Jubilee Records was an American independent record label, specializing in

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 novelty records. It was founded in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1946 by

Herb Abramson Herbert C. Abramson (November 16, 1916 – November 9, 1999) was an American record executive, record producer, and co-founder of Atlantic Records. Life and career Abramson was born in 1916 to a Jewish family in Brooklyn. He studied to be a dent ...

. His partner was Jerry Blaine. Blaine bought Abramson's half of the company in 1947, when Abramson went on to co-found Atlantic Records with Ahmet Ertegun. The company name was Jay-Gee Recording Company, a subsidiary of the Cosnat Corporation. Cosnat was a wholesale record distributor.

History

Jubilee was the first independent record label to reach the white market with a black vocal group, when

the Orioles The Orioles were an American R&B group of the late 1940s and early 1950s, one of the earliest such vocal groups who established the basic pattern for the doo-wop sound. The Orioles are generally acknowledged as R&B's first vocal group. Balti ...

' recording of "

Crying in the Chapel "Crying in the Chapel" is a song written by Artie Glenn and recorded by his son Darrell Glenn. The song was released in 1953 and reached number six on the ''Billboard'' chart. The song has also been recorded by many artists including the Oriole ...

" reached the Top Twenty on the

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'' ( ...

chart in 1953.

The Four Tunes The Four Tunes (also referred to as The 4 Tunes) were a leading black pop vocal quartet during the 1950s. The members at the peak of their fame were Pat Best, Jimmy Gordon, Jimmie Nabbie, and Danny Owens. Career The group originated from The Brow ...

started recording for Jubilee in 1953. The biggest early hit for Jubilee was "Crying in the Chapel" by

. A subsidiary label,

Josie Records Josie Records was a subsidiary of Jubilee Records in New York City that was active from 1954 to 1971. The label's best selling bands were The Cadillacs (" Speedoo"), Bobby Freeman and the Meters. Other hits for Josie Records included the Chi ...

, was formed in 1954 and issued more uptempo material. Hits on Josie included "

Speedoo "Speedoo" is a song written by Esther Navarro and performed by The Cadillacs featuring the Jesse Powell Orchestra. It reached number 3 on the U.S. R&B chart and number 17 on the U.S. pop chart in 1955. The song was featured on their 1957 album ...

" by the Cadillacs (number 3 R&B, number 17 pop) and "Do You Wanna Dance" by

Bobby Freeman Robert Thomas Freeman (June 13, 1940 – January 23, 2017)"Bobby Freeman"
Ace Records.co.uk. Retrieve ...

(number 2 R&B, number 5 pop). The biggest success was the million-seller "Last Kiss", by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers, which reached number 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1964. In the late 1960s, The Meters, a group of New Orleans session musicians, released a series of R&B instrumental hits, including "

Cissy Strut "Cissy Strut" is a 1969 funk instrumental by The Meters. Released as a single from their eponymous debut album, it reached No. 4 on the R&B chart and No. 23 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 20 ...

", which reached number 4 R&B and number 23 pop. The label's last rock-and-roll hit was the rhythm-and-blues instrumental "Poor Boy"/"Wail!" by the Royaltones (number 17, 1957). Of the label's novelty recordings, releases by the blooper compiler Kermit Schaefer, and the comedian Rusty Warren were successful. Jubilee/Josie also had a custom label, Gross Records, whose only artist was

Doug Clark and the Hot Nuts Doug Clark and the Hot Nuts, also known as Doug Clark and his Hot Nuts, The Hot Nuts and, since the death of Doug Clark in 2002, Doug Clark's Hot Nuts, is an American rhythm and blues, rock and novelty band that has played party and club dates fo ...

; their material was so off-color that the Jubilee and Josie names appeared nowhere on their albums. In 1970, Jubilee/Josie, in financial difficulties, was sold to Viewlex, which owned Buddah Records, and Blaine left the company. The catalog was eventually taken over by Roulette Records. The label was declared bankrupt in 1971. In the late 1980s, Roulette was sold jointly to Rhino Records and EMI, and in the 1990s, Rhino was sold to

Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...

. The rights to the Jubilee Records archives in North America are now owned by Warner Music, with EMI holding the rights in the rest of the world until 2013. Warner Music Group now has worldwide rights to the Roulette/Jubilee catalogue as a result of acquiring Parlophone in 2013.

