Cinncinati OH at start, but whn did it move to Chicago, anyone?

 

Thanks in advance!

I don't think they ever "moved" to Chicago. I believe they had a distribution or company  branch in Chicago but I would alomost swear they

were always based in Cincinnati

They were always in Cinncinatti up until Syd Nathan's death late 60's.  As far as I am aware they didn't move to Chicago even when sold on after his death.

Edited February 7, 201411 yr by chalky

They were always in Cinncinatti up until Syd Nathan's death late 60's.  As far as I am aware they didn't move to Chicago even when sold on after his death.

You've right both of you, I guess they never moved physically, but the address and the distribution changes from Cinncinati to Chicago at some time. It's this year that I'm looking for.

You've right both of you, I guess they never moved physically, but the address and the distribution changes from Cinncinati to Chicago at some time. It's this year that I'm looking for.

 

I though everything was done in Cincinnati, recording, acetates, mastering, pressing and storage and distribution, everything I've read suggest it was.

Edited February 7, 201411 yr by chalky

I don't know of any move to Chicago either. There was a heavy Chicago presence on King, initially through Ralph Bass I think. 

There is a Wikipedia entry on King records. They never moved to Chicago. The business was sold and moved to Nashville after Syd Nathans death. After the record business was sold, the recording studio and pressing plant were still used in Cincinnati, up to 1970-ish. They had an office in Chicago, probably on Record Row, so yes, some of their papers, etc would have a Chicago address. I presume the Chicago office was closed around the time of the sale.

Edited February 7, 201411 yr by George G

Does this help, from Robert Pruters Chicago Soul book. (click to make it readable)

Edited February 7, 201411 yr by alan t

just to clarify (and thanks for posting) this is saying that they opened a Chicago office. The label was still based in Cincinnati and it says a lot of Chicago acts still went there to record. Bernice Williams (who wrote the duke of earl) wrote a lot of records for King / Federal also.

Thanks all of you! I'll conclude that King is a Cincinnati label but was for a while run from Chicago.

Thanks all of you! I'll conclude that King is a Cincinnati label but was for a while run from Chicago.

 

 

From reading the above the label was still run from Cincinnati, especially the recording, mastering and pressing of the records.  

 

Most record companies had offices in other cities simply to secure local talent.

Thanks all of you! I'll conclude that King is a Cincinnati label but was for a while run from Chicago.

What Chalky wrote.  Chicago's King Records' office was mainly used to interface with distributors, sign local talent, interface with songwriters, and get singer demos recorded.  The final recordings were done in Cincinnati, as was arrangement for pressing and mastering.  King also had a business/A&R office in Detroit, which had signed The Dominoes, Five Jets and many solo acts and a few other group acts.  They also had offices in New York and L.A.  But the headquarters of the company was always in Cincinnati, with Syd Nathan presiding.

What Chalky wrote.  Chicago's King Records' office was mainly used to interface with distributors, sign local talent, interface with songwriters, and get singer demos recorded.  The final recordings were done in Cincinnati, as was arrangement for pressing and mastering.  King also had a business/A&R office in Detroit, which had signed The Dominoes, Five Jets and many solo acts and a few other group acts.  They also had offices in New York and L.A.  But the headquarters of the company was always in Cincinnati, with Syd Nathan presiding.

I know they (and others) did business this way, but I was under the impression that it was a Chicago label for a while. Anyhow, this was really helpful, thanks a lot, love this forum!

as far as i know, it was always housed here (pic) on Brewster Ave in Evanston... (i used to walk past it on my way to school)

 

 

 

 

haha! love this early logo from when they concentrated on white hillbilly music... (pic)

 

my dad said the reason King was in Cincy was because the old AM station WLW was based there. before FCC regulations, AM stations could have signals as strong as they could afford. WLW was like a zillion watts (my Dad said he could sometimes pick it up when he was stationed in Germany in the Army after the war).

 

they had a big radio show called "Midwestern Hayride" on WLW that was a huge deal for country/hillbilly/bluegrass artists - so there was a natural synergy with King records. 

