Back in the 60's, on the back of all the success they were having with the Beatles & British beat groups, EMI was just about the most powerful international record company in the world plus the most influential music publishing company . But the guys at EMI House in London's Manchester Square (long since disposed of) let things slip. Universal bought the record labels (but have since spun some bits off to the likes of Warner Music Group). Now Sony have bought up most of EMI's publishing .... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44206075

With the brand diminished and many of their old labels long gone, it's easy to forget just what a force EMI was back in the 60's. They owned Capitol in the US and ran branches right around the world ... licensing tracks from US labels and releasing them everywhere they operated a branch (UK, Ireland, Europe, Mid East, India, Pakistan, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, Caribbean and Sth America) ... we got many of our fave UK released soul 45 release's courtesy of EMI ... stuff on Stateside, HMV, Liberty, Columbia, Top Rank, Tamla Motown and the like.     

Edited May 22, 20187 yr by Roburt

More old EMI related bits ... showing their worldwide reach back in time .. 

54 minutes ago, Roburt said:

Back in the 60's, on the back of all the success they were having with the Beatles & British beat groups, EMI was just about the most powerful international record company in the world plus the most influential music publishing company . But the guys at EMI House in London's Manchester Square (long since disposed of) let things slip. Universal bought the record labels (but have since spun some bits off to the likes of Warner Music Group). Now Sony have bought up most of EMI's publishing .... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44206075

With the brand diminished and many of their old labels long gone, it's easy to forget just what a force EMI was back in the 60's. They owned Capitol in the US and ran branches right around the world ... licensing tracks from US labels and releasing them everywhere they operated a branch (UK, Ireland, Europe, Mid East, India, Pakistan, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, Caribbean and Sth America) ... we got many of our fave UK released soul 45 release's courtesy of EMI ... stuff on Stateside, HMV, Liberty, Columbia, Top Rank, Tamla Motown and the like.     

EMI through HMV in New Zealand were also responsible for the this Darrell Banks New Zealand Stateside release 

Quote

 

Edited May 22, 20187 yr by sunnysoul

AND WOULD ... Motown have become the UK powerhouse it has without the early help here from EMI ...

 

A few Dutch EMI releases (all on their version of the Stateside label) ...

 

A few decent 60's EMI UK 45 releases ... all these on the MGM label that they handled back then ..

 

Back in time again ... with EMI ...

 

Thankyou Roburt! Lovely thread!

 

A few more EMI UK single releases ... back in time ... 

 

Back in the day, EMI had control of 2 of the 3 locations music fans came from around the world to London to see ...

1/ Abbey Road Studios

2/ The staircase in EMI House, Manchester Square

WITH ... the 3rd (the only one with public access) being the zebra crossing outside Abbey Rd Studios. Most fans got to take a picture of themselves on the zebra crossing but hardly any made it into the actual studios or into EMI House.

Back in the 80's, I had a good contact who worked for EMI in their Manchester Square offices. I used to visit but security control was always really high. You were never allowed free access in the building. Reception used to take charge of visitors and keep you there till the person you said you'd come to see was contacted & approved your entrance. You'd then but put in the lift, the right floor button pressed & you'd be met (when the lift doors opened) by your contact. I used to ask if I could walk up the staircase to get to the right floor but was never allowed to (the stairway in question was pictured on the front of the Beatles 'Please Please Me' album).

One time (when we lived in Northampton), I'd arranged a EMI visit & my son was at college in Hatfield. He asked me to go there & meet up with him before I went into London. When I got there, he'd got 3 of his pals with him who he'd said could tag along. We set off & arrived at EMI House, where we were asked to wait for Alan to approve our entrance. Lots of folk were milling about in the reception area, also trying to gain access. We got the nod & so this old guy & 4 young lads headed for the lift. Two blokes saw us passing, assumed I was the manager of a new boy band & wished us well in our attempt to land a recording contract ... we couldn't stop laughing as we rode up in the lift. 

 

 

Edited May 22, 20187 yr by Roburt

A 1965 EMI 45 release ... what would we have done without their product in the 60's / 70's ...

 

Cheers roburt, fantastic contribution to this site , keep them coming bruv . 👍🎶🎶🎶🎶

Back to the golden days of EMI soul releases ... 

the Della Reese 45 (on Stateside) was a re-release of an earlier UK HMV (again an EMI label) 45 ... now I was on the scene back then & don't recall the Della Reese cut getting played at the time ... so just why had EMI put it out again .. any answers (please) ??

Edited June 4, 20186 yr by Roburt

Another mag ad from 64 ... 

Another couple of EMI items ... 

Two HMV related bits ... EMI's big pressing plant in Hayes was badged as being a HMV facility at one time .. 

On 04/06/2018 at 08:43, Roburt said:

Back to the golden days of EMI soul releases ... 

the Della Reese 45 (on Stateside) was a re-release of an earlier UK HMV (again an EMI label) 45 ... now I was on the scene back then & don't recall the Della Reese cut getting played at the time ... so just why had EMI put it out again .. any answers (please) ??

The Stateside issue of the Della Reese track is actually a different cut - it’s a live recording whereas the HMV release is a studio recording. Great to see all this stuff Roburt- keep it coming. 

 

How the mighty have fallen is spot on too. When I worked in a record shop in the 70s EMI were still one of the big players. Now that I have my own shop it still feels odd having to order some Parlophone releases via Warner.

Edited July 1, 20186 yr by Godzilla

Going back exactly 50 years in time .........

 

Some EMI niceness from down under:-) 

HMV New Zealand 🙂

Nice as well :/) EMI Australia 🇦🇺 

More from EMI Australia ....

EMI Belgium ...

... anyone here got a Nancy Wilson "End Of Our Road" on Belgium Capitol 45 ??

Edited July 18, 20186 yr by Roburt

Not a series of releases that hold much interest for us here BUT the 'Now That's What I Call Music' series hits #100 today ...and EMI was heavily involved in the project from the beginning ... it did bring tracks by the likes of Jackie Wilson, Nina Simone, Ben E King, Kool & the Gang, Midnight Star and Patti LaBelle to the notice of an audience that otherwise wouldn't have bought their stuff ...   

1 hour ago, Roburt said:

Not a series of releases that hold much interest for us here BUT the 'Now That's What I Call Music' series hits #100 today ...and EMI was heavily involved in the project from the beginning ... it did bring tracks by the likes of Jackie Wilson, Nina Simone, Ben E King, Kool & the Gang, Midnight Star and Patti LaBelle to the notice of an audience that otherwise wouldn't have bought their stuff ...   

That's not what l call piging music 

Back in the UK this time ... back in 1962 and EMI was already mining the black music vein ...