The Winner Records was a United Kingdom-based record label from 1912 onwards. Its records were manufactured by the Edison Bell Record Works, London. This company, founded by James Hough, had originated in the early 1890s as an importer of Edison and

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

phonograph cylinders; from 1898 Hough had also made cylinder records, initially using a separate company, Edisonia. When Edison set up his own European operation in 1904, the import franchise was withdrawn, but the name Edison Bell remained in use. From 1909 the official name of Edison-Bell was J. E. Hough Ltd. Winner Records were designed to offer well-recorded and pressed gramophone records at a budget price. Winner records, with black or red labels, were mostly of a popular music type, although they included some items of musical distinction, such as early recordings by John Barbirolli, then a child-prodigy performer on the violoncello, and nearly all of the discography of

Marie Novello Marie Novello, also known as Marie Novello Williams (born Maria Williams; 31 March 1884 – 21 June 1928) was a Welsh pianist. She was one of Theodor Leschetizky's last students and performed in public from childhood. Her early death cut sho ...

, one of the last students of Theodor Leschetizky. In the early 1920s the company introduced a higher-quality series, Velvet Face Records, so called because the material of which they were made was allegedly smoother than that used by other manufacturers. These had green labels, and the catalogue included some ambitious items, such as an abridged version (1925) of

Edward Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

's oratorio ''The Dream of Gerontius'' and, from Novello, what has been reported as the first recording of

Bach's Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 (arranged for piano by Carl Tausig) and a complete recording of Mendelssohn's First Piano Concerto, her sole recording of a work extending over more than two record sides. In 1919, Winner was the first to issue a recording by a jazz band. All recordings prior to 1922 were made by Edison Bell in London. Subsequently, several recordings were leased from Star Piano Company, Emerson Records, and

Paramount Records Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Early years Paramount Records was formed in 19 ...

. Subsequent to 1925, recordings from Crown and

Plaza Music Company A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...

were used. Edison-Bell was eventually absorbed by England-based company

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 ...

. Decca introduced a new series of Winner records that were primarily sourced from American Vocalion Records, Vocalion. These were discontinued January 1935. More than 3500 Winner gramophone discs had been issued. A full listing of Winner records is published by the The City Of London Phonograph and Gramophone Society, CLPGS.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Winner Records, The Defunct record labels of the United Kingdom Jazz record labels Record labels established in 1912 Record labels disestablished in 1935 1912 establishments in the United Kingdom 1935 disestablishments in the United Kingdom

See also

References