Philles Records was an American
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 prod ...
formed in 1961 by
Phil Spector
Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...
and
Lester Sill, the label taking its name from a hybrid of their first names. Initially, the label was distributed by
Jamie/Guyden in Philadelphia. In 1962, Spector purchased Sill's stock to become sole owner at 21 years of age, America's youngest label chief at the time.
Founding and background
The label issued 12
albums over the course of its existence, but with the exception of ''
A Christmas Gift for You'', the focus was always on the
single. However, Philles X-125 is a reissue of Philles 119, and X-125 exists with two different
B-side
The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...
tracks, as "
Winter Wonderland" (1964) and "Winter Blues" (1965) were substituted for the original flipside, "Harry and Milt Meet Hal B" (1963). "Harry and Milt" and many other flipsides were deliberately undistinguished instrumentals, which were intended to focus attention on the A-sides. These B-sides were originally credited to the A-side artists, but later pieces were credited to the Phil Spector Group. Also, most discographies, including the one in the ''
Back to Mono'' booklet, list two items with catalogue number Philles 123. "Stumble And Fall" by
Darlene Love
Darlene Wright (born July 26, 1941), known professionally as Darlene Love, is an American singer and actress. She was the lead singer of the girl group the Blossoms and she also recorded as a solo artist.
She began singing as a child with he ...
was released and then withdrawn (both stock and promos exist) in August 1964 (according to ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' magazine). Its number was replaced with "
Walking in the Rain" by
The Ronettes
The Ronettes were an American girl group from Washington Heights, Manhattan, New York City. The group consisted of lead singer Veronica Bennett (later known as Ronnie Spector), her older sister Estelle Bennett, and their cousin Nedra Talley. ...
, which came out that October. Philles 111 also has two B-sides: "My Heart Beat a Little Bit Faster" and "Playing for Keeps." The last few singles (134, 135, and 136) received much less airplay than their predecessors. Although singles 134 and 135 were "charted" by ''Billboard'', single 136 did not—although both promo and regular stock copies exist. The promotion-only single "(Let's Dance) The Screw" by
The Crystals
The Crystals are an American vocal group that originated in New York City. Considered one of the defining acts of the girl group era in the first half of the 1960s, their 1961–1964 chart hits – including " There's No Other (Like My Baby)" ...
is known only in the form of a handful of promotional copies and one stock copy.
After the chart failures of the last few singles, Phil Spector stopped producing and releasing new records on Philles. In the summer of 1966, he signed
Bob Crewe
Robert Stanley Crewe (November 12, 1930 – September 11, 2014) was an American songwriter, dancer, singer, manager, and record producer. He was known for producing, and co-writing with Bob Gaudio, a string of Top 10 singles for the Four Season ...
and
Jeff Barry to produce The Ronettes and
Ike & Tina Turner
Ike & Tina Turner were an American musical duo consisting of husband and wife Ike Turner and Tina Turner. From 1960 to 1976, they performed live as the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, supported by Ike Turner's band the Kings of Rhythm and backing voc ...
. The label effectively ceased operations in 1967, and Spector did not return to
production work for another two years. There was one more Philles record, ''The Phil Spector Spectacular.'' It was released only to radio stations in 1972, along with a letter from Phil. The Philles catalog is now administered by
Sony Music Publishing
Sony Music Publishing (formerly Sony/ATV Music Publishing) is the largest music publisher in the world, with over five million songs owned or administered as of end March 2021. US-based, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is itself owned ...
, which acquired the catalogue when it bought
EMI Music Publishing, with
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 Entertainmen ...
's
Legacy Recordings
Legacy Recordings is an American record label that is a division of Sony Music. Formed in 1990 after Sony's acquisition of CBS Records, Legacy originally handled the archives of Sony Music-owned labels Columbia Records and Epic Records. In ...
imprint handling distribution rights for the Philles catalog through a new licensing deal which was finalized in September 2009.
Prior to this deal, the Philles reissues were handled by
ABKCO Records.
Production
The singles were produced by Spector, with five and one half exceptions: Philles 101, 103, and 104 were produced by Lester Sill prior to his departure from the company; Philles 133 by Jeff Barry; Philles 134 by Bob Crewe; and the B-side of Philles 136 was produced by
Ike Turner. For years, The Righteous Brothers' Bill Medley has insisted that he produced "Unchained Melody" (Philles 129) but that has never been confirmed: as an album track for ''
Just Once in My Life'', Spector delegated production of such tracks to Medley. As the B-side to "Hung On You", early presses did not specify its producer on the label – Spector usually produced throwaway instrumentals on the B-side to focus on the A-side. When the track boomed in popularity, Spector eventually opted to claim credit in later presses.
Of the non-Spector productions, only "I Can Hear Music" charted and it rose no higher than 100th place. Every one of Spector's productions made the charts in the U.S., with the exceptions of Philles 136, one of the two Philles 123's, the withdrawn Philles 105, and the
holiday single both times. Eighteen Philles records made the
Top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...
, the label topping the charts twice with Philles 106 in 1962, and again with Philles 124 in 1965.
Notable artists
*
The Crystals
The Crystals are an American vocal group that originated in New York City. Considered one of the defining acts of the girl group era in the first half of the 1960s, their 1961–1964 chart hits – including " There's No Other (Like My Baby)" ...
*
Darlene Love
Darlene Wright (born July 26, 1941), known professionally as Darlene Love, is an American singer and actress. She was the lead singer of the girl group the Blossoms and she also recorded as a solo artist.
She began singing as a child with he ...
*
Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans
*
The Ronettes
The Ronettes were an American girl group from Washington Heights, Manhattan, New York City. The group consisted of lead singer Veronica Bennett (later known as Ronnie Spector), her older sister Estelle Bennett, and their cousin Nedra Talley. ...
*
The Righteous Brothers
*
Ike & Tina Turner
Ike & Tina Turner were an American musical duo consisting of husband and wife Ike Turner and Tina Turner. From 1960 to 1976, they performed live as the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, supported by Ike Turner's band the Kings of Rhythm and backing voc ...
Singles discography
Albums discography
Albums 4007, 4008, and 4009 were issued simultaneously in stereo with an ST- prefix. The Monarch job number for ST-4006 indicates that the stereo release of this album came in July 1966. Album 4000 was released in mono only in 1962. It was released through the Capitol Record Club in both mono and rechanneled stereo. Based on the catalog number of the record club issue, that release was in late 1966.
See also
*
Phi-Dan Records
Phi-Dan was an American subsidiary record label of Phil Spector Productions formed in 1965 by producer Phil Spector.
History
By 1965, Phil Spector had achieved great success with his label Philles. He produced chart topping singles such as "He' ...
*
Warner-Spector Records
Warner-Spector Records was a record label formed on October 12, 1974 as an outlet for Phil Spector productions by Warner Bros. Records. The label lasted for three years. Except for a new single by Cher
Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May ...
*
List of record labels
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Lists of record labels cover record labels, brands or trademarks associated with marketing of music recordings and music videos. The lists are organized alphabetically, b ...
Notes
References
{{Authority control
American record labels
Record labels established in 1961
Record labels disestablished in 1967
Pop record labels
Vanity record labels
Phil Spector