Straight

Straight, commonly identified as Straight Records, was a United States record label created in 1969 by musician Frank Zappa and manager Herb Cohen. It was established alongside the companion Bizarre label as part of the partners' effort to develop a home for recordings connected to Zappa's artistic interests and Cohen's management activities. The two labels were manufactured and distributed in the United States through the Warner Bros. Records family, including Reprise Records, while CBS Records handled distribution in the United Kingdom. The original division of labor between the imprints was intended to be relatively clear. Bizarre was expected to concentrate on avant-garde or especially unconventional material, while Straight was intended for artists considered more mainstream. In practice, the distinction quickly became difficult to maintain. Distribution complications and disagreements surrounding artist management undermined the initial plan, and many projects that might have been expected to appear on Bizarre instead came out on Straight. The result was a catalogue that crossed psychedelic rock, experimental music, singer-songwriter material, comedy, doo-wop, and countercultural performance. Zappa selected many of the label's artists and projects. Straight's catalogue included Captain Beefheart, Alice Cooper, Tim Buckley, the GTOs, Judy Henske and Jerry Yester, Jeff Simmons, Lord Buckley, Tim Dawe, Mayf Nutter, Rosebud, and the Persuasions. One of the label's notable releases was the first album by the Persuasions, Acapella. Zappa reportedly encountered the vocal group while hearing them perform by telephone from a record shop in Jersey City; his enthusiasm for doo-wop led him to bring them to Los Angeles to record. Artists managed or otherwise associated with Cohen also contributed to the label's roster. Straight gained particular historical importance through early releases by Alice Cooper and Captain Beefheart. Alice Cooper's Love It to Death was initially issued on Straight, although the album was reissued by Warner Bros. by the time it achieved wider commercial success. This transition reflected a broader change in the handling of the label's catalogue: beginning in 1972, Straight recordings were increasingly reissued through Reprise or Warner Bros. rather than continuing as regular new releases under the Straight identity. The commercial relationship between Warner and the Bizarre/Straight operation ended in 1973. A new arrangement combined Zappa and Cohen's Warner-related ventures under the DiscReet Records name, effectively replacing the earlier imprint structure. The business partnership between Zappa and Cohen later ended acrimoniously, with litigation by both sides in 1976. A settlement reached several years afterward gave Zappa ownership of his own work, while Cohen assumed ownership of much of the non-Zappa material associated with Bizarre, Straight, and DiscReet. Straight was briefly revived in catalogue form during 1988 and 1989, when Enigma Retro issued selected recordings on compact disc and cassette. Later ownership and licensing of some recordings became uncertain, reportedly complicating additional reissues. Nevertheless, selected titles, including Tim Buckley's Blue Afternoon and Starsailor and Captain Beefheart's Lick My Decals Off Baby, later appeared on vinyl and digital download platforms, while tracks from parts of the catalogue were licensed to compilation albums. Straight is therefore best understood today as a defunct historical imprint whose significance rests on its unusually eclectic catalogue and its role in the early business activities surrounding Frank Zappa.

Straight Records was founded in 1969 by Frank Zappa and Herb Cohen at a time when Zappa was expanding beyond his own recording career into artist development and label entrepreneurship. Straight was created at the same time as Bizarre Records, and both imprints were intended to distribute productions and discoveries associated with the partners. Warner Bros. Records and its affiliated labels manufactured and distributed the releases in the United States, while CBS Records handled United Kingdom distribution. The proposed distinction between the two labels was based mainly on artistic character. Bizarre was supposed to house more avant-garde material, whereas Straight was intended for comparatively mainstream artists. The arrangement did not remain orderly. Problems involving distribution and artist management made the division impractical, and Straight acquired a notably varied roster. Zappa exercised substantial influence over the artists selected for the imprint, while several other acts reached it through Cohen's management relationships. The label's catalogue included Captain Beefheart, Alice Cooper, Tim Buckley, the GTOs, Judy Henske and Jerry Yester, Jeff Simmons, Lord Buckley, Tim Dawe, Mayf Nutter, Rosebud, and the Persuasions. The resulting releases combined psychedelic and progressive rock with experimental performance, folk-oriented songwriting, comedy, vocal-group music, and other forms of outsider or countercultural expression. The Persuasions' Acapella was an important example of Zappa's personal taste shaping the catalogue: after hearing the group perform remotely from a New Jersey record shop, he brought them to Los Angeles to make their first album. Straight also played a role in the early commercial history of Alice Cooper. Love It to Death was first issued on Straight, but its later success coincided with a Warner Bros. reissue, illustrating the growing tendency for the parent distribution network to use its larger labels for records with broader commercial potential. From 1972 onward, a number of Straight titles were reissued through Reprise or Warner Bros., and the original imprint gradually ceased to function as a regular channel for new releases. In 1973 the distribution agreement between Warner and the Bizarre/Straight operation ended. Under a new arrangement, Zappa and Cohen's Warner-related business interests were combined and renamed DiscReet Records. The partnership itself later deteriorated. Litigation between the two men began in 1976, and a settlement reached several years later assigned Zappa ownership of his own work while Cohen received ownership of much of the non-Zappa material from the Bizarre, Straight, and DiscReet catalogues. The Straight name returned briefly in catalogue reissues issued by Enigma Retro in 1988 and 1989, on both compact disc and cassette. Subsequent reissue activity was uneven because ownership and licensing for parts of the catalogue became unclear. Some titles nevertheless appeared in later formats: selected recordings by Tim Buckley and Captain Beefheart were issued on 180-gram vinyl or made available through digital stores, and individual tracks were licensed to compilation albums. Straight is now a defunct imprint, remembered less as a continuing corporate label than as a historically important catalogue associated with Zappa, Cohen, and an unusually broad range of artists.

