Rhythm King Records Ltd was a British independent record label, founded in the mid-1980s by Martin Heath, Adele Nozedar, DJ Jay Strongman and James Horrocks. It was based in Chiswick, London.

History

Beginnings

Starting out as an offshoot of Daniel Miller's critically acclaimed Mute Records, Rhythm King's initial focus was

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded da ...

- specifically house, acid house, acid jazz, sampling culture and hip hop/rap. Strongman's rap/funk offshoot, Flame Records, signed proto- gangsta rapper

Schoolly D Jesse Bonds Weaver Jr. (born June 22, 1962), better known by the stage name Schoolly D (sometimes spelled Schooly D), is an American rapper from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Career Schoolly D teamed up with DJ Code Money in the mid-1980s. His ...

and

Chuck Brown Charles Louis Brown (August 22, 1936 – May 16, 2012) was an American guitarist, bandleader and singer known as " The Godfather of Go-Go". Go-go is a subgenre of funk music developed around the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area in the mid-197 ...

& the Soul Searchers amongst others. James Horrocks left the label at the end of 1987, and subsequently went on to form

React Music Limited React Music Limited was a British, London-based independent record label, that was formed in 1990 by James Horrocks and Thomas Foley. James Horrocks was initially involved with successful dance music independent Rhythm King, and React pursue ...

in 1990, which also had a focus upon dance music. This left Martin Heath in sole charge of the label; however by the beginning of 1988, Rhythm King was to enjoy a period of short term success, which went hand in hand with the partial dominance dance music had on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, from the late 1980s to the beginning of the 2000s.

January 1988 - First UK Singles Chart breakthrough - The Beatmasters / Bomb the Bass

The breakthrough was the single " Rok da House" by The Beatmasters featuring The

Cookie Crew Cookie Crew were a rap music duo formed in Clapham, South London in 1983. Career Their career took off after winning a national rap championship and recording two sessions for the John Peel BBC Radio 1 show. They gained a recording contract fr ...

. Initially reaching No. 78 when first released in July 1987, the single was re-released in January 1988 and reached No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1988. It is acknowledged as not only one of the earliest British house tunes (recorded 1986), but also as the first record to merge hip-hop and house, into a style known as

hip house Hip house, also known as rap house or house rap, is a musical genre that mixes elements of house music and hip hop, that originated in both London, United Kingdom and Chicago, United States in the mid to late 1980s. British group the Beatmaster ...

. This was followed up by "Beat Dis" by Bomb The Bass. The identity of Bomb The Bass was shrouded in mystery until it was revealed that it was the work of London's Wag Club DJ Tim Simenon, and record producer Pascal Gabriel. Simenon brought his DJ experience, record collection and techniques gained from a music production course to create a cut and paste style which, with Gabriel's help, successfully merged sounds and samples from various genres within dance music. These included old school hip hop, house, electro and funk with samples from film and TV - most notably ''

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly ''The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'' ( it, Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo, literally "The good, the ugly, the bad") is a 1966 Italian epic spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood as "the Good", Lee Van Clee ...

'' and ''Thunderbirds''. The record reputedly cost £500 to make and debuted at No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1988 - what was then the highest debut position for an unknown artist. It eventually reached No. 2 for two weeks and was kept off the top spot by Kylie Minogue's debut single "

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 wo ...

Theme From S-Express and further hits

Rhythm King did not have to wait too long for its first

No. 1.

S-Express S'Express (pronounced ''ess-express''; sometimes spelled S'Xpress or S-Express) were a British dance music act from the late 1980s, who had one of the earliest commercial successes in the acid house genre. "Theme from S'Express", which containe ...

was the brainchild of London DJ

Mark Moore Mark Moore (born 12 January 1965) is a British dance music record producer and DJ. He was founder of the dance / sampling pioneers S'Express, and runs the London nightclubs, 'Electrogogo' and 'Can Can'. Biography Moore began his DJ career ...

who ,in collaboration with producer Pascal Gabriel (also in Bomb the Bass), put together the single, " Theme from S'Express". This mixed many of the contemporary

sounds of the time with a sample from

Rose Royce Rose Royce is an American soul and R&B group. They are best known for several hit singles during the 1970s including "Car Wash", " I Wanna Get Next to You", " I'm Going Down", "Wishing on a Star", and " Love Don't Live Here Anymore". Career ...

