Pride', October 12, 1956 THE NEW MUSICAL EXPRESS-E. R. LEWIS SUPPLEMENT * 7 25 YEARS 0RECORD HISTORY The NME pays tribute to E. R. LEWIS Director of the Decca Record Co., who is celebrating his 25th anniversary in the recording industry

inthe States, where the upsurge ofintheStates,andtheconsequent radio had knocked the bottom outboom in Decca's fortunes over here of therecording business.At thatwas reflected ina similar boom on time, 25,000 was a big sale over there,the other side of the Atlantic. hut itwas nothing here. Rival companies dropped the prices ofrecordstofallinlinewith American Decca's revolutionary Genius policy, and the result was that the " Iremember how flabbergastedAmerican public began to buy records in large quantities. Mr. E. R. Lewis and some of the 400 guests at the banquet given at the Americans were when we sold theSavoyHotel, London,lastweekincelebrationofhis25th 80,000 of Bing Crosby's Last Infact,thesuccessofE.R. Round -up 'afterwe had acquiredLewis's foresight and enterprise was anniversary with Decca. the Brunswick label.That was ansoon apparent for, in 1935-only onedoldrums. Theme " from " The ThirdMan," unprecedented figurebytheirstan-year after forming American Decca- Yet,in 1939-when records hereplayed on zither by Anton Karas.It dards..." that company had the first -ever U.S.weresellingsopoorly-Ambrose'ssold 850,000 inAmerica, and over The recording business in the States100,000 seller-RileyandFarley'swaxing of " South Of The Border "three million throughout the world. hit rock bottom in 1934, and it wasdiscof " The Music Goes Round(issued by Decca in Britain and by Mention of Vera Lynn and her hit thenthatE.R.produced anotherAnd Around." AmericanDeccaoverthere)soldrecord underlines the interesting fact strokeofgenius. Hewentto But the slump which had so badly200,000 copies in the States-a newthat she is the longest -serving artist America, got hold of Jack Kapp (whohit the American recording industryhigh-level figure for a British artist aton the Decca list.She has recorded hadbeenrecordingmanagerofin 1934 came over the Atlantic to dothat time. for the company continuously since Brunswick) and launched Americanlikewise to the business here in 1937, Thewarseverelyrestrictedthe1938. Decca, selling records at 35 cents asandrecordsales dropped sharply.British recording industry.Although In 1948, E. R. Lewis made another against the existing price of 75 cents.By the time war was declared. Deccainterest in popular music soared, thecapture, by gettingthe distribution THIS week, Mr. E. R. Lewis celebrates his twenty-fifth This gave British artists an outletwasonceagainin thefinancialproductionofdiscswasofficiallyofCapitolforBritain,andsince restricted and sales were of necessitythenhehasaddedastringof anniversaryasexecutivechiefofthe Decca Record small. American independent labels to the Company. Decca organisation-including Vogue - That is a bald statement of fact, but behind it lies one Wareffort Coral, Dot, Bethlehem, Essex, Savoy, Buteventhen,E.R. was notCadence, Atlantic, Chess, Era, Jubi- of the most exciting, amazing and adventurous stories of the defeated.He branched out into newlee, Imperial and Tempo. music business.For, in those twenty-five years, this is what fields-radar equipmentand the Itwasfromsuchindependent Decca Navigator for aircraft,all oflabelsthatstarslikeMel Torme, E. R. Lewis has achieved : which played a great and vital partTeresaBrewer,PatBoone,Gogi HE has turned the DeccaCompany inBritain's war effort. Grant, Fats Domino, the Hilltoppers, " and used to takea few hundred ClydeMcPhatter,theChordettes, from obscurity and insolvencyrecords downintotheEastEnd, By the end of the war, American into one of the most powerfulhoping tosell them and help pay Decca and the British company hadDon Cornell,the McGuire Sisters, agreed to discontinue their associa-BillHayes,Billy Vaughn andBill recording empires in the wholeour way. Things, I assure you, were Haley emerged. world ; extremely bad." tion, and that left a serious gap for HE has been responsible for rais- But financial setbacks only streng- E. R. Lewis to fill.But fill it he did. thened E.R. inhis determination to with his customary genius, by form- Scoop ing Britishrecord starstohitput Decca back on its feet.All the ing the London labelin1947. In