170-531: White Lion was a Danish-American glam metal band that was formed in New York City in 1983 by Danish vocalist/guitarist Mike Tramp and Italian-American guitarist Vito Bratta . Mainly active in the 1980s and early 1990s, they released their debut album Fight to Survive in 1985. The band achieved success with their No. 8 hit "Wait" and No. 3 hit " When the Children Cry " from their second album,
340-640: A Broken Heart and subsequently popularised by the success of Black Veil Brides , Escape the Fate and Falling in Reverse . Avenged Sevenfold 's 2005 album City of Evil also promoted a similar influence, seeing the band depart from their metalcore sound in favour of one indebted to glam metal. At the same time, in Sweden there was a sleaze metal movement attempting to revive the genre, with bands including Vains of Jenna , Crashdïet and H.E.A.T , as well as
510-463: A German girlfriend, which precipitated his divorce from Miriam, a minor stockholder and Atlantic's business and publishing manager. By 1958, relations between Abramson and his partners had broken down; in December 1958 a $ 300,000 buy-out was arranged; his stock was split between Nesuhi Ertegun and Abramson's ex-wife Miriam, who had in the meantime remarried to music publisher Freddy Bienstock (later
680-653: A New Orleans distributor phoned Ertegun to obtain Stick McGhee 's "Drinking Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee", which was unavailable due to the closing of McGhee's previous label, Harlem Records. Ertegun knew Stick's younger brother Brownie McGhee , with whom Stick happened to be staying, so he contacted the McGhee brothers and re-recorded the song. When released in February 1949, it became Atlantic's first hit, selling 400,000 copies, and reached No. 2 after spending almost six months on
850-426: A No. 4 R&B hit with " Tweedlee Dee ", but a rival version by Georgia Gibbs went to No. 2 on the pop chart. Big Joe Turner's April 1954 song " Shake, Rattle and Roll " was a No. 1 R&B hit, but it only reached No. 22 on the pop chart. Bill Haley & His Comets 's version reached No. 7, selling over one million copies and becoming the bestselling song of the year for Decca. In July 1954, Wexler and Ertegun wrote
1020-517: A White Lion of any kind, including the new White Lion or any possible reunions. In 2014, Tramp once again confirmed there would be no more White Lion. In Spring of 2023 Mike Tramp announced another Tramps White Lion reunion with new line up, after the new release of rerecorded versions entitled ' Songs of White Lion ', with European and US dates into 2024. Unlike most bands of their genre, White Lion recorded occasional songs that addressed social or political issues such as apartheid ("Cry for Freedom"),
1190-464: A White Lion reunion, without confirmation of who the lineup would be. Later Tramp said that Vito Bratta wanted nothing to do with a reunion. With summer festivals in Europe already booked, Tramp attempted to put together a "new White Lion" featuring former members James LoMenzo and Jimmy DeGrasso , along with Warren DeMartini of Ratt . Vito Bratta filed suit claiming partial ownership of the name, and
1360-512: A close working relationship with Ertegun, who was instrumental in her signing with the label. By 1969, the Atlantic 8000 series (1968–72) consisted of R&B, rock, soul/rock and psychedelic acts. Other releases that year include albums by Aretha Franklin ( Soul '69 ), Led Zeppelin ( Led Zeppelin ), Don Covay ( House of Blue Lights ), Boz Scaggs ( Boz Scaggs ), Roberta Flack ( First Take ), Wilson Pickett ( Hey Jude ), Mott
1530-480: A collection of over 15,000 78 RPM records. Ahmet ostensibly stayed in Washington to undertake post-graduate music studies at Georgetown University but immersed himself in the Washington music scene and entered the record business, which was enjoying a resurgence after wartime restrictions on the shellac used in manufacture. He convinced the family dentist, Vahdi Sabit, to invest $ 10,000 and hired Herb Abramson ,
1700-432: A consistent big seller through the mid-1960s and scored hits on Atlantic into 1968. In 1962 folk music was booming and the label came very close to signing Peter, Paul & Mary ; although Wexler and Ertegun pursued them vigorously the deal fell through at the last minute and they later discovered music publisher Artie Mogull had introduced their manager Albert Grossman to Warner Bros. executive Herman Starr, who had made
1870-536: A dentistry student. Abramson had worked as a part-time A&R manager/producer for Al Green at the jazz label National Records , signing Big Joe Turner and Billy Eckstine . He founded Jubilee in 1946 but had no interest in its most successful musicians. In September 1947, he sold his share in Jubilee to his partner, Jerry Blaine , and invested $ 2,500 in Atlantic. Atlantic was incorporated in October 1947 and
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#17327726187432040-503: A different story, so the story played would be determined by the groove in which the stylus happened to land. In late 1947, James Petrillo , head of the American Federation of Musicians , announced an indefinite ban on all recording activities by union musicians, and this came into effect on January 1, 1948. The union action forced Atlantic to use almost all its capital to cut and stockpile enough recordings to last through
2210-430: A donation of $ 1.5 million from Ertegun. In 1952 Atlantic signed Ray Charles, whose hits included " I Got a Woman ", " What'd I Say ", and " Hallelujah I Love Her So ". Later that year The Clovers' " One Mint Julep " reached No. 2. In 1953, after learning that singer Clyde McPhatter had been fired from Billy Ward and His Dominoes and was forming The Drifters , Ertegun signed the group. Their single " Money Honey " became
2380-457: A failed attempt to reform the original line up. The new White Lion released a live album in 2005 and a brand new studio album Return of the Pride in 2008. In 2023, Tramp would release the re-recorded versions of White Lion's greatest hits on an album, appropriately titled, The Songs of White Lion . After moving from Denmark to Spain and then New York City, vocalist Mike Tramp (formerly of
2550-457: A freelance basis, but within a few years he had been hired as the label's full-time staff engineer. His recordings for Atlantic and Stax influenced pop music. He had more hits than George Martin and Phil Spector combined. Atlantic was one of the first independent labels to make recordings in stereo: Dowd used a portable stereo recorder which ran simultaneously with the studio's existing mono recorder. In 1953 (according to Billboard ) Atlantic
2720-510: A glam metal sound in this period. In the last years of the decade, the most notable successes were New Jersey (1988) by Bon Jovi, OU812 (1988) by Van Halen, while Open Up and Say... Ahh! (1988) by Poison, spawned number one hit single " Every Rose Has Its Thorn ", and eventually sold eight million copies worldwide. Britny Fox from Philadelphia and Winger from New York released their eponymous débuts in 1988. In 1989, Mötley Crüe produced their most commercially successful album,
2890-550: A glam metal sound. The album reached No. 1 in the UK Rock Chart , but failed to chart in the United States. Meanwhile, Guns N' Roses' classic-lineup was whittled away throughout the decade. Drummer Steven Adler was fired in 1990, guitarist Izzy Stradlin left in late 1991 after recording Use Your Illusion I and II with the band. Tensions between the other band members and lead singer Axl Rose continued after
3060-536: A hard rock record of seven hit singles and stayed on the Billboard 200 chart for 136 weeks. Another of the greatest successes of the era was Guns N' Roses , originally formed from a fusion of bands L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose , who released the best-selling debut of all time, Appetite for Destruction . With a "grittier" and "rawer" sound than most glam metal, incorporating elements of punk and blues, Appetite for Destruction produced three top 10 hits, including
3230-906: A jazz singer. Jerry Wexler said, "we're gonna put her back in church." She rose to fame quickly and was called the Queen of Soul. Wexler oversaw production himself at Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. The result was seven consecutive singles that made both the US Pop and Soul Top 10: " I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You) " (Soul No. 1, Pop No. 9), " Respect " (Soul and Pop No. 1), " Baby, I Love You " (Soul No. 1, Pop No. 4), " (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman " (Soul No. 2, Pop No. 8), " Chain of Fools " (Soul No. 1, Pop No. 2), " Since You've Been Gone " (Soul No. 1, Pop No. 5), and " Think " (Soul No. 1, Pop No. 7). In late 1961, singer Solomon Burke arrived at Jerry Wexler's office unannounced. Wexler
3400-647: A mature and musically serious band existing today, called White Lion. James LoMenzo and Greg D'Angelo joined Zakk Wylde 's band, Lynyrd Skynhead, in the mid-1990s which became the band Pride & Glory when Greg D'Angelo was replaced by Brian Tichy . Pride & Glory released one album, then James LoMenzo left the band. James went on to record and tour with ex- Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth , Zakk Wylde's band Black Label Society , thrash metal pioneers Megadeth , and in 2013, joined John Fogerty 's solo band. Vito Bratta stayed briefly with Atlantic Records to help produce an album for CPR, and later tried to form
3570-420: A more natural and stripped-down aesthetic and a rejection of the glam metal visual style. During this period, many of the most successful acts of the genre's 1980s pinnacle suddenly found themselves facing disbandment as their audiences moved in another direction. Glam metal has experienced a resurgence since the late 1990s, with successful reunion tours of many popular acts from the genre's 1980s heyday, as well as