's 1970s disco anthem "Is It Love You're After" to great success. Vocalist, David White aka Steam supplied vocals for the US release of the single. The single shot to No .1 in April/May 1988 and 1988 to 1991 would be a golden period for Rhythm King with its artists - in particular The Beatmasters,

Betty Boo Alison Moira Clarkson (born 6 March 1970 in Kensington, London), better known as Betty Boo, is an English singer, songwriter and rapper. She first came to mainstream prominence in the late 1980s following a collaboration with the Beatmasters ...

, Bomb The Bass, Merlin and

doing well in the UK Album and Singles Charts.

Outer Rhythm and Renegade Software

With rave culture going mainstream from the late 1980s, Rhythm King also became interested in this and formed Outer Rhythm in 1989. The emphasis at Outer Rhythm was electronic dance music/

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

and was influential in developing the initial music careers of

Leftfield Leftfield are a British electronic music duo formed in 1989 as the duo of Neil Barnes and Paul Daley (the latter formerly of the Rivals and A Man Called Adam). The duo was very influential in the evolution of electronic music in the 1990s, wi ...

and, to a much lesser degree, Moby. Briefly Outer Rhythm was also associated with

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

Warp Records Warp Records (or simply Warp) is a British independent record label founded in Sheffield in 1989 by record store employees Steve Beckett and Rob Mitchell and record producer Robert Gordon.Southern, Richard (2003) "Label of Love: WARP", X-RAY, ...

- and the Yorkshire Bleeps and Bass scene which launched Warp, along with

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

based

R&S Records R&S Records is an independent record label founded in 1983 in Ghent, Belgium. R&S represents the initials of Renaat Vandepapeliere and Sabine Maes, the couple that created the label. R&S Records has had several subsidiaries, most notably Apollo R ...

before the labels and their artists - including Aphex Twin, CJ Bolland, Dave Angel,

Jam & Spoon Jam & Spoon were a German electronic music duo formed in 1991 in Frankfurt. The group consisted of composers and producers Rolf Ellmer (a.k.a. Jam El Mar, classically trained composer) and Markus Löffel (a.k.a. Mark Spoon, DJ). They also worke ...

, LFO and Nightmares on Wax went on to do big things in their own right. Martin Heath also diversified into computer games software in association with the Bitmap Brothers.

Renegade Software Renegade Software was a UK-based games publisher, founded in 1991 by the Bitmap Brothers. Initially, the Bitmap Brothers used the new label to publish their own games, after they had become dissatisfied with the practices of publishing companies ...

was successful and some of Rhythm King's artists - including The Beatmasters, Betty Boo, Bomb The Bass and Nation 12 contributed music to some of Renegade's titles.

Deal with Sony Records

The commercial success of Rhythm King enabled it to link a distribution deal with Sony Records subsidiary Epic Records. Rhythm King was no longer associated with Mute Records from 1991 and towards the end of 1992 it closed down the Outer Rhythm offshoot. Coincidentally, Mute set up

Novamute Records Novamute Records is the electronic dance music subsidiary of Mute Records, which was started in 1992.Larkin, Colin (1999) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Dance Music'', Virgin Books, , p. 243 The label's staff included Mick Paterson (promotions ...

around this time - also with a focus on

and electronic dance music.

Direction of Rhythm King in the 1990s

As the 1990s progressed, many of the established artists on Rhythm King's roster - including

Baby Ford Peter Ford, better known as Baby Ford, is a British electronic music record producer, known particularly for his contributions to the birth of acid house. He has also released material under aliases with Mark Broom (Casino Classix, El Mal, Solcy ...

, The Beatmasters,

, Bomb The Bass,

, Moby and

either left the label and/or concentrated on producing for other artists - most notably Tim Simenon and The Beatmasters, the latter in particular immediately achieving success with their work on a string of singles taken from the 1992 Shamen album, ''

Boss Drum ''Boss Drum'' is the Shamen's 1992 album, released a year after the death of bassist Will Sinnott. It features their hit UK number one single " Ebeneezer Goode". Critics gave the album positive feedback and the album reached number three on the ...

