Savoy Records is an American record company and label established by Herman Lubinsky in 1942 in Newark, New Jersey. Savoy specialized in

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 m ...

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 ...

, and gospel music. In September 2017, Savoy was acquired by

Concord Bicycle Music Concord Music Group was an American independent music company based in Beverly Hills, California, with worldwide (including the U.S.) distribution through Universal Music Group. The company specialized in recordings (Fearless Records, Concord Re ...

History

In the 1940s, Savoy recorded some of the biggest names in jazz:

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

Erroll Garner Erroll Louis Garner (June 15, 1921 – January 2, 1977) was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his swing playing and ballads. His instrumental ballad " Misty", his best-known composition, has become a jazz standard. It was first re ...

, Dexter Gordon,

J. J. Johnson J.J. Johnson (January 22, 1924 – February 4, 2001), born James Louis Johnson and also known as Jay Jay Johnson, was an American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger. Johnson was one of the earliest trombonists to embrace bebop. Biograph ...

, Fats Navarro, and

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

. In 1948, it began buying other labels: Bop,

Discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discove ...

, National, and

Regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

. It also reissued music from Jewel Records. In the early 1960s, Savoy briefly recorded several avant-garde jazz artists. These included Paul Bley, Ed Curran,

Bill Dixon William Robert “Bill” Dixon (October 5, 1925 – June 16, 2010) was an American composer, improviser, visual artist, activist, and educator. Dixon was one of the seminal figures in free jazz and late twentieth-century contemporary music. Hi ...

, Mark Levin,

Charles Moffett Charles Moffett (September 6, 1929 – February 14, 1997) was an American free jazz drummer. Biography Moffett was born in Fort Worth, Texas, where he attended I.M. Terrell High School with Ornette Coleman. Before switching to drums, Moffet ...

, Perry Robinson, Joseph Scianni, Archie Shepp, Sun Ra, Marzette Watts, and Valdo Williams. After Lubinsky's death in 1974, Clive Davis, then manager of Arista Records, acquired Savoy's catalogue. After that,

Joe Fields Joseph Charles Fields Jr. (born November 14, 1953) is a former professional American football center and guard in the National Football League for the New York Jets and the New York Giants. Raised in Deptford Township, New Jersey, Fields i ...

of Muse Records purchased the catalogue from Arista. In 1986, Malaco Records acquired Savoy's black gospel titles and contracts. In 1991, Nippon Columbia acquired Savoy and its library, and distributed Savoy releases through its wholly owned subsidiary, Savoy Jazz. In 2003, Savoy Jazz acquired the rights to the

Muse In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in ...

and Landmark catalogues from 32 Jazz. In 2009, the label entered a distribution arrangement with Warner Music Group. Savoy included the rock imprint 429 Records. Many of the label's African American artists begrudged the label's founder, Herman Lubinsky, feeling underpaid for their work. Tiny Price, a journalist for the African American newspaper ''The Newark Herald News'', said of Savoy and Lubinsky:

There's no doubt everybody hated Herman Lubinsky. If he messed with you, you were messed. At the same time, some of those people, many of them Newark's top singers and musicians, would never have been exposed on records if he didn't do what he did. Except for Lubinsky, all the hot little numbers, like Buddy Johnson's "Cherry", would have been lost. The man may have been hated, but he saved a lot of our history for us and for future generations.

Savoy's artistic directors included

Buck Ram Samuel "Buck" Ram (November 21, 1907 – January 1, 1991) was an American songwriter, and popular music producer and arranger. He was one of BMI's top five songwriters/air play in its first 50 years, alongside Paul Simon, Kris Kristofferson, Jim ...

, Teddy Reig, Ralph Bass (1948–1952),

Fred Mendelsohn Fred Mendelsohn (May 16, 1917 – April 28, 2000) was an American music executive. The president of Savoy Records for 42 years, he was the first man to ever record, promote and market black gospel music as a national company. His dedicati ...

(1953), and Ozzie Cadena (1954–1962).

Discography

''The following are 12" LPs and have the prefix MG.''

Subsidiaries

* Acorn Records (1949‒51) * Gospel Records (1958–early 1970s) * Regent Records (1947‒64) * Sharp Records (1960‒64)

References

External links

Official website

SavoyJazz.com

Savoy Records
on the Internet Archive'
Great 78 Project
{{Authority control American record labels American jazz record labels Record labels established in 1942 Culture of Newark, New Jersey 1942 establishments in New Jersey American companies established in 1942 Companies based in Newark, New Jersey

History

Discography

Subsidiaries

See also

References

Further reading

External links