Colonial Records was a

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 census, making Chapel Hill the 17th-largest municipality in the state. Chapel Hill, Durham, and the state ca ...

-based record label that provided the springboard for artists

Andy Griffith Andy Samuel Griffith (June 1, 1926 – July 3, 2012) was an American actor, comedian, television producer, southern gospel singer and writer whose career spanned seven decades in music and television. Known for his Southern drawl, his characte ...

George Hamilton IV George Hege Hamilton IV (July 19, 1937 – September 17, 2014) was an American country musician. He began performing in the late 1950s as a teen idol, switching to country music in the early 1960s. Biography Hamilton was born in Winston-Salem, ...

John D. Loudermilk John Dee Loudermilk Jr. (March 31, 1934 – September 21, 2016) was an American singer and songwriter. Although he had his own recording career during the 1950s and 1960s, he was primarily known as a songwriter. His best-known songs include "I ...

, and

Billy "Crash" Craddock Billy Wayne "Crash" Craddock (born June 16, 1939) is an American country and rockabilly singer. He first gained popularity in Australia in the 1950s with a string of rockabilly hits, including the Australian number one hits " Boom Boom Baby" an ...

Origin

Colonial Records was a

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

founded in 1948 by Orville Campbell, a journalist and newspaper publisher in

. Its first release was "All The Way Choo Choo," by the Bell Tones, which Campbell composed with partner Hank Beebe in 1949, about UNC football star Charlie Justice. A recording of the song by bandleader Johnny Long was released on King Records and sold well regionally. Benny Goodman recorded the song for

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

but it was not released. Colonial’s second release was another Campbell-Beebe composition, “Way Up In North Carolina,” also performed by the Bell Tones. The record caught the attention of bandleader

Fred Waring Fredrick Malcolm Waring Sr. (June 9, 1900 – July 29, 1984) was an American musician, bandleader, and radio and television personality, sometimes referred to as "America's Singing Master" and "The Man Who Taught America How to Sing". He was also ...

, who performed it on his musical variety television program in 1951.

"What It Was, Was Football"

In the fall of 1953, a young monologist named

recorded a routine in the role of a naïve country preacher who describes his experience attending a college football game, which is entirely puzzling to him. He sent the recording to Colonial Records. “ What It Was, Was Football” became the label’s third release in November that year. Colonial sold nearly 50,000 copies regionally.

publicity man Richard Linke heard the record on a distant radio station and flew from New York City to North Carolina to buy the masters. The record became a huge success in the comedy record market, selling some 800,000 copies, and reaching number 9 on the pop music charts.

"A Rose and a Baby Ruth"

In 1956, a young aspiring musician named

approached Colonial Records to pursue a recording career. That August Campbell recorded his rendition of a tune by fellow North Carolina artist

, “

A Rose and a Baby Ruth "A Rose and a Baby Ruth" is a song written by John D. Loudermilk under his "Johnny Dee" pseudonym. The song was published in 1956. The best-known version was recorded by George Hamilton IV. The song reached number 6 on the Billboard magazine pop ...

.” ABC-Paramount Records acquired the masters and the record became a smash hit. On the popular music charts, the disk topped out at number 6, selling close to a million copies.

"Sittin’ in the Balcony"

In February 1957, Campbell recorded Loudermilk singing one of his own tunes, “ Sittin' in the Balcony,” released under the name of “Johnny Dee.” It rose to number 38 on the charts, but became a springboard for

Eddie Cochran Ray Edward Cochran (; October 3, 1938 – April 17, 1960) was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as "Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", " C'mon Everybody" and " Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desire ...

, whose cover version reached number 18.

Other Recordings

Colonial Records' artist roster included Jay Hanna “Dizzy” Dean, who became a television sports commentator following his career as a Major League Baseball pitcher, and Bill Craddock, who went on to country music fame as Billy “Crash” Craddock. An album of Craddock’s early recordings between 1958 and 1961 was released in 1986 as Crash's Greatest Hits. Although it is labeled as a Colonial disc, it is a Canadian pressing and is said to be an unofficial release. Doug Franklin and the Bluenotes’ recording of "Lucky Love" placed in the Hot 100 at #73 in 1958. Although not placing in the charts, "Ski King" by E.C. Beatty sold 140,000 copies within the first two weeks after its release in 1961 making it at least a regional hit.

Distribution

Colonial’s records were distributed by

ABC-Paramount Records ABC Records was an American record label founded in New York City in 1955. It originated as the main popular music label operated by the Am-Par Record Corporation. Am-Par also created the Impulse! jazz label in 1960. It acquired many labels bef ...

from 1956 to 1959.

