fbpx
Wikipedia

I.R.S. Records

August 25, 2023

I.R.S. Records was a major American record label founded by Miles Copeland III, Jay Boberg, and Carl Grasso in 1979.[1] I.R.S. produced some of the most popular bands of the 1980s, and was particularly known for issuing records by college rock, new wave and alternative rock artists, including R.E.M., The Go-Go's, Wall of Voodoo, and Fine Young Cannibals. Currently the label is distributed by parent company Universal Music Group.[2]

I.R.S. Records
Parent companyUniversal Music Group
Founded1979 (original)
2012 (relaunch)
FounderMiles Copeland III
Jay Boberg
Carl Grasso
DefunctMay 1996 (original)
2015 (relaunch)
StatusDefunct
Distributor(s)A&M (1979–1985)
MCA (1985–1990)
EMI (1990–1996)
EMI (2011–2012)
Caroline Distribution (2013–2015)
Capitol Music Group/UMe (2015–present)
Genre
Country of originUnited States
Official websiteonamrecords.com

History Edit

Miles Copeland III, the son of CIA officer Miles Copeland Jr., played many roles in the U.K. punk rock and new wave music industry of the middle to late 1970s: agent, manager, producer, magazine publisher, record company and label owner. His brother Ian was the head of a talent agency, Frontier Booking International (F.B.I.), while his brother Stewart played drums for The Police, a band that Copeland managed. The Police's first album was released on A&M Records in 1978 with a hit single, "Roxanne", that Copeland called a turning point in his life.[3]

Building on success with the Police, Copeland convinced Jerry Moss, co-owner of A&M, to establish the I.R.S. division in 1979. I.R.S. stood for International Record Syndicate.[4]

From 1983 to 1987, I.R.S. Records sponsored a monthly MTV show called I.R.S. Records Presents The Cutting Edge, hosted by Peter Zaremba of The Fleshtones. The series concentrated on bands that recorded for the label. The show concept would later evolve into the alternative rock program 120 Minutes, which was launched in 1986 and co-existed with Cutting Edge for about a year and a half.

I.R.S. releases were distributed by A&M until 1985, then by MCA Records until 1990, and by EMI until the label folded in 1996. In 1985, Copeland brokered a deal to switch the label's distributor to MCA Records. Under the agreement, A&M continued to release the label's pre-1985 catalog, much of which still can be found under the A&M banner. Copeland sold the I.R.S. music publishing to Rondor Music in 1995.[5]

The label folded in May 1996, with its last release being All Set by Buzzcocks, issued two weeks before the closure. Shortly after, Copeland formed Ark 21 Records.

In 2011, EMI revived the label; as of 2012, the new label had Chiddy Bang and Foxy Shazam on its roster. In October 2013, shortly after the integration of EMI into its successor, Universal Music Group, the label was revived again as I.R.S. Nashville, with Striking Matches, Marc Scibilia and Cowboy Jack Clement on its roster before being shut down once again in 2015.[6][7]

Faulty Products labels Edit

Faulty Products was the UK holding company for I.R.S. Records of the UK record labels set up by Copeland. It included Illegal Records, Deptford Fun City Records and others. Faulty Products was also an American independent record label and distribution company for other indie labels between 1980 and 1982. Faulty handled artists that did not go through I.R.S.'s distribution deal with A&M.

Illegal Records was set up by Miles Copeland with his younger brother Stewart and the manager of The Police, Paul Mulligan.[8] The label released The Police's debut single, "Fall Out". Deptford Fun City Records was set up by Miles Copeland in the late 1970s as an outlet for Deptford, England bands such as Alternative TV and Squeeze.[8][9]

I.R.S. No Speak, also known as No Speak Records, was set up as an all-instrumental imprint of I.R.S. in January 1988. It released albums by Stewart Copeland, Wishbone Ash, and William Orbit.

Tribal America was a label run by Rob DiStefano that was distributed by I.R.S. from 1991 until IRS folded in 1996. It concentrated on house music, a type of electronic dance music. The most prominent releases on its roster were by the production team Murk and also the song "So Get Up" an iconic vocal poem by Californian author/songwriter Ithaka Darin Pappas, backed by the Progressive house sounds of USL from Lisbon, Portugal.[10] DiStefano went on to found Twisted America Records.

