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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZIMPERIAL labelsThere have been at least five Imperial record labels. An obscure Imperial existed in the USA c.1905; the Crystalate Gramophone Manufacturing Company Ltd produced Imperial records in the UK 1920-34: at first the indifferent light classics, music hall songs etc were exclusively British, but then Imperial leased masters from Banner in USA (later ARC, finally Sony property), hence the first solo by Louis Armstrong released in the UK was on Imperial (on Fletcher Henderson's 'Alabamy Bound', '25). UK Decca bought Crystalate '37; the long defunct trademark passed to Polygram '80. Eli Oberstein apparently formed an Imperial Record Company in the USA c.1940, his Elite was a budget label, but he does not seem to have used the word Imperial on a label. The other Imperials all now belong to EMI: a longstanding domestic label for EMI-Brazil; the former main domestic label of EMI Bovema-Negram in Holland (whose biggest act was the Cats, whose '70 hit 'Marian' was no. 1 as far afield as Lebanon and Malaysia); and the best-known Imperial of all, that formed by Lew Chudd in Los Angeles in 1947. Chudd had been a producer of the Let's Dance radio show that helped Benny Goodman to fame in 1935; he formed Imperial to make Spanish-language covers of pop hits for that market in the southwest and used the profits to expand into country and R&B. Its only national hit in the early years was Slim Whitman's C&W classic 'Indian Love Call' '52 (no. 10 pop chart); Chudd hired bandleader Dave Bartholomew as a talent-scout/producer, who discovered Fats Domino, whose R&B hits '50-4 broke through to the pop top ten '55 with 'Ain't That A Shame': Domino racked up 59 pop hits on Imperial. Imperial's base as an indie was extremely narrow: the label signed Phil Spector's Teddy Bears, but only after their big hit 'To Know Him Is To Love Him' '58; the only big artist after Domino was Ricky Nelson, with 36 chart entries '57-65, including Imperial's only two no. 1 entries. Another big hit was 'Let There Be Drums' '61 by Sandy Nelson, but there were many minor classics ('I Hear You Knockin' ' by Smiley Lewis '55), 21 C&W hits by Whitman '52-70, etc. Chudd sold out to Liberty '63; Imperial became a general pop label with Johnny Rivers, Cher, Jackie De Shannon, etc; Liberty/Imperial were taken over by United Artists '69 and Imperial was phased out (Whitman went on UA); EMI's Capitol absorbed Liberty/UA '79. In Japan King and EMI/Toshiba reissued rare Imperial stuff, including the Teddy Bears' only album. |