About Me
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell had already recorded four albums for Elektra’s sister label Warner/Reprise before being lured by David Geffen to his new Asylum label in 1971. When Geffen succeeded Jac Holzman as head of Elektra in 1973, Mitchell became part of the newly combined Elektra/Asylum roster. In many ways, she was the perfect symbolic bridge between the two labels. An enormously gifted singer/songwriter in the Elektra folk tradition, her connection to the company went back to 1967, when Judy Collins had her first pop hit on Elektra with the Mitchell-penned, Grammy-winning “Both Sides Now.”
In January 1974, on the same day that Dylan’s Planet Waves was released, Elektra/Asylum also issued Mitchell’s Court and Spark, which became her biggest-selling album. She connected to the mainstream with her first Top Ten hit, “Help Me,” while garnering rock radio airplay for “Raised on Robbery” and “Free Man in Paris,” the latter written about Geffen. The jazz influence present on Court and Spark was expressed even more directly that same year, when she embarked on a concert tour backed by Tom Scott & The L.A. Express – which yielded the live set, Miles of Aisles.
Another Mitchell landmark came with the 1975 release of The Hissing of Summer Lawns. Her most experimental work to date, it incorporated jazz players, synthesizers, and Burundi rhythms – anticipating by a decade forays into world music by the likes of Paul Simon and Peter Gabriel. While her rapidly evolving music took her further away from the pop singles charts, the album became a major hit, driven by such outstanding tracks as “In France They Kiss On Main Street.”
Mitchell remained with Asylum until the turn of the decade, releasing the boundary-crossing works Hejira; Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter; a collaboration with jazz legend Charles Mingus – simply entitled Mingus; and capping off the era in 1980 with a live collection, Shadows and Light.
John Gruen / G. Bannister
In 1950, John and Georgiana brought their art song cycle to St. Johns College which Jac Holzman was attending. Attracted to the material Jac told of his plans to start a record company and would they be his first artists. John Gruen readily agreed and the session took place that November in New York at Peter Bartok’s studio on New York’s 57th street.
The first record received polite notices but sold very few copies. Obviously the musical direction of Elektra would have to shift toward Jac Holzman’s primary passion, folk music.
John Gruen would soon become a much respected author and art, music and dance critic.
Joe Walsh
Life has certainly been good for Joe Walsh. The Kansas-born guitarist initially became an AOR superstar as a member of Cleveland’s James Gang, a riff-heavy power trio whose “Funk #49” remains an album rock staple.
By 1971, Walsh was leading his own band, dubbed Barnstorm, with whom he unleashed another FM radio favorite in 1973’s “Rocky Mountain Way.” In 1976, he was recruited to replace departing guitarist Bernie Leadon in The Eagles. The addition of Walsh brought a harder edge to the band’s trademark country rock, helping forge a sound that propelled 1976’s Hotel California to massive worldwide success.
During the long period between Eagles albums that followed, Walsh resurrected his solo career with his 1978 Asylum debut, “But Seriously, Folks…” The set was the most successful solo release of the guitar hero’s long, illustrious career, earning RIAA platinum status thanks to another radio rock standard, the satirical top 20 pop hit, “Life’s Been Good.
In 1980, Walsh attempted to turn his rock stardom into political capital by running for President of the United States. With a platform consisting of free gas for everyone and the promise to make “Life’s Been Good” the new national anthem, the mock campaign more than achieved Walsh’s true goal – increasing young people’s awareness of the election. The following year, his second and final Asylum release, There Goes The Neighborhood, spawned still one more FM classic in the #1 Rock hit, “A Life of Illusion” (later featured during the opening credits of the blockbuster 2005 comedy, The 40-Year-Old Virgin).
Walsh carried on his solo career as The Eagles split up in 1980 and then reunited in 1994. One of rock’s all-time great guitarslingers, he continues to play on his own and alongside such diverse artists as Ringo Starr, Kenny Chesney, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and a reconstituted James Gang.
