Early Motown tracks on UK labels other than Motown

[mistercarter2u]

A couple of years back, music from 1962 and before became available for re-issue by numerous labels in the UK. Real Gone Music [[UK label) and Jasmine have issued some great packages, including re-issues of Motown tracks from the early days. [[Real Gone has issued some great sets on jazz artists and crooners via their "8 Classic Albums" series. There are a couple of Motown sets among these, including an album set and a Motown singles set.)

My question is: How do these labels get access the music? Aren't the original recordings still owned by and stored in the record company vaults and archives? Who gives these various record companies access to all of this old music? Do they use the master recordings? Who allows them do get to them? How does this work?

I would sure love some help with this matter.

[Laserdk]

These are all UK out of copyright releases and the various companies involved, i.e. Hallmark, Jasmine, Hoo Doo etc., use the best vinyl sources available for dubbing to CD as being out of copyright they don't have access to the original master tapes as these are still owned by the original copyright owners, i.e, Universal, Sony, WEA etc. Saying that some of these releases don't sound too bad at all and some of them like Hoo Doo's expanded CD edition of the Isley Brothers' "Twist & Shout" album really does sound like the original stereo master tape was used.

By the way, Real Gone Music is US based and I'm not aware of that outfit issuing any of these out of copyright sets.

Ivor

[mistercarter2u]

There are two REAL GONE labels. The US label is legit. Totally different from the UK thing. Real Gone Music in the UK is a re-issue company, very much like Jasmine or Hallmark. They have hundreds of 4 CD sets out, many called "8 Classic Albums." As for Motown, there is a 1962 Albums set and a Tamla Motown singles set. I have purchased two volumes in the Frank Sinatra "8 Classic Albums" series, and they sound really, really, really good.... I just did not know where they got their masters.

[mistercarter2u]

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tBZJIUBfL._AA160_.jpg http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51RTQbuQPHL._AA160_.jpg

[mistercarter2u]

Just go to Amazon UK and type in Real Gone 8 Classic Albums in the search bar. There are tons of releases from all different labels, genres, and so forth.... I posted pics of two of the Tamla Motown sets that I have found listed.

[keith_hughes]

I'm told that the Hallmark series of early Tamla/Motown album CDs were sourced from original vinyl copies of the LPs. It's the tracks from 45 RPM singles that I wonder about. For instance, when we were doing The Complete Motown Singles series we had to source Barrett Strong's "Let's Rock" from a 45, as the only tape in the Vaults is damaged. We reached out to everyone we knew and found just one copy in the world. I see the track is now available on a Fantastic Voyage CD. Did another copy turn up? Amazing, why hasn't it been headline news on record collector sites? it would be very valuable. Or did the kind person who loaned us his copy also make it available to Fantastic Voyage? Having known him for many years, I think it unlikely.

Hmm. What other possibilities does that leave? I just can't think, for the moment, but someone with a less idealistic view than me of the purity of the record industry might possibly come up with an answer.

[mysterysinger]

Please forgive my ignorance, Keith, but once you made a transfer from the single would that then have gone in the vault as the stock copy [[for re-use)? Would the tracks of that song on the original releases such as Barrett Strong's "Millennium Collection" or his "Complete Motown Collection" have come from the copy you had to make or would the tape have been damaged in producing those, for example.? I find this kind of thing interesting .

BTW there are several copies of Let's Rock on single on Ebay lol.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=lets%20rock%20barrett%20strong&rt=nc&LH_PrefLoc=2&_trksid=p2045573.m1684

And Third Man seem to be re-issuing all the early Tamla singles.....
http://thirdmanstore.com/featured/tamla-reissue-bundle-first-nine-singles

[Laserdk]

There are two REAL GONE labels. The US label is legit. Totally different from the UK thing. Real Gone Music in the UK is a re-issue company, very much like Jasmine or Hallmark. They have hundreds of 4 CD sets out, many called "8 Classic Albums." As for Motown, there is a 1962 Albums set and a Tamla Motown singles set. I have purchased two volumes in the Frank Sinatra "8 Classic Albums" series, and they sound really, really, really good.... I just did not know where they got their masters.

Thanks for the clarification regarding the Real Gone labels as I didn't realise there was a separate UK label issuing out of copyright titles although I had seen the sets you posted.

Ivor

[snakepit]

regardless of the issue surrounding these CDs..........the two covers are brilliant.
Why can't Motown/UME come up with something similar....
Can't get enough of Hitsville photos, and those really work

[keith_hughes]

Memory plays strange tricks, mysterysinger: Oh I Apologize and here's what happened ... we located that 45 of "Let's Rock" for Barrett's Millennium Collection, the first Motown project I ever worked on with Harry Weinger back in 2001. The transfer was then re-used for The Complete Motown Collection and The Complete Motown Singles. The tape was damaged back in antiquity [[no leader so the start was scrunched, as I recall).