The label's first release was "Vengeance (Will Be Mine)" by the Matadors later that year. Sue's first hit record came in 1958 with "Itchy Twitchy Feeling" by
Bobby Hendricks which peaked at #25 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100. Success continued into the sixties with a handful of singles by R&B duo
Ike & Tina Turner between 1960 and 1962. "Mockingbird" by brother-and-sister duo
Inez and Charlie Foxx
Inez Foxx (September 9, 1937 – August 25, 2022) and her elder brother Charlie Foxx (October 23, 1933 – September 18, 1998) were an American rhythm and blues and soul duo from Greensboro, North Carolina. Inez sang lead vocal, while Char ...
was a hit on the subsidiary label Symbol in 1963. Sue also had hits on the charts with "Stick Shift" by
the Duals
The Duals were an American surf rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1961. Much of the collaboration's music capitalized on the style of music popularized in Southern California in the early 1960s. They reached the national charts with ...
, "Hurt by Love" by Inez Foxx and "That's How Heartaches Are Made" by
Justine "Baby" Washington. Sue also released early recordings by the soul singer
Don Covay and albums by the
soul-jazz organist
Jimmy McGriff.
Guitarist
Jimi Hendrix signed his first recording contract with Sue in 1965, but no recordings were released.
Murray initially released his records in the UK through Decca's
London Records but switched to a licensing deal with
Island Records
Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, an ...
in
1964.
This deal resulted in a split in the ownership of the Sue name. Island used the label to distribute Sue in the UK. Problems began when Island also leased discs from other US labels that interested them and released them on UK Sue too - which was not in the agreement. Murray terminated the agreement and returned to Decca in 1966.
After failing to chart in the U.S., Murray sold the Sue masters to
United Artists Records
United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B.
History Genres
In 1959, ...
in 1968. A reissue of the "Harlem Shuffle" by
Bob & Earl made the Top 10 in Britain in 1969.
Murray retained rights to the Sue name and constantly attempted to re-activate the label until his death in 2005. The Sue Records catalog eventually ended up with EMI, and then with Universal Music Group upon EMI's being bought out in 2012.
EMI released a 4-CD box-set ''The Sue Records Story: The Sound of Soul'' in 1994, while
Ace Records later released four volumes of ''The UK Sue Label Story.''
Discography
Sue Records were best known for their R&B and Rock 'n' Roll singles but released a number of LPs between 1958 and 1966 featuring popular and jazz artists.
[Edwards, D. & Callahan, M]
Both Sides Now: Sue Album Discography
accessed August 1, 2019
Sue LP-2000 Popular/R&B Series
Sue LP/STLP-1000 Popular/Jazz Series
Other Releases
*LP-3001: ''Thank You, Lord'' - National Independent Gospel Singers of Atlanta Georgia (1960)
*LP-8000: ''Things with Strings'' - Julie & Jack (1963)
*SSLP-8801: ''Let's Work Together'' -
Wilbert Harrison
Selected singles
Subsidiary labels
Symbol Records
Symbol was launched in 1958 and lasted until 1966. The label issued 47 singles and one album, most which were produced by Murray. Brother-and-sister duo
Inez & Charlie Foxx were the label's most successful artist. Their hit single, "
Mockingbird" reached #2 on the
''Billboard'' R&B chart and #7
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the summer of 1963. Inez Foxx had a few solo singles reach the charts. It wasn't until 1966, that another artist on the label had a hit record. "She Blew a Good Thing" by The Poets peaked at #45 on the pop chart and #2 on the R&B chart. Artist who recorded on the label include
King Coleman,
Art Lassiter,
the Hollywood Flames, the Shockettes, and
the Parliaments.
Albums
* 1963: Inez Foxx – ''Mockingbird''
Selected singles
Crackerjack Records
Crackerjack was launched in 1961 and released its last record in 1964. Artist on that label included The Spy Dels,
Ike Turner's
Kings Of Rhythm, Eddie Carlton, Linda And The Del Rios, Pearl Woods,
The Dramatics, Derek Martin,
Chuck Leonard, and Betty Green.
Eastern Records
Eastern was launched in 1964 and lasted until 1966. The label produced the singles "The Real Thing" by
Tina Britt which reached #20 on the R&B chart in 1965,
and "Time Waits For No One" by
Eddie & Ernie which reached #34 on the R&B chart in 1965. Geraldine Jones, Johnny Starr, and Duke Daniels also recorded on the label.
Broadway Records
Singles were released on Broadway between 1964 and 1966. Artists on the label included Tommy Andre, Johnson Sisters, Ocie Smith, Sandra Phillips, The Inverts, Johnny Burton, and The Thieves.
See also
*
List of record labels
*
Sue Records artists with Wikipedia pages
References
External links
The Sue Records story from BSN Pubs
{{Authority control
American record labels
Record labels established in 1957
New York (state) record labels
Rhythm and blues record labels
Pop record labels
Defunct record labels of the United States