Sometimes it just
doesn't work out. That's a lesson everyone in music has learned at least once the hard way. But just because it doesn't work out doesn't mean it wasn't great. Case in point? Check out these record labels that might not still be around but made a big splash while they were. These labels continue to influence the music and the labels that have come after them, so "failed" doesn't enter the picture. The top five picks are listed here - come back soon to find out who rounds out the top ten. Without further ado, here's to you, much missed record labels.
#1 - Dew Doo Man Records
Prince Paul in 2008
Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty ImagesOK, this might be cheating a little bit (cheating will be common on this list). After all, Prince Paul's
Dew Doo Man Records wasn't an indie label, which is technically what this list is about, and in fact, it was just
barely a label. It only had one release, and it was kind of over before it had even begun. But oh, what a very fine release it was (the Resident Alien 12"
Mr. Boops). The promise here is evident. Of course, it wasn't Paul's fault the label turned out to just be a tease. That was apparently down to
Russell Simmons and
Lyor Cohen, who didn't quite know what to make of Prince Paul's ideas. Boo! Hiss! Honestly, hands down, I can't think of a better person to be in charge of A&R. In fact, when I win the lottery, the first thing I'm doing is buying Prince Paul a record label. No, really.
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#2 - Factory Records
Factory Co-Founder, the much missed Tony Wilson
Photo: Jo Hale/Getty Images co-founder Tony Wilson referred to Factory as a "real business," but that might be stretching things a bit. In reality, Factory is in many ways a study of what NOT to do. After all, one of their biggest release cost the label money every time it sold a copy (
Blue Monday by New Order). What they lacked in the business department (who sends the Happy Mondays to Barbados to record a record?), they more than made up for with the music. Joy Division, New Order - not to mention The Hacienda and the whole "Madchester" scene - Factory was as much a movement as it was a label, and despite being nothing but a memory now, the music the label released continues to influence bands and make fans go all weak in the knees. R.I.P. Mr. Wilson.
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#3 - Postcard Records
Edwyn Collins of Orange Juice in 2008
Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty ImagesLike most good record label stories, Postcard's starts in a flat in Glasgow, Scotland. Sure, we may know now that Glasgow can be counted on for rain and really good music, but we can all thank Postcard for getting the word out (at least about the music part). Without this label, we wouldn't have heard bands like
Josef K and
Orange Juice, and then where would we be? Plenty of bands and labels would be scrambling for inspiration, to be sure. Postcard didn't last for long - mainly because everyone involved, including Alan Horne, the man behind the label, was snatched up by the majors - but anyone who likes their music a little on the post punk side wishes Postcard was still picking the bands.
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#4 - Creation Records
Former Creation Records signings Teenage Fanclub in 2005
Photo: Jo Hale/Getty Images Creation Records hardly needs an introduction, right? Joe Foster, Alan McGee and Dick Green founded this little indie label on a shoestring budget and promptly released a record that has been called "the worst record of all time" on more than one occasion (The Legend!, a band featuring famous music journo Everett True). From this rather inauspicious beginning came one of the most successful labels in indie music history. Sure, they're not around any more, but that's largely because of a deal with major label Sony. These kinds of deals sometimes spell disaster for indie labels, but they never happen unless the indie has managed to sell a really impressive number of records. Sony might have sucked a bit of the magic out of Creation, but early Creation Records still gets the hearts of indie label junkies all aflutter. Plus, all the budding record label bosses out there can learn a lot from their story.
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#5 - 99 Records
No, not "ninety-nine," but "nine-nine." What's so great about this label? Three letters -
ESG (who, incidentally were produced by Martin Hannett, who produced Factory Records geniuses Joy Division - Factory actually put out their first record). Ed Bahlman, the man behind
99 Records (which was run out of his NYC record store of the same name) simply loved music and put out lots of great stuff across many different genres (also worth a mention here has to be 99 artists
Liquid Liquid). 99 only lasted four years (a dispute over a lifted bass line with Sugarhill Records soured Bahlman on the music business for good), but three cheers for a label that showed you don't have to be constrained by genre as long as you release great music, and producers everywhere owe 99 a debt of gratitude for all the samples.
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-Heather McDonald
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