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#17327726187433740-433: A multi-platinum seller that would be the band's last with Sammy Hagar on vocals. In 1996, David Lee Roth returned briefly and his replacement, former Extreme singer Gary Cherone , left the band soon after the release of the commercially unsuccessful 1998 album Van Halen III . Van Halen would not tour or record again until 2004. Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers ' 1992 debut album Generation Terrorists featured
3910-573: A new album. Just in time for the late autumn of 1990, they entered the classic A&M studios with a new producer. White Lion released their fourth album Mane Attraction in March 1991. The album featured the singles " Love Don't Come Easy " which peaked at number 24 on the Mainstream Rock Charts, "Lights and Thunder", which is an eight-minute heavy rock epic with a complex structure inspired by Led Zeppelin's "Achilles Last Stand", and
4080-500: A new music group that never panned out. Despite a dedicated worldwide following of guitar aficionados, Vito disappeared from public view from 1992 until his interview by Eddie Trunk live on February 16, 2007. Vito is the sole owner of the White Lion music catalog , retaining the legal and distributive rights to all four original albums. The material was licensed entirely to Bratta's Vavoom Music, Inc, when Tramp sold off his share in
4250-501: A part in developing the overall look and sound of glam metal during the early 1980s. In 1985, many more commercially successful glam metal albums began to appear, including Mötley Crüe's third album Theatre of Pain , Ratt's second album Invasion of Your Privacy , Dokken's third album Under Lock and Key , Stryper 's first release Soldiers Under Command , Bon Jovi's second release 7800° Fahrenheit , and Autograph's second album That's The Stuff . Los Angeles continued to foster
4420-418: A partnership in Atlantic's rival Imperial Records , he and Wexler convinced Nesuhi to join Atlantic instead. Nesuhi became head of artists and repertoire ( A&R ), led the label's jazz division, and built a roster that included Shorty Rogers , Jimmy Giuffre , Herbie Mann , Les McCann , Charles Mingus , and John Coltrane . By 1958 Atlantic was America's second-largest independent jazz label. Nesuhi
4590-472: A peak of No. 19 on the album charts. The band's success continued with more constant touring. They did a European tour, including a string of UK arena shows supporting Mötley Crüe with Skid Row , and also played with Ozzy Osbourne and Cinderella . After less successful gigs in England and mixed reviews of the new album, the band chose to take a few months off after the turn of the year to focus on writing
4760-538: A prescient article for Cash Box devoted to what they called "cat music"; the same month, Atlantic had its first major "crossover" hit on the Billboard pop chart when the " Sh-Boom " by The Chords reached No. 5 (although The Crew-Cuts ' version went to No. 1). Atlantic missed an important signing in 1955 when Sun owner Sam Phillips sold Elvis Presley 's recording contract in a bidding war between labels. Atlantic offered $ 25,000 which, Ertegun later noted, "was all
4930-612: A re-recorded version of the band's debut single "Broken Heart", all of which featured music videos. "Out with the Boys" and "You're All I Need" were released as promo singles and "Farewell to You" featured a music video montage. The album also contained White Lion's only instrumental song, "Blue Monday", a tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughan , who had died while the band was writing the album. The album's two ballads "You're All I Need" and "Till Death Do Us Part" gained popular airplay in Indonesia and
5100-648: A reputation as one of the most important American labels, specializing in jazz , R&B , and soul by Aretha Franklin , Ray Charles , Wilson Pickett , Sam and Dave , Ruth Brown and Otis Redding . Its position was greatly improved by its distribution deal with Stax . In 1967, Atlantic became a wholly owned subsidiary of Warner Bros.-Seven Arts , now the Warner Music Group , and expanded into rock and pop music with releases by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young , Led Zeppelin , and Yes . In 2004, Atlantic and its sister label Elektra were merged into
5270-489: A revival. Some established acts who had managed to weather the storm enjoyed renewed popularity, others reformed and new bands emerged to emulate the glam metal style. Bon Jovi were still able to achieve a commercial hit with " It's My Life " (2000). They branched into country music with a version of their 2005 song " Who Says You Can't Go Home ", which reached No. 1 on the Hot Country Singles chart in 2006 and
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5440-409: A series of compilation albums that feature popular power ballads, usually from the glam metal genre, capitalized on the nostalgia, with the first volume going platinum. The VH1 sponsored Rock Never Stops Tour , beginning in 1998, has seen many glam metal bands take to the stage again, including on the inaugural tour: Warrant, Slaughter, Quiet Riot, FireHouse, and L.A. Guns. Slaughter also took part in
5610-490: A staff producer. Ahmet Ertegun liked him, but Leiber said, "He wasn't likable. He was funny, he was amusing—but he wasn't nice." Wexler disliked him. Miriam Bienstock called him "a pain in the neck". When Spector criticized Bobby Darin's songwriting, Darin had him thrown out of the house. Atlantic tolerated Spector but with diminishing returns. He produced " Twist and Shout " for The Top Notes, and it flopped. Songwriter Bert Berns hated Spector's arrangement and thought it ruined
5780-457: A strictly visual perspective, glam metal is defined by flashy and tight-fitting clothing, makeup, and an overall androgynous aesthetic in which the traditional "denim & leather" aspect of heavy metal culture is replaced by spandex , lace , and usually heavy use of bright colours. Glam metal suffered a decline in popularity in the early-mid 1990s, as the grunge and alternative phenomena revolutionized hard rock, and fans' tastes moved toward
5950-644: A table without any pockets. We were as far away from LA as any band could be." The most active glam metal scene was starting to appear in clubs on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, including The Trip, the Whisky a Go Go , and the Starwood. These clubs refrained from booking punk rock bands because of fears of violence and began booking many metal bands instead, usually on a "pay to play" basis, thus creating
6120-427: A tour that was to begin within weeks, the band's attorneys negotiated a deal with Vito Bratta to drop his threatened lawsuit. However, even with the threat of litigation eliminated, Live Nation did not reinstate White Lion onto the tour. Extremely upset with the decision, Tramp acknowledged the many fans across the United States who were also disappointed by Live Nation's decision. Despite the threatened legal action and
6290-540: A vibrant scene for hard rock music. An increasing number of metal bands were able to produce debut albums in 1984, including Ratt (from Los Angeles) with its breakthrough album Out of the Cellar , Bon Jovi (from New Jersey) with its debut Bon Jovi , Great White with Great White , Black 'n Blue (from Portland, Oregon) with Black 'n Blue , Autograph with its first album Sign In Please , and W.A.S.P. with its self-titled debut album . All these bands played
6460-524: A wave of grunge bands from Seattle , such as Nirvana , Alice in Chains , Pearl Jam and Soundgarden . Other alternative bands such as R.E.M. , Radiohead , Stone Temple Pilots , and the Smashing Pumpkins achieved mainstream success in the wake of glam's decline. The decline was particularly obvious after the success of both R.E.M.'s Out of Time (1991) and Nirvana's Nevermind (1991),
6630-535: The Billboard R&;B chart – although McGhee himself earned just $ 10 for the session. Atlantic's fortunes rose rapidly: 187 songs were recorded in 1949, more than three times the amount from the previous two years, and received overtures for a manufacturing and distribution deal with Columbia , which would pay Atlantic a 3% royalty on every copy sold. Ertegun asked about artists' royalties, which he paid, and this surprised Columbia executives, who did not, and
6800-519: The Atlantic Records Group . Craig Kallman is the chairman of Atlantic. Ahmet Ertegun served as founding chairman until his death on December 14, 2006, at age 83. In 1944, brothers Nesuhi and Ahmet Ertegun remained in the United States when their mother and sister returned to Turkey after the death of their father Munir Ertegun , Turkey's first ambassador to the U.S. The brothers were fans of jazz and rhythm & blues, amassing
6970-417: The Billboard 200, but they were to be one of the last major bands that emerged in the glam metal era. Glam metal entered the 1990s as one of the major commercial genres of popular music, but such success would not continue for long; in 1990, débuts for Slaughter , from Las Vegas with Stick It to Ya and FireHouse , from North Carolina , with their eponymous album reached number 18 and number 21 on
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7140-562: The Finnish band Reckless Love . Los Angeles band Steel Panther managed to gain a following by playing 1980s style glam metal. Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records ) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson . Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recordings in January 1948, Atlantic earned