additiontothese independent status in the U.S.A. ; money he had or couldraise, he This was the most ambitious ven-labels, British Decca have, of course. HE was the pioneer of low-pricedpopred intothefirm, ignoringthe ture ever attemptedtostormthehandled under the Brunswick label in discs in the States, which savedcritics and the scoffers who dubbed American market with British discs-the the entire output the American recording industryhim " Mad Ted Lewis."His col- and it still remains a unique organisa-of American Decca. leagues inthe City thought he was tion of its kind.London distributed Bill Ha le y originally came from ruin ; mad; his rivals in the record business records made by British artists, andfrom thesmallEssexlabel,to be HE has negotiated some of thethought he was mad-but he didn't it had the good fortune to have a hitsnapped up by American Decca, and most important transatlanticcare. inits veryfirst list-GracieFields'issued here on the Brunswick label. deals in the history of the in- " There's more common sense than " Now IsThe Hour." which sold I asked E.R. how many copies of dustry ; and you'd think in the record business," 850,000 copies' over there. "Rock Around The Clock " had been he told me, explaining away his suc- Since then, London has achievedsold to date. HE is rated as the most powerful,cess with the modesty that is so much E. R. Lewis (2nd from right) with Jack Payne, Tommy Trinder, Phil aphenomenalrecord. Everyhit " About650,000,"heanswered. most enterprising and most out-a part of his retiring nature." It's Green, John Snagge and other dignitaries, seen leaving Buckingham disc by a British artist in the States" But wait a minute-I'll check." standingbehind -the -scenesre-not a business of geniuses. Ijust Palace after presenting a cheque for £10,000 to the Duke of Edinburgh, -with only one exception-has been He called through ontheinter - cording figure in the world. used common sense,that'sall." Presidentofthe National Playing Fields Association.The cheque a Decca record on the London label.corn., and a voice gave him the exact First evidence of his common sense came from the proceeds of Decca's special MI -Star record. The exception, by the way, was Eddiefigure -643,000.It was a tribute to was to hitch the Decca wagon to the Calvert's " Oh, Mein Papa," whichthe amazing memory of the man. He Achievement came from Columbia here. Not abad chronicleof achieve-starofdancemusic,whichwas reelsoffnamesandfigureswith booming at that time. Vera Lynn's "Auf Wiedersehen "startling accuracy; he 'knows every ment for a man who came into the He captured Ambrose - then at (which sold 800,000inthe States):artist on all the labels covered by the recordingbusinessbyaccident-a 's "Charmaine " andtremendous Decca world -organisation. man who knewnothingwhateverthe height ofhis fabulous fame- DECCA GROUP'S No. 1 HITS about records when he took controlfrom HMV, and followed it with Jack several LP successes ;FrankIn fact, he knows the business. Hylton, from the same label.He put SINCE the inauguration of the first " Best Selling Records In Britain " Chacksfield's " Ebb Tide' and He is something of a sentimentalist, of the Decca Company-a man who chart by the NEW MUSICAL EXPRESS in the latter part of 1952, " Limelight "; Frank Weir's "Happytoo,forDecca'sclassicallabel- sankhispersonalfortune an American trumpet -player named into aRoy Foxin chargeof forminga the Decca group of labels have enjoyed many outstanding successes Wanderer "; David Whitfield'sFelsted-is namedaftertheEssex dyingorganisationonthehunchhouse band, and thesethree band- in this country. " CaraMia " LonnieDonegan'svillage where he lives. (unshared by anybody else) that heleaders began selling . Listed below are all discs released by the Decca group from the " Rock Island Line "-they were all And now he has achieved what he would win through .. .as,indeed, beginning of1953untilthepresent time which have attainedthe hits in the States, and they were allregards as his biggest scoop-captur- he did No. 1position. on London. ing RCA -VictorinMarch ofthis Whois thisremarkableman ? First hits 1953 But the label's biggest hit of all ?year. The RCA label will be issued Why did 400leadingfigures from Hit discs began to emerge from " "-Al Martino Capitol That remains as " The Harry