Roster

This is a list of

recording artists A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who w ...

who have had at least one recording released on the Jubilee Records label. *

The Association The Association is an American sunshine pop band from California. During the late 1960s, the band had numerous hits at or near the top of the ''Billboard'' charts (including " Windy", " Cherish", " Never My Love" and " Along Comes Mary") a ...

* Sil Austin * Jim Backus *

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an internati ...

Polly Bergen Polly Bergen (born Nellie Paulina Burgin; July 14, 1930 – September 20, 2014) was an American actress, singer, television host, writer and entrepreneur. She won an Emmy Award in 1958 for her performance as Helen Morgan in '' The Helen ...

* The Blades of Grass * The Bobbettes * Jimmy Boyd *

Piney Brown Columbus S. Perry (January 20, 1922 – February 5, 2009), better known as Piney Brown, was an American R&B and blues singer and songwriter, who has been described as a "fine, big-voiced shouter". He released a string of singles between 1948 an ...

* Tedd Browne * Vinnie Burke * The Cadillacs * The Channels * Bobby Comstock and the Counts * Don Cornell * Eddie Costa * Bob Crewe * The Cues *

Alan Dale Alan Hugh Dale (born 6 May 1947) is a New Zealand actor. As a child, Dale enjoyed theatre and rugby. After retiring from the sport, he took on a number of occupations, before deciding to become a professional actor at age 27. Dale subsequent ...

* Vivian Dandridge * The Delta Rhythm Boys * The Dominoes * Dorothy Donegan * Ray Draper * Dave Dudley * The Fifth Estate *

The Five Sharps The Five Sharps were an American short-lived vocal group from Queens, New York. They are best known today for their recording of " Stormy Weather". "Stormy Weather" is today considered one of the most collectible doo-wop singles ever released. Ac ...

The Four Coins The Four Coins were a popular American vocal group, consisting of Jimmy Gregorakis, George Mantalis, and brothers George and Jack Mahramas. They were all of Greek heritage and came from Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. A local orchestra leader, Lee Barr ...

Bobby Freeman Robert Thomas Freeman (June 13, 1940 – January 23, 2017)"Bobby Freeman"
Ace Records.co.uk. Retrieve ...

The Gallahads The Gallahads were an American doo-wop band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1952. The band released three singles during its existence and were popular particularly in Los Angeles, California for their song, "(I'm Just A) Lonely Guy". The gro ...

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 ...

* Herb Geller *

The Happenings The Happenings are a pop music group that originated in the 1960s. Members of the original group, created in the spring of 1961 and initially called "The Four Graduates" because all had just graduated from high school in Paterson, New Jersey, we ...

* Betty Harris * Emmylou Harris * Jack Haskell *

Dick Haymes Richard Benjamin Haymes (September 13, 1918 – March 28, 1980) was an Argentinian singer and actor. He was one of the most popular male vocalists of the 1940s and early 1950s. He was the older brother of Bob Haymes, an actor, television host, ...

Autry Inman Robert Autry Inman (January 6, 1929 – September 6, 1988) was an American country and rockabilly musician. Biography Inman was born in Florence, Alabama, and was performing on local radio station WLAY by age 14. He used his middle name "Aut ...

* Conrad Janis and the Tailgaters *

The Jesters The Jesters were a doo-wop group based in New York City who achieved success in the late 1950s. They were students at Cooper Junior High School in Harlem, who graduated from singing under an elevated train station near 120th Street to the amateur ...

*Aliza Kashi * The King Sisters * Baker Knight * Moe Koffman * The Larks *Little Sylvia (Sylvia Robinson) * Bill Mack * The Marylanders *

Lou McGarity Robert Louis McGarity (July 22, 1917 – August 28, 1971) was an American jazz trombonist who was a member of the Benny Goodman big band during the late 1930s and early 1940s. After serving in the military, he was a studio musician in New York Cit ...

* Rod McKuen * Memphis Slim * Charles Mingus * Domenico Modugno *

Lou Monte Lou Monte (born Louis Scaglione; April 2, 1917 – June 12, 1989) was an Italian American singer best known for a number of best-selling, Italian-themed novelty records which he recorded for both RCA Victor and Reprise Records in the late 195 ...

