Great Record Labels: Time Life Music

[Ojai Sam]

Wiki sets the stage for us:

Time Life added music in 1967, selling box sets and collections through Time–Life Records as a division subordinated under Time-Life Books, Inc. The division changed its name to Time Life Music after music cassette tapes were added to its array of releases, with its European iterations, including the German Time Life Musik label, subordinated under the Amsterdam "Time-Life Books BV" subsidiary branch. During the 1960s and 1970s, the collections released by Time–Life Records catered to an adult audience, with genres including classical, jazz, swing and orchestral music; and the music of operas and Broadway theatre. On occasion, Time Life offered popular music (generally pre-1955 music, as opposed to pop and rock music airing on contemporary hit radio stations in the United States at the time) in box-sets. Although there were television advertisements, Time Life advertised most of these sets in magazines, specialty catalogs and direct mail, just like it did with their book series.

 

[Ojai Sam]

Various Artists - Guitar Rock: 1974-1975 (1993)



Back in the day, I used the Time-Life collections to construct a systematic foundation for my new CD library. Larger and more comprehensive than anything from Rhino, Collectors Choice, DCC, Collectibles and the like, I sound found myself able to spin pretty much any pop, rock, country, or R&B hit from 1940 to 1989.

With all of that music on tap, the Guitar Rock series seemed redundant at the time, and headbanger music wasn't my favorite style. Recently, however, Zedlines over at MusicBoomerang who knows a whole lot about rock music, began singing its praises. I took a closer look and found that. like all of the other T-L series, each volume included more than 70 minutes' worth of wisely curated tracks licensed from virtually every label in sparkling sound.

1974-1975 was the first volume. It is bursting at the seams with guitars that are crunchy, funky, bluesy, twangy, and everything in between. All the usual Classic Rock suspects like Grand Funk, Allman Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd are here but less familiar artists like Nazareth and Golden Earring keep things fresh. The insightful booklet is written by the late John Morthland, one of my favorite music journalists.

You can bet that I have ordered the second volume to keep the party going.



John Morthland (1948-2016)

 

[Zeeba Neighba]

I'm ZeebaNeighba and I approve this thread

Commercials for Time Life seemed ubiquitous in my childhood

You should do a tandem thread for TimeLife book series (TimeLife presents Stories of the Old West with each book having hand crafted Corinthian leather cover)

 

[Ojai Sam]

Don’t get me started….