Era Records
Era Records was an American record company that existed from 1955 to 1970. She produced records in the styles of pop music, country, western and jazz.
history
The record company was founded in 1955 by the two cousins Herb Newman (* 1925) and Lou Bedell (1919-2000) in Hollywood . The manager was Buddy Bregman, a college friend of Newman and later a successful producer for Ella Fitzgerald , Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra . Newman and Bregman had studied together at UCLA University in Los Angeles , Newman had already gained experience as a sales manager at the record companies Mercury and Decca . Bedell was a well-known television entertainer.
Era began its single production in 1955 with catalog number 1000 ( The Thunderbirds - Blueberries / Ayuh, Ayuh ). No. 1003 was already a great sales success, the title Suddenly There's a Valley , sung by Gogi Grant , rose to number 9 in the US hit lists. Grant was the early star at Era Records, where he released eight singles, seven of which made it into the US Top 100. He had a number one success with The Wayward Wind in 1956. Larry Verne contributed the second number one hit of the Era production in 1960 with his title Mr. Custer . In the meantime, Era had introduced the catalog number series 3000 since 1959.
In 1958 Era had founded a subsidiary with Doré Records, the most successful interpreters of which were Teddy Bears , who had a number one hit at Doré in 1958 with To Know Him Is To Love Him , and Jan and Dean , who in 1959 with their Doré title Baby Talk reached number 10 in the US hit lists. Also in 1959 Lou Bedell sold his company shares to Herb Newman, who became the sole owner of the company. In 1962 another sub-label was introduced with Monogram, the big star of which was Chris Montez . He had a number four hit on Monogram # 505 with Let's Dance in the summer of 1962. After only two years, Monogram Records was discontinued in 1964.
From 1965 the slow decline of Era Records began. Jewel Akens The Birds and the Bees was the last Top 50 success (3rd place). Barry McGuire , who had released the single The Tree / Theme From The Tree at Era in early 1965 , could not be kept, a few months later he had a number one hit at Dunhill with Eve of Destruction . In 1969, the Los Angeles-based label Happy Tiger Records was bought, which should serve the distribution of oldies. Also in 1969 began a new catalog series beginning with 100. The number 120 ( The Pleasers Your Driver's License, Please ) appeared in 1970, after which Era Records was sold to the K-tel company.
Era Records Top 50
| Cat.-No. | Performers | title | rank | year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1003 | Gogi Grant | Suddenly There's a Valley | 9. | 1955 |
| 1013 | Gogi Grant | The Wayward Wind | 1. | 1956 |
| 1026 | Russel Arms | Cinco Robles | 22nd | 1957 |
| 1064 | Art and Dotty Todd | Chanson d'Amour | 6th | 1958 |
| 3012 | Dorsey Burnette | Tall oak tree | 23. | 1960 |
| 3018 | Donnie Brooks | Mission Bell | 7th | 1960 |
| 3019 | Dorsey Burnette | Hey little one | 48. | 1960 |
| 3024 | Larry Verne | Mr. Custer | 1. | 1960 |
| 3028 | Donnie Brooks | Doll House | 26th | 1960 |
| 3046 | Gogi Grant | The Wayward Wind 1967 | 50. | 1961 |
| 3048 | The Castells | Sacred | 20th | 1961 |
| 3068 | Ketty Lester | Love letters | 5. | 1962 |
| 3073 | The Castells | So this is love | 21st | 1962 |
| 3080 | Ketty Lester | But not for me | 41. | 1962 |
| 3141 | Jewel Akens | The Birds and the Bees | 3. | 1965 |