Morrissey (vocals), Johnny Marr (guitar), Andy Rourke (bass) and Mike Joyce (musician), Mike Joyce (drums). Morrissey and Marr formed the band's songwrit ...
* SFPS056 Bolt Thrower
* SFPS057 Half Man Half Biscuit
Half Man Half Biscuit are an English rock band, formed in 1984 in Birkenhead, Merseyside. Known for their satirical, sardonic, and sometimes surreal songs, the band comprises lead singer and guitarist Nigel Blackwell, bassist and singer Neil Cr ...
* SFPS058 The Birthday Party
* SFPS059 Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne, also known as Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parishes in England, civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th centu ...
* SFPS060 Echo & the Bunnymen
Echo & the Bunnymen are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1978. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch (singer), Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bassist Les Pattinson. By 1980, Pete de Freita ...
* SFPS061 Family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
* SFPS062 The Room
''The Room'' is a 2003 American independent romantic drama film written, directed, and produced by Tommy Wiseau, who also stars in the film alongside Juliette Danielle and Greg Sestero. Set in San Francisco, the film is centered around a ...
* SFPS063 Eton Crop
* SFPS064 Nico
Christa Päffgen (; 16 October 1938 – 18 July 1988), known by her stage name Nico, was a German singer, songwriter, actress, and model.
Nico had roles in several films, including Federico Fellini's '' La Dolce Vita'' (1960) and Andy Warhol's ...
* SFPS065 The Jimi Hendrix Experience
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
* SFPS066 Siouxsie and the Banshees
Siouxsie and the Banshees ( ) were a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. Post-punk pioneers, they were widely influential, both over their contemporaries and later ...
* SFPS067 Amayenge
* SFPS068 Ivor Cutler
Ivor Cutler (born Isadore Cutler, 15 January 1923 – 3 March 2006) was a Scottish poet, singer, musician, songwriter, artist and humorist. He became known for his regular performances on BBC radio, and in particular his numerous sessions recor ...
* SFPS069 Unseen Terror
Unseen Terror was a British extreme metal band formed by Mitch Dickinson (Heresy (band), Heresy) and Shane Embury (later of Napalm Death), and played extreme metal with a technical edge along with elements of hardcore punk.Liner notes of Earac ...
* SFPS070 The Four Brothers
* SFPS071 A Guy Called Gerald
Gerald Rydel Simpson (born 1967), better known as A Guy Called Gerald, is a British record producer and musician. He was an early member of the electronic group 808 State, contributing to their debut LP '' Newbuild'' (1988) and hit single " ...
* SFPS072 Inspiral Carpets
Inspiral Carpets are an English rock band, part of the late-1980s/early-1990s Madchester movement. Formed in Oldham in 1983, the band's most successful lineup featured frontman Tom Hingley, drummer Craig Gill, guitarist Graham Lambert, bassist ...
* SFPS073 Carcass
Carcass or Carcase (both pronounced ) may refer to:
* Dressed carcass, the body of a livestock animal ready for butchery, after removal of skin, visceral organs, head, feet etc.
*Carrion, the decaying dead body of an animal or human being, also c ...
* SFPS074 The Go-Betweens
The Go-Betweens were an Australian indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1977. The band was co-founded and led by singer-songwriters and guitarists Robert Forster (musician), Robert Forster and Grant McLennan, who were its only co ...
* SFPS075 The Associates
* SFPS076 Colorblind James Experience
* SFPS080 The Jam
The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...
* SFPS081 Teenage Fanclub
Teenage Fanclub are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in Glasgow in 1989. The group were founded by Norman Blake (Scottish musician), Norman Blake (vocals, guitar), Raymond McGinley (vocals, lead guitar) and Gerard Love (vocals, bass), al ...
Compilations
* SFRLP100 The Sampler
* SFRLP101 Hardcore Holocaust
* SFRCD119 Too Pure
Too Pure Records was a London-based independent record label formed in 1990 by Richard Roberts and Paul Cox. The label gained prominence after the release of PJ Harvey's debut studio album ''Dry (album), Dry'' in 1992, and subsequently found f ...
( Th' Faith Healers, Stereolab
Stereolab are an English people, Anglo-French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's sound incorporates repetitive motorik beats with the use of vintage electronic keybo ...
, PJ Harvey
Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer-songwriter. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments.
Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automat ...
)
* SFRLP200 21 Years Of Alternative Radio 1
* SFRLP111 Joy Division
Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...
Other albums
* SFRSCD016 or SFRSCD079 - Tom Paxton
Thomas Richard Paxton (born October 31, 1937) is an American folk singer-songwriter whose career spans more than sixty years. In 2009, Paxton received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. , ''Live In Concert'' (recorded in London, England in 1971 and 1972, released 1998)
* SFRSCD035 - Melanie
Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek language, Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".Inspiral Carpets
Inspiral Carpets are an English rock band, part of the late-1980s/early-1990s Madchester movement. Formed in Oldham in 1983, the band's most successful lineup featured frontman Tom Hingley, drummer Craig Gill, guitarist Graham Lambert, bassist ...
, '' Radio 1 Sessions'' (1999)
* SFPSCD090 - Uzeda Recorded 8 May 1994 Maida Vale Studios
Maida Vale Studios is a complex of seven BBC sound studios, of which five are in regular use, in Delaware Road, Maida Vale, west London.
It has been used to record thousands of classical music, popular music and drama sessions for BBC Radio 1, ...
BBC
* SFRSCD094 - Joy Division
Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...
, '' The Complete BBC Recordings'' (2000)
* SFNT015 - Icicle Works "Radio 1 Sessions - The Evening Show" - Four track 12" EP, recorded 1982, released 1988.
* SFRCD114 - The Chameleons
The Chameleons are an English rock band formed in Middleton, Greater Manchester, in 1981. The band's classic line-up consisted of bassist and vocalist Mark Burgess (now known as Vox), guitarists Reg Smithies and Dave Fielding, and drummer Jo ...
"John Peel Sessions" (1990)
* SFRCD201 - Soft Machine
Soft Machine are an English Rock music, rock band from Canterbury, Kent. The band were formed in 1966 by Mike Ratledge, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Daevid Allen and Larry Nowlin. Soft Machine were central in the Canterbury scene; they became o ...
"The Peel Sessions" - All tracks recorded for BBC Top Gear.
A bootleg of the White Power rock band Skrewdriver's Peel Session exists, in very bad quality and with a cover in the style of the Strange Fruit Peel Session releases. It however is not a Strange Fruit release.
See also
* Dandelion Records, a record label previously established by John Peel which operated from 1969 to 1973
* List of record labels
File:Alvinoreyguitarboogie.jpg
File:AmMusicBunk78.jpg
File:Bingola1011b.jpg
Lists of record labels cover record labels, brands or trademarks associated with marketing of music recordings and music videos. The lists are organized alphabetically, ...
* List of independent UK record labels
This is a list of notable independent record labels based in the United Kingdom.
* __NOTOC__
0-9
* 2 Tone Records
* 3 Beat Records
* 4AD
A
* Acid Jazz Records
* Alcopop! Records
* All Saints Records
* Ambush Reality
* Angel A ...
* :Peel Sessions recordings
References
External links
*
*
Strange Fruit Peel Sessions
{{Authority control
British independent record labels
Indie rock record labels
Record labels established in 1986
Record labels disestablished in 2004
1986 establishments in the United Kingdom
2004 disestablishments in the United Kingdom
John Peel