How Soon is Now?: The Madmen and Mavericks who made Independent Music 1975-2005 Read Free Page B

they were starting record companies with names like Factory, Mute and 4AD.
    Independence over the next thirty years would be tested, reinterpreted and frequently be pronounced dead. Despite all that, it would weather its way through the music industry and remain a constant source of new and irrefutable music.
    When Rough Trade opened for business in the late Seventies there were around fourteen major record companies. Today there are three. Even if their share of the recorded music market is still greatly outweighed by the majors, and even if that market is in decline, compared to their corporate rivals the independent music industry is flourishing.
    Bloody-mindedness remains a source of inspiration; for Factory, Mute, Creation, Warp, Domino and their peers, it has served as an engine room when all else has failed.
    Along the way the individuals who ran these labels went mad and went to the wall in equal measure. They stood their ground or relocated to the wilderness, having tasted both the sweet and bitter fruits of the rock ’n’ roll lifestyle as much as any of their musical charges. Hedonism easily blurs the thin line between success and failure. Walking the high wire of running a multimillion-pound company in a volatile high-stakes industry, with no business plan let alone safety net, takes its toll on those in charge. ‘The success of any independent label is down to what is in the person’s head,’ says Endeacott. ‘Rather than try to follow the market or plan for the future – it’s down to what’s in their head.’ Reflecting on the characters behind the independent industry he continues, ‘There’s always a price to pay. We call them mavericks. All those people you talk about – Tony Wilson, Ivo, Geoff, McGee, Martin Mills – they’re all mental. In the USA they’re mavericks, in the UK they’re eccentric, but really they’re all a bit nutty, they’re all a bit crazy. It’s about the beating heart; it’s the passion that drives it. Ego has a lot to do with. All those guys have egos, you have to have an ego.’
    This is the story, set to an incredible soundtrack, of the enormous scale of those passions, the size of those egos, and the true extent of their madness; but above all, it is the story of the loud, wayward sound, reverberating around their beating, racing, and uncontrollable hearts …

Cast of Characters
     
     
    Mike Alway, A&R Cherry Red, Blanco y Negro, founder él records
    Tom Atencio, manager New Order (USA)
    Dave Barker, founder Glass Records, A&R Fire Records, Creation Records
    Jeff Barrett, promoter, PR, A&R Creation Records, PR Factory, founder Heavenly Records
    Steve Beckett, founder Warp Records
    Laurence Bell, A&R Fire Records, founder Domino Records
    Richard Boon, manager Buzzcocks, founder New Hormones, staff Rough Trade
    Rebecca Boulton, manager New Order
    Mark Bowen, A&R Creation Records, founder Wichita Records
    Cally Calloman, A&R Mercury, Polydor, Island
    Cerne Canning, promoter, staff Rough Trade, manager
    Jimmy Cauty, the KLF
    Edwyn Collins, Orange Juice, Postcard Records
    Bill Drummond, founder Zoo Records, A&R Warners, solo artist, the KLF
    Dick Green, partner Creation Records, founder Wichita Records
    Rob Gretton, manager Joy Division and New Order, partner Factory Records, the Hacienda
    Martin Hannett, record producer
    Dave Harper, PR Rough Trade, Factory et al.
    Mick Hougton, PR Warners, Creation, the KLF et al.
    Alan Horne, founder Postcard Records
    Robin Hurley, label manager, Rough Trade America, 4AD
    Bob Last, founder Fast Product, manager Human League, Scritti Polliti
    Andrew Lauder, A&R United Artists
    Jeannette Lee, partner Rough Trade
    Johnny Marr, The Smiths
    Grace Maxwell, manager Orange Juice
    Alan McGee, founder Creation Records
    Nathan McGough, manager Happy Mondays
    Daniel Miller, founder Mute, record producer
    Martin Mills, founder Beggars Banquet
    Stephen Morris, New Order
    Joe Moss, manager The Smiths
    Liz Naylor, editor City Fun, staff Rough