LONDON RECORDS

London was probably one of my favourite labels through the 50's and 60's From Eddie Cochran through to Al Green my record collection has more singles on this label than any other. Just click on a button below and it will take you through three decades of nostalgia.

British Decca Records began licensing material from other US outlets in October 1951 and within two years had acquired the rights to Essex and Imperial, which had an impressive rock ‘n’ roll catalogue. Bill Haley and Fats Domino were an important part of its early roster, but the label also enjoyed commercial success with releases by pop artists like Slim Whitman and Pat Boone.
The addition of Atlantic Records (1955), Chess, Specialty (both 1956) and Sun (1957) brought with it such artists as Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Jerry Lee Lewis, the Everly Brothers, Rick Nelson and the Coasters.
London continued its success into the '60s. with Duane Eddy, Del Shannon and Roy Orbison from the Jamie, Big Top and Monument labels while girl-groups became popular through releases drawn from Phil Spector's Philles label. Then,during the sixties many labels decided that they would start their own labels for the lucrative British market. Berry Gordy removed his fledgling Tamla/Motown empire after a mere handful of releases, EMI acquired the rights to Liberty, United Artists, Imperial and Minit, while the defection of Chess to Pye International was particularly ill-timed, given that the British R&B movement had brought renewed interest to the London catalogue,which they had failed to exploit fully.
Another crucial loss was that of Atlantic and although London had secured a measure of success with Otis Redding, the US company took its catalogue to Polydor in 1966, just soul music took off in a big way in the UK. London continued releasing records in the seventies with artist like Al Green, Ann Peebles and Willie Mitchell but Decca was no longer one of the big five labels and London was sold to Phonogram in 1980.
LONDON records was THE label in my growing years and perhaps more than any other label it was important in that it introduced me to great music by great artists

London Singles 1950s	London Singles 1960s	London Singles 1970s

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