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Information about Elektra Records

Elektra Records
Parent companyWarner Music Group
Founded1950
FounderJac Holzman
Paul Rickholt
Distributing labelAtlantic Records (In the US), Warner Strategic Marketing (Outside the US)
GenreVarious
Country of originUS
Official website[1]
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, which today operates under Atlantic Records Group.

History

Beginnings

Elektra was formed in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickholt, who both invested $300. The usual spelling of the Greek mythological heroine Electra was changed, with Holzman famously explaining, “I gave her the ‘K’ that I lacked.”

The first Elektra LP, “New Songs” (EKLP 1 released March 1950), was a collection of Lieder which sold few copies. During the Fifties and early Sixties the label concentrated on folk music recordings, releasing a number of best-selling albums by Judy Collins and protest singers such as Phil Ochs and Tom Paxton, but by the mid-Sixties it had branched out into pop, gaining considerable prestige on the music scene by being one of the first labels to sign up leading acts from the new wave of American psychedelic rock of 1966–67. The label’s most important signings were Chicago based, Paul Butterfield Blues Band (with Michael Bloomfield) and the Los Angeles bands Love and The Doors; and also the Detroit bands The Stooges and MC5 .

Also in 1967, Elektra launched its influential Nonesuch Explorer Series, one of the first collections of what is now referred to as world music. Excerpts from several Nonesuch Explorer recordings were later included on the two Voyager Golden Discs which were sent into deep space in 1977 aboard the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 space probes.

The Asylum Records merger

Elektra was acquired by Kinney National Company in 1970, along with the Nonesuch Records subsidiary. Soon afterwards Kinney consolidated their label holdings under the Warner Communications umbrella. Holzman remained in charge until 1972, when it merged with Asylum Records to become Elektra/Asylum Records, with Asylum's founder, David Geffen, now in charge. Holzman was appointed senior vice president and chief technologist for Warner and ushered the company into home video and the first interactive cable system. Holzman also went on to start Discovery Records. In 1975 Geffen stepped down due to health problems.

Although the company was technically listed as “Elektra/Asylum Records” on the label credits, as the years went on the company began to unofficially call itself Elektra Records again, with Asylum operating as a subsidiary label. Bob Krasnow became president and CEO of Elektra in 1983, and under his leadership the label continued to thrive.

Elektra Entertainment Group

In 1989, the company officially changed its name to Elektra Entertainment. Krasnow was replaced by Sylvia Rhone, who took over as CEO, in 1994; the same year, the label became Elektra Entertainment Group (EEG, for short). During this time, Elektra developed a relationship with the UK-based label 4AD, becoming the North American distributor for 4AD acts like: the Pixies, The Breeders, Frank Black and The Amps. This eventually led to Elektra's sister label, Warner Strategic Marketing, signing an exclusive American distribution deal for nearly all 4AD releases from 1992 to 1998. Despite having a large stable of noted acts, as the 1990s drew to a close, Elektra began to see a slump in revenue; while noticeably underperforming on the charts. It also developed a bit of a sullen reputation in the industry for not properly promoting many of its releases and was easily lagging behind its sister labels: Warner Strategic Marketing and Asylum Records.

Atlantic absorption

Enlarge picture
Rhino's Elektra box set "Forever Changing: the Golden Age of Elektra Records 1963-1973"
In February 2004, Warner Music Group was sold by Time Warner to a group of private investors made up of Thomas Lee Partners, Bain & Company, and Edgar Bronfman, Jr. (who assumed CEO duties).

Looking for ways to save money, the new owners of WMG decided to merge Elektra and Atlantic Records. Because it was the lesser performing label of the two, 40% of Elektra's operations were put into the new venture—while a commanding 60% of Atlantic's went in. Subsequently, the new company was called "Atlantic Records Group" with Elektra breaking off into a subsidiary underneath it.

The current status of Elektra, and whether or not it continues to operate, is somewhat ambiguous. WMG has not made any official announcements of it having been dismantled, and keeps its name and logo highlighted as a seemingly active imprint on their press statements—however, the label's name has not been on a noted release since the merger with Atlantic Records in 2004. Today many of its acts, meanwhile, have their material released through Atlantic instead.

Elektra's catalog continues to be released/reissued by Rhino Records which released a 5-CD box set various artists compilation titled Forever Changing: the Golden Age of Elektra Records 1963-1973 in November, 2006.

Elektra is now considered a major label with nearly 200 artists.

Company Logos


The first logo; used in the early to mid 1950s.

The second logo; used from the mid 1950s to the mid 1960s.

The third logo; used from the mid to late 1960s.

The fourth logo; used from the late 1960s to the late 1970s.

The fifth logo; briefly used in the middle 1970s, following Elektra's merger with Asylum.

The sixth logo; used in the early 1980s.

The seventh logo; used from early mid to late 1980s.

The final logo; used from 1989 to 2004.


Trivia

  • In 1990 Elektra released the 'Rubáiyát' album to celebrate their 40th anniversary as a record label. The album featured the label's current artists performing cover versions from the Elektra artist back catalogue.
  • Elektra has dropped more artists than any other record label.

