Apple Records is a
record labelIn the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
founded by
The BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
in 1968, as a division of
Apple Corps LtdApple Corps Ltd. is a multi-armed multimedia corporation founded in January 1968 by the members of The Beatles to replace their earlier company and to form a conglomerate. Its name is a pun. Its chief division is Apple Records, which was launched in the same year...
. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including
Mary HopkinMary Hopkin , credited on some recordings as Mary Visconti, is a Welsh folk singer best known for her 1968 UK number one single "Those Were The Days". She was one of the first musicians to sign to The Beatles' Apple label....
,
James TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
,
BadfingerBadfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...
, and
Billy PrestonWilliam Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
. In practice, by the mid-1970s, the roster had become dominated with releases from the former Beatles.
Allen KleinAllen Klein was an American businessman, talent agent and record label executive. His clients included The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.- The accountant :...
ran the label in 1969. It was then run by
Neil AspinallNeil Stanley Aspinall was a British music industry executive. A school friend of Paul McCartney and George Harrison, he went on to head The Beatles' company Apple Corps....
on behalf of the four Beatles and their heirs. He retired in 2007 and was replaced by Jeff Jones.
Early years: 1967 - 1969
Apple Corps was already conceived by
Brian EpsteinBrian Samuel Epstein , was an English music entrepreneur, and is best known for being the manager of The Beatles up until his death. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Remo Four & The Cyrkle...
and The Beatles by 1967 when the Beatles had released their
Magical Mystery Tour filmMagical Mystery Tour is an hour-long British television film starring The Beatles that originally aired on BBC1 on 26 December 1967...
under their new Apple Films division. Apple Records was officially founded in 1968 as another sub-division of The Beatles' own
Apple CorpsApple Corps Ltd. is a multi-armed multimedia corporation founded in January 1968 by the members of The Beatles to replace their earlier company and to form a conglomerate. Its name is a pun. Its chief division is Apple Records, which was launched in the same year...
, which was established as a small group of companies (Apple Retail, Apple Publishing, Apple Electronics and so on). At this time, The Beatles were contracted to
ParlophoneParlophone is a record label that was founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch was formed in 1923 as "Parlophone" which developed a reputation in the 1920s as a leading jazz label. It was acquired in 1927 by the Columbia Graphophone Company which...
in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and
Capitol RecordsCapitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. In a new distribution deal, EMI and Capitol agreed to distribute Apple Records until 1975, while EMI retained ownership of The Beatles' recordings. Recordings issued on the Apple label carried Parlophone R-prefixed catalogue numbers. Apple Records owns the rights to all of The Beatles' videos and movie clips, and the rights to recordings of other artists signed to the label. The first catalogue number, Apple 1, was a one-off pressing of
Frank SinatraFrancis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
singing "Maureen Is A Champ" (with lyrics by
Sammy KahnSammy Kahn is an American film and television actor born in 1991 in Hollywood, Florida.- Theater career :Sammy Kahn began acting in the late 1990s in community theater in the Miami, Florida area, culminating in a starring role in a local production of "Pinocchio" in 2000.- Television career :Sammy...
) to the tune of
Lady Is A Tramp"The Lady Is a Tramp" is a show tune from the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical Babes In Arms in which it was introduced by former child star Mitzi Green. This song is a spoof of New York high society and its strict etiquette...
for
Ringo StarrRichard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
's then-wife Maureen.
Initially, Apple Records and Apple Publishing signed a number of acts whom The Beatles personally discovered or supported, and in most cases one or more of The Beatles would be involved in the recording sessions. Several notable artists were signed in the first year including
James TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
,
Mary HopkinMary Hopkin , credited on some recordings as Mary Visconti, is a Welsh folk singer best known for her 1968 UK number one single "Those Were The Days". She was one of the first musicians to sign to The Beatles' Apple label....
,
Billy PrestonWilliam Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
, The
Modern Jazz QuartetThe Modern Jazz Quartet was established in 1952 by Milt Jackson , John Lewis , Percy Heath , and Kenny Clarke . Connie Kay replaced Clarke in 1955...
and The Iveys (who later became
BadfingerBadfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...
).
