| A&M Records, LLC | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Parent company | Universal Music Group (UMG) |
| Founded | September 1962; 63 years ago (1962-09) (original) November 2024; 1 year ago (2024-11) (A&M Records, LLC relaunch) |
| Founder | Herb Alpert Jerry Moss |
| Defunct | January 1999 (1999-01) (original) |
| Status | Active |
| Distributors | Interscope Capitol Labels Group (United States) Polydor Records (United Kingdom and France) |
| Genre | Various |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Location | Santa Monica,California Hollywood, California (1966–1999) |
| Official website | interscope.com |
A&M Records is an Americanrecord label owned byUniversal Music Group and functions as a branch ofInterscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 byHerb Alpert andJerry Moss, the label initially operated independently. It rapidly gained recognition in the music industry, becoming a major-independent label until its acquisition byPolyGram in 1989. After this acquisition, A&M continued to operate as a self-managed frontline label within the PolyGram framework.
In 1998, PolyGram was acquired bySeagram and subsequently integrated into its Universal Music Group. In January 1999, A&M's operations were merged withInterscope Records andGeffen Records, leading to the creation of Interscope-Geffen-A&M, which is now part of the Interscope Capitol Labels Group as of 2024. Subsequently, A&M became a brand under the larger label group, no longer operating autonomously. In 2007, the A&M brand and trademark were combined withOctone Records to createA&M Octone Records, which remained operational until 2014, when it was absorbed into Interscope. Currently, select releases from A&M's catalog are managed byVerve Records,Universal Music Enterprises, and Interscope, while much of Alpert's back catalog has been issued under his label, Herb Alpert Presents.
Despite A&M's hibernation in 2014, its name and logo have remained visible on recent works by artistSting; his latest release 2021'sThe Bridge featured the A&M branding.[1] In 2024, A&M was reestablished as a brand under Interscope, withBenny Blanco taking on the role of general manager, until he marriedSelena Gomez.[citation needed]
A&M Records was formed in late 1962 byHerb Alpert andJerry Moss.[2] Their first choice for a name wasCarnival Records, under which they released two singles before discovering that another label had already taken the Carnival name. The company was subsequently renamed A&M, after Alpert's and Moss's initials. From 1966 to 1999, the company's headquarters andrecording studios were on the grounds of the historicCharlie Chaplin Studios at 1416 North La Brea Avenue, nearSunset Boulevard inHollywood.[3]
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, A&M had such acts asHerb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass,Baja Marimba Band,Burt Bacharach,Antônio Carlos Jobim,Sérgio Mendes & Brasil ’66,the Sandpipers,Boyce & Hart,We Five,the Carpenters,Chris Montez,Elkie Brooks,Lee Michaels,Captain and Tennille,the Flying Burrito Brothers,Quincy Jones,Lucille Starr,Stealers Wheel,Hoyt Axton,Gallagher and Lyle,Barry DeVorzon,Perry Botkin, Jr.,Marc Benno,Liza Minnelli,Rita Coolidge,Gino Vannelli,Wes Montgomery,Jan Davis,Paul Desmond,Bobby Tench,Hummingbird,Toni Basil, andPaul Williams. Folk artistsJoan Baez,Phil Ochs andGene Clark also recorded for the label during the 1970s.Billy Preston joined the label in 1971, followed byAndre Popp andHerb Ohta in 1973.
In the late 1960s, through direct signing and licensing agreements, A&M added several British artists to its roster, includingCat Stevens,Joe Cocker,Procol Harum,Humble Pie,Fairport Convention,Free,the Move,Strawbs andSpooky Tooth. In the 1970s, under its manufacturing and distribution agreement withOde Records, A&M released albums byCarole King and the comedy duoCheech & Chong. Other notable acts of the time includedNazareth,Y&T,the Tubes,Styx,Supertramp,Joan Armatrading,Bell and James,Chris de Burgh (who went on to greater mainstream success in the 1980s),Rick Wakeman,the Ozark Mountain Daredevils,Chuck Mangione,Squeeze, andPeter Frampton. On March 10, 1977, A&M "signed" theSex Pistols outsideBuckingham Palace in a mock signing ceremony after the band had been dropped byEMI, although the real signing had actually occurred the prior day;[4] however, A&M dropped the band within a week.[5]
A&M sustained its success during the 1980s with a roster of noted acts that includedOrchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark;Henry Badowski;Janet Jackson;the Police;Sting;the Brothers Johnson;Falco;Atlantic Starr;the Go-Go's;Bryan Adams;Suzanne Vega;Righeira;Brenda Russell;Jeffrey Osborne;Oingo Boingo;the Human League;Ozark Mountain Daredevils;Sharon, Lois & Bram;Annabel Lamb;Jim Diamond;Vital Signs;Joe Jackson;Charlie Peacock;Vesta Williams; and Scottish rock bandGun. They also, through a deal with Christian music labelMyrrh, distributed back catalog recordings ofAmy Grant as well as her new recordings, starting with 1985'sUnguarded, to the mainstream marketplace, a vital component in her subsequent breakthrough as a mainstream artist.