Roster Edit

I.R.S.'s roster of musicians included The Alarm, Bangles, Berlin, Black Sabbath, Buzzcocks, John Cale, Candi & The Backbeat, Candyman, Belinda Carlisle, Caterwaul, Chrome Molly, Concrete Blonde, Stewart Copeland, The Cramps, Marillion, Dada, The Damned, Dead Kennedys, The English Beat, The Fall, Fine Young Cannibals, The Fleshtones, General Public, The Genitorturers, The Go-Go's, hHead, Henry Badowski, Jools Holland, Klark Kent, Let's Active, The Lords of the New Church, Magazine, Mekong Delta, Gary Numan, Nuclear Assault, Oingo Boingo, Over The Rhine, R.E.M., Renaissance, Scott Merritt, Shampoo, Stan Ridgway, Skafish, The Stranglers, Sahotas, Timbuk 3, Torch Song, Wall of Voodoo, William Orbit and YEN.[2]

Sales certifications Edit

I.R.S. Records released three albums that have been certified as platinum or multi-platinum, for sales of over 1 million units, by the Recording Industry Association of America: Beauty and the Beat by The Go-Go's (1981), Document by R.E.M. (1987) and The Raw & the Cooked by Fine Young Cannibals (1989).[11] Seven additional albums have also been certified gold for sales of at least 500,000 copies: Murmur (1983), Reckoning (1984), Fables of the Reconstruction (1985) and Lifes Rich Pageant (1986), all by R.E.M., Vacation by The Go-Go's (1982), Belinda by Belinda Carlisle (1986) and Bloodletting by Concrete Blonde (1990).[11]

I.R.S. compilation albums Edit

On the Charts was a 1994 compilation album that chronicled I.R.S. Records from 1979 to 1994.

US releases Edit

  1. "Our Lips Are Sealed" – The Go-Go's
  2. "My Face" - Henry Badowski
  3. "Mexican Radio" [Edit] – Wall of Voodoo
  4. "Only a Lad" – Oingo Boingo
  5. "The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades" – Timbuk3
  6. "Save It for Later" – The English Beat
  7. "She Drives Me Crazy" – Fine Young Cannibals
  8. "Mad About You" [Single Mix] – Belinda Carlisle
  9. "Tenderness" – General Public
  10. "The One I Love" – R.E.M.
  11. "Joey" – Concrete Blonde
  12. "Rain in the Summertime" [Edit] – The Alarm
  13. "Dizz Knee Land" – Dada

UK releases Edit

  1. "Our Lips Are Sealed" – The Go-Go's
  2. "Mexican Radio" [Edit] – Wall of Voodoo
  3. "68 Guns" – The Alarm
  4. "The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades" – Timbuk3
  5. "Spirit in the Sky" – Doctor and the Medics
  6. "Heartbreaker (At the End of Lonely Street)" – Dread Zeppelin
  7. "Camouflage" – Stan Ridgway
  8. "Mad About You" [Single Mix] – Belinda Carlisle
  9. "Hey Matthew" – Karel Fialka
  10. "The One I Love" – R.E.M.
  11. "Joey" – Concrete Blonde
  12. "Holy Cow" – Jools Holland
  13. "Sass" - Salvation
  14. "Dizz Knee Land" – Dada
  15. “Dancing Days” - The Stage
  16. “Nothing Stranger Than Today” - The Stage

References Edit

  1. ^ Billboard.biz, "IRS Records to be Relaunched by EMI, Crush Management", The Hollywood Reporter, June 15, 2011
  2. ^ a b "I.R.S. Records History On A&M Records.com". Onamrecords.com. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  3. ^ Hunt, Dennis (5 June 1988). "Going a Round With Miles Copeland". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
  4. ^ . Business.umt.edu. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
  5. ^ "Label Information". On A&M Records. Retrieved 2021-10-06.
  6. ^ Peoples, Glenn (22 October 2013). "I.R.S. Nashville Imprint Names John Grady President". Billboard.com. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  7. ^ Stark, Phyllis; Roland, Tom (16 December 2015). "Nashville Notes: Capitol's I.R.S. Nashville Label Shuttered; Zac Brown Band on the Move". Billboard.com. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  8. ^ a b Borthwick, Stuart; Moy, Ron (2004). Popular Music Genres: an introduction. Edinburgh University Press. p. 177. ISBN 9780748617456.
  9. ^ Marko, Paul (2007). The Roxy London WC2: A Punk History. The Roxy Club London:Punk. p. 229. ISBN 978-0955658303.
  10. ^ "Ocurrió aquí... El dance portugués salta a la fama". Redbull.com. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
  11. ^ a b "Gold & Platinum - I.R.S. Records". RIAA. Retrieved 18 April 2019.