7310-700: The New Wave of British heavy metal , mixed glam rock with heavy metal , helping to define the sound of hard rock for the 1980s decade. In March 1980, Def Leppard released their initial album On Through the Night , its first song "Rock Brigade" provided a hint of this future sound style. In July 1981, Def Leppard released their second album High 'n' Dry , which contained the songs " Bringin' On The Heartbreak " ( power ballad ) and "Switch 625" (instrumental), examples of their signature sound style prevalent in their next album (Pyromania). The High 'n' Dry album stayed on
7480-806: The Ritz Hotel in Manhattan proved too expensive, so they moved to a room in the Hotel Jefferson. In the early fifties, Atlantic moved from the Hotel Jefferson to offices at 301 West 54th St and then to 356 West 56th St. Atlantic's first recordings were issued in late January 1948 and included "That Old Black Magic" by Tiny Grimes and "The Spider" by Joe Morris. In its early years, Atlantic concentrated on modern jazz although it released some country and western and spoken word recordings. Abramson also produced "Magic Records", children's records with four grooves on each side, each groove containing
7650-472: The Tom Hanks / Shelley Long movie The Money Pit , which was released a year later. The soundtrack features the song "Web of Desire" (credited to "White Lion and Robey (portrayed by Louise Robey )), which was demoed that year. The film soundtrack was never officially released, although the song plays in the movie during both of the band's scenes. Nicki Capozzi was subsequently fired due to health issues and
7820-529: The glam rock or glitter rock of the 1970s, often with very long backcombed hair, use of hair spray , use of make-up , gaudy clothing and accessories (chiefly consisting of tight denim or leather jeans, spandex , and headbands). The visual aspects of glam metal appealed to music television producers, particularly MTV , whose establishment coincided with the rise of the genre. Glam metal performers became infamous for their debauched lifestyles of drugs, strippers and late-night parties, which were widely covered in
7990-442: The 1970s when it signed Bad Company , Led Zeppelin , and Yes . Despite the huge success Atlantic was enjoying with its own artists and through its deal with Stax, by 1967, Jerry Wexler was seriously concerned about the disintegration of the old order of independent record companies; fearing for the label's future, he began agitating for it to be sold to a larger company. Label President Ahmet Ertegun still had no desire to sell, but
8160-562: The 1999 version with Ted Nugent, Night Ranger, and Quiet Riot. Poison and Cinderella toured together in 2000 and 2002, and in 2005 Cinderella headlined the Rock Never Stops Tour, with support from Ratt, Quiet Riot, and FireHouse. In 2007 the four-day-long Rocklahoma festival held in Oklahoma included glam metal bands Poison, Ratt and Twisted Sister . Warrant and Cinderella co-headlined the festival in 2008. Nostalgia for
8330-616: The Billboard 200 chart for 123 weeks. Bands from across the United States began to move towards what would become the glam metal sound. In the fall of 1981, Mötley Crüe (from Los Angeles) released their first album Too Fast for Love , Kix (from western Maryland) released their first album Kix , and Dokken (from Los Angeles) released their first album Breaking the Chains in Europe (later remixed for September 1983 re-release in USA). In November 1982, Night Ranger (from San Francisco) released their initial album Dawn Patrol which reached
8500-441: The Billboard 200 respectively, but it would be the peak of their commercial achievement. Y&T released their last album "Ten" before the band went on hiatus from a few years. The 1988 film The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years captured the Los Angeles scene of successful and aspiring bands. It also highlighted the excesses of glam metal, particularly the scene in which W.A.S.P. guitarist Chris Holmes
8670-568: The CD would be mixed by Dennis Ward and titled Return of the Pride . The new studio album entitled Return of the Pride was released on March 14, 2008, and the band was now once again simply known as White Lion. The band did a world tour to support the album. White Lion toured India and played to 42,000 at Shillong , Meghalaya , and a 30,000 plus crowd at the Dimapur stadium in Nagaland . The band
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#17327726187438840-533: The Children Cry ", made it to no. 3 on the US charts with heavy MTV airplay. The success of "When the Children Cry" would eventually push sales of Pride over the two million mark. In addition, Vito Bratta was recognized for his instrumental talents by racking up Best New Guitarist awards with both Guitar World magazine and Guitar for the Practicing Musician magazine. "All You Need Is Rock 'n' Roll"
9010-609: The Coasters and "What'd I Say" by Ray Charles. Although these were primarily 45rpm mono singles for much of the 1950s Dowd stockpiled his "parallel" stereo takes for future release. In 1968 the label issued History of Rhythm and Blues, Volume 4 in stereo. Stereo versions of Ray Charles "What'd I Say" and "Night Time is the Right Time" were included on the Atlantic anthology The Birth of Soul: The Complete Atlantic Rhythm & Blues Recordings, 1952–1959 . Atlantic's New York studio
9180-554: The Ertegun brothers held the majority of stock while Wexler controlled about 20 percent. Ertegun started lifelong grudges against Leiber and Stoller, and his relationship with Wexler was damaged. Atlantic was doing so well in early 1959 that some scheduled releases were held back, and the company enjoyed two successive months of gross sales of over $ 1 million that summer, thanks to hits by The Coasters, The Drifters, LaVern Baker, Ray Charles, Bobby Darin, and Clyde McPhatter. Months later
9350-481: The Ertegun brothers vice-president of Progressive. Atlantic played a major role in popularizing the genre that Jerry Wexler dubbed rhythm & blues, and it profited handsomely. The market for these records exploded during late 1953 and early 1954 as R&B hits crossed over to the mainstream (i.e. white) audience. In its tenth anniversary feature on Atlantic, Billboard noted, "... a very big R&B record might achieve 250,000 sales, but from this point on (1953–54),
9520-575: The Hoople ( Mott the Hoople ), and Black Pearl ( Black Pearl ). In 1969, Warner Bros.-Seven Arts was taken over by the Kinney National Company , and in the early 1970s the group was rebadged as Warner Communications . After buying Elektra Records and its sister label Nonesuch Records in 1970, Kinney combined the operations of all of its record labels under a new holding company, WEA , and also known as Warner Music Group . WEA
9690-697: The Hop " made the Top 10 on both the US pop and R&B charts and charted in the UK. " Dream Lover " reached No. 2 in the US and No. 1 in the UK and became a multi-million seller. " Mack the Knife " (1959) went to No. 1 in both the US and the UK, sold over 2 million copies, and won the 1960 Grammy Award for Record of the Year. " Beyond the Sea " became Darin's fourth consecutive Top 10 hit in
9860-506: The Pack " by The Shangri-Las , but Red Bird's finances were precarious. In 1964 they approached Jerry Wexler and proposed a merger with Atlantic. When interviewed in 1990 for Ertegun's biography, Wexler declined to discuss the matter, but Ertegun claimed these negotiations were a plan to buy him out. In September 1964, the Ertegun brothers and Wexler were in the process of buying out the company's other two shareholders, Sabit and Bienstock, and it
10030-590: The Philippines. Greg D'Angelo and James LoMenzo left the band in June 1991 when they came back from the European tour, citing "musical differences," but White Lion carried on with bassist Tommy T-Bone Caradonna and drummer Jimmy DeGrasso (a sideman for Megadeth , Alice Cooper , Suicidal Tendencies , Y&T , and Fiona ). After briefly touring in support of Mane Attraction , Tramp and Bratta decided to fold
10200-490: The R&;B chart. Brown recorded more than eighty songs for Atlantic, becoming its bestselling, most prolific musician of the period. So significant was Brown's success to Atlantic that the label became known colloquially as "The House That Ruth Built". Joe Morris , one of the label's earliest signings, scored a hit with his October 1950 song "Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere", the first Atlantic record issued in 45rpm format, which
10370-704: The Stax house band resulted in " Green Onions ". The single was issued in August 1962 and became the biggest instrumental hit of the year, reaching No. 1 on the R&B chart and No. 3 on the pop chart, selling over one million copies. Over the next five years Stax and its subsidiary Volt provided Atlantic with many hits, such as " Respect " by Otis Redding, " Knock on Wood " by Eddie Floyd, " Hold On, I'm Comin' " by Sam and Dave, and " Mustang Sally " by Wilson Pickett. Aretha Franklin signed with Atlantic in 1966 after her contract with Columbia expired. Columbia tried to market her as
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#173277261874310540-505: The Stax masters, so the distribution deal ended in May 1968. Atlantic continues to hold the rights to Stax recordings it distributed in the 1960s. In the wake of the takeover, Jerry Wexler's influence in the company rapidly diminished; by his own admission, he and Ertegun had run Atlantic as "utmost despots" but in the new corporate structure, he found himself unwilling to accept the delegation of responsibility that his executive role dictated. He
10710-464: The Top 200 Billboard album charts for a full year, selling two million copies in the US alone and achieving double platinum status. In August 1988, the album's second single, " Tell Me ", reached no. 58. Around the time this single was released, White Lion played at the Ritz club in New York City. The show was filmed and later aired on MTV. The Pride album's third single, a power ballad titled " When