Klein era: 1970 - 1975
In 1969, the Beatles were in need of financial and managerial direction and Lennon was introduced to
Allen KleinAllen Klein was an American businessman, talent agent and record label executive. His clients included The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.- The accountant :...
through
Mick JaggerSir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....
, as Klein was managing
The Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
at the time. Klein went on to manage Apple, by virtue of his three-to-one support from the Beatles, Paul McCartney the only group member opposed to his involvement. (McCartney had suggested his then new father-in-law
Lee EastmanLee Eastman, born Leopold Vail Epstein, was a New York show business attorney, and art collector the son of Louis and Stella Epstein. His sisters were Emmaline and Rose...
for the job.)
After Klein took control of Apple, several sub-divisions, including Apple Electronics, were shut down, and some of Apple Records' artistic roster effectively dropped. Thereafter, new signings were not so numerous, and tended to arrive through the individual actions of The (ex-)Beatles, with the formal approval of the others. (e.g., Elephant's Memory were recruited through John Lennon, Ravi Shankar through George Harrison, etc.) Paul McCartney had little input into Apple Records' roster after 1970. Klein managed Apple Corp. until March 1973 when his contract expired.
Beatles reissues: 1976 - 2006
Original U.K. versions of all standard Beatles albums were released worldwide on CD in 1987 and 1988 on the Parlophone label with no Apple logo, even including albums originally released on Apple. Previously,
Abbey Road had been issued on CD by the EMI-Odeon label in Japan in the early 1980s. Although this was a legitimate release, it was not authorised by the Beatles, the main EMI company or Apple Corps. As a result, very few were made. It was not until the
1962–1966/
1967–1970 reissues,
BBC sessionsLive at the BBC is a 1994 compilation album featuring performances by The Beatles that were originally broadcast on various BBC Light Programme radio shows from 1963 through 1965. The monaural album, available in multiple formats but most commonly as a two-CD set, consists of 56 songs and 13 tracks...
and
The Beatles AnthologyThe Beatles Anthology is the name of a documentary series, a set of three double albums and a book focusing on the history of The Beatles. Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr all participated in the making and approval of the works, which are sometimes referred to collectively as the...
series that Apple labels started appearing on the CDs. Subsequent releases have been on the familiar Apple label or at least had the Apple logo, including copies of the 1987 and 1988 catalogue. It was after the
Anthology project (spearheaded by
Neil AspinallNeil Stanley Aspinall was a British music industry executive. A school friend of Paul McCartney and George Harrison, he went on to head The Beatles' company Apple Corps....
) that the company resumed making significantly large profits again and began its revival.
Revival: 2006 - present
In 2006 the label was again newsworthy, as the long-running dispute between Apple Records' parent company and Apple Inc. went to the High Court (see Apple Corps v Apple Computer). In 2007, the company settled a dispute with
EMIThe EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
over royalties, and announced that long term chief executive
Neil AspinallNeil Stanley Aspinall was a British music industry executive. A school friend of Paul McCartney and George Harrison, he went on to head The Beatles' company Apple Corps....
had retired and been replaced by American music industry executive
Jeff JonesJeff Jones is the chief executive of Apple Corps, the company founded by The Beatles. He replaced long-time incumbent Neil Aspinall in April 2007. Jones was formerly a vice president at Sony/BMG, where he specialised in repackaging classic albums...
. These changes led to speculation that the Apple Records catalogue — and most importantly
The Beatles discographyIn their native United Kingdom during 1962–1970, The Beatles released 12 studio albums, 13 EPs, and 22 singles. However, the band's international discography is complicated, due to different versions of their albums sometimes being released in other countries, particularly during their early years...
— would soon appear on Apple Inc.'s
iTunesiTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
online music storeAn online music store is an online business which sells audio files, usually music, on a per-song and/or subscription basis. It may be differentiated from music streaming services in that the music store offers the actual music file, while streaming services offer partial or full listening without...
, and that a remastering and reissue program of The Beatles' CDs might be forthcoming (Jones having worked on reissues at Sony). On 1 July 2010, it was reported that
Capitol RecordsCapitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
was planning a re-release strategy for most of Apple's back catalogue. This would include re-releases of material by artists who worked at Apple including
BadfingerBadfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...