''. The musical focus at Rhythm King in the mid 1990s shifted away from dance music and more towards

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

and

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...

. Acts signed during this period had varying levels of critical and commercial success, and included David Devant and his Spirit Wife, The Dharmas,

Echobelly Echobelly are a British rock band, debuting in 1994 with their album '' Everyone's Got One''. They were often compared to Blondie and The Smiths; Morrissey becoming a fan of the group. The most prominent part of Echobelly's success formula wa ...

, Sheep on Drugs, The Sultans Of Ping FC and X-CNN.

Enter Arista exit Rhythm King

Rhythm King's distribution deal with Sony Records expired around 1995/96 so a new deal with BMG's Arista Records was signed in 1996. Rhythm King was subsequently closed down and merged into the main Arista concern when Martin Heath became head of the label. However, this was not the end of Heath's involvement with an independent record label. Lizard King Records was formed by Heath and Dominic Hardisty in 2001, and its most notable artist was US act

The Killers The Killers are an American rock band formed in Las Vegas in 2001 by Brandon Flowers (lead vocals, keyboards, bass) and Dave Keuning (lead guitar, backing vocals). After going through a number of short-term bass players and drummers in t ...

, who were signed to Lizard King in the UK and Ireland. In 2005, Hardisty bought out Heath and Heath moved to New York to set up a new label. As part of the deal he was permitted to re-use the name Lizard King, but the Killers remain signed to the original company which has now been renamed

Marrakesh Records Marrakesh Records is a small UK independent record label, indie label which, in a previous guise as Lizard King Records, Lizard King, first signed the Killers. It was founded by Dominic Hardisty and is located in London, England. Artists *The Kil ...

Artists

Rhythm King had a varied roster of artists. Some of these had only a short-term relationship with the label and others had more of a longer term relationship releasing a number of singles and albums to varying degrees of commercial and critical success. The artist roster for the label therefore included the following: * Ability 2 - Released on the Outer Rhythm offshoot. * Aphex Twin - The releases Digeridoo and Selected Ambient Works 85-92 were released by Belgium-based

who had a distribution deal with Outer Rhythm for UK releases from 1990-92. *

- The third Baby Ford album BFORD9 was released on Rhythm King's offshoot label Transglobal. Since leaving Rhythm King in the mid '90s Peter Ford has had a nomadic relationship with a variety of other labels including; Black Market International, Force Inc, Ideal, Klang, Perlon,

Plus 8 Plus 8 (also spelled as Plus8) is a Canadian techno record label, based in Windsor, Ontario. Along with Underground Resistance and Planet E, Plus 8 was one of the early producers of Detroit Techno's 'Second Wave' music at the start of the 1990 ...

& Sender. * Bailey & Bridges * Bam Bam Musique - Released on the Splish offshoot label. * The Beatmasters - After seven singles and two Rhythm King albums ('' Anywayawanna'' and ''Life & Soul''), slimmed down to a duo and went on to a successful career as writers and producers. Still working to this day (2009) *

Joey Beltram Joey Beltram (born 6 September 1971) is an American DJ and music producer, best known for his pioneering singles "Energy Flash" and "Mentasm" and for remixing Human Resource's " Dominator". Rave recordings "Mentasm", co-produced with Mundo Muzi ...

- UK releases from 1990-92 were distributed by Outer Rhythm on behalf of Belgium-based R&S Records. Recorded under the aliases Beltram and Second Phase. *

- Signed with WEA in 1992. * Bomb The Bass - Formed the label Stoned Heights in association with Island Records offshoot 4th & Broadway in 1994. * CCP - Released on Transglobal. Signed with MCA Records in 1989. *

& The Soul Searchers - Some releases on the Flame offshoot. * CJ Bolland - UK releases from 1990-92 were distributed by Outer Rhythm on behalf of Belgium-based R&S Records. * Congress - Released on the offshoot Inner Rhythm label. *

- Released the single Females before signing with

FFRR FFRR Records (sometimes credited as Full Frequency Range Recordings) is a dance music label previously run and founded by English DJ Pete Tong. Originally the dance music label of London Records, FFRR is currently a sublabel of Parlophon ...

