Four Star Records
Four Star Records (also: 4 Star ) was an American music label . Four Star is best known for its country - and partly also for its rockabilly recordings during the 1950s. The label was based in Pasadena , California .
history
Four Star Records was founded in 1945 shortly after the end of World War II by Richard A. "Dick" Nelson, Bill McCall and Cliff McDonald as a sub-label of Gilt-Edge Records . By the end of 1946 the label was almost bankrupt, but then McCall invested $ 5,000 in the company and bought the label. Soon 4 Star had country stars such as Hank Locklin , the Maddox Brothers and Rose , Webb Pierce and T. Texas Tyler under contract. In addition to country, Mexican music, rhythm & blues - including numerous records by Ivory Joe Hunter - and jazz were released. a. early recordings by Charles Mingus . Initially the company was based in Hollywood , but McCall relocated to Pasadena in 1948. With the beginning of the “rockabilly boom” from 1955, Four Star was also able to come up with such artists. Sammy Masters , Jimmy Wolford , Gene Brown and Charley Ryan were just a few of them. At the end of the 1950s, Patsy Cline was a great success. Her song Walkin 'After Midnight , released on Four Star, became a country and pop hit and opened the doors to Cline for a national career. However, there were differences between her and the label, so Cline switched to Decca Records .
Just like Starday later did with its sub-label Dixie Records , the OP series (OP stood for Other People ) allowed artists to have their own records pressed.
Four Star released its last records in the late 1960s.
Web links
- Single discography
- Discography with audio samples (only rockabilly)