,
James TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
,
Billy PrestonWilliam Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
and
Mary HopkinMary Hopkin , credited on some recordings as Mary Visconti, is a Welsh folk singer best known for her 1968 UK number one single "Those Were The Days". She was one of the first musicians to sign to The Beatles' Apple label....
. On November 16, 2010, Apple Inc. launched an extensive advertising campaign that announced the availability of The Beatles entire catalog on iTunes.
Design
Standard Apple album and single labels displayed a bright green
Granny SmithThe Granny Ramsey Smith green apple is a tip-bearing apple cultivar, which originated in Australia in 1868. It is named after Maria Ann Smith, who propagated the cultivar from a chance seedling. The tree is thought to be a hybrid of Malus sylvestris, the European Wild Apple, with the domestic...
appleThe apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
on the A-side, while the flipside displayed the midsection of the apple cut in half. The bright green apple returned for Beatles
CDsThe Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
releases in the 1990s, following initial CD releases on
ParlophoneParlophone is a record label that was founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch was formed in 1923 as "Parlophone" which developed a reputation in the 1920s as a leading jazz label. It was acquired in 1927 by the Columbia Graphophone Company which...
. However, on the U.S. issue of the Beatles'
Let It Be album, the Granny Smith apple was red. The reason was that in the United States that album, being the soundtrack to the movie of the same name, was, for contractual reasons, being manufactured and distributed by United Artists Records and not Capitol Records, so the red apple was used to mark the difference. The red apple also appeared on the back cover, and on the 2009 remastered edition back cover. In the late 70s, Capitol's parent company EMI later purchased United Artists Records and Capitol gained the American rights to the
Let It Be soundtrack album (along with the America rights to another, earlier, UA Beatles movie soundtrack LP, 1964's
A Hard Day's NightA Hard Day's Night is the third studio album by The Beatles, released on 10 July 1964 as the soundtrack to their film A Hard Day's Night. The American version of the album was released two weeks earlier, on 26 June 1964 by United Artists Records, with a different track listing...
). Aside from the red apple, there have been other examples where the apple has been changed, notably on
George HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
's
Extra Texture (Read All About It)Extra Texture is an album by George Harrison which was released in 1975. Following the Dark Horse debacle, Extra Texture was Harrison's last album under his contract with Apple Records and EMI, all set to embark on his own Dark Horse Records imprint, initially distributed by A&M Records.Once...
, where it is eaten away apple core (this was intended to be a joke because it was released at a time when Apple Records was beginning to fold).
And there were some more: in 1970 for
George HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
's
All Things Must PassAll Things Must Pass is a triple album by George Harrison, recorded and released in 1970. The original vinyl release featured two LPs of rock songs as well as Apple Jam, a third LP of informal jams...
triple album two records that have orange apples and one with an Apple Jam jar; in 1970 for
John Lennon/Plastic Ono BandJohn Lennon/Plastic Ono Band was received with high critical praise upon release. Critic Greil Marcus remarked, "John's singing in the last verse of 'God' may be the finest in all of rock." In early 1971, the album reached number eight on the UK and went to number six in the US, spending eighteen...
and
Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono BandYoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band is the avant-garde debut album by Yoko Ono, which came after recording three experimental releases with John Lennon and a live album as a member of The Plastic Ono Band...
black and white apple labels; in 1972 for
Ringo StarrRichard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
's
Back Off Boogaloo"Back Off Boogaloo" is a 1972 single released by Ringo Starr. The song was a hit in the U.S. reaching #9 on the US Hot 100 and achieving Starr's best position in the UK Singles Chart, where it reached #2, blocked only by the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards' version of "Amazing Grace".This is one of the...
blue apples; in 1975 for
Ringo StarrRichard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
's
Blast From Your PastBlast from Your Past is a compilation album by Ringo Starr, released on Apple Records in 1975. It is both his first compilation LP and his final release under his contract with EMI, It was also the last album to be released on The Beatles' Apple label until it was revived in the 1990s...
red apples. Also other type of apples were used: in 1971 for
John LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
's
ImagineImagine is the second album by John Lennon. Recorded and released in 1971, the album tended toward songs that were gentler, more commercial and less avant-garde than those on his critically acclaimed previous album, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. The album is considered the most popular of his works...
and
Yoko Onois a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
's
FlyTrue flies are insects of the order Diptera . They possess a pair of wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halteres, derived from the hind wings, on the metathorax...