 

anyway...that's what my daddy told me!

Edited February 8, 201411 yr by ljblanken

haha! love this early logo from when they concentrated on white hillbilly music... (pic)

 

my dad said the reason King was in Cincy was because the old AM station WLW was based there. before FCC regulations, AM stations could have signals as strong as they could afford. WLW was like a zillion watts (my Dad said he could sometimes pick it up when he was stationed in Germany in the Army after the war).

 

they had a big radio show called "Midwestern Hayride" on WLW that was a huge deal for country/hillbilly/bluegrass artists - so there was a natural synergy with King records. 

 

anyway...that's what my daddy told me!

Your Dad was right.  Cincinnati was the "Gateway" to Kentucky, and really, it was, for all intents and purposes, a Southern City.  They talk like southerners, and it was an extremely racist city, just like the whole of Indiana, other than its immediate most northerly fringe.  But it was more that businessman, Syd Nathan, was located in Cincinnati, and he saw an opportunity to make a lot of money, by catering to the non-mainstream US music tastes (C&W and R&B), which were not being adequately served by The Major record companies (Columbia, Decca, RCA, WB, Capitol).  Had Nathan been located in another city, his company would have been located in that other city.  perhaps "King Records" in Cincinnati, would have been started by another enterprising entrepeneur wanting to fill that void.  It started as "Queen records", as Cincinnati was known as "The Queen City".

Your Dad was right.  Cincinnati was the "Gateway" to Kentucky, and really, it was, for all intents and purposes, a Southern City.  They talk like southerners, and it was an extremely racist city, just like the whole of Indiana, other than its immediate most northerly fringe.  But it was more that businessman, Syd Nathan, was located in Cincinnati, and he saw an opportunity to make a lot of money, by catering to the non-mainstream US music tastes (C&W and R&B), which were not being adequately served by The Major record companies (Columbia, Decca, RCA, WB, Capitol).  Had Nathan been located in another city, his company would have been located in that other city.  perhaps "King Records" in Cincinnati, would have been started by another enterprising entrepeneur wanting to fill that void.  It started as "Queen records", as Cincinnati was known as "The Queen City".

 

it's funny you mention the accents. about half of the people from cincinnati do not have southern accents, and half do. during WWII, many Appalachians migrated into the city to work in the factories, and so there are enclaves that have heavy accents (Norwood, Over-the-Rhine, Northside). i don't have an accent (i hauled my ass out to California when i was 18), but when i speak to some of my sisters, they do have slight accents.

 

and yes, Indiana is super racist. it has the highest number of KKK members in the country!

 

and yep, it is the Queen city. the logos on the cop cars are the blue stripe with a crown (the queen city on the ohio river)

 

it's funny you mention the accents. about half of the people from cincinnati do not have southern accents, and half do. during WWII, many Appalachians migrated into the city to work in the factories, and so there are enclaves that have heavy accents (Norwood, Over-the-Rhine, Northside). i don't have an accent (i hauled my ass out to California when i was 18), but when i speak to some of my sisters, they do have slight accents.

 

and yes, Indiana is super racist. it has the highest number of KKK members in the country!

 

and yep, it is the Queen city. the logos on the cop cars are the blue stripe with a crown (the queen city on the ohio river)

 

Not surprising, as The KKK was founded in Indiana,   When my parents and I first visited there in 1952, I saw a sign on a public beach that stated:  No dogs, no Nig____ and no Jews!"  Just like Nazi Germany, and like we had in Holland during The German occupation!  My family and I weren't allowed on a public beach in "The Land of the Free"!  And yet, I had family living there in East Chicago, Hammond, Gary and Munster.

 

I guess that most of the Northern industrial cities had Hillbilly neighbourhoods, just like the Black ghettos.  Lots of Hillbillies moved north to work in the factories during World War II, just like The African Americans did.  In Chicago, they had neighbourhoods on The North Side and The West Side.  They had neighbourhoods in Detroit, Cleveland and Milwaukee.  I'd bet they had them in St. Louis, and Pittsburgh, as well.