10880-416: The UK six or seven times every year in search of acts to sign to the label. For much of its early history, Jerry Wexler had been managers of the label, while Ertegun had concentrated on A&R and had less interest in the business side. But that changed after the sale to Warner. Although Ertegun had been forced into accepting the sale, he turned the situation to his advantage. He gained executive control of
11050-443: The US and UK. He signed with Capitol and moved for Hollywood to attempt a movie career, but hits such as " You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby " and " Things " continued to benefit Atco through 1962. Darin returned to Atlantic in 1965. In 1965, Atlantic formed a budget label called Clarion Records. 21 albums were released simultaneously in 1965, all of them shown on the back cover of their releases. No further albums were issued as
11220-545: The Warner recording division was booming – by mid-1968 Warner's recording and publishing interests were generating 74% of the group's total profits. The sale of Atlantic Records activated a clause in the distribution agreement with Stax Records calling for renegotiation of the distribution deal and at this point, the Stax partners discovered that the deal gave Atlantic ownership of all the Stax recordings Atlantic distributed. The new Warner owners refused to relinquish ownership of
11390-463: The act Tramp's White Lion (TWL), this however did not stop the persistent legal issues with former members. Despite all the issues, TWL (a.k.a. White Lion 2) played and re-recorded White Lion songs, touring and releasing a box set titled The Bootleg Series in 2004 and a double-live CD entitled Rocking the USA in 2005. The band had several concerts canceled in late 2005 as promoters backed away due to
11560-481: The album Hot Cakes the following year. In the mid-to late 2000s, there was a minor sleaze rock revival with groups like Hinder and Buckcherry . The latter's breakthrough album 15 (2006) went platinum in the U.S. and spawned the single " Sorry " (2007), which made the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. Additionally, a subset of scene bands embraced elements of glam metal. This began with Blessed by
11730-490: The album. The song "Better Off" was released as Tramp's debut solo single and features his first solo music video. The album also features the singles "Already Gone", "If I Live Tomorrow" and "Take a Little Time". It would be five years before Tramp returned to the studio to record his follow-up album, Recovering the Wasted Years , during which time he would move to Australia , with the aim of raising his son away from
11900-463: The balance of power had changed since the abortive takeover attempt of 1962; Atlantic's original investor Dr Vahdi Sabit and minority stockholder Miriam Bienstock had both been bought out in September 1964 and the other remaining partner, Nesuhi Ertegun, was eventually convinced to side with Wexler. Since they jointly held more stock, Ahmet was obliged to agree to the sale. In October 1967, Atlantic
12070-1058: The ban, which was expected to continue for at least a year. Ertegun and Abramson spent much of the late 1940s and early 1950s scouring nightclubs in search of talent. Ertegun composed songs under the alias "A. Nugetre", including Big Joe Turner's hit " Chains of Love ", recording them in booths in Times Square, then giving them to an arranger or session musician. Early releases included music by Sidney Bechet , Barney Bigard , The Cardinals , The Clovers , Frank Culley , The Delta Rhythm Boys , Erroll Garner , Dizzy Gillespie , Tiny Grimes , Al Hibbler , Earl Hines , Johnny Hodges , Jackie & Roy , Lead Belly , Meade Lux Lewis , Professor Longhair , Shelly Manne , Howard McGhee , Mabel Mercer , James Moody , Joe Morris , Art Pepper , Django Reinhardt , Pete Rugolo , Pee Wee Russell , Bobby Short , Sylvia Syms , Billy Taylor , Sonny Terry , Big Joe Turner , Jimmy Yancey , Sarah Vaughan , Mal Waldron , and Mary Lou Williams . In early 1949,
12240-407: The band Tyketto). After a while, they recruited drummer Nicki Capozzi and bassist Felix Robinson (formerly of Angel ) and named the group White Lion. White Lion was signed by Elektra Records in 1984, and recorded their debut album Fight to Survive . Elektra was unhappy with the final recording, and after refusing to release the album, terminated the band's contract. The album Fight to Survive
12410-515: The band after they were dropped by Elektra in 1984. He was eventually replaced by bassist Dave Spitz (brother of Anthrax guitarist Dan Spitz ). With the Tramp, Bratta, Capozzi, Spitz lineup, the band recorded a round of demos for their second album, and continued to play shows in New York while shopping around for a new record deal. This incarnation of White Lion was hired to play a fictional band in
12580-608: The band's removal from the Poison/Ratt tour, White Lion continued touring and fulfilled their many headline shows in the U.S. that were scheduled between the Poison shows, including the Rocklahoma festival with Poison, Ratt, Quiet Riot , Slaughter , Y&T , Gypsy Pistoleros, Dirty Penny, Greg Leon Invasion and Zendozer. Tramp also confirmed to MelodicRock.com that the band had just finished recording its new studio album and
12750-470: The bands Mabel , Studs, and Danish Lions) met Staten Island guitarist Vito Bratta (formerly of Dreamer) in late November 1982 at L'Amour Rock Club in Brooklyn when Tramp was playing with his band. In March 1983 they decided to put together a new band. At first they had a hard time finding a stable rhythm section, and they tried several different ones including Michael Clayton on drums (who later played in
12920-405: The best band he has been a part of and also said that he wanted to stray from the 80s sound. Following Freak of Nature, Tramp began a solo career, releasing his debut album as a solo artist in 1998 titled Capricorn . The album featured former Freak of Nature bandmates, guitarist Kenny Korade and bass player Jerry Best . Former White Lion bass guitarist James LoMenzo performed backing vocals on
13090-575: The biggest R&B hit of the year. Their records created some controversy: the suggestive " Such A Night " was banned by radio station WXYZ in Detroit, Michigan , and "Honey Love" was banned in Memphis, Tennessee but both reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&;B chart. Recording engineer and producer Tom Dowd played a crucial role in Atlantic's success. He initially worked for Atlantic on
13260-436: The characteristic power ballads – slow, emotional songs that gradually build to a strong finale. These were among the most commercially successful singles in the genre and opened it up to a wider audience that would otherwise not have been attracted to traditional heavy metal. Lyrical themes often deal with love and lust, with songs often directed at a particular woman. Aesthetically glam metal draws heavily on
13430-494: The co-owner of Satellite, Jim Stewart , who agreed to lease the record to Atlantic for $ 1000 plus a small royalty—the first money the label had ever made. The deal included a $ 5000 payment against a five-year option on all other records. Satellite was renamed Stax after the owners, Stewart and Axton. The deal marked the start of a successful eight-year association between the two labels, giving Stax access to Atlantic's promotions and distribution. Wexler recalled, "We didn't pay for
13600-555: The company began pressing in January 1951. The Clovers' "Don't You Know I Love You" (composed by Ertegun) became the label's first R&B No. 1 in September 1951. A few weeks later, Brown's "Teardrops from My Eyes" became its first million-selling record. She hit No. 1 again in March–April 1952 with " 5-10-15 Hours ". "Daddy Daddy" reached No. 3 in September 1952, and " Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean " with Connie Kay on drums reached No. 1 in February and March 1953. After Brown left
13770-445: The company was reeling from the successive loss of its two biggest artists, Bobby Darin and Ray Charles, who together accounted for one-third of sales. Darin moved to Los Angeles and signed with Capitol. Charles signed a contract with ABC-Paramount that included higher royalties, a production deal, profit-sharing, and eventual ownership of his master tapes. "I thought we were going to die", Wexler recalled. In 1990 he and Ertegun disputed
13940-440: The content of Charles's contract, which caused a rift. Ertegun remained friendly with Bobby Darin, who returned to Atlantic in 1966. Ray Charles returned to Atlantic in 1977. In 1960, Atlantic's Memphis distributor Buster Williams contacted Wexler and told him he was pressing large quantities of "Cause I Love You", a duet between Carla Thomas and her father Rufus which was released by the small label Satellite. Wexler contacted
14110-523: The deal was scuttled. On the recommendation of broadcaster Willis Conover , Ertegun and Abramson visited Ruth Brown at the Crystal Caverns club in Washington and invited her to audition for Atlantic. She was injured in a car accident en route to New York City, but Atlantic supported her for nine months and then signed her. "So Long", her first record for the label, was recorded with Eddie Condon 's band on May 25, 1949. The song reached No. 6 on
14280-431: The double platinum selling Pride . The band continued their success with their third album, Big Game which achieved Gold status and their fourth album Mane Attraction which included a supporting tour. White Lion disbanded in 1992 and not long afterwards, their first compilation album, The Best of White Lion was released. Mike Tramp reformed White Lion with all new musicians in 1999 and again in 2004, following