, in 1973 for
Yoko Onois a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
's
Approximately Infinite UniverseApproximately Infinite Universe is a double album by Yoko Ono, released in early 1973. It represents a departure from the experimental avant garde rock of her first two albums towards a more conventional pop/rock sound, while also dabbling in feminist rock. It peaked at #193 in the United States...
and the singles that were released from those three albums.
Zapple Records
Zapple Records, an Apple Records subsidiary run by
Barry MilesBarry Miles is an English author known for his participation in and writing on the subject of the 1960s London underground. He has written numerous books and his work has also regularly appeared in left-wing papers such as The Guardian...
, a friend and ultimately biographer of
Paul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
, was intended as an outlet for the release of
spoken wordSpoken word is a form of poetry that often uses alliterated prose or verse and occasionally uses metered verse to express social commentary. Traditionally it is in the first person, is from the poet’s point of view and is themed in current events....
and avant garde records. It was active from October 1968 until June 1969, and only two albums were released on the label, one by
John LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
and
Yoko Onois a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
(
Unfinished Music No.2: Life With The LionsUnfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions is an album of noise music released by John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969, and the successor to 1968's highly controversial Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins...
) and one by
George HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
(
Electronic SoundElectronic Sound is George Harrison's second album. Released in May 1969, it was the second and final record released on the Beatles' short-lived Zapple Records label, a subsidiary of Apple Records. The album features two lengthy pieces performed on the Moog synthesizer...
). An album of readings by
Richard BrautiganRichard Gary Brautigan was an American novelist, poet, and short story writer. His work often employs black comedy, parody, and satire. He is best known for his 1967 novel Trout Fishing in America.- Early life :...
was planned for release as Zapple 3, and
acetate discAn acetate disc, also known as a test acetate, dubplate , lacquer , transcription disc or instantaneous disc...
copies were cut, but, said Miles, "The Zapple label was folded by Klein before the record could be released. The first two Zapple records did come out. We just didn't have [Brautigan's record] ready in time before Klein closed it down. None of the Beatles ever heard it."
Brautigan's record was eventually released as
Listening To Richard Brautigan on
Harvest Records-References:* Harvest Records collectors guide ISBN 978-5-9622-0021-7...
, a subsidiary of Apple distributor EMI, in the US only. According to Miles, a spoken word album by
Lawrence FerlinghettiLawrence Ferlinghetti is an American poet, painter, liberal activist, and the co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers...
, which had been recorded and edited, would have been Zapple 4, and a spoken word album by
Michael McClureMichael McClure is an American poet, playwright, songwriter, and novelist. After moving to San Francisco as a young man, he found fame as one of the five poets who read at the famous San Francisco Six Gallery reading in 1955 rendered in barely fictionalized terms in Jack Kerouac's Dharma Bums...
had also been recorded. A planned Zapple release of a UK appearance by comedian
Lenny BruceLeonard Alfred Schneider , better known by the stage name Lenny Bruce, was a Jewish-American comedian, social critic and satirist...
was never completed. An early 1969 press release also named Pablo Casals as an expected guest on the label. As noted above, Zapple was shut down in June 1969 by Klein, apparently with the backing of
John LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
.
Artists who signed with Apple Records
- Badfinger
Badfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...
(originally known as The Iveys) - Signed to Apple after several demo tapes were brought in by Mal EvansMalcolm Frederick 'Mal' Evans was best known as the road manager, assistant, and a friend of The Beatles: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr....
, after getting approval from McCartney, Harrison and Lennon. They had several top 10 hits in the UK and US, including the Paul McCartney song "Come And Get It", and recorded five albums for Apple.
- Black Dyke Mills Band (as John Foster & Sons Ltd. Black Dyke Mills Band) - A north of England brass band whom Paul McCartney employed for the one-off "Thingummybob"/"Yellow Submarine
"Yellow Submarine" is a 1966 song by The Beatles, written by Paul McCartney , with lead vocals by Ringo Starr. It was included on the Revolver album and issued as a single, coupled with "Eleanor Rigby". The single went to number 1 on every major British chart, remained at number 1 for four weeks...
