New Orleans Records


New Orleans Records was an American record label based in New Orleans, Louisiana and active from 1949 until the early 1980s. Originally founded by Orin Blackstone in 1949 and revived by Clive Wilson in 1972, the label specialized in New Orleans jazz.

History

The New Orleans Records label was founded and originally run by the writer and jazz discographer Orin Blackstone. It was based in the book and record shop which Blackstone owned with his brother Harvey at 439 Baronne Street in New Orleans. The shop was also known for its backroom jam sessions where musicians including Raymond Burke and George Girard would play. One of the earliest recordings on the New Orleans label was Johnny Wiggs performing "Bourbon Street Bounce" which had been written by Harvey Blackstone. According to Charles Suhor in Jazz in New Orleans:The Postwar Years, the recording became a surprise hit on local radio.
Financial troubles forced the closure of the Blackstone record shop in the early 1950s, and Orin Blackstone eventually moved to Slidell, Louisiana where he became the editor of the Slidell-St. Tammany Times. In 1972, the British jazz trumpeter Clive Wilson, who had settled in New Orleans in 1964, revived the label. Their first release was Thomas Valentine at Kohlman's Tavern. Under Wilson the label recorded performances by Herb Hall, Frog Joseph, Dave "Fat Man" Williams, and Jeanette Kimball. Among the label's releases in the early 1980s was Kimball's Sophisticated Lady. Other New Orleans jazz musicians who recorded for New Orleans Records included Armand Hug, Raymond Burke, and Emanuel Paul.

Early discography