External links Edit

  • I.R.S. Nashville
  • I.R.S. history at A&M Records
  • [1]

August 25, 2023
records, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, august, 2017, lear. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources I R S Records news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2017 Learn how and when to remove this template message I R S Records was a major American record label founded by Miles Copeland III Jay Boberg and Carl Grasso in 1979 1 I R S produced some of the most popular bands of the 1980s and was particularly known for issuing records by college rock new wave and alternative rock artists including R E M The Go Go s Wall of Voodoo and Fine Young Cannibals Currently the label is distributed by parent company Universal Music Group 2 I R S RecordsParent companyUniversal Music GroupFounded1979 original 2012 relaunch FounderMiles Copeland IIIJay BobergCarl GrassoDefunctMay 1996 original 2015 relaunch StatusDefunctDistributor s A amp M 1979 1985 MCA 1985 1990 EMI 1990 1996 EMI 2011 2012 Caroline Distribution 2013 2015 Capitol Music Group UMe 2015 present GenreRocknew waveCountry of originUnited StatesOfficial websiteonamrecords com Contents 1 History 2 Faulty Products labels 3 Roster 4 Sales certifications 5 I R S compilation albums 5 1 US releases 5 2 UK releases 6 References 7 External linksHistory EditMiles Copeland III the son of CIA officer Miles Copeland Jr played many roles in the U K punk rock and new wave music industry of the middle to late 1970s agent manager producer magazine publisher record company and label owner His brother Ian was the head of a talent agency Frontier Booking International F B I while his brother Stewart played drums for The Police a band that Copeland managed The Police s first album was released on A amp M Records in 1978 with a hit single Roxanne that Copeland called a turning point in his life 3 Building on success with the Police Copeland convinced Jerry Moss co owner of A amp M to establish the I R S division in 1979 I R S stood for International Record Syndicate 4 From 1983 to 1987 I R S Records sponsored a monthly MTV show called I R S Records Presents The Cutting Edge hosted by Peter Zaremba of The Fleshtones The series concentrated on bands that recorded for the label The show concept would later evolve into the alternative rock program 120 Minutes which was launched in 1986 and co existed with Cutting Edge for about a year and a half I R S releases were distributed by A amp M until 1985 then by MCA Records until 1990 and by EMI until the label folded in 1996 In 1985 Copeland brokered a deal to switch the label s distributor to MCA Records Under the agreement A amp M continued to release the label s pre 1985 catalog much of which still can be found under the A amp M banner Copeland sold the I R S music publishing to Rondor Music in 1995 5 The label folded in May 1996 with its last release being All Set by Buzzcocks issued two weeks before the closure Shortly after Copeland formed Ark 21 Records In 2011 EMI revived the label as of 2012 the new label had Chiddy Bang and Foxy Shazam on its roster In October 2013 shortly after the integration of EMI into its successor Universal Music Group the label was revived again as I R S Nashville with Striking Matches Marc Scibilia and Cowboy Jack Clement on its roster before being shut down once again in 2015 6 7 Faulty Products labels EditFaulty Products was the UK holding company for I R S Records of the UK record labels set up by Copeland It included Illegal Records Deptford Fun City Records and others Faulty Products was also an American independent record label and distribution company for other indie labels between 1980 and 1982 Faulty handled artists that did not go through I R S s distribution deal with A amp M Illegal Records was set up by Miles Copeland with his younger brother Stewart and the manager of The Police Paul Mulligan 8 The label released The Police s debut single Fall Out Deptford Fun City Records was set up by Miles Copeland in the late 1970s as an outlet for Deptford England bands such as Alternative TV and Squeeze 8 9 I R S No Speak also known as No Speak Records was set up as an all instrumental imprint of I R S in January 1988 It released albums by