14450-458: The emergence of MTV , reached the Top 40. Pyromania ' s style was widely emulated, particularly by the emerging Californian scene. However, remarked Leppard's Joe Elliott , "I don't know how anybody could confuse us with that lot. We weren't even around when all those so-called glam bands came up. We were in fuckin' Holland making Hysteria . While they were out banging chicks or whatever, we were looking at windmills and playing pool on
14620-556: The emergence of new, predominantly European bands, including the Darkness , Crashdïet , Reckless Love , and American band Steel Panther . Musically, glam metal combines a traditional heavy metal sound with elements of hard rock and punk rock , adding pop -influenced catchy hooks and guitar riffs . Like other heavy metal songs of the 1980s (most notably thrash metal songs), they often feature shred guitar solos. They also include extensive use of harmonies, particularly in
14790-608: The fashion and image of 1970s glam rock . Early glam metal evolved directly from the glam rock movement of the 1970s, as visual elements taken from acts such as T. Rex , the New York Dolls , and David Bowie (and to a lesser extent, the punk and new wave movements taking place concurrently in New York City) were fused with the decidedly more heavy metal leaning and theatrical acts such as Alice Cooper and Kiss . The first examples of this fusion began appearing in
14960-721: The first being Cat Records . By the mid-1950s Atlantic had an informal agreement with the French label Barclay , and the two companies regularly exchanged titles, usually jazz recordings. Atlantic also began to get recordings distributed in the United Kingdom, first through EMI on a 'one-off' basis. But in September 1955 Miriam Abramson traveled to the UK and signed a distribution deal with Decca. Miriam recalled, "I would deal with people there who were not really comfortable with women in business, so...we would do business very quickly and get it over with." A subsidiary label, Atco ,
15130-651: The following were released in September: Mötley Crüe releasing its second album Shout at the Devil , Kiss releasing Lick It Up , and Dokken re-released their first album Breaking the Chains in the USA. Def Leppard's Pyromania , later certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) , reached number two on the Billboard 200. The singles " Foolin' ", " Photograph ", and " Rock of Ages ", helped by
15300-493: The genre was evidenced in the production of the glam metal themed musical Rock of Ages , which ran in Los Angeles in 2006 and in New York in 2008. It was made into a film released in 2012. The Darkness 's Permission to Land (2003), described as an "eerily realistic simulation of '80s metal and '70s glam", topped the UK charts, going quintuple platinum. One Way Ticket to Hell... and Back (2005) reached number 11. The band broke up in 2006, but reunited in 2011, releasing
15470-553: The group, their last show being held in Boston at the Channel in September 1991. Exactly one year later, in September 1992, the band's first compilation album was released, titled The Best of White Lion . Tramp has in later interviews told that the band split up due lack of interests from the record company, issues with the band management and above all the entry of grunge music. A video/DVD album featuring concert footage, behind
15640-525: The hit " Ruby Baby " for The Drifters . Record producer Phil Spector moved to New York to work with Leiber and Stoller. He learned his trade at Trey Records, a label in California owned by Lester Sill and Lee Hazlewood and distributed by Atlantic. Sill recommended Spector to Leiber and Stoller, who assigned him to produce " Corrine, Corrina " by Ray Peterson and " Pretty Little Angel Eyes " by Curtis Lee. Both became hits, and Atlantic hired him as
15810-534: The illness of his father. He added that he would still be open to the idea and has not closed the door to returning to the music industry again. Trunk made it clear that Bratta's involvement in the show was something that he had wanted to happen since White Lion first broke up in 1991. Bratta took calls and answered questions from fans for almost three hours. On April 6 and 7, 2007, at the L'Amours Reunion Shows in New York, Bratta made his first public musical appearances in over 15 years. Three weeks later Mike Tramp called
15980-423: The industry began to see million sellers, one after the other, in the R&B field". Billboard said Atlantic's "fresh sound" and the quality of its recordings, arrangements, and musicians was a great advance from standard R&B records. For five years Atlantic "dominated the rhythm and blues chart with its roster of powerhouse artists". Beginning in 1954, Atlantic created or acquired several subsidiary labels,
16150-479: The influences of the style can be traced back to acts like New York Dolls , Aerosmith , KISS , Cheap Trick , Boston . Sweet and to a lesser extent Alice Cooper , were influences on the genre too. Finnish band Hanoi Rocks , heavily influenced themselves by the New York Dolls, have been credited with setting a blueprint for the look of hair metal. Van Halen has been seen as highly influential on
16320-437: The label and quickly became a major force in the expanding Warner music group. During 1968, Atlantic established a new subsidiary label, Cotillion Records . The label was originally formed as an outlet for blues and deep Southern soul; its first single, Otis Clay 's version of "She's About A Mover", was an R&B hit. Cotillion's catalog quickly expanded to include progressive rock, folk-rock, gospel, jazz and comedy. In 1976,
16490-408: The label and influenced the Warner group. By contrast, Wexler was disenchanted by Atlantic's move into rock; he left in 1975. Wexler's protégé Jerry L. Greenberg replaced him and played a role in Atlantic's success during the 1970s. In seven years, Greenberg went from personal assistant to president of the label. Wexler had hired Greenberg and acted as his mentor, teaching him the daily operations of
16660-469: The label in 1961, her career declined, and she worked as a cleaner and bus driver to support her children. In the 1980s she sued Atlantic for unpaid royalties; although Atlantic, which prided itself on treating artists fairly, had stopped paying royalties to some musicians. Ertegun denied this was intentional. Brown received a voluntary payment of $ 20,000 and founded the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1988 with
16830-540: The label lasted less than a year. Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller wrote "Smokey Joe's Cafe", which became a hit for The Robins. Their label Spark was bought by Atlantic, and they were hired as America's first independent record producers, free to produce for other labels. Two members of The Robins formed The Coasters and recorded hits for Atlantic, such as " Down in Mexico " and " Young Blood ". " Yakety Yak " became Atlantic's first No. 1 pop hit. Leiber and Stoller also wrote
17000-413: The label started focusing on disco and R&B. Among its acts were the post-Curtis Mayfield Impressions , Slave , Brook Benton , Jean Knight , Mass Production , Sister Sledge , The Velvet Underground , Stacy Lattisaw , Lou Donaldson , Mylon LeFevre , Stevie Woods , Johnny Gill , Emerson, Lake & Palmer , Garland Green , The Dynamics , The Fabulous Counts , and The Fatback Band . Cotillion
17170-401: The label was deteriorating in 1962. The breaking point came when they asked for a producer's royalty. It was granted informally, but their accountant insisted on a written contract and an audit of Atlantic's accounts. The audit revealed Leiber and Stoller had been underpaid by $ 18,000. Although Leiber considered dropping the matter, Stoller pressed Atlantic for payment. Wexler exploded and replied
17340-420: The label's few R&B albums, reserving the 1200 series for jazz. Joel Dorn became Nesuhi's assistant after his successful production of Hubert Laws ' album The Laws of Jazz . When Abramson returned from military service in 1955, he realized that he had been replaced by Wexler as Ahmet's partner. Abramson did not get along with either Wexler or Nesuhi Ertegun, and he had returned from military service with
17510-492: The late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene. Early glam metal bands include Mötley Crüe , Hanoi Rocks , Ratt , Quiet Riot , Twisted Sister , Bon Jovi , and Dokken . Glam metal achieved significant commercial success from approximately 1982 to 1991, bringing to prominence bands such as Poison , Skid Row , Cinderella and Warrant . From
17680-480: The latter of which combined elements of hardcore punk and heavy metal into a dirty sound that made use of heavy guitar distortion, fuzz and feedback, along with darker lyrical themes, a stripped-down aesthetic and a complete rejection of the glam metal visual style and performance. The success of bands like R.E.M. and Nirvana gave rise to a more "stripped down" musical style that was more personal and vulnerable. Many major labels felt they had been caught off-guard by
17850-588: The masters...Jim paid for the masters and then he would send us a finished tape and we would put it out. Our costs began at the production level—the pressing, and distribution, and promotion, and advertising." The deal to distribute Satellite's " Last Night " by The Mar-Keys on the Satellite label marked the first time Atlantic began marketing outside tracks on a non-Atlantic label. Atlantic began pressing and distributing Stax records. Wexler sent Tom Dowd to upgrade Stax's recording equipment and facilities. Wexler
18020-524: The mid-1990s. Mike Tramp went on to form the alt-rock / heavy metal band Freak of Nature , The follow-up was significantly heavier and darker than White Lion, featuring two guitar players and more visceral songs with a strong rhythmic foundation. The band released three albums between 1992 and 1998, Freak of Nature , Gathering of Freaks , and Outcasts . The band shared stages with Helloween and Dio in Europe in 1993. Freak of Nature eventually disbanded in 1996. Tramp has often called Freak of Nature
