Elektra

Elektra Records was founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickholt, and during the 1950s and early 1960s developed under Holzman's leadership into a respected and successful independent label with a roster of artists drawn from the American folk music revival, among them Tom Paxton, Judy Collins, Tom Rush and Phil Ochs. In the mid-1960s the US popular music scene was shaken up by the arrival of The Beatles, and the folk revival began to seem staid in the light of their musical inventiveness, youth and wit. In response to this, Elektra decided to broaden its outlook, and after unsuccessful attempts to sign the Lovin' Spoonful and The Byrds, issued its first "electric" pop releases in 1966 with LPs by the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and Love.

It was at this point that the label first came to the attention of John Peel, then working as "John Ravencroft" on radio station KMEN, San Bernardino, and attending gigs in the clubs along Sunset Strip, Los Angeles, where groups like Love and The Doors regularly performed. As he later told John Walters on Peeling Back The Years, he featured The Doors's first single, "Break On Through (To The Other Side)" on his programmes. As KMEN was a Top 40 station, he may well have played Love's first and only hit single, "My Little Red Book", as well.

After his return to the UK he started working on Radio London in March 1967. By this time Elektra had opened a UK office and the label was building an underground reputation in Britain, with both folk fans and those looking for new sounds in pop music. Among the latter group was Peel's Radio London colleague Kenny Everett, who obtained a copy of Love's second album Da Capo, and was particularly taken with the track "The Castle", which he played regularly on his shows. It later became a favourite on Peel's late-night Perfumed Garden show, and on the final Perfumed Garden he credited Everett for drawing his attention to it.

The Perfumed Garden became something of a showcase for Elektra artists. The label's newer artists - Love, The Doors, Tim Buckley - mostly came from California's hippy culture and were encouraged by Jac Holzman to be musically adventurous and experimental. Their records therefore suited the ethos of the late-night programme and were enthusiastically received by Peel.

Furthermore, his enthusiasm came to the attention of Clive Selwood, then head of Elektra's UK office and struggling to find airplay for its material on the BBC and the commercially-oriented pirate radio stations. Selwood was later to become Peel's manager and lifelong friend, but at first, grateful for Peel's support, he supplied him with more Elektra singles and albums for his programmes. Peel made The Doors' "Light My Fire" his Radio London "climber"; it got plenty of airplay on the station's daytime shows but did not make the national charts.

Among other Elektra LPs of the period was Judy Collins' [In My Life], a collection of contemporary songs with orchestral accompaniment and a break with her earlier folk-based styles. She was one of the few female voices regularly heard on Peel's showa at this time, especially her versions of "Liverpool Lullaby" and Leonard Cohen's "Suzanne". The first two LPs by the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and the debut album by David Blue also became part of Peel's playlists. He was able to present an exclusive of the Incredible String Band's [The 5000 Spirits or the Layers of the Onion], playing sides one and two of the LP on successive nights in July 1967. Elektra's other July 1967 release, the astrology-themed LP [Zodiac Cosmic Sounds], won a hippy cult following due to its exposure on the Perfumed Garden.

After the closure of Radio London, Peel, now managed by Clive Selwood, was given work on Radio One and gradually found his niche there, playing Elektra tracks regularly as the label's status grew. With limited time on the BBC he tended to feature singles rather than longer LP tracks - in late 1967, Tim Buckley's "Morning Glory" (from the LP Goodbye and Hello) and The Doors' "People Are Strange" (from Strange Days). After February 1968 Peel was sole presenter of Top Gear and was free to play more Elektra material on the show. The label was reaching a commercial and artistic peak, with The Doors now the first US "underground" rock stars and LPs like Love's Forever Changes and Judy Collins' Wildflowers winning critical acclaim.

Elektra artists began to appear in session on Peel's shows in 1968; as well as established favourites The Incredible String Band, there were new British signings Eclection and visiting Americans David Ackles and Tom Rush. Peel promoted The Doors' third album Waiting For The Sun (which received a mixed critical reception) and compered their famous Roundhouse concert with Jefferson Airplane in November 1968. He contributed sleevenotes to the Elektra sampler album "Begin Here", full of praise for the label's artists and its "non-commercial" policy.

After 1968 Elektra began to face increasing competition in the USA from larger record labels offering artists bigger budgets and more generous advances. By 1969 it was still releasing many albums, but of uneven quality. Peel continued to support the label's best-known artists - Love, The Doors, Tim Buckley, Judy Collins,The Incredible String Band - but of its new signings, only the MC5, the Stooges and the early 1960s rock'n'roller Lonnie Mack found his lasting approval.

(work ongoing...)