Jet
With a unique perspective shaped by both physical and cultural distance, Australian rockers have long been masters of synthesizing musical influences from the UK and America to create captivating, high-energy music – from Johnny O’Keefe in the ‘50s to the Easybeats in the ‘60s, from AC/DC in the ‘70s to INXS in the ‘80s, from Silverchair in the ‘90s to Jet in the ‘00s.
Carrying on their homeland tradition, Jet emerged in 2002 with a self-released EP that landed them a coveted opening slot on the Rolling Stones’ Australian tour. Signed to Elektra, the quartet – comprised of brothers Nic and Chris Cester, Cam Muncey, and Mark Wilson – released their debut album, Get Born, in 2003. As All Music Guide said, “the band’s mix of Exile on Main St. swagger and brash, AC/DC-styled stomp dovetailed nicely with America’s garage rock revival.” As a result, Jet became a multi-platinum, international success story.
Given Elektra’s deep roots in the evolution of music technology – driven by Jac Holzman’s innovations in recording techniques and pioneering work in the LP, CD, and digital formats – it was only fitting that it was an Elektra artist who helped launch the iPod revolution. The first single from Get Born, “Are You Gonna Be My Girl,” was used in the second iPod television commercial, a modern media classic featuring the now-iconic dancing silhouettes.
While Jet only released one other album on Elektra, Shine On, their exuberant and honest brand of rock’n’roll cross-pollination has earned them the era-closing spot in the Elektra60 Timeline, the last track to be featured before the label enters its five-year dormancy.
Jean Ritchie
Now entering the seventh decade of an extraordinary and influential career, Jean Ritchie is one of the most enduring figures in American folk music. Elektra’s second LP release and, significantly, the label’s first folk LP, Jean Ritchie Singing The Traditional Songs Of Her Kentucky Mountain Family laid down an impressive marker for the embryo label. It was also Ritchie's first album.
Jean was born in 1922 in Viper, Kentucky, the youngest of 14 children. The family’s Anglo-Scots-Irish heritage was rich in songs sung by generations tucked away in the Appalachians. Singing in the purest of tones and strumming on her dulcimer, Ritchie’s ingenuous songwriting preserved an ancient tradition.
After graduating college, she arrived in New York in 1948 where she was a sensation. Nobody had heard such authentic performances except on field recordings. She recorded a second LP for Elektra in 1954, Kentucky Mountain Songs. All her Elektra material is now gathered onto the Rhino Handmade collection Mountain Hearth & Home.
Jean Ritchie has always maintained her Appalachian authenticity and for Jac Holzman, it was a remarkable opportunity to capture such a seminal artist as his first folk artist.
Jason Mraz
Beloved for his distinctive blend of passionate, personal lyricism with flavors of pop, rock, reggae, folk, hip-hop, and jazz, troubadour Jason Mraz has staked a major claim in modern music history.
In 1999, the Mechanicsville, Virginia-born tunesmith made his way to San Diego, where he quickly found a home among the city’s thriving coffeehouse folk scene. Mraz soon signed to Elektra and released his 2002 debut album, Waiting For My Rocket To Come. The album’s lead single, “The Remedy (I Won’t Worry),” proved a top 15 hit on Billboard’s “Hot 100,” pushing the collection to RIAA platinum certification.
With Elektra going into hiatus, Mraz’s next release was on sister label Atlantic. 2005’s Mr.A-Z debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200. Next up was 2008’s We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things., which entered the chart at #3, earning RIAA platinum the next year as Mraz entered the record books with his hit single, “I’m Yours.” Described by the songwriter as “his happy little hippie song,” “I’m Yours” spent a remarkable 76 weeks on Billboard’s “Hot 100,” shattering the record previously held by LeAnn Rimes’ 1997 smash, “How Do I Live” for the longest “Hot 100” chart run. Certified five-times platinum by the RIAA, the Grammy-nominated “I’m Yours” is currently the third best selling digital single of all time.
In 2010, Mraz nailed his first two Grammy Awards for songs from We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things.: Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for “Make It Mine” and Best Pop Collaboration for “Lucky” with Colbie Caillat.