18190-532: The money we had then." But they were outbid by RCA 's offer of $ 45,000. In 1990 Ertegun remarked, "The president of RCA at the time had been extensively quoted in Variety damning R&B music as immoral. He soon stopped when RCA signed Elvis Presley." Ahmet's older brother Nesuhi was hired in January 1955. He had been living in Los Angeles for several years and had intermittent contact with his younger brother. But when Ahmet learned that Nesuhi had been offered
18360-539: The most important scene around the Sunset Strip, with groups like London , which had originally formed as a glam rock band in the 1970s, and had seen future members of Mötley Crüe, Cinderella and Guns N' Roses pass through its ranks, finally releasing their début album Non Stop Rock in 1985 as well. By the mid-late 1980s, glam metal had begun to achieve major mainstream success in America with many of these bands' music videos appearing on heavy rotation on MTV, often at
18530-454: The movement, emerging in 1978 from the Los Angeles music scene on Sunset Strip, with a sound based around the lead guitar skills of Eddie Van Halen . He popularized a playing technique of two-handed hammer-ons and pull-offs called tapping , showcased on the song " Eruption " from the album Van Halen . This sound, and lead singer David Lee Roth 's stage antics, would be highly influential on glam metal. Def Leppard , often categorized with
18700-591: The multi-platinum number one Dr. Feelgood . In the same year eponymous débuts included Danger Danger from New York, Dangerous Toys from Austin, Texas , who provided more of a Southern rock tone to the genre, Enuff Z'Nuff from Chicago who provided an element of psychedelia to their sound and visual style, and Tora Tora from Memphis, Tennessee , who incorporated elements of blues rock into their music. L.A. débuts included Warrant with Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich (1989), and Skid Row with their eponymous album (1989), which reached number six in
18870-465: The music industry. A White Lion compilation The Definitive Rock Collection was released in 2007 and the band was set for a summer tour with Poison and Ratt only to be dropped by the tour promoter after ex-White Lion guitarist Vito Bratta threatened to take legal action over the band name. In response to the rumors surrounding the White Lion and Poison/Ratt summer tour, Tramp issued a statement explaining that tour promoters Live Nation's decision
19040-485: The new LP took six weeks and on June 21, 1987, their album Pride was released. The first single, " Wait ", was released on June 1, 1987, but did not reach the charts for nearly seven months. The Pride tour started in July 1987 as White Lion opened for Frehley's Comet . The next year and a half was filled with constant touring, opening for such bands as Aerosmith , Stryper and Kiss . In January 1988, White Lion landed
19210-454: The number one " Sweet Child O' Mine ". In the wake of Guns N' Roses's commercial success, other similarly rawer glam metal bands began to gain popularity like L.A. Guns and Faster Pussycat . Critics eventually termed this style sleaze rock or sleaze metal to differentiate it from the perceived increasing commerciality of other glam metal bands. Such was the dominance of the style that Californian hardcore punk band T.S.O.L. moved towards
19380-458: The opening slot for AC/DC on their Blow Up Your Video album American tour. While the band toured with AC/DC, the Pride album and "Wait" single finally charted, due in no small part to MTV airing the "Wait" music video in regular rotation—nearly seven months after the single's release. "Wait" hit no. 8 on the singles chart, while Pride hit no. 11 on the album charts. Pride would remain on
19550-623: The owner of the Carlin Music / Chappell Music publishing empire). Abramson's departure opened the way for Ahmet Ertegun to take over as president of the label. The roles of the other executives with Abramson's departure were Wexler as executive vice-president and general manager, Nesuhi Ertegun as executive vice-president in charge of the LP department and Miriam Bienstock as vice-president and also president of Atlantic's music publishing arm Progressive Music with Wexler as executive vice-president and
19720-399: The payment would mean the end of their relationship with the label. Leiber and Stoller backed down, but the relationship ended anyway. Their assignment to work on The Drifter's next recording was given to Phil Spector. Leiber and Stoller worked briefly for United Artists , then started Red Bird with George Goldner . They had hits with " Chapel of Love " by The Dixie Cups and " Leader of
19890-493: The previous year, 78s had outsold 45s by a ratio of two to one. In February 1953, Herb Abramson was drafted into the U.S. Army. He moved to Germany, where he served in the Army Dental Corps, although he retained his post as president of Atlantic on full pay. Ertegun hired Billboard reporter Jerry Wexler in June 1953. Wexler is credited with coining the term " rhythm & blues " to replace " race music ". He
20060-440: The record business. From Ertegun he learned how to treat musicians. In 1968, by Peter Grant flew to New York with tapes of the debut album by British rock band Led Zeppelin . Ertegun and Wexler knew of the group's leader, Jimmy Page, through The Yardbirds , and their favorable opinion was reinforced by Dusty Springfield , who recommended Atlantic sign the band. Atlantic signed the band to an exclusive five-year contract, one of
20230-418: The release of the 1993 punk rock covers album "The Spaghetti Incident?" . Guitarist Slash left in 1996, followed by bassist Duff McKagan in 1998. Axl Rose, the only remaining member from the classic lineup at that point, worked with several lineups of the band to record Chinese Democracy – an album that would take over ten years to complete. During the late 1990s and 2000s, glam metal began to have
20400-502: The release of their platinum album To Hell with the Devil and brought Christian lyrics to their hard rock music style and glam metal looks. Two Pennsylvania bands, with Harrisburg 's Poison and Philadelphia 's Cinderella released multi-platinum début albums, respectively Look What the Cat Dragged In and Night Songs in 1986. Van Halen released 5150 their first album with Sammy Hagar on lead vocals, which
20570-415: The rigors of big city life and to plan his next career move. Recovering the Wasted Years was released in 2002 and featured the singles "Living a Lie" and "Endless Highway" both featuring live music videos. In 2003, Tramp followed-up with his third album, More to Life Than This , which Tramp once again produced himself but relied on producer/engineer Flemming Rasmussen ( Metallica ) to engineer and mix
20740-654: The rock/country album Lost Highway which reached No. 1 in 2007. In 2009, Bon Jovi released The Circle , which marked a return to their hard rock sound and reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Mötley Crüe reunited with Vince Neil to record the 1997 album Generation Swine and Poison reunited with guitarist C.C. DeVille in 1999, producing the mostly live Power to the People (2000); both bands began to tour extensively. There were reunions and subsequent tours from Van Halen (with Hagar in 2004 and then Roth in 2007). The long-awaited Guns N' Roses album Chinese Democracy
20910-441: The same show from Australia, speaking about Bratta and the band's new album, including the tour dates that Tramp's White Lion had recently confirmed. Tramp said that he was thankful that Bratta had finally answered fans' questions, the same questions he himself had been asked many times over the past 15 years. He also stated that he felt uncomfortable answering on Vito's behalf, and that he was upset that Vito had withdrawn himself from
21080-449: The scenes interviews and all of the band's music videos was also released, titled Escape from Brooklyn . When asked what the album would be like if he and Vito Bratta had released another album after Mane Attraction , Tramp said it would have hinted at their growth and evolution, and taken them further away from the '80s sound. He commented: I was kind of shocked cause to me it sounded like Vito and I weren't done working together and I
21250-530: The sessions in his very own Sweet Silence Studios . The album's title track, "More to Life Than This", and "Don't Want to Say Good Night" were both released as singles. A music video made in Australia was released for the song "Lay Down My Life For You". Also in 2003, Tramp released the double disc live album Rock 'N' Roll Alive , which features Tramp performing live versions of songs from White Lion, Freak of Nature, and his solo albums. In 2004, Tramp released
21420-570: The single " Little Fighter " (which peaked at No. 52), in Memory of The Rainbow Warrior , a Greenpeace boat which was destroyed by the French. A cover of Golden Earring 's " Radar Love " (which peaked at No. 59) was released as the second single and " Cry for Freedom ", a political song about apartheid in South Africa was released as the third single. "Going Home Tonight" was released as the album's final single. The album quickly went gold, with
21590-524: The solo album Songs I Left Behind . In 1999 after commencing his solo career, Mike Tramp, with all new musicians, also released Remembering White Lion , which featured new versions of some of White Lion's classic songs and started what would be a long battle to reform White Lion. In 2000, momentum for a new White Lion continued with the release of a second best of album titled White Lion Hits followed by an updated White Lion compilation titled The Essential White Lion . In October 2003, Tramp announced
