Fifty years ago, Capitol Records was just another struggling new label.
After 50 years of ups and downs, the company is thriving, releasing hits and fighting it out for chart domination with a dwindling number of companies. To help music fans recall and celebrate the early years-and to reap some profits-the label has released more than 40 CD and cassette greatest-hits albums in its Capitol Collectors Series, and more are on the way.
Each album showcases a separate act, ranging from early stars such as Frank Sinatra, Nat ”King” Cole and Gene Vincent to later pop acts such as the Raspberries and Grand Funk Railroad. The albums feature extensive liner notes and recording information.
Capitol also recently put out four 50th anniversary compilations, overviews of country hits, early chart successes, pop vocalists and instrumentalists of the `50s and early `60s, and Top 40 hits from the `50s through the `70s.
Liberty was the original name of the label formed by songwriter Johnny Mercer, record-store executive Glenn Wallichs and movie producer B.G.
”Buddy” DeSylva. Discovering there was already another Liberty, the three chose Capitol, issuing their first six singles July 1, 1942.
The little label scored some hits with those early releases, going into the Top 10 with a cheerful Big Band rendition of ”Cow Cow Boogie” by Ella Mae Morse, who got the song after it was decided Ella Fitzgerald wouldn`t do it in the movie ”Ride `Em Cowboy.” Mercer also did well with his own ”Strip Poker.”
”Capitol had an identification from the very beginning,” said Joe Smith, who began his career as a disc jockey and is now president and chief executive officer of Capitol-EMI Music (part of Thorn-EMI), which includes Capitol and other labels. ”The records sounded better and the packaging was better than it was for some other companies.”
Even accounting for record-business hyperbole, Smith is right when he cites Capitol`s ”state of the art” artist roster in the `50s, when Smith was a top-rated disc jockey at WMEX-AM in Boston.
”They had people like Frank Sinatra, Nat `King` Cole, Stan Kenton and Dean Martin. And, while they were late getting into rock `n` roll, they caught up with the Beach Boys and Beatles.”
Even before those two groups, Capitol had a roster of popular singers, including Al Martino. After a couple of hits with the label in the early `50s and two minor successes for 20th Century-Fox in 1959, Martino was back on Capitol in 1961, scoring with a fresh version of ”Here in My Heart,” which was his first record, a No. 1 hit in 1952.
”Capitol was a major company and there were only a few of them at the time,” Martino said of his first stint on Capitol. ”I was fortunate to go with the company. It was a big label and there were a lot of baritone singers and it was important for me to be with such a successful label.”
While Smith and his Capitol cohorts bask in the reflected glory of the 50th anniversary, they`re looking hard at the future. Acknowledging changes from the early days when some artists were signed on the basis of one or two nifty songs, Smith said a lot more money and risk was involved now.
”We`re now down to six major labels, part of multinational companies”-
Sony Music, the Warner Music Group, Bertelsmann Music Group, Thorn-EMI, MCA and PolyGram.
”All of them are well-financed and highly competitive. But they have taken some of the adventuresome spirit out of this business, because we are now divisions of large corporations and we have to deliver our numbers just like any other part of the company.
”When the independents started in the `50s, like Atlantic, Chess or Dot, they just went straight ahead without even looking at the bottom line. They would gamble on one record keeping them going. But with the organizational levels so structured now, a lot of that is gone.”
Smith-who joined Capitol in early 1987 and was at the Warner group from 1961 to 1983, heading Warner Bros. and Elektra Records-has watched the price of talent soar. To him, he said, artists aren`t asking for too much ”if they can get it. Take Madonna, who re-signed with Warner Bros. for a reported $60 million.
”Somebody spent a lot of time on that deal and took an act of faith that she will be an important catalyst in pictures, TV and book publishing. And, she sells lots of records.”
Although Michael and Janet Jackson also have signed individual high-dollar contracts, Smith said some artists haven`t been as successful. David Bowie reportedly has problems getting a new deal and industry reports have some labels balking at ZZ Top`s estimated $55 million demand.
”None of us have to buy artists just to have them,” Smith said. ”We`ve all got records on the charts. We`ve all got stars. We know what these people sell. Maybe I would have overpaid four years ago just because a big artist wouldn`t sign with Capitol at the time, but not now.”
Smith`s first job at Capitol was to build up the floundering artist roster. He found success with new artists such as M.C. Hammer and veterans like Bonnie Raitt. He said the challenge now was to find new ways to gain media exposure for his acts.
”There are other avenues that will open in the next 10 years,” Smith said. ”Direct satellite delivery of music could work. You will buy the music, pick it out and tape it at home on digital CD or tape. Unfortunately, the delivery of music to people is still through radio or MTV, and radio is so fragmented.”
”When I was a disc jockey, I would play everything from Bo Diddley to Doris Day. If it was a hit, I played it. Now, if left-handed girls under 16 won`t like it, they won`t play it. We have to figure other avenues to expose our music.”
Capitol`s Collectors Series offers such a wide range of music, fans may want some guidance. Here are some suggested selections:
– `50s pop. The best bets in this genre are the hit-filled sets by Nat
”King” Cole, Frank Sinatra, Al Martino and Peggy Lee.
– Rock. True rockers need the Gene Vincent set. Other options:
Raspberries and thudding Grand Funk Railroad.
– Country. The better acts include Merle Haggard, Tex Ritter, Tennessee Ernie Ford and Sonny James.
– Gentler sounds. Check out the Four Preps, Bobby Darin, the easygoing rhythm-and-blues of the Five Keys, and the cheerful folk of the Kingston Trio.
