In American collectors' eyes, it is quite the curiosity to see those artists and early Beatles singles on the famous Capitol "swirl" label.įrom 1964 to 1970, Capitol had a subsidary label called Tower Records (not to be confused with the chain of record stores), which released "lower profile" artists such as The Standells and Chocolate Watch Band, as well as Pink Floyd's first three albums. were released by Capitol in Canada, including The Hollies, Manfred Mann, The Yardbirds, The Dave Clark Five, Gerry and the Pacemakers and The Beatles' pre-"I Want to Hold Your Hand" material. Since they had an A&R department of their own, this meant several British Invasion artists that were passed over by Capitol in the U.S. The aforementioned Canadian branch also had their own right of first refusal for EMI releases. But they changed their mind with "I Want to Hold Your Hand", which in January 1964 became The Beatles' first major stateside hit and kick-started "Beatlemania" in the U.S. Meanwhile, despite the latter's huge popularity in England, Capitol, which had the right of first refusal on American distribution of EMI artists, turned down the Fab Four's first few singles, which were handled instead by the smaller labels Vee-Jay and Swan. The former were signed to a seven-year contract in 1962 following their local success with "Surfin'" on the independent Candix label. The 1960s saw the arrival of the label's most famous artists: The Beach Boys and The Beatles. Several additional artists joined the label during the 1950s, including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, The Four Freshmen, Stan Freberg, Dinah Shore, and The Kingston Trio. The landmark Capitol Tower building in Hollywood (aka "The House That Nat Built") began construction soon afterward and was completed the following year. A few years later, EMI's Dutch competitor Philips bought Mercury Records for similar reasons. note EMI had already lost the right to distribute US Columbia releases in Europe, and their contract with RCA was about to expire, so they wanted to make sure they would still have access to top American talent. note (The other five were RCA Victor, Columbia, Mercury, US Decca, and MGM - all of which, along with Capitol, had their own pressing plants.) A Canadian division was established in 1949.īritish music conglomerate EMI purchased 96% of Capitol's stock in 1955, effectively acquiring the company. By the end of the decade, having already acquired a stable of prominent artists that included Nat King Cole, Stan Kenton, Peggy Lee, Jo Stafford, Margaret Whiting, and many others, it had earned a place among the "Big Six" American labels. note It was also used from 1979 to 1981 on singles by The Knack.Ĭapitol Records is one of the major record labels in the United States.įounded in 1942 by Los Angeles businessman Glenn Wallichs (owner of the Wallichs Music City record store) with songwriters Johnny Mercer and Buddy DeSylva, Capitol was the first West Coast-based US label. The iconic "swirl" label design used on Capitol singles from 1962 to 1968.
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