21760-468: The song, so Berns re-recorded it with The Isley Brothers and it became a hit. During his short time at Atlantic, Spector produced music for LaVern Baker, Ruth Brown, Jean DuShon , and Billy Storm. In 1961, he left the label, returned to Los Angeles, and founded Philles Records with Lester Sill. Spector became one of the most successful record producers of the 1960s. Although Leiber and Stoller wrote many popular songs for Atlantic, their relationship with
21930-463: The soon-to-be-popularized term "hair metal". Another reason for the decline in popularity of the style may have been the declining popularity of the power ballad . While its use, especially after a hard-rocking anthem, was initially a successful formula, in the early 1990s audiences lost interest in this approach. By far and away the most significant factor in the decline of glam metal was the rise of alternative rock and grunge music. This included
22100-459: The surprise success of alternative music and began turning over their personnel in favor of younger staffers more versed in the new scene. Glam acts such as Guns N' Roses and Bon Jovi attempted to adjust their sound to the changing times, whereas bands like Skid Row ended up fading away into irrelevance. As MTV shifted its attention to alternative music, glam metal bands found themselves relegated increasingly to late night airplay, and Headbangers Ball
22270-434: The tabloid press. Sociologist Deena Weinstein points to the large number of terms used to describe more commercial forms of heavy metal, which she groups together as lite metal . These include, beside glam metal: melodic metal, false metal, poodle bands, nerf metal, pop metal or metal pop, the last of which was coined by critic Philip Bashe in 1983 to describe bands such as Van Halen and Def Leppard . AllMusic employs
22440-415: The threat of possible legal action and by the end of the year Tramp had almost completely given up on White Lion, but six months later was inspired to continue with the booking of a European tour for November and December 2006. Tramp's White Lion played several dates in Europe including Sweden, Norway, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark. In 2005, a Concert Anthology DVD
22610-447: The top 40 in the United States. Glam Metal broke out in 1983: Def Leppard released its third album Pyromania on January 20, and was the first glam metal album to reach top ten in the Billboard charts on March 12, later it peaked at number two on May 14, then staying in the top ten albums until it dropped to eleventh place on November 26, eventually falling off the Billboard 200 chart after 123 weeks. Quiet Riot 's Metal Health
22780-417: The top of the channel's daily dial countdown, and some of the bands appeared on the channel's shows such as Headbangers Ball , which became one of the most popular programs with over 1.3 million views a week. The groups also received heavy rotation on radio stations such as KNAC in Los Angeles. Another significant year for glam metal was 1986. Bon Jovi put out Slippery When Wet in that year, which
22950-402: The tour was scrapped. Tramp later commented that despite his willingness, "There will never be an original White Lion reunion". In 2004 due to legal issues, the album Remembering White Lion was re-released under the new title Last Roar featuring the band name Tramp's White Lion. In late 2004, Mike Tramp organized another group of unknown musicians and continued with a new White Lion under
23120-406: The traditional male dominated audience, and opening the door to MTV and commercial success for other bands at the end of the decade. The Swedish band Europe released the anthemic album The Final Countdown which reached the top ten in several countries, including the U.S., and the album's title single reached number one in 26 countries. Stryper made their mainstream breakthrough in 1986 with
23290-469: The trio an irresistible offer that gave them complete creative control over the recording and packaging of their music. The mid-1960s British Invasion led Atlantic to change its British distributor. Decca had refused access to its British acts, who usually appeared in the US on the London subsidiary. In 1966, Atlantic signed a licensing deal with Polydor which included the band Cream , whose debut album
23460-634: The umbrella term " pop metal ", which refers a late-1980s variation of pop metal characterized by flashy clothing and heavy makeup influenced by glam rock (as embodied by Poison and Mötley Crüe). Use of the derogatory term "hair metal" started in the early 1990s, as grunge gained popularity at the expense of 1980s metal. In the "definitive metal family tree" of his documentary Metal: A Headbanger's Journey , anthropologist Sam Dunn differentiates pop metal, which includes bands like Def Leppard, Europe, and Whitesnake , from glam metal bands such as Mötley Crüe and Poison. Music journalist Stephen Davis claims
23630-622: The war in El Salvador ("El Salvador") and the effect of divorce on children ("Broken Home"). The song "Little Fighter" was about the Rainbow Warrior , a ship owned by the environmental group Greenpeace that was destroyed by the French government. Glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal ) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop -influenced hooks and guitar riffs , upbeat rock anthems , and slow power ballads . It borrows heavily from
23800-441: Was This Is My Beloved (March 1949), a 10" album of poetry by Walter Benton that was narrated by John Dall with music by Vernon Duke . In 1951, Atlantic was one of the first independent labels to press records in the 45rpm single format. By 1956 the 45 had surpassed the 78 in sales for singles. In April of that year, Miriam (Abramson) Bienstock reported to Billboard that Atlantic was selling 75% of its singles as 45s. During
23970-403: Was a fan of Burke's and had long wanted to sign him so when Burke told Wexler his contract with his former label had expired Wexler replied: "You're home. I'm signing you today". The first song Wexler produced with Burke was "Just Out of Reach", which became a big hit in September 1961. The soul/country & western crossover predated Ray Charles' similar venture by more than 6 months. Burke became
24140-431: Was able to maintain autonomy through the parent company reorganizations and continue to do their own marketing, while WEA handled distribution. Some acts on the Atlantic roster in this period were British (including Led Zeppelin, Genesis, Yes, Bad Company and Phil Collins) and this was largely due to Ertegun. According to Greenberg, Ertegun had long seen the UK as a source of untapped talent. At his urging, Greenberg visited
24310-432: Was also alienated from the "rockoid" white acts that were quickly becoming the label's most profitable commodities and dispirited by the rapidly waning fortunes of the black acts he had championed, such as Ben E. King and Solomon Burke. Wexler ultimately decided to leave New York and move to Florida. Following his departure, Ertegun—who had previously taken little interest in Atlantic's business affairs—took decisive control of
24480-401: Was also in charge of LP production. He was credited with improving the production, packaging, and originality of Atlantic's LPs. He deleted the old '100' and '400' series of 10" albums and the earlier 12" albums in Atlantic's catalog, starting the '1200' series, which sold for $ 4.98, with Shorty Rogers' The Swingin' Mr Rogers . In 1956 he started the '8000' popular series (selling for $ 3.98) for
24650-819: Was also responsible for launching the career of Luther Vandross , who recorded for the label as part of the trio Luther. Cotillion also released the triple-albums soundtrack of the Woodstock festival film in 1970. From 1970 it also distributed Embryo Records , founded by jazz flautist Herbie Mann after his earlier Atlantic contract had expired. In addition to establishing Cotillion, Atlantic began expanding its own roster to include rock, soul/rock, progressive rock, British bands and singer songwriters. Two female artists were personally signed by Wexler, with album releases in 1969, Dusty Springfield ( Dusty in Memphis ) and Lotti Golden ( Motor-Cycle ), although Golden also had
24820-456: Was also used as a label for distributing the company's artists outside North America. In January 1970, Ahmet Ertegun was successful in his executive battle against Warner Bros. Records President Mike Maitland to keep Atlantic Records autonomous and as a result, Maitland was fired by Kinney president Steve Ross . Ertegun recommended Mo Ostin to succeed Maitland as Warner Bros. Records president. With Ertegun's power at Warners now secure, Atlantic
24990-536: Was appointed vice-president and purchased 13% of the company's stock. Wexler and Ertegun formed a close partnership which, in collaboration with Tom Dowd, produced thirty R&B hits. Wexler's success for Atlantic was the result of going outside jazz to sign acts who combined jazz, blues, and rhythm and blues, such as Ray Charles, Joe Turner, and Aretha Franklin. Ertegun and Wexler realized many R&B recordings by black musicians were being covered by white performers, often with greater chart success. LaVern Baker had
25160-554: Was cancelled at the end of 1994, while KNAC went over to Spanish programming. Given glam metal's lack of a major format presence on radio, bands were left without a clear way to reach their audience. Other L.A. alternative rock bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Jane's Addiction also helped supplant the popularity of the genre. Some artists tried to alter their sound, while others struggled on with their original format. In 1995, Van Halen released Balance ,