" single. It was recorded by McCartney on location near Bradford, where the group were based.
- Brute Force (stage name of Stephen Friedland) - George Harrison attempted to have his song "King of Fuh" released as an Apple single. EMI refused to handle it due to its references to "the Fuh king", but Apple manufactured a small number of copies in-house which were made available to the public. The song itself appears on the 2010 compilation, Come and Get It: The Best of Apple Records
Come and Get It: The Best of Apple Records is a greatest hits compilation album containing songs released by The Beatles' Apple Records between 1968-1973. The compilation was released on October 25, 2010 ....
.
- Elastic Oz Band - A one-off single, "God Save Us", was written and produced by John Lennon and Yoko Ono to raise money for a legal battle involving Oz
Oz was first published as a satirical humour magazine between 1963 and 1969 in Sydney, Australia and, in its second and better known incarnation, became a "psychedelic hippy" magazine from 1967 to 1973 in London...
magazine. The A-side of the single was sung by Bill Elliot, later of George HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
's Dark Horse RecordsDark Horse Records is a record label founded by George Harrison in 1974.-History:Harrison had recorded for EMI under a contract which expired in 1976. All his subsequent recordings were released through Dark Horse Records, starting with Thirty Three & 1/3 in 1976 and ending with Live in Japan in 1992...
signing Splinter.
- Elephant's Memory
Elephant's Memory was a New York band, most notable for backing John Lennon and Yoko Ono during 1972 on a pair of albums, and a handful of TV and live appearances, including the John Lennon "One To One Concert", with two performances the 30th of August 1972 to benefit the Willowbrook School for...
- Recruited as backing band for John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and also released material separately.
- Chris Hodge
Chris Hodge was an English rock singer-songwriter. He signed with Apple Records and released a single, "We're On Our Way", which reached #44 on the Billboard Hot 100 that same year. The B-side to the single was titled "Supersoul".-References:...
- Discovered by Ringo Starr; they shared an interest in UFOs. Hodge only released two singles on Apple, the second not issued in the UK.
- Mary Hopkin
Mary Hopkin , credited on some recordings as Mary Visconti, is a Welsh folk singer best known for her 1968 UK number one single "Those Were The Days". She was one of the first musicians to sign to The Beatles' Apple label....
- Discovered after appearing on a UK television talent show. Early recordings were produced by Paul McCartney, including the Lennon-McCartney original "Goodbye" and her hit recording of "Those Were the Days"Those Were the Days" is a song credited to Gene Raskin, who put English lyrics to the Russian song "Dorogoi dlinnoyu" , written by Boris Fomin with words by the poet Konstantin Podrevskii. It deals with reminiscence upon youth and romantic idealism...
". She also released a Eurovision Song Contest entry on Apple ("Knock Knock, Who's There") and two studio albums.
- Hot Chocolate (as Hot Chocolate Band) - Released one single, "Give Peace A Chance", which they recorded and had played to John Lennon, who liked it. Their post-Apple releases as Hot Chocolate were more commercially successful.
- Jackie Lomax
John Richard 'Jackie' Lomax is a British guitarist and singer/songwriter best known for his association with George Harrison and Eric Clapton...
- Liverpudlian singer known via his Brian Epstein connections, he recorded with Harrison, McCartney and Starr at various times. His first single "Sour Milk Sea" features all three and was written by Harrison.
- Modern Jazz Quartet
The Modern Jazz Quartet was established in 1952 by Milt Jackson , John Lewis , Percy Heath , and Kenny Clarke . Connie Kay replaced Clarke in 1955...
- Associated with Yoko Ono, and were famous prior to their involvement with Apple. They released two albums for the label.
- Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
- Recorded extensively with John Lennon and released several singles and albums herself, with Lennon usually performing, and directing the band.
- David Peel and the Lower East Side - Political folk singer brought to the label by John Lennon.
- Billy Preston
William Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
- Brought in to work with the Beatles in January 1969 on their "Get Back" / "Let It Be" sessions, and signed as a solo artist. George Harrison worked on some of Preston's recordings which include the hit single "That's The Way God Planned It". Preston's recording of Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" was released on Apple before Harrison's version. Preston issued two albums on Apple in 1969-70.