/ London Records in 1988. * D'Angel/ Dave Angel - UK releases from 1990-92 were distributed by Outer Rhythm on behalf of Belgium-based R&S Records. * David Devant and his Spirit Wife * The Dharmas - Now named Steadman after frontman Simon Steadman. The band allow fans to download their music for free downloads on their website under a Creative Commons licence. * Djum Djum - (Neil Cole) Pianist, keyboardist, drummer/percussionist, vocalist and songwriter, co-wrote and co-produced ''Difference'' in 1990 (cat no. FOOT 8) with Neil Barnes, prior to the formation of

(see below). Released on Outer Rhythm. Difference (Djum Djum/Barnes) also featured on the Leftfield compilation album Backlog. July 1995 saw the Leftfield/Djum Djum collaboration Afro Left (Leftism), released through Sony. * Dr Fresh *

- Released on the offshoot Favue label. * Fat Planet * Thomas Fehlmann - aka Readymade, released on Transglobal. * Fluffy Toy I.Q. - Released on Splish. * Forgemasters - On Warp distributed by Outer Rhythm 1989-91. * Hard Corps * Heaven WXI * Hotline * How II House - Released on Outer Rhythm. * Human Resource - UK releases from 1990-92 were distributed by Outer Rhythm on behalf of Belgium-based R&S Records. * Ital Rockers - Released on Outer Rhythm. *

- UK releases from 1990-92 were distributed by Outer Rhythm on behalf of Belgium-based R&S Records. *

Jaydee Robin Albers (born 1956), who uses the stage name Jaydee, is a Dutch house music producer and DJ. Biography After a degree in commercial studies, Albers played in the Dutch national baseball team and was triple Dutch arm-wrestling champio ...

- UK releases from 1990-92 were distributed by Outer Rhythm on behalf of Belgium-based R&S Records. * Joi - Released on Transglobal. * KDFM - Released on Transglobal. * King Sun D-Moet - Some releases on the Flame offshoot. *

- The singles " Not Forgotten" and " More Than I Know" along with a compilation album '' Backlog'' were released on Outer Rhythm before Leftfield formed their own label Hard Hands in 1992. Since 1993 this was in association with Sony Music. *

Les Négresses Vertes Les Négresses Vertes, which formed in 1987, is a French music group that combines world music and some aspects of alternative rock. Tracks often feature acoustic guitar and accordion, with some containing other traditional instruments such ...

* LFO - On Warp distributed by Outer Rhythm 1989-91. * Man Machine - Early '90s techno/electro project on Outer Rhythm from Ed Stratton. Stratton was also a member of Jack 'N' Chill best remembered for their 'one-off' top-ten hit, ''The Jack That House Built'' which reached #6 in the UK singles chart in January 1988. Stratton is also co-founder of

Zero-G Ltd Zero-G is a company developing sound libraries, sound effects and loops. The company also develops singing synthesizers using the Vocaloid engine developed by Yamaha Corporation. Products Vocaloid products Zero-G developed an English edi ...

(formerly "Time+Space"). * Gwen McRae - Some releases on the Flame offshoot. * Merlin - Signed with WEA in 1991/92. * Moby - Moby's 1991 single Go was licensed by Outer Rhythm from New York-based Instinct Records. In 1992 Moby signed to Mute Records in the UK. * Denise Motto * Nation 12 - A collaboration between

John Foxx John Foxx (born Dennis Leigh; 26 September 1948) is an English singer, musician, artist, photographer, graphic designer, writer, teacher and lecturer. He was the original lead singer of the new wave band Ultravox, before leaving to embark on a ...

