thumb|The Royal Recording Studios and Hi Recording Studio

Hi Records is an American soul music and rhythm & blues label founded in Memphis, Tennessee in 1957 by singer Ray Harris, record store owner Joe Cuoghi, Bill Cantrell and Quinton Claunch (formerly producers for Sun Records), and three silent partners, including Cuoghi's lawyer, Nick Pesce.

History

Hi Records' first big hit was "Smokie Part 2", an instrumental by Bill Black's Combo, released in 1959. In 1968 he began to produce Al Green. The label was distributed nationally by London Records. On its numerous hit recordings of the 1970s, the label used a house backing band of local session musicians known as the Hi Rhythm Section. The popularity of disco music in the late 1970s led to a decline in the popularity of southern soul music.

Licensed distribution is by Crimson Productions (a division of Demon Music Group) in Europe; EMI licensed the catalog in Canada and the United States until 2009, when Fat Possum Records began distributing for the United States, Canada and Australia. Before EMI, Motown Records distributed Hi's back catalog from the 1980s to the mid-1990s, consisting mostly Green's and Mitchell's albums.

The Royal Recording Studios, also Hi Recording Studio, was located at an old movie theatre, at 1320 South Lauderdale Street, founded by the owners of Hi Records; several hit singles were recorded here.

Notable artists

  • Al Green
  • Don Bryant
  • O. V. Wright
  • Otis Clay
  • Ann Peebles
  • Quiet Elegance
  • Syl Johnson
  • Bill Black's Combo
  • Al Perkins
  • Ace Cannon
  • Willie Mitchell

See also

  • List of record labels
  • Goldwax Records
  • Stax Records
  • FAME Studios
  • Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section
  • R&B
  • Memphis Soul Music

References

  • Official site
  • Jukenjamm.com
  • Unofficial web site about Hi Records