See also

External links

References

  • A full history of Elektra's Holzman years can be found in Jac Holzman's book Follow the Music: The Life and High Times of Elektra Records in the Great Years of American Pop Culture.
Warner Music Group Corporation

Public (NYSE:  WMG )
Founded 2003
Headquarters New York, NY, U.S.

Key people Edgar Bronfman, Jr., Chairman & CEO
Industry Music & Entertainment
Revenue $3.502 Billion (USD; 2006)
Net income $169.
..... Click the link for more information.
Jac Holzman founded Elektra Records in his St. John's College dorm room in 1950 and Nonesuch Records in 1964. He signed such legendary acts as The Doors and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band to Elektra and discovered folk singer Judy Collins.
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Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
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Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
..... Click the link for more information.
Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
..... Click the link for more information.
Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
..... Click the link for more information.
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. In everyday usage, a record label is also a company that manages such brands and trademarks; coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution,
..... Click the link for more information.
Warner Music Group Corporation

Public (NYSE:  WMG )
Founded 2003
Headquarters New York, NY, U.S.

Key people Edgar Bronfman, Jr., Chairman & CEO
Industry Music & Entertainment
Revenue $3.502 Billion (USD; 2006)
Net income $169.
..... Click the link for more information.
The Atlantic Records Group

A Major record label founded in 1999, by WMG is home to artists such as Sean Combs, T.I., Saigon, Trick Daddy, Paul Wall, Webbie, Missy Elliott, Mase, Yung Joc, Boyz In Da Hood and Young Dro. The label has nearly 300 artists on the label.
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-1950-  1951 . 1952 . 1953  1954 . 1955 . 1956 . 1957 . 1958 . 1959 .
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Jac Holzman founded Elektra Records in his St. John's College dorm room in 1950 and Nonesuch Records in 1964. He signed such legendary acts as The Doors and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band to Elektra and discovered folk singer Judy Collins.
..... Click the link for more information.
Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices.
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Electra (Greek:Ηλέκτρα) was daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra.

Electra was absent from Mycenae when her father, King Agamemnon, returned from the Trojan War to be murdered by Aegisthus, Clytemnestra's lover, and/or by Clytemnestra
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Lied (plural Lieder) is a German word, meaning literally "song"; among English speakers, however, the word is used primarily as a term for European classical music songs, also known as art songs.
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Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including:
  • Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous with the term "Traditional music", also often including World Music and Roots music; the term "Traditional music" was given

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Judith Marjorie Collins (born May 1, 1939 in Seattle, Washington) is an American folk and standards singer and songwriter, known for the stunning purity of her soprano; for her eclectic tastes in the material she records (which has included folk, showtunes, pop, and rock and roll);
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A protest song is a song which protests perceived problems in society. Every major movement in Western history has been accompanied by its own collection of protest songs, from slave emancipation to women's suffrage, the labor movement, civil rights, the anti-war movement, the
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Philip David Ochs (December 19 1940–April 9 1976) was a U.S. protest singer (or, as he preferred, a "topical singer"), songwriter, musician and recording artist who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative
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Thomas R. Paxton (born October 31, 1937) is a well-known American folk singer and singer-songwriter who has been writing, performing and recording music for over forty years.
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This article is written like a personal reflection or and may require .
Please [ improve this article] by rewriting this article in an . (, talk)


Psychedelic rock
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Love was an American rock group of the late 1960s and early 1970s. They were led by singer, songwriter and guitarist Arthur Lee and the group's second songwriter, guitarist Bryan MacLean.
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additional references or sources for verification.
* It needs to be expanded.

Please help [ improve the article] or discuss these issues on the talk page.

The Stooges
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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1930s  1940s  1950s  - 1960s -  1970s  1980s  1990s
1964 1965 1966 - 1967 - 1968 1969 1970

Year 1967 (MCMLXVII
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Nonesuch Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records

Company history

Nonesuch was founded in 1964 by Jac Holzman to license European recordings of classical music.
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The term World music includes:
  • Traditional music (sometimes called folk music or roots music) of any culture that are created and played by indigenous musicians or that are "closely informed or guided by indigenous music of the regions of their origin",[1]

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Voyager Golden Record is a phonograph record included in the two Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977. It contains sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth.
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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1940s  1950s  1960s  - 1970s -  1980s  1990s  2000s
1974 1975 1976 - 1977 - 1978 1979 1980

Also: 1977 (album) by Ash.

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Voyager 1 spacecraft is a 722-kilogram robotic space probe of the outer solar system and beyond, launched September 5, 1977, and currently operational. It visited Jupiter and Saturn and was the first probe to provide detailed images of the moons of these planets.
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Voyager 2 is an unmanned interplanetary spacecraft, launched on August 20, 1977.

It is identical to its sister Voyager program craft, Voyager 1, but unlike Voyager 1, Voyager 2
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Kinney National Company was formed in 1966 when the Kinney Parking Company and the National Cleaning Company merged. The new company was headed by Steve Ross.

Kinney National expanded in 1967 by acquiring National Periodical Publications (more commonly, but not yet
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