Pete Waterman Entertainment (PWE) is the production company one-time

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

and

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

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 ...

owned by British pop mogul Pete Waterman. The label, originally PWL (Pete Waterman Limited), is most famous for being the home of hit record producers Stock Aitken Waterman.

History

After producing many hits for other record companies, PWL launched its own label in

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

(PWL Records) with the single "

I Just Can't Wait ''Mandy'' is the only studio album by Mandy Smith. It was released by PWL in 1988, re-issued in 1993 in Japan and re-mastered and re-issued in 2009. Smith, who was already well-known in the British tabloids due to her relationship with Rolling ...

" by Mandy Smith. The next single was the biggest selling single of the year: "

I Should Be So Lucky "I Should Be So Lucky" is a 1987 song performed by Australian recording artist and songwriter Kylie Minogue from her debut studio album '' Kylie'' (1988). Released on 29 December 1987 by Mushroom Records and PWL Records, the song became a worldw ...

" by

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter and actress. She is the highest-selling female Australian artist of all time, having sold over 80 million records worldwide. She has been recognised for reinve ...

. As a record label, PWL enjoyed success with

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n artists such as

and

Jason Donovan Jason Sean Donovan (born 1 June 1968) is an Australian actor and singer. He initially achieved fame in the Australian soap ''Neighbours'', playing Scott Robinson, before beginning a career in music in 1988. In the UK he has sold over 3 mi ...

and Dutch dance group

2 Unlimited 2 Unlimited are a Belgian/Dutch dance music act, founded by Belgian producers/songwriters Jean-Paul De Coster and Phil Wilde in 1991 in Antwerp, Belgium. From 1991 to 1996, Dutch rapper Ray Slijngaard and Dutch vocalist Anita Doth fronted the a ...

. As a production house they produced hits for

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

artists such as Rick Astley,

Dead or Alive Dead or Alive most commonly refers to: * Dead or Alive (band), a British pop band * Dead or alive, a phrase on a wanted poster Dead or Alive may also refer to: Film and television * ''Dead or Alive'' (1921 film), an American silent film dir ...

and

Bananarama Bananarama are an English pop duo from London, formed as a trio in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when the trio became a duo. Thei ...

on other record labels. In the US, PWL America was established in 1989 and specialized primarily in hip-hop music, launching the careers of MCs

Ed O.G. Edward Anderson (born November 27, 1970) is a hip-hop artist from Boston, Massachusetts, better known by his stage name Edo G. Edo is the seniormost hip-hop artist from Boston (if not from anywhere in Massachusetts), in the sense that he was ...

and Diamond D. In 1992, it was renamed Chemistry Records Ltd., but it shut its doors in 1993. It was distributed in that territory by

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

/ PolyGram Records. In the early 1990s, Pete Waterman formed a new label called PWL International in partnership with

Warner Music Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and t ...

; one of the artists that recorded for the label, Opus III, would score two number ones on Billboard’s Dance Club Songs Chart through a US deal with Warner’s

EastWest Records East West Records (stylized as east''west'') is a record label formed in 1955, distributed and owned by Warner Music Group, headquartered in London, England. History Upon its creation in 1955 by Atlantic Records, the label had one hit with th ...

. However, with other projects taking up Waterman's time, his involvement in the label decreased, and PWL International Ltd. became the Warner label

Coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

. The record label is still in operation today and operates the label EBUL through former labels

Jive Records Jive Records was an American independent record label founded by Clive Calder in 1981 as a subsidiary to the Zomba Group. In the US, the label had offices in New York City and Chicago. Jive was best known for its successes with hip hop, R&B, an ...

and Zomba (now labels by

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

). As of March 2017, most of the PWL catalogue is now distributed by

BMG Rights Management BMG Rights Management GmbH (also known simply as BMG) is an international music company based in Berlin, Germany. It combines the activities of a music publisher and a record label. BMG was founded in October 2008 after Bertelsmann sold its ...

Notable former PWL artists

Some of these acts were produced at the PWL Hit Factory and were signed to PWL Records, whilst others were licensed to PWL from other European independent dance labels (e.g. Media or Byte): *

Anticapella Anticappella were an Italian music group led by Gianfranco Bortolotti, the founder of Cappella Cappella may refer to: * Cappella (band), Italian electronic music group * a cappella, unaccompanied singing People with the surname * Felix Cappell ...