A charismatic live performer dedicated to making an intimate connection with his audience, Mraz has also released a series of concert recordings, including 2004’s Tonight, Not Again: Jason Mraz Live At The Eagles Ballroom, 2006’s digital-only Selections For Friends, and 2009’s Jason Mraz’s Beautiful Mess – Live On Earth.
Jackson Browne
Jackson Browne is not only a pivotal figure in the artistic history of Elektra/Asylum – remaining with the label for a remarkable 30 years – but the very existence of Asylum Records was a direct result of his exceptional talent. When artist manager David Geffen was initially unsuccessful in securing a recording deal for the L.A.-based singer/songwriter, he turned to his mentor, Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun – who suggested that if he truly believed in Browne, he should start his own label as a joint venture with Atlantic. Founded in 1971, Asylum’s earliest releases included Browne’s self-titled debut (1972), followed by For Everyman (1973) and Late For The Sky (1974).
Meanwhile, at the urging of Elektra’s departing founder Jac Holzman, Warner Communications turned to Geffen to lead Elektra, and Browne – along with his friends the Eagles and Linda Ronstadt – became part of the newly merged Elektra/Asylum. It was a fitting turn of events, since Browne’s links with Elektra went back half a dozen years. In 1967, he had signed a publishing deal with Nina Music, a division of Elektra named after Holzman’s then-wife. Browne’s songs were recorded by such artists as Tom Rush and then-girlfriend Nico, and during a brief stint in New York he played in Tim Buckley’s backing band.
Although Browne’s first three albums had been critically acclaimed and commercially successful, he was still not selling as many records as Elektra thought he could. In 1976, it was The Pretender that finally brought Jackson to a wider, deeper audience, with the title track and “Here Come Those Tears Again” among the highlights. Jackson’s introspective examinations of life “caught between the longing for love and the struggle for the legal tender” resonated everywhere. His next release, the 7-times platinum Running on Empty (1977) became his best-selling album, and his role as an iconic artist of his generation was forever cemented. Browne remained with the label until 2002, having charted a rare three-decade career with the first label that had signed him.
Incredible String Band
The only UK group of any reputation signed to Elektra until Jac Holzman signed Queen in 1972, The Incredible String Band were the ultimate, eclectic folk act, produced by Joe Boyd, then running Elektra’s London office. After one, essentially traditional folk album, recorded as a trio, the duo of Mike Heron and Robin Williamson veered off into a more esoteric direction.
Utilizing unfamiliar instrumentation, 1967’s 5000 Spirits Or The Layers Of The Onion saw them become darlings of the UK underground scene. 5000 Spirits was effectively the Sgt. Pepper of the folk world with its genre defining psychedelic sleeve. The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter repeated the mix of unconventional instrumentation, mystery and spirituality and even went Top Five in the UK.
Thereafter, The Incredible String Band, now augmented by the pair’s girlfriends Rose and Licorice, adapted a fuller sound on Wee Tam & The Big Huge, a double album, which broadened their base in America, graduating from folk clubs to playing the famous Fillmore on both coasts.
The group was soon combining an even more rock-oriented sound with an ambitious show that featured dance troupe Stone Monkey. It culminated in the surreal U, intended as the soundtrack the show they staged in London and San Francisco.
Ian Matthews
Born in Scotland in 1946 Ian found himself in groups, most notably, the Fairport Convention, as lead singer with Sandy Denny. Drawing from among his musical friends in Fairport, Matthews recorded his first, and notable, solo album, Matthew’s Southern Comfort, an album with both feet planted in American vernacular music.
With writer/singer Andy Roberts he then formed Plainsong in 1972 and recorded the famous, In Search of Amelia Earhart, establishing his credentials as a serious songwriter. Plainsong was short lived and Matthews then moved to Los Angeles, recording, Valley Hi, with producer Michael Nesmith in the Elektra funded Countryside Studio.
Countryside was a Michael Nesmith effort to record non-Nashville country oriented music that could benefit from the superb musician pool in Los Angeles. Unfortunately Valley Hi was released just before Holzman left Elektra to become Chief Technologist of the parent, Warner Communications, Inc. Today, Valley Hi’s reputation is growing and it is one of the true gems of the later Elektra catalog.
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