Cherry Red adds new acquisitions to their catalogue

13 February 2020 - Press release

A busy few months at Cherry Red has seen the label add fresh catalogue acquisitions to their ever-growing roster, including Safari Records, Emerald Music, Genesis’ debut album, Chapter One and a host of artist discographies. 

Safari Records, a London based independent record label was most notable for releasing popular records by Toyah, Wayne County & The Electric Chairs (later Jayne County) and The Boys. The influential label enjoyed chart success with Toyah including the songs “It’s A Mystery” and “I Want To Be Free.” The album "Anthem" soared to number 2 and remained in the charts for a full year. 

Emerald Music was an independent record label specialising in Irish, Scottish and Celtic music, based in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Founded in 1964, the label released traditional Irish music and compilation albums. It boasts one of the most comprehensive back catalogues of its field. 

From Genesis To Revelation was the debut studio album by pioneering progressive rock band Genesis. Released on Decca in 1969 it features the original line-up of Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford, Anthony Phillips and Chris Stewart. A cult album that demonstrates the raw talent of future household names. 

Founded in 1968, Chapter One Records was a pop label masterminded by famous songwriter and orchestra leader Les Reed. For half a decade, label issued a string of memorable singles and albums by the likes of pre-Deep Purple act Episode Six, popular Geordie crooner Gerry Monroe (‘Sally’ was a Top 10 UK hit in 1970), the cult soundtrack to the film Girl On A Motorcycle, prog rock LPs by the likes of Bond & Brown, Duffy, Samurai and Day Of Phoenix, and collectable 60s psychedelic nuggets by the acts such as The Bliss and Tandem. Chapter One’s most prolific artist, however, was Les Reed himself, who was behind numerous easy listening albums and ‘loungecore’ 45s.

Cherry Red have also acquired the catalogue from numerous independent labels including Inevitable Records (Dead Or Alive), Attrix Records (Peter & The Test Tube Babies) and Native Records (Screaming Trees). Artist catalogues acquired include Glenn Hughes & Trapeze repertoire, cult rock band The Stairs & Edgar Jones, psychedelic rock band July, heavy metal co-founders Sir Lord Baltimore, psych rockers Outskirts Of Infinity, NWOBHM band Spider, renowned guitarist Paul Brett, record producer and musician Tom Newman and Canadian pub rocker Philip Rambow.

With these new additions Cherry Red are still at the forefront of historical A&R. With a focus on physical releases, boxsets and compilations, alongside acquiring the publishing rights for Toyah, Wayne County, 3,000 Emerald titles and From Genesis To Revelation, the label is creating additional income streams to take the business from strength to strength. 

Adam Velasco, MD of Cherry Red, said: “These deals take Cherry Red to another level and prove our intent to cement the future of the label as a big part of the independent music community. We are always looking for new repertoire to acquire and honoured to represent such a varied and thrilling range of music. We plan to release enduring artifacts and keep these artist’s amazing work relevant for years to come.”