Within a decade of its inception, A&M became the world's largest independent record company.[6] A&M releases were initially issued in the United Kingdom byEMI'sStateside Records label, and then under its own name byPye Records, who released the first Herb Alpert records on the Pye International label before issuing the records on the A&M label until 1967. From 1969, A&M set up its own UK base appointing John Deacon (not to be confused withQueen's bass guitarist of the same name) as general manager, a post he held until 1979. Several A&R men were recruited including Larry Yaskiel, Derek Green and Mike Noble and major UK acts such as the Police, Supertramp, Rick Wakeman, Squeeze, Gallagher & Lyle, Elkie Brooks, the Strawbs and Peter Frampton as well as many others were all signed to the UK label. A&M releases were also issued in Australia throughFestival Records until 1989. A&M Records Ltd.[7] was established in 1970, with distribution handled by other labels with a presence in Europe. A&M Records of Canada Ltd.[8] was also formed in 1970, and A&M Records of Europe in 1977. In 1979, A&M entered a distribution agreement withRCA Records in the US,[9] and withCBS Records in many other countries.
Over the years, A&M added specialty imprints: Almo International[10] for middle of the road; Omen Records (1964–1966)[11] for soul; Horizon Records[12] for jazz (1974–1978); AyM Discos[13] for Latin-American;Vendetta Records[14] for dance music (1988–1990); and Tuff Break Records for hip-hop music (1993–1995).[15]
A&M was bought byPolyGram for $500 million in 1989.[16] Alpert and Moss continued to manage the label until 1993. In 1998, Alpert and Moss sued PolyGram for breach of the integrity clause, eventually settling for an additional $200 million payment.[17]
In 1991, A&M launchedPerspective Records[18] as a joint venture with producing teamJimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Jam and Lewis stepped down as CEOs of the imprint in 1997, but they remained on as consultants. In 1999, the label was absorbed into A&M. In the mid-1990s, A&M began distributing its PolyGram sister labelPolydor Records in the US.[19]
During the 1990s, the company continued to release albums byPaw,Soundgarden,Extreme,Amy Grant,John Hiatt,Sting,Blues Traveler,Barry White, andAaron Neville, as well as material from new artistsSheryl Crow,Monster Magnet,Therapy?,CeCe Peniston,Intelligent Hoodlum,Dred Scott,Ridel High andGin Blossoms. The company released the soundtracksRobin Hood: Prince of Thieves,The Three Musketeers,Sabrina,The Living Sea,Demolition Man, andLethal Weapon 3.[citation needed]
In 1998, PolyGram was bought bySeagram and merged intoUniversal Music Group,[20] which was formed in 1996 as the successor to MCA Music Entertainment Group, of whichMCA Records had been the flagship. A&M was subsequently merged into Universal Music Group's then newly formedInterscope Geffen A&M label group. Its Canadian division was absorbed intoUniversal Music Canada at that time, which includedJann Arden alongside other artists from Canada.
The A&M lot on La Brea Avenue was shut down in January 1999. During the farewell celebration, the company's staff placed a black band over the A&M sign above the main entrance, indicating the death of the company.[21] The former A&M studios and executive offices became the home ofthe Jim Henson Company, which operatesHenson Recording Studios. Most of the company's workforce, some of whom had been with the company for a decade or more, were let go while many of its artists were dropped. The label's more prominent acts such as Sting, Sheryl Crow, Bryan Adams andChris Cornell, however, remained on its roster.
In response to the down-sourcing, Al Cafaro stated,
This isn't about Universal or Seagram. The record business is changing fundamentally. Don't think that there are calm seas on the other side of this threshold. If the quake that devoured A&M and Geffen is a 6.0 on the Richter scale, there is a 7.0 coming in this industry. It's a Wall Street world now. Get ready.[21]
A&M catalog albums that did not fit the current pop music format (which also includes rock, rap and R&B) of their new parent division were transferred to other Universal divisions for management - for example,Verve Records now manages A&M's jazz catalog, not including Herb Alpert's recorded output which Alpert acquired in the settlement with Universal Music (however, Verve does manage the Horizon Records catalog).[22]
Despite the shutdown, the A&M name continued to be used on albums from artists such asSnow Patrol,the Black Eyed Peas andKeyshia Cole—a result of Alpert and Moss's 1998 lawsuit—until February 2007, whenInterscope Geffen A&M partnered with Octone Records to relaunch the A&M label fully. Now headed byJames Diener and calledA&M/Octone Records with worldwide distribution handled by parent Universal Music Group, the existing Octone roster was transferred to the A&M/Octone label and all newer artist signings were made under the A&M/Octone joint venture.[23] Acts that were already signed to the label before the merger with Octone, however, would remain on the main A&M label.
After six successful years of operation, in September 2013, Octone initiated its buy/sell rights in the joint venture, resulting in Interscope-Geffen-A&M (now Interscope Capitol Labels Group, as of 2024)[24] purchasing Octone Records' 50% interest in A&M/Octone, absorbing and restructuring the artist roster into Interscope operations in 2014 as announced.[25]
Since the label's second dissolution, label artist Sting continued to license the A&M name and logo for his future album releases, starting with 2013'sThe Last Ship and continuing lately with 2021'sThe Bridge.[1]
The label was once again relaunched in November 2024 by Interscope as a subsidiary (currently under legal name:A&M Records, LLC) and has a new roster, includingthe Rolling Stones,Apink,Astrid S,Victoria De Angelis,Bonnie McKee,Epex,Poorstacy,Dean andBenny Blanco (from his own labels, Mad Love Records and Friends Keep Secrets). A&M operates under the UMG umbrella through its subsidiaryInterscope Capitol Labels Group.[citation needed]
Blanco stepped down from A&M, after the marriage ofSelena Gomez, Gregg Nadel joined the label as a new general manager.