(left in 1991) * Kakko *

(left in 1992) * Lonnie Gordon * Loveland * Mandy Smith *

Mel & Kim Mel and Kim (stylized as MӗL & KIM) were an English pop duo, consisting of sisters Melanie and Kim Appleby. Originally managed by Alan Whitehead, they achieved success between 1986 and 1988, before Melanie died of cancer in January 1990 at the ...

Niki Evans ''The X Factor'' is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. The fourth series was broadcast on ITV from 18 August 2007 and was won by Leon Jackson on 15 December 2007, with Rhydian Roberts finishing as the runner-up a ...

* One True Voice * Opus III * Pop! *

The Reynolds Girls The Reynolds Girls were a British dance-pop duo composed of sisters Linda (born in 1970) and Aisling Reynolds (born in 1972). They are best known for their hit single "I'd Rather Jack", produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, which achieved succes ...

* Steps * Strange Nature (left in 1995) *

Sybil Sibyls were oracular women believed to possess prophetic powers in ancient Greece. Sybil or Sibyl may also refer to: Films * ''Sybil'' (1921 film) * ''Sybil'' (1976 film), a film starring Sally Field * ''Sybil'' (2007 film), a remake of the 19 ...

* Tina Cousins *

* Undercover

Acts produced by Stock Aitken Waterman

These acts were produced at the PWL Hit Factory, but were not signed directly to PWL Records: *

(signed to London Records) * Big Fun (left in 1991) * Bobby Farrell, Maizie Williams and Marcia Barrett of

Boney M. Boney M. was a German-Caribbean vocal group that specialized in disco and funk created by German record producer Frank Farian, who was the group's primary songwriter. Originally based in West Germany, the four original members of the group's o ...

for the unauthorised single "

Everybody Wants to Dance Like Josephine Baker "Everybody Wants to Dance Like Josephine Baker" is a 1989 single by German band Boney M. Produced by Barry Blue and recorded by original Boney M. members Marcia Barrett, Bobby Farrell, Maizie Williams and singer Madeleine Davis replacing Liz Mitch ...

" *

Boy Krazy Boy Krazy was a New York City-based girl group that saw brief fame in 1991, and again in 1993 with their hit single "That's What Love Can Do". Career The group was put together through auditions by a management company in New York. Boy Krazy f ...

* Brother Beyond (signed to EMI's Parlophone label) *

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is an Indian-born British musican, singer, producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who holds both British and Barbadian citizenship. He has total sales of over 21.5 million s ...

(left in 1988) (signed to CBS' Epic Records, now

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

) *

Divine Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine

Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the " Queen of Disco", while her mus ...

* Hazell Dean * London Boys * Princess * Rick Astley (left in 1990) *

Sabrina Salerno Sabrina Debora Salerno (born 15 March 1968), known mononymously as Sabrina, is an Italian singer, songwriter, record producer, model, actress and television presenter. During her career, she has sold over 20 million records worldwide and scored ...

Samantha Fox Samantha Karen Fox (born 15 April 1966) is an English pop singer and former glamour model from East London. She rose to public attention aged 16, when her mother entered her photographs in an amateur modelling contest run by ''The Sunday Peopl ...

* Same Difference *

The Sheilas The Sheilas was a British novelty pop girl group, famous for a 2007 jingle promoting car insurance company Sheilas' Wheels in an advertising campaign in the United Kingdom. History The Sheilas were Emma Robbins, Carly Romain and Cathi Ogden. Th ...

* Sinitta * Sonia (left in 1991)

Chemistry/PWL America artists

* Kim Appleby * B.O.X. * Diamond and the Psychotic Neurotics * Ed O.G. & da Bulldogs * Poizon Posse *

Sylk Smoov Floyd Harrison, better known as Sylk Smoov, is an American rapper from St. Louis, Missouri. Biography Harrison was born in north St. Louis. In 1991, performing as Sylk Smoov, he signed a deal with Mercury Records, making him the first rapper from ...

References

External links