Arkadia Records is an independent record label that was founded in 1996.
The label was founded in New York City by Bob Karcy,
who had been a manager for musicians and an independent record producer.
The first release was
Billy Taylor's ''Music Keeps Us Young'', in 1997.
From the first releases, the session leaders were allowed to select the other musicians and the material.
Writers of early liner notes included
Stanley Crouch,
Ira Gitler, and
Nat Hentoff. Arkadia acquired the catalog of
Postcards Records in 1999.
The original label was Arkadia Jazz, on which 20 albums had been released by early 2000.
The sub-label Arkadia Chansons is used for licensed re-releases of French recordings by performers such as
Josephine Baker and
Edith Piaf.
By 2022, Arkadia had released more than 100 albums.
This included sessions led by
Joanne Brackeen,
Benny Golson
Benny Golson (born January 25, 1929) is an American bebop/hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He came to prominence with the big bands of Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie, more as a writer than a performer, before launch ...
,
Dave Liebman, and
.
Several releases have been by the Arkadia Jazz Allstars.
These led to three
Grammy Award nominations for
Best Jazz Instrumental Solo: for Liebman on ''Thank You, John! Our Tribute to John Coltrane'';
for Golson on ''The Stars of Jazz, Vol.1'';
and for
Randy Brecker on ''Thank You, Gerry!''
In 2022, the label announced plans to make all of its recordings available for streaming, the establishment of Arkadia Concerts as a video-on-demand channel,
and its first releases of new material for several years.
References
{{reflist
Jazz record labels
Record labels established in 1996