- Radha Krishna Temple
The Radha Krishna Temple was the headquarters of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness in London from the late 1960s. The temple came to prominence when The Beatles and especially George Harrison started to publicly express their interest in Eastern philosophy and Krishna consciousness...
, the London Hare KrishnaThe International Society for Krishna Consciousness , known colloquially as the Hare Krishna movement, is a Gaudiya Vaishnava religious organization. It was founded in 1966 in New York City by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada...
temple - George Harrison brought them to the label and produced a single and album for them.
- Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar , often referred to by the title Pandit, is an Indian musician and composer who plays the plucked string instrument sitar. He has been described as the best known contemporary Indian musician by Hans Neuhoff in Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart.Shankar was born in Varanasi and spent...
(with Ali Akbar KhanAli Akbar Khan , often referred to as Khansahib or by the title Ustad , was a Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar gharana, known for his virtuosity in playing the sarod...
) - A classical Indian musician. George Harrison brought him to the label.
- Ronnie Spector
Veronica Yvette "Ronnie" Spector is an American rock and roll and popular music vocalist, and was the lead singer of the 1960s hit-making girl group, The Ronettes, who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. She is known as the "original bad girl of rock and roll."-Personal...
- Married to Phil Spector, who separately worked with the Beatles and solo Beatles around 1970. George Harrison and John Lennon appear on her only Apple single "Try Some Buy Some", which was made with her husband, as an attempt to revive her recording career.
- The Sundown Playboys
The Sundown Playboys are a Cajun music band still active in Louisiana.Originally founded in 1945 by accordionist Lionel Cormier, the band has been performing almost continuously throughout the United States. After the death of Lionel Cormier in the early 1970s, Lesa Cormier decided to carry on the...
- A FrenchFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
-language cajunCajuns are an ethnic group mainly living in the U.S. state of Louisiana, consisting of the descendants of Acadian exiles...
band from LouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. A pre-existing single was brought to the label by Ringo Starr.
- John Tavener
Sir John Tavener is a British composer, best known for such religious, minimal works as "The Whale", and "Funeral Ikos"...
- A classical composer. His brother, a builder, worked on Ringo Starr's house, and Starr took interest in Tavener.
- James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
- Recorded with Paul McCartney, who appears on the Apple LP which launched his career.
- Trash
White Trash were a Scottish pop group who recorded briefly for Apple Records in 1969.Made up of ex-members of The Pathfinders and The Poets, they were given the name White Trash by Richard DiLello, the Apple liaison officer who wrote a book about his times at the label called The Longest Cocktail...
(originally White Trash) - Brought to Apple by Tony Meehan, formerly of the Shadows. Their second single was a cover of "Golden Slumbers" and charted on Apple in the UK.
- Doris Troy
Doris Troy was an American R&B singer, known to her many fans as "Mama Soul".She was born as Doris Higginson in The Bronx, the daughter of a Barbadian Pentecostal minister. Her parents disapproved of "subversive" forms of music like rhythm & blues, so she cut her teeth singing in her father's choir...
- An American soul artist since the early 1960s, who worked with George Harrison and Billy Preston while the latter was signed to Apple. She recorded one Apple album, and released a few spin-off singles.
- Lon and Derek Van Eaton - Brought in during 1970s by George Harrison, who worked on their Apple album.
Also released were the soundtracks to
Come Together and
El TopoEl Topo is a 1970 Spanish language allegorical, cult western movie and underground film, directed by and starring Alejandro Jodorowsky...
(in the U.S.), the onetime
Philles RecordsPhilles Records was a record label formed in 1961 by Phil Spector and Lester Sill, the label taking its name from a hybrid of their first names. Initially, the label was distributed by Jamie/Guyden in Philadelphia...
compilation
Phil Spector's Christmas Album and the multi-artist
The Concert for Bangla DeshThe Concert for Bangladesh is a live triple album and double DVD by George Harrison and celebrity friends performed in aid of the homeless Bengali refugees of the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War...
. Cassette and 8-track tape versions of
Bangla Desh were marketed by
Columbia RecordsColumbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
, in a deal that permitted the inclusion of
Bob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
, a Columbia artist, on the album.
Artists who went on to have considerable success in the pop and rock world (though in some cases, for their post-Apple work) include
BadfingerBadfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...
