Dick Rowe
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Dick Rowe | |
|---|---|
| Born | Richard Paul Rowe 9 June 1921 |
| Died | 6 June 1986 (aged 64) |
| Occupation | Record producer, music executive |
| Known for | Head of A&R singles at Decca Records |
Richard Paul Rowe (9 June 1921[1] – 6 June 1986)[2] was Head of A&R (Singles) at Decca Records from the 1950s to the 1970s.
He is historically presented in popular musical history as the man who did not sign the Beatles.[1] In Brian Epstein's 1964 autobiography, Rowe is quoted as having rejected them with the words: "Guitar groups are on their way out, Mr. Epstein", although he denied ever having said this.[1] He later signed the Rolling Stones after their audition, thanks to an introduction and encouragement from George Harrison.
Career[]
He was one of the most important producers and record executives in the United Kingdom in the 1950s and early 1960s and is the man who signed the Rolling Stones, Them (Van Morrison), the Moody Blues, the Tremeloes, the Zombies, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, the Brumbeats, the Tornados, Tom Jones, the Small Faces, the Marmalade, Billy Fury, Tommy Steele, The Animals, Cat Stevens, Procol Harum, Kathy Kirby, Gilbert O Sullivan, and the Circus amongst others.[3] Rowe rejected The Beatles (in fact one of his A&R team Mike Smith, brought two deals to Rowe, his boss; Brian Poole and the Tremeloes and the Beatles, and unfortunately he only allowed him to sign one deal, the group that lived near London, who actually had more initial success than the Beatles).[3] However, the Beatles went on to land a recording contract with EMI/Parlophone and become the biggest selling and most influential rock band of all time.
List of production[]
As a producer he had several number ones in the singles chart, and his discography includes:
- The Stargazers: "Broken Wings" released Feb 1953
- Lita Roza: "(How Much Is) That Doggie in the Window?" Mar 1953
- Jimmy Young: "Unchained Melody" Apr 1955
- Jimmy Young: "The Man from Laramie" Sep 1955
- Dickie Valentine: "Christmas Alphabet" Nov 1955
- Jet Harris and Tony Meehan: "Diamonds" 1963
- Engelbert Humperdinck: some tracks on Greatest Love Songs
- Them (featuring Van Morrison): "Gloria"
- Billy Fury: "Halfway to Paradise" (reached number 2 in 1961 in the UK)
- Billy Fury: "Jealousy" (reached number 2 in 1961)
- Jet Harris and Tony Meehan: "Scarlett O'Hara" (reached number 2 in 1963)
- Jet Harris and Tony Meehan: "Applejack" (reached number 4 in 1963)
- The Bachelors: "Marta" Jul 1967 (reached number 20)
- Neil Reid: "Mother Of Mine" Dec 1971 (reached number 2)
Legacy[]
Rowe left Decca in 1975. He died of diabetes on 6 June 1986. His son, Richard Rowe, a solicitor worked at CBS Records/Sony Records and was president of SonyATV music publishing (and made the deal to create a joint partnership with Michael Jackson to publish the Beatles catalogue as Sony/ATV when he ran the publishing division of Sony Music).
References[]
- ^ a b c Viner, Brian (12 February 2012). "The man who rejected the Beatles". The Independent.
- ^ Talevski, Nick (7 April 2010). Rock Obituaries: Knocking On Heaven's Door. Omnibus Press. p. 56. ISBN 9780857121172. Retrieved 8 October 2021 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 2152/3. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
External links[]
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- 1921 births
- 1986 deaths
- British record producers
- A&R people
- Deaths from diabetes
- 20th-century British businesspeople
- British music biography stubs