LimehereunderDeccaauspicesinthe the recording industryallover thethe" dying " company-Roy Fox's " Comes A -long A Love "-Kay Start Capitol world gatherattheSavoyHotel, Mr. and Mrs. E. R. Lewis receiving Mr. F. E. " Oh, Monah " (which is still selling): " Broken Wings "-Stargazers Decca at London, last Monday week (1st) toJackHylton's" Rhymes "(which " Doggie In The Window "-Lita Roza Decca Attwood, Decca Group's Publicity Manager, pay him unstinted tribute sold over 300,000); Ambrose's "Body " Moulin Rouge "-Mantovani Decca the Savoy Hotel banquet. Let'stracehishistory. EdwardAnd Soul," " Stormy Weather " and " Answer Me "-David Whitfield Decca R. Lewis is 56 years of age. Educatedmany others. 1954 atRugby, he inheritshisbusiness But it needed more than just sales " I See The Moon "-Stargazers Decca genius fromhisfather,SirAlfredof records by three artists to lift the " Cara Mira "-David Whitfield/Mantovani Decca Lewis, who was General ManagerDecca company out of itsfinancial " "-Kitty Kallen Brunswick and Director of the National Provin-troubles, so E. R. Lewis launched out. " Three Coins In The Fountain "-Frank Sinatra Capitol cial Bank. In 1932, he made his first big deal " Hold My Hand "-Don Cornell Vogue/Coral He started his professionallife aswhen he bought therightsofthe " My Son, My Son "-Vera Lynn/Frank Weir Decca a stockbroker, and still controls theBrunswick Company from Warner 1955 City firm that bears his name. Brothers in America. " Finger Of Suspicion "-Dickie Valentine Decca It was asastockbrokerthat,in That gave him Bing Crosby, the " Give Me Your Word "-Tennessee Ernie Capitol 1928, he made his initial contact withBoswellSisters,the MillsBrothers, " Unchained Melody "-Jimmy Young Decca therecordbusiness. TheDeccaGuy Lombardo and" TheStreet Rose Marie "-Slim Whitman London Gramophone Company-which manu-Singer " (whose record of " Marta " " Man From Laramie "-Jimmy Young Decca facturedthefirstportablegramo-sold nearly a quarter of a million). " Hernando's Hideaway "-JohnstonBrothers Decca phone-came intothe market, and Theinterestingpartaboutthe " Rock Around The Clock "-Bill Haley Comets Brunswick the firm ofE. R. Lewis floateditrecord business in those dam is that " Christmas Alphabet "-Dickie Valentine Decca as a million -pound company the fol-Britainled the world, and America 1956 lowing year. limped a long way behind us as far " Rock Around The Clock "-Bill Haley Comets Brunswick The shareissueunhappilycoin-asrecordsalesandinterestwere " It's Almost Tomorrow "-Dream Weavers Brunswick cided with the disastrous world slumpconcerned. " Poor People Of Paris "-Winifred Atwell Decca of 1929 and the early 30's, and, by " In the thirties," E. R. reminisced. " I'llBe Home "-Pat Boone London 1931,Decca was inthe doldrums." more records were sold here than In fact, the organisation was on the summer of1957. This was E.R. verge of ruin and extinction. Lewis's typical answer to EMI pur- chasing the Capitol label. Setbacks As my final question,I asked him That was when E. R. Lewis decided what particular type of music, among Congratulations to Mr. E. R.LEWIS allthe many kinds onthe various to take a personal hand in its affairs. Withoutknowinganythingabout labels, was his favourite. recording,he threw himself whole- He answered, creasing his face into heartedlyintoanew andstrange You have given the World Happiness duringthe a ready smile: " I like the things that world,guidedonlybyasingle- sell." So he must like Bing Crosby's minded purpose to put Decca on its " Silent Night," which has sold the feet. staggeringfigure of ten million By this time, the company had gone yearswith DECCA Records-Especially with copies in all ; and he must also like in for gramophone records, and E.R. 25 the 20,000,000 discs which were sold (as he is affectionately known by his by the Decca group during '1955, pro- staff) freely confesses that things were ducing a financial profit of over one very bad indeed. thenew'HIT "A HOUSE WITH LOVE IN IT" million pounds. " We even stayed open on Sundays - Anamazingman,unassuming, and Christmas Day," he told me, as 19 DENMARK STREET friendly and down-to-earth - that he chain-smokedcigarettesonthe Sung by VERA LYNN published by LAWRENCE WRIGHT LONDON, W.C.2TEM 21.41 E. R. Lewis, the genius of Decca. other side of his paper -littered desk, RAY SONE%