Fantasy Records

Fantasy Records was an American record label, founded in 1949 by Max and Sol Weiss in San Francisco, California. As a sub-label was added in 1951 Galaxy Records.

At first jazz records were mainly published, including Dave Brubeck, Gerry Mulligan, Chet Baker and Cal Tjader. But the folk singer Odetta, the Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Allen Ginsberg and the comedian Lenny Bruce.

In 1967, Saul Zaentz, since 1955 in sales at fantasy, with the help of a number of investors, the company by the founders. A little later he took Creedence Clearwater Revival under contract who helped with her immense success the label to a remarkable growth.

The money was used in the 1970s by the then President Ralph Kaffel to take on prestigious jazz labels. 1972 Fantasy bought the rights to the images and brand names of the two Orrin Keepnews label Riverside and Milestone. Keepnews himself became repertoire in the 1970s, Head of Artists and. In addition, Prestige Records debut and was taken Records. Important jazz musicians like Bill Evans, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane and the Modern Jazz Quartet were thus in the catalog. In the 1980s, these were re-released in the sub-label Original Jazz Classics. In 1980, they even all Miles Davis Prestige recordings in a box out.

In 1977, the Soul - Label Stax was acquired (including Isaac Hayes ), 1984 jazz label Contemporary Records in Los Angeles (including with West Coast musicians such as Shelly Manne, Art Pepper ) and 1987, the Pablo label by Norman Granz (including Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Oscar Peterson, Count Basie ) from Los Angeles. Also in the 1990s, the expansion continued. Fantasy took over in 1991, the label was founded in 1946 Specialty Records in Los Angeles (including Little Richard, Sam Cooke ) and 1995 two Roots Music Labels - Kicking Mule by ED Denson and by guitarist Stefan Grossman and Takoma of guitarist John Fahey ( founded in 1959 ).

In 2004 Fantasy was sold to a consortium led by Norman Lear and went on to Concord Records.