Megatone Records was an independent music label specializing in disco and created in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

in 1981 by Patrick Cowley and

Marty Blecman Marty may refer to: Names * Marty (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters, also includes stage names * Marty (surname), a list of people Places in the United States * Marty, California, a former settlement * Marty, Min ...

. The label name was derived from Cowley's 1981 high energy disco song, "

Megatron Man "Megatron Man" is a 1981 dance single by producer Patrick Cowley, released by Megatone Records Megatone Records was an independent music label specializing in disco and created in San Francisco in 1981 by Patrick Cowley and Marty Blecman. The ...

". In 1983, musician Sylvester became a partner of Megatone Records. Some of the artists involved include: Patrick Cowley,

Jeanie Tracy Jeanie Tracy is an American singer-songwriter, actress, and record producer. She rose to fame in the late 1970s as a background singer of Sylvester, an American disco singer. Her first album, '' Me and You'' (1982), featured post-disco hits "I'm ...

, Sylvester,

Modern Rocketry Modern may refer to: History *Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Philosoph ...

Sarah Dash Sarah Dash (August 18, 1945 – September 20, 2021) was an American singer and actress. She first appeared on the music scene as a member of Patti LaBelle & The Bluebelles. Dash was later a member of Labelle, and worked as a singer, sess ...

, Patti LaBelle, and Paul Parker.

History

Megatone owned two sub-labels Megatone House Records and Mega-Tech Records. Megatone House Records, active from 1988 to 1991, specialized in

House music House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...

. Mega-Tech Records, was active in 1992, specialized in house music with breakbeat. Megatone brought several high energy disco singles to the U.S. Dance Charts in the early 1980s. All cuts from Sylvester's "All I Need" LP peaked at number 2 on the club charts in 1982, Paul Parker made number 1 with his single "Right On Target" that same year, and

took her single "Lucky Tonight" to the Top 20 with Sylvester and Patti LaBelle on backing vocals. Musical project

was also a notable act on the label, combining the flavors of high energy and rock music, they became an underground club success in San Francisco but never charted. Patrick Cowley's Jo-Lo singers did vocal work for this group frequently, but the two women also had a success with the single "Last Call". Jo-Lo member Jo Carol performed in San Francisco past the Megatone records craze, even doing a few shows where she performed several rock classics. After Cowley's death in 1982, Blecman was head of the label until he died of AIDS in 1991. In 1992, John Hedges and Terrence Brown took over Megatone. In 1995, Megatone closed down & its back catalog was sold to

Unidisc Music Unidisc Music is a Canadian independent record label. The label is known for releasing rare music, that was made between the mid-1960s and late 1980s. Genres include rock, electronic, funk, soul, hip hop, jazz, reggae, Latin, disco and a cappel ...

References

{{Authority control American independent record labels Record labels established in 1981 LGBT-related record labels

History

See also

References