25330-399: Was established in 1955 to keep Abramson involved. After a slow start, Atco had considerable success with Bobby Darin . His early releases were unsuccessful, and Abramson planned to drop him. But when Ertegun offered him another chance, the result was " Splish Splash ", which Darin had written in 12 minutes. The song sold 100,000 copies in the first month and became a million-seller. " Queen of
25500-536: Was eventually released by Victor Company of Japan, Ltd, (JVC Records) in Japan in 1985. Philadelphia-based Grand Slamm Records bought the album from Elektra and released it in America the following year, under license by Elektra/Asylum Records. Fight to Survive charted at number 151 on Billboard 200 and featured the band's debut single and music video, "Broken Heart." A few months after the album's release, Grand Slamm Records went bankrupt . Felix Robinson had departed
25670-427: Was finally released in 2008, but only went platinum in the US, produced no hit singles, and failed to come close to the success of the band's late 1980s and early 1990s material. Europe's "Final Countdown" enjoyed a new lease of popularity as the millennium drew to a close and the band reformed. Other acts to reform included Ratt, Britny Fox, Stryper (annually), and Skid Row. Beginning in 1999, Monster Ballads ,
25840-429: Was impressed by the cooperative atmosphere at the Stax studios and by its racially integrated house band, which he called "an unthinkably great band". He brought Atlantic musicians to Memphis to record. Stewart and Wexler hired Al Bell , a disk jockey at a radio station in Washington D.C., to take over promotion of Stax releases. Bell was the first African-American partner in the label. An after-hours jam by members of
26010-491: Was in September 1985 replaced by former Anthrax drummer Greg D'Angelo . Dave Spitz left at the beginning of 1986 to join Black Sabbath , and was briefly replaced by Bruno Ravel , who left shortly afterwards because he was not allowed to contribute ideas. In March 1986, James LoMenzo was asked to join, and then the band finally was complete. Early in 1987, the band was signed by Atlantic Records . The recording of
26180-617: Was interviewed while drinking vodka on a floating chair in a swimming pool as his mother watched. As a result, it has been seen as helping to create a backlash against the genre. In the early 1990s glam metal's popularity rapidly declined after nearly a decade of success. Successful bands lost members that were key to their songwriting and/or live performances, such as Mötley Crue's frontman Vince Neil, Poison guitarist C.C. DeVille, Def Leppard guitarist Steve Clark and Guns N' Roses guitarist Izzy Stradlin. Several music writers and musicians began to deride glam metal acts as "hair farmers", hinting at
26350-730: Was invited to India by the head of the Tripura Royal Family Maharaja Kirit Pradyot Deb Burman . The album featured the singles "Dream" and "Live Your Life". A live DVD was released on December 5, 2008, entitled Bang Your Head Festival 2005 . Following the release of Return of the Pride , Tramp faced a tumultuous time of professional indecision as he tried to decide between continuing his solo career or pouring his energy into White Lion. With White Lion ultimately put on hold again, Tramp continued with his solo career and in 2013 announced in several interviews that there would no longer be
26520-411: Was not based on any controversy over whether Mike Tramp has the legal right to perform as White Lion. Live Nation's decision was based upon the threatened lawsuit by Vito Bratta. Even though Live Nation believed Bratta's lawsuit to be frivolous and had confirmed that Mike Tramp has the legal right to perform as White Lion, they did not want to spend 'one dollar' on litigation. Faced with the cancellation of
26690-454: Was not until around 1958 that the single stylus microgroove system (in which the two stereo channels were cut into either side of a single groove) became the industry standard. By the late 1950s stereo LPs and turntables were being introduced. Atlantic's early stereo recordings included "Lover's Question" by Clyde McPhatter, " What Am I Living For " by Chuck Willis , "I Cried a Tear" by LaVern Baker, "Splish Splash" by Bobby Darin, "Yakety Yak" by
26860-611: Was number one in the U.S. for three weeks and sold over six million copies. Additionally, some established hard rock and heavy metal bands of the era such as Scorpions , Whitesnake , Dio , Aerosmith , Kiss , Alice Cooper , Ozzy Osbourne , Judas Priest , Saxon and Accept began incorporating hair metal elements into their sounds and images, as the genre's popularity skyrocketed in 1985–1986. Glam metal bands continued their run of commercial success in 1987 with Mötley Crüe releasing Girls, Girls, Girls , White Lion releasing Pride , and Def Leppard releasing Hysteria producing
27030-509: Was one of the most commercially significant releases of the era. The album mixed metal with a pop sensibility and spent a total of eight weeks atop the Billboard 200 album chart, selling over 12 million copies in the United States. It became the first hard rock album to spawn three top ten singles, two of which reached number one. The album has been credited with widening the audience for the genre, particularly by appealing to women as well as
27200-485: Was proposed that Leiber and Stoller buy Sabit's shares. Leiber, Stoller, Goldner, and Wexler suggested their plan to Ertegun at a lunch meeting at the Plaza Hotel in New York. Leiber and Stoller told Ertegun they had no intention of buying him out, but Ertegun was aggravated by Goldner's attitude and was convinced Wexler was conspiring with them. Wexler told Ertegun if he refused, the deal would be done without him. But
27370-413: Was released by Atco in 1966. In 1967, the group traveled to Atlantic's studio in New York City to record Disraeli Gears with Tom Dowd; it became a Top 5 LP in both the US and the UK, with the single " Sunshine of Your Love " reaching No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100. Wexler dismissed developments in pop music, dubbing the musicians "the rockoids". However, Atlantic profited from moving into rock music in
27540-465: Was released followed by the album Anthology in 2006 featuring never before released songs and demo versions of White Lion classic songs from previous albums. On February 16, 2007, Vito Bratta appeared on the Eddie Trunk radio show in New York, stating that despite what Mike Tramp said, he had never refused a White Lion reunion, stating that the only reason he was unable to participate was due to
27710-404: Was released on March 11, then marched upwards until it reached number one on November 26 , eventually falling off the Billboard 200 chart after 81 weeks. The success of Def Leppard and Quiet Riot paved the way for many heavy metal acts, both glam and otherwise, as the decade progressed. That same year saw a larger wave of heavy metal albums achieve previously-unheard-of commercial success. All of
27880-439: Was run by Abramson (president) and Ertegun (vice-president in charge of A&R, production, and promotion). Abramson's wife Miriam ran the label's publishing company, Progressive Music, and did most office duties until 1949 when Atlantic hired its first employee, bookkeeper Francine Wakschal, who remained with the label for the next 49 years. Miriam gained a reputation for toughness. Staff engineer Tom Dowd recalled, "Tokyo Rose
28050-418: Was sold to Warner Bros.-Seven Arts for US$ 17.5 million, although all the partners later agreed that it was a poor deal that greatly undervalued Atlantic's true worth. Initially, Atlantic and Atco operated entirely separately from the group's other labels, Warner Bros. Records and Reprise Records , and management did not interfere with the music division, since the ailing movie division was losing money, while
28220-408: Was surprised that he never put up a fight when I said 'No more White Lion.' It was that he just lay down and gave up. I am not saying that White Lion would have continued if he and I had put up a fight. But I am sure that if we had sat down and talked and really looked at the picture and sorted out what had gone wrong and how much was our fault and how much was Kurt Cobain's, then there could possibly be
28390-533: Was the final single released from the album. In the end of 1988, the Pride tour finally ended, and the band released their first video albums titled Live at the Ritz and One Night in Tokyo both of which featuring full concerts on VHS. The band then immediately began work on their next album. In August 1989, White Lion released their third album, Big Game , a musically eclectic follow-up to Pride that featured
28560-518: Was the first in America to install multitrack recording machines, developed by the Ampex company. Bobby Darin's "Splish, Splash" was the first song to be recorded on an 8-track recorder. It was not until the mid-1960s that multitrack recorders became the norm in English studios and EMI's Abbey Road Studios did not install 8-track facilities until 1968. Atlantic entered the LP market early: its first
28730-410: Was the first label to issue commercial LPs recorded in the experimental stereo system called binaural recording . In this system, recordings were made using two microphones, spaced at approximately the distance between the human ears, and the left and right channels were recorded as two separate, parallel grooves. Playing them back required a turntable with a special tone-arm fitted with dual needles; it
28900-402: Was the kindest name some people had for her" and Doc Pomus described her as "an extraordinarily vitriolic woman". When interviewed in 2009, she attributed her reputation to the company's chronic cash-flow shortage: "... most of the problems we had with artists were that they wanted advances, and that was very difficult for us ... we were undercapitalized for a long time." The label's office in
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