* Vaughn Monroe * Oliver * Sy Oliver *

The Orioles The Orioles were an American R&B group of the late 1940s and early 1950s, one of the earliest such vocal groups who established the basic pattern for the doo-wop sound. The Orioles are generally acknowledged as R&B's first vocal group. Balti ...

* Frankie Ortega * Billy Paul *

The Raindrops The Raindrops were an American pop group from New York, United States, associated with the Brill Building style of 1960s pop. The group existed from 1963 to 1965 and consisted of Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry, both of whom worked as writer/pr ...

Carl Ravazza Carl Ravazza (July 21, 1910 – July 28, 1968), also known professionally as Carl Ravell, was an American violinist, vocalist and bandleader. Born in Alameda, California, Ravazza was a violinist who also started singing when he was in the Anson ...

* The Ray-O-Vacs * The Rebels *

Della Reese Delloreese Patricia Early (July 6, 1931 – November 19, 2017), known professionally as Della Reese, was an American jazz and gospel singer, actress, and ordained minister whose career spanned seven decades. She began her long career as a s ...

*Sylvia Robbins (Sylvia Robinson) * Sylvia Robinson *

Don Rondo Don Rondo (born Donald T. Rondeau; January 5, 1930 – January 27, 2011) was an American singer of popular music ballads during the mid-1950s, known for his distinctive baritone voice. Career Rondo, born in Ware, Massachusetts, first became popula ...

The Royal Teens The Royal Teens were an American rock and roll band that formed in New Jersey in 1956 and originally consisted of Bob Gaudio on piano, Tom Austin on drums, Billy Dalton on guitar, and Billy Crandall on saxophone. The group is best known for its ...

* Kermit Schaefer *

Walter Scharf Walter Scharf (August 1, 1910 – February 24, 2003) was an American musician, best known as a film, television and concert composer and arranger/conductor. Biography Broadway theatre Born in Manhattan, he was the son of Yiddish theatre comic B ...

* Allan Sherman *

Bobby Sherwood Robert J. Sherwood Jr. (May 30, 1914 – January 23, 1981) was an American guitarist, trumpeter, bandleader, and radio host. Early years Sherwood's parents were Bob and Gail Sherwood. When they lived in Kokomo, Indiana, he operated a movie th ...

Lu Ann Simms Lu Ann Simms (born Lucille Anne Ciminelli; July 11, 1932 – September 21, 2003)Original data: Social Security Applications and Claims, 1936-2007. was an American singer well-known in the 1950s. A performer since the age of three, she became an ...

* Smith & Dale *

Lou Stein Lou Stein (April 22, 1922 – December 11, 2002) was an American jazz pianist. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Stein joined Ray McKinley's band in 1942. He played with Glenn Miller when the latter was stateside during World War II. After ...

* Larry Storch * Enzo Stuarti * Gene Summers and His Rebels *

Donna Theodore Donna Glory Theodore (born July 25, 1941) is an American actress and singer who first came to attention as a headliner at many famous nightclubs during the 1960s including the Copacabana, The Fountainebleau Hotel, the Fairmont Hotel, and the El ...

* Jo Ann Tolley * The Top Notes * The Valentinos * The Volumes * Billy Ward and the Dominoes * Rusty Warren * Dee Dee Warwick * Ethel Waters * Mary Wells * Randy Weston *

Ilene Woods Jacqueline Ruth Woods (May 5, 1929 – July 1, 2010) better known as Ilene Woods, was an American actress and singer. Woods was the original voice of the title character of the Walt Disney animated feature ''Cinderella'', for which she was nam ...

Josie Records artists

This is a list of

who have had at least one recording released on the Josie Records label. * The Cadillacs * The Chaperones * Carol Fran *

Bobby Freeman Robert Thomas Freeman (June 13, 1940 – January 23, 2017)"Bobby Freeman"
Ace Records.co.uk. Retrieve ...

* The Meters *

J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers were an American 1960s group, best remembered for their 1964 million-selling record, " Last Kiss". Career The Cavaliers formed around 1955 with leader and guitarist Sid Holmes, bassist Lewis Elliott, saxopho ...

References

External links

Jerry Blaine

Jubilee Records
on the Internet Archive'
Great 78 Project
{{Authority control Defunct record labels of the United States Record labels established in 1946 Record labels disestablished in 1970 Rhythm and blues record labels American independent record labels 1946 establishments in New York City

History

Roster

Josie Records artists

See also

References

External links