• 1988

  Enigma Retro issues selected catalogue titles

  [1]Straight Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Selected Straight recordings are briefly reissued on compact disc and cassette during 1988 and 1989.

• 1976

  Zappa and Cohen's partnership ends in litigation

  [1]Straight Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  The business relationship breaks down and both parties bring legal claims; a settlement follows several years later.

• 1973

  DiscReet replaces the earlier joint label structure

  [1]Straight Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  After the Warner agreement ends, the partners' related ventures are reorganized under DiscReet Records.

• 1972

  Catalogue reissues shift to Reprise and Warner Bros.

  [1]Straight Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Straight recordings increasingly receive reissues through Warner Bros. or Reprise rather than through the Straight imprint itself.

• 1969

  Straight Records is founded

  [1]Straight Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Frank Zappa and Herb Cohen establish Straight alongside Bizarre Records to release productions and discoveries connected to their activities.

An independent-minded label associated with Frank Zappa and Herb Cohen, positioned between experimental and more commercially accessible music and known for an eclectic countercultural catalogue.

• Studio album

  Love It to Death

  Alice Cooper's Love It to Death was initially released through Straight and is one of the imprint's most commercially significant titles. The album was later reissued by Warner Bros. as Alice Cooper's profile expanded, making it an example of how a release could move from the specialist imprint into the wider Warner distribution system.

• Studio album

  Lick My Decals Off, Baby

  Captain Beefheart's Lick My Decals Off, Baby represents Straight's experimental and unconventional side. The album remained part of the label's later reissue discussions and eventually appeared in selected non-CD formats, despite uncertainty surrounding rights and catalogue ownership.

• Studio album

  Blue Afternoon

  Tim Buckley's Blue Afternoon is among the Straight-associated recordings that later returned in selected formats. Its continued availability through vinyl and digital channels illustrates the uneven but persistent afterlife of the imprint's catalogue.

• Studio album

  Starsailor

  Tim Buckley's Starsailor is another notable Straight catalogue title. Later reissues and digital availability helped preserve the recording even as ownership questions complicated a consistent programme of compact-disc reissues.

• Studio album

  Acapella

  Acapella was the first album by the Persuasions and reflects Frank Zappa's enthusiasm for doo-wop and vocal-group performance. Zappa helped bring the group from New Jersey to Los Angeles to record, making the release a distinctive example of his artist-discovery role at Straight.

• 1976

  Pursue legal claims after the partnership breaks downOther

  Background

  The business relationship between Zappa and Cohen ended acrimoniously.

  Action taken

  Both parties became involved in litigation concerning their business and catalogue interests.

  Aftermath

  A later settlement gave Zappa ownership of his work and Cohen most of the non-Zappa material associated with the related labels.

  Source

• 1973

  Reorganize the Warner-related ventures as DiscReetStrategy

  Background

  The distribution agreement covering Bizarre and Straight came to an end.

  Action taken

  Zappa and Cohen's related business activities were combined under the DiscReet Records name.

  Aftermath

  The new structure superseded the earlier Straight and Bizarre operating arrangement.

  Source

• 1972

  Move selected releases into the Warner and Reprise catalogue systemStrategy

  Background

  Several Straight recordings had greater commercial or catalogue value than the specialist imprint could support on its own.

  Action taken

  Warner Bros. and Reprise began handling reissues of Straight material.

  Aftermath

  Straight's identity became less prominent as an active release label.

  Source

• 1969

  Create separate Straight and Bizarre imprintsStrategy

  Background

  Zappa and Cohen sought to organize their releases through two related labels with different artistic orientations.

  Action taken

  They launched Straight for more mainstream-oriented material and Bizarre for more avant-garde projects, while using Warner-affiliated distribution.

  Aftermath

  Distribution and management realities blurred the intended distinction, leaving Straight with a highly eclectic catalogue.

  Source

1. 1Straight Recordsen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Straight Records discography referencediscogs.com