(originally known as The Iveys),
James TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
,
Mary HopkinMary Hopkin , credited on some recordings as Mary Visconti, is a Welsh folk singer best known for her 1968 UK number one single "Those Were The Days". She was one of the first musicians to sign to The Beatles' Apple label....
, Hot Chocolate,
Yoko Onois a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
and
Billy PrestonWilliam Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
.
Artists who were to appear on the label, but did not make it, include:
- McGough
Roger Joseph McGough CBE is a well-known English performance poet. He presents the BBC Radio 4 programme Poetry Please and records voice-overs for commercials, as well as performing his own poetry regularly...
and McGear, whose self-titled album was due to be released on Apple, but it was released on ParlophoneParlophone is a record label that was founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch was formed in 1923 as "Parlophone" which developed a reputation in the 1920s as a leading jazz label. It was acquired in 1927 by the Columbia Graphophone Company which...
Records, to which both were signed, as members of The ScaffoldThe Scaffold were a comedy, poetry and music trio from Liverpool, England, consisting of Mike McGear , Roger McGough and John Gorman.-Career:...
;
- Grapefruit
Grapefruit was a London-based British band of the late 1960s. Their brand of music was a typical late 1960s blend of rock, which they often fused with psychedelic effects such as phasers and vocoders, or classical arrangements.-Biography:...
, whose single "Dear Delilah" was issued on RCA Records with Apple Records publishing credit;
- Focal Point, a Liverpool band who were going to be managed by Brian Epstein before he died, were signed to Apple after chasing Paul McCartney around Hyde Park. John Lennon and Brian Epstein signed them to Apple, and they were the first band signed. Their single "Sycamore Sid" was issued on Deram Records
Deram Records was a subsidiary record label established in 1966 by Decca Records in the United Kingdom. At this time U.K. Decca was a completely different company than the Decca label in the United States, which was then owned by MCA Inc. Deram recordings were also distributed in the U.S. through...
with credit to Apple Publishing on the label.
- Delaney and Bonnie's Accept No Substitute
Accept No Substitute is the second album by Delaney & Bonnie Bramlett, and their only release on the Elektra label...
album was originally meant to be released on Apple in 1969; it was originally commercially released on Elektra RecordsElektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
the same year.
- Mortimer were a folk-based three-piece, notable for a recording of the Beatles' "Two Of Us". It was planned for release as an Apple single in 1969 (before the Beatles' version was issued) under the title "On Our Way Home", but the release was cancelled.
- Slow Dog (Wheels) who were a Cambridge based rock band headed up by Scottish singer/guitarist Dave Kelly. They were the winners of the Apple Records sponsored national talent contest early 1969, organised by Apple A & R head Peter Asher
Peter Asher is an English guitarist, singer, manager and record producer. He first came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of the vocal duo Peter and Gordon before going on to a successful career as a record producer.-Early life:He was born at the Central Middlesex Hospital, a child actor and...
prior to his departure for the US. The winner of the talent contest was promised a record contract with Apple Records, but the band only recorded demo tracks, due to Asher's departure. However, on the recommendation from Beatles' roadie Mal EvansMalcolm Frederick 'Mal' Evans was best known as the road manager, assistant, and a friend of The Beatles: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr....
, Warner Brothers Records in London, headed up by Ian Ralfini, signed Slow Dog to a record contract, changing their name to Wheels.
- See also Zapple Records section for cancelled releases.
See also
- Apple Records discography
This article is a discography of releases by Apple Records, a record label formed by The Beatles in 1968. During its early years, the label enjoyed a fair degree of commercial success, most notably with Mary Hopkin and Badfinger, as well as discovering acts such as James Taylor who would go on to...
- Apple Corps v. Apple Computer
Between 1978 and 2006 there were a number of legal disputes between Apple Corps and the computer manufacturer Apple Computer over competing trademark rights...
- List of record labels
- The Longest Cocktail Party
The Longest Cocktail Party: An Insider's Diary of the Beatles, Their Million-dollar Apple Empire and Its Wild Rise and Fall is a rock history book by Richard DiLello, published in 1973 by Playboy Press, and reprinted in 1981 and 2005...
, an inside account of Apple Corps by Richard DiLello
External links