London Records London Recordings (or London Records and London Music Stream) is a British record label that marketed records in the United States, Canada, and Latin America for Decca Records from 1947 to 1980 before becoming semi-independent. The London nam ...

signed a three-year distribution agreement in May of that year.

Tollie Records Tollie Records was a record label formed in February 1964, as a subsidiary label of Vee-Jay Records. It closed in May 1965. The label distributed two of the Beatles' singles in the United States before Capitol Records eventually took over. The ...

became the label's final distributor toward the end of Colonial's existence.

Selected Singles

* Allan and the Flames **Till The End of Time/Winter Wonderland (1960) * Cecelia Batten **My Big Brothers Friend/Before (1957) **Knock On The Pipes/Lonesome Train (1957) * E.C. Beatty **I'm A Lucky Man/Ski King (1959) **Let Her Go Daddy-O/Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! (1960) **Little Blue Eyes/Tarzan (1960) *

The Bluenotes The Bluenotes were a vocal group from Asheboro, North Carolina featuring Tom Underwood, Joe Tanner (who also played guitar), Pat Patterson, and Ralph Harrington. They recorded for the Colonial and Brooke record labels. Their first recordings were ...

**Mighty Low/Page One (1957) **You're A Tiger/Let Her Know (1958) **Never Never Land/I Waited (1958) * Bill Craddock **Birddoggin'/Millionaire (1957) *

Johnny Dee Johnny Dee (John D.) is a fictional mutant character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He debuted in ''Son of M #1'' (2005). Fictional character biography Johnny was one of the few mutants who kept his powers after ...

** Sittin' in the Balcony/A-Plus In Love (1957) **It's Gotta Be You/Teenage Queen (1957) **In My Simple Way/1000 Concrete Blocks (1957) **They Were Right/Somebody Sweet (1957) *

Dizzy Dean Jay Hanna "Dizzy" Dean (January 16, 1910 – July 17, 1974), also known as Jerome Herman Dean (both the 1910 and 1920 Censuses show his name as "Jay"), was an American professional baseball pitcher. During his Major League Baseball (MLB) career ...

**Wabash Cannon Ball/You Don’t Have to Be From the Country (1954) * Jess Duboy **Puppy Love/Echos (1959) *Johnny Ford **I'm Gonna Keep On Loving You/

That's My Desire "That's My Desire" is a 1931 popular song with music by Helmy Kresa and lyrics by Carroll Loveday. The highest-charting version of the song was recorded by the Sammy Kaye orchestra in 1946, although a version of the song recorded by Frankie Lai ...

(1965) * Four Sounds and A Fury **Virginia Beach Reel/Myrtle Beach Boogie (1956?) * Doug Franklin **My Lucky Love/Drizzlin' Rain (1958) **I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now/I Used To Wonder (1958) **The New Midnight Special/My Love For You (1958) * Franklin Brothers **So Real/My Little Girl (1959) **Wake Up (Little Boy Blue)/Day Dreaming (1959) * The Goldtones **High Dive Into Love/The Oriental Shake (1965) * Deacon Andy Griffith **What It Was, Was Football/Romeo And Juliet (1953) *

**If You Don't Know/

(1956) **I've Got a Secret/Sam (1956) * Hank Hardy **My Lucky Love/1000 Concrete Blocks (1961) * Doug Harrell **Hospitality Blues/Exsanguination Blues (1956) *

Grady Lewis Grady W. Lewis (March 25, 1917 – March 11, 2009) was an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs and Oklahoma Sooners. Lewis played four seasons with the Phillips 66 Oile ...

**Runaway Lover/Sad Story (1960) * Melody Masters Quartet **It's Gotta Be All/Singing On The Mountain (1957) *Tom O'Neil **Georgia On My Mind/Who's Sorry Now (1961) **Song For Anita/I Get The Blues When It Rains (1961) * Johnny Randal **Do Right/You're Gone But Still In My Heart (1964) **How About That/This Is The End (1964) (as Johnny Randall) **Sweet As Honey/Dreamin' On A Sunday Afternoon (1965) * Hoke Simpson ** Mountain Dew Rock/Number One (1957) * Ebe Sneezer and His Epidemics **That's All I've Got (To Remember You By) /Asiatic Flu (1957) *’Cile Turner **Drizzlin' Rain/Full Of The Moon (CR 731 - with picture sleeve) (1957) **Crap Shootin' Sinner/The Golden Rule (1959) **Going Down To Town/Don't Fool Around With The Blues (1960) **Joe Sweeny/In Virginia (1960) **The Happy Song/The Winds Call It Home (1961) **I'm Walking That Lonesome Road/Going Down To Town (1977) *Henry Wilson **Are You Ready/It's Really Love (1958) Billboard Magazine 1957-1959. Cashbox Magazine 1959

Labels associated with Colonial Records

References

{{reflist American country music record labels