Essex Records was founded in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, in 1951 by David Miller primarily to record contemporary

country and western A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

as well as

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

. Jack Howard was the promotion manager. The label had little popular success, but is known for releasing early

Bill Haley & His Comets Bill Haley & His Comets were an American rock and roll band founded in 1947 that continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band was also known as Bill Haley and the Comets and Bill Haley's Comets. From late 1954 to late 1956, the group record ...

recordings such as "

Rock the Joint "Rock the Joint", also known as "We're Gonna Rock This Joint Tonight", is a 1949 boogie song recorded by various proto-rock and roll singers, notably Jimmy Preston and early rock and roll singers, most notably Bill Haley in 1952. Preston's version ...

" (1952) and "

Crazy Man Crazy "Crazy Man, Crazy" was the title of an early rock and roll song written by, and first recorded by Bill Haley & His Comets in April 1953. It is notable as the first recognized rock and roll recording to appear on the national American musical char ...

", the latter of which was the first

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

recording to make the American record charts when it was released in 1953. The label also scored success in 1954 with

Eddie Calvert Albert Edward "Eddie" Calvert (15 March 1922 – 7 August 1978) was an English trumpeter, who enjoyed his greatest success in the 1950s. Between 1953 and 1958, Calvert achieved seven instrumental hits on the UK Singles Chart, including two ch ...

's recording of "

O mein Papa "" is a nostalgic German song, originally as related by a young woman remembering her beloved, once-famous clown father. It was written by Swiss composer Paul Burkhard in 1939 for the musical ' (''The Black Pike''), reproduced in 1950 as '' Das Feue ...

". The label also released the first 12-inch album of rock and roll music with its 1954 Haley compilation ''

Rock with Bill Haley and the Comets ''Rock with Bill Haley and the Comets'' is the title of an early rock and roll music compilation album issued by Essex Records (ESLP 202) in December 1955, and featuring music by the titular group, Bill Haley & His Comets. The album features recor ...

''. Haley's first big hit, "Crazy Man, Crazy" was followed by two other chart hits, "Fractured", and "Live It Up". In 1954, Haley left Essex for

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

. The primary female vocalist on the label was Bunny Paul, who scored hits in 1954 with "Such a Night" and "Honey Love". The colour of the Essex label was primarily orange with the print in black, but several singles were released on a blue label.

References

External links

Essex Records
on the Internet Archive'
Great 78 Project
{{Authority control Record labels established in 1951 Record labels disestablished in 1956 American country music record labels Companies based in Philadelphia Rhythm and blues record labels Jazz record labels Gospel music record labels Bill Haley 1951 establishments in Pennsylvania

See also

References

External links