Impulse & other 60's labels in the 70's/80's/90's

[Rooster_Ties]

Being from Kansas City (since 1994, at least), I see and/or notice this 1986 "Impulse!" album in the bins from time to time...

And the last time I saw one, it gave me the thought that yes -- I know the Blue Note story since 1970 pretty well (all the re-issue programs in 70's, and then the revival of the label issuing NEW material in the mid 80's). But I really DON'T know the more recent history of "Impulse!" -- or other labels that were notable and active in the 60's.

When did the Impulse! imprint get revived for new releases, and did it go dormant again? (Because I presume it's dormant now, actually, come to think of it).

And are there any other labels worth mentioning that were active in the 60's (and maybe into the early 70's), which then went dormant, but were LATER revived?? And if so, what artists were on those "revived" versions of said labels??

Yes, there is room in this thread for bitching about the tarnished reputations for said labels with some/all of what they were releasing under them in the 80's, 90's, and beyond (if any).

But also, what are some overlooked gems on said labels during the same timeframe. Surely the glass is at least half-full for at least a few things released in this manner in the last 30 years or so.

Edited February 25, 2008 by Rooster_Ties

[Claude]

I think the label was revived in 1987, with the first CD reissues and then new productions ("Michael Brecker" being the first)

http://www.jazzdisco.org/impulse/1973-dis/c/

[Hot Ptah]

Some of the final chapters in Ashley Kahn's book about Impulse Records, "The House That Trane Built", describe the history of the label's decline and later start-up again.

[GA Russell]

I believe the first Impulse! album of the second generation was one by Henry Butler, which as I recall was self-titled (but maybe not), circa 1986.

Universal had Diana Krall first on GRP. They moved her to Impulse in 1996 for her All For You album. I'm guessing it was about two years later that they moved her to Verve.

As I recall, Horace Silver's The Hardbop Grandpop album was issued on Impulse! His 1999 followup Jazz Has a Sense of Humor was issued on Verve.

So I'm guessing that the Impulse! label was dropped in 1999 in favor of Verve. I'm not aware of anything being issued on Impulse! since then.

Obviously, someone with a discography would know, and make my recollections and speculations moot.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Fantasy closed Prestige down after the issue of David Newman's "Scratch my back" (P10108). The label was reopened (for new albums - reissues had continued unabated) in 1995. Only two new albums were issued:

PRCD11001 Funk Inc - Urban renewal

PRCD11002 The Chartbusters - Mating call

Riverside was never reopened; instead, Orrin Keepnews started new companies:

Tuba - only three albums were made on this label; two by Johnny Lytle and one by Junior Mance.

Milestone - acquired by Fantasy in about 1973.

Landmark - I don't think this label lasted too long, but I don't have much of its output.

Savoy - Savoy shut down its jazz/R&B side in the early sixties, though a few avant garde albums were made in the late sixties, but Gospel production continued until at least 2002. After Herman Lubinsky's death, the company was sold to Arista who started up the Savoy Jazz label, mostly for reissues, but one new album was made - "Home in the country" by Pee Wee Ellis. After Arista decided they didn't know how to market Gospel music, they sold that side of the business to Malaco (where it remains) and the secular side to Nippon Columbia, where it, too, remains.

Contemporary seems to have closed for new albums in the sixties, though the firm kept going, I think. It reopened in the late seventies, under the guidance of John Koenig, and the start of the 14000 series. Sometime in the early eighties, it was acquired by Fantasy and continued to produce new material.

Chess was sold to GRT in 1968, then to All Platinum, then to Sugar Hill (or All Platinum may have renamed itself), but continued to make jazz, Gospel & R&B records until the late seventies, at which point the only remaining artist - Jack McDuff - was transferred to Sugar Hill and the Chess labels died.

Liberty continued to run Pacific Jazz until at least 1971 - the last one I know of was Groove Holmes & Ernie Watts' "Come together" 20171, recorded about 1971. Never revived.

MG

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

I believe the first Impulse! album of the second generation was one by Henry Butler, which as I recall was self-titled (but maybe not), circa 1986.

Universal had Diana Krall first on GRP. They moved her to Impulse in 1996 for her All For You album. I'm guessing it was about two years later that they moved her to Verve.

As I recall, Horace Silver's The Hardbop Grandpop album was issued on Impulse! His 1999 followup Jazz Has a Sense of Humor was issued on Verve.

So I'm guessing that the Impulse! label was dropped in 1999 in favor of Verve. I'm not aware of anything being issued on Impulse! since then.

Obviously, someone with a discography would know, and make my recollections and speculations moot.

Actually, although you can do a search through the Lord discography for recordings issued by, say, Impulse, this is not terribly helpful, because they come out in alphabetical order of artists (or sometimes random order - it's not something I try very often ). Not the ideal order to find out anything about the history of a fair-sized label like Impulse.

Verve itself closed in about 1973 - I think the last new album on Verve was Jimmy Smith's "Portugese soul". Smith transferred to MGM. But there appear to have been sporadic releases in the eighties and nineties - mostly by subsidiaries of Polygram in France (Gitanes Jazz) and Japan. Teddy Edwards' albums of that period were released on Verve in Europe and Antilles (Island was also owned by Polygram in those days) in the US. I think the first "new" Verve release that was recorded for the American market, was Jimmy Smith's "Damn", in 1995.

MG

[kh1958]

I believe the first Impulse! album of the second generation was one by Henry Butler, which as I recall was self-titled (but maybe not), circa 1986.

There were two Henry Butler albums on the revived Impulse, the first was Fivin' Around, with Freddie Hubbard on some tracks--a pretty good recording.

[AndrewHill]

I believe the first Impulse! album of the second generation was one by Henry Butler, which as I recall was self-titled (but maybe not), circa 1986.

Universal had Diana Krall first on GRP. They moved her to Impulse in 1996 for her All For You album. I'm guessing it was about two years later that they moved her to Verve.

As I recall, Horace Silver's The Hardbop Grandpop album was issued on Impulse! His 1999 followup Jazz Has a Sense of Humor was issued on Verve.

So I'm guessing that the Impulse! label was dropped in 1999 in favor of Verve. I'm not aware of anything being issued on Impulse! since then.

Obviously, someone with a discography would know, and make my recollections and speculations moot.

There was McCoy Tyner's Infinity which I think came out in 1997 and was touted to be "The Next Wave of Jazz is on Impulse" instead of "The New Wave..." Impulse also released an orchestral album, of his which I cannot recall the title. Am I wrong, though, in thinking that there was a third launching of the Impuse label? If I recall correctly, Inifnity was the first album to feature a throwback to the classic design in the '60's.

[ejp626]

I think in a different thread someone pointed out that a Joe Lovano CD just came out on Impulse.

And I picked up the Charlie Haden/Gonzalo Rubalcaba release Tokyo Adagio, which is definitely on Impulse.  It is soothing, though for that sort of thing I preferred Night and the City.

It looks like there may be about 13 newish releases on Impulse: http://www.impulse-label.com/catalogue/