and Tim Simenon of Bomb The Bass * Nightmares on Wax - On Warp distributed by Outer Rhythm 1989-91. * Nitzer Ebb - The single Murderous was released on Transglobal in 1986. The band signed a long term deal with Mute Records in the late 1980s. * One Tribe - Released on the Inner Rhythm offshoot. * Paradise * Q-Pid Featuring Nikki Q * Renegade Soundwave - Signed to Mute Records in 1988, after releasing their first 2 singles Kray Twins and Cocaine Sex on Rhythm King, having been spotted by Mudd Club DJ and S-Express main man Mark Moore. * Kurt Rogers * Robert & Tom Sanders - Released on the Flame offshoot. *

- Licensing agreement with Jive Records for UK releases from 1986-88. Some releases on the Flame offshoot. *

- aka S'Xpress. Mark Moore continues to produce music and is an Internationally known DJ. * Shawnie 'G' * She Rockers - Signed with Jive Records in late 1988. * Sheep on Drugs - Released on Transglobal. * Sludge Nation * Jay Strongman "East West" single that sampled Red Army Choir. * Sugar Ray Dinkie * Sulphur (3) - Released on Transglobal. * The Sultans Of Ping FC * Survival Instinct - Released on Outer Rhythm. * Sweet Exorcist - On Warp Distributed by Outer Rhythm 1989-91. * Taffy - Released on Transglobal. * Tanya * Toney Rome * Three Wise Men - aka Three Wize Men. * Tiziana - Released on Splish. * Tricky Disco - On Warp Distributed by Outer Rhythm 1989-91. * Ugly - Which featured

Glenn Gregory Glenn Peter Gregory (born 16 May 1958) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose music career spans more than 40 years. He came to prominence in the early 1980s as co-founder and lead singer of the new wave and synthpop b ...

Heaven 17 Heaven 17 are an English new wave and synth-pop band that formed in Sheffield in 1980. The band were a trio for most of their career, composed of Martyn Ware (keyboards) and Ian Craig Marsh (keyboards) (both previously of the Human League), and ...

. *

Underground Resistance Underground Resistance (commonly abbreviated to UR) are an American musical collective from Detroit, Michigan. Producing primarily Detroit techno since 1990 with a grungy four-track musical aesthetic, they are also renowned for their militant p ...

Jah Wobble John Joseph Wardle (born 11 August 1958), known by the stage name Jah Wobble, is an English bass guitarist and singer. He became known to a wider audience as the original bass player in Public Image Ltd (PiL) in the late 1970s and early 1980s; ...

Kevin Mooney Kevin Paul Mooney (born 5 May 1962) is an English-Irish bassist and guitarist who has worked with Adam Ant, Sinéad O'Connor, and others. Career Born in the Greenwich area of London, Mooney began his musical career in 1977 with the English-Ir ...

Helen Terry Helen Terry (born 25 May 1956) is a British singer and television producer, known for her backing vocal work with Culture Club. As a solo performer, she scored a Top 40 hit single in 1984 with "Love Lies Lost", and released one album in 1986, ' ...

, John Reynolds,

Matthew Ashman Matthew James Ashman (3 November 1960 – 21 November 1995)
– accessed June 2011 was an English guitarist with

and Marco Pirroni. * Vice - aka Survival Instinct, released on Outer Rhythm. * Victim Of The Ghetto * Viola Wills * Wolfman - Released on Splish. * X-CNN - The band were originally called

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

but had to change their name to X-CNN after legal action from the television news channel. The line-up featured ex-

All About Eve ''All About Eve'' is a 1950 American drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck. It is based on the 1946 short story "The Wisdom of Eve" by Mary Orr, although Orr does not receive a screen credit ...

Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is a religious institute of Catholic women founded in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, by Catherine McAuley. As of 2019, the institute had about 6200 sisters worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations. They a ...

member

Tim Bricheno Tim Bricheno (born Timothy John Bricheno, 6 July 1963, Huddersfield, Yorkshire) is an English guitarist, songwriter and music teacher. He was a member of several notable English indie bands, including All About Eve, The Sisters of Mercy, XC-NN ( ...

on guitar and David Tomlinson on vocals. Released through Transglobal. * YBU - Released on Splish.

References

External links

Rhythm King Records

{{Authority control British independent record labels Defunct record labels of the United Kingdom Electronic dance music record labels Hip hop record labels House music record labels