Stewart Copeland Wishbone Ash and William Orbit Tribal America was a label run by Rob DiStefano that was distributed by I R S from 1991 until IRS folded in 1996 It concentrated on house music a type of electronic dance music The most prominent releases on its roster were by the production team Murk and also the song So Get Up an iconic vocal poem by Californian author songwriter Ithaka Darin Pappas backed by the Progressive house sounds of USL from Lisbon Portugal 10 DiStefano went on to found Twisted America Records Roster EditI R S s roster of musicians included The Alarm Bangles Berlin Black Sabbath Buzzcocks John Cale Candi amp The Backbeat Candyman Belinda Carlisle Caterwaul Chrome Molly Concrete Blonde Stewart Copeland The Cramps Marillion Dada The Damned Dead Kennedys The English Beat The Fall Fine Young Cannibals The Fleshtones General Public The Genitorturers The Go Go s hHead Henry Badowski Jools Holland Klark Kent Let s Active The Lords of the New Church Magazine Mekong Delta Gary Numan Nuclear Assault Oingo Boingo Over The Rhine R E M Renaissance Scott Merritt Shampoo Stan Ridgway Skafish The Stranglers Sahotas Timbuk 3 Torch Song Wall of Voodoo William Orbit and YEN 2 Sales certifications EditI R S Records released three albums that have been certified as platinum or multi platinum for sales of over 1 million units by the Recording Industry Association of America Beauty and the Beat by The Go Go s 1981 Document by R E M 1987 and The Raw amp the Cooked by Fine Young Cannibals 1989 11 Seven additional albums have also been certified gold for sales of at least 500 000 copies Murmur 1983 Reckoning 1984 Fables of the Reconstruction 1985 and Lifes Rich Pageant 1986 all by R E M Vacation by The Go Go s 1982 Belinda by Belinda Carlisle 1986 and Bloodletting by Concrete Blonde 1990 11 I R S compilation albums EditOn the Charts was a 1994 compilation album that chronicled I R S Records from 1979 to 1994 US releases Edit Our Lips Are Sealed The Go Go s My Face Henry Badowski Mexican Radio Edit Wall of Voodoo Only a Lad Oingo Boingo The Future s So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades Timbuk3 Save It for Later The English Beat She Drives Me Crazy Fine Young Cannibals Mad About You Single Mix Belinda Carlisle Tenderness General Public The One I Love R E M Joey Concrete Blonde Rain in the Summertime Edit The Alarm Dizz Knee Land DadaUK releases Edit Our Lips Are Sealed The Go Go s Mexican Radio Edit Wall of Voodoo 68 Guns The Alarm The Future s So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades Timbuk3 Spirit in the Sky Doctor and the Medics Heartbreaker At the End of Lonely Street Dread Zeppelin Camouflage Stan Ridgway Mad About You Single Mix Belinda Carlisle Hey Matthew Karel Fialka The One I Love R E M Joey Concrete Blonde Holy Cow Jools Holland Sass Salvation Dizz Knee Land Dada Dancing Days The Stage Nothing Stranger Than Today The StageReferences Edit Billboard biz IRS Records to be Relaunched by EMI Crush Management The Hollywood Reporter June 15 2011 a b I R S Records History On A amp M Records com Onamrecords com Retrieved 20 July 2016 Hunt Dennis 5 June 1988 Going a Round With Miles Copeland Los Angeles Times Retrieved 24 July 2016 UM Entertainment Management Business umt edu Archived from the original on 6 March 2019 Retrieved 24 July 2016 Label Information On A amp M Records Retrieved 2021 10 06 Peoples Glenn 22 October 2013 I R S Nashville Imprint Names John Grady President Billboard com Retrieved 12 February 2014 Stark Phyllis Roland Tom 16 December 2015 Nashville Notes Capitol s I R S Nashville Label Shuttered Zac Brown Band on the Move Billboard com Retrieved 17 December 2015 a b Borthwick Stuart Moy Ron 2004 Popular Music Genres an introduction Edinburgh University Press p 177 ISBN 9780748617456 Marko Paul 2007 The Roxy London WC2 A Punk History The Roxy Club London Punk p 229 ISBN 978 0955658303 Ocurrio aqui El dance portugues salta a la fama Redbull com Retrieved 30 August 2017 a b Gold amp Platinum I R S Records RIAA Retrieved 18 April 2019 External links EditI R S Nashville I R S history at A amp M Records 1 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title I R S Records amp oldid 1159282578, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.