Penny Farthing Records

Penny Farthing Records was a British independent record label established in 1969 by record producer Larry Page. It emerged from Page's earlier involvement with Page One Records, which he had founded with Dick James in 1966. Page left Page One in 1969 and created a new label, adopting the name Penny Farthing from another company. The label operated from premises on Tilney Street in London and became one of the independent British labels associated with the pop, easy-listening, comedy, and rock markets of the late 1960s and 1970s. The label achieved an early breakthrough with its second single, "Venus" by the Dutch group Shocking Blue. The recording became a notable international pop success and established Penny Farthing as a label capable of competing beyond the specialist independent market. During the following years, the company released records by a varied roster rather than concentrating on one narrowly defined genre. Its catalogue included pop singers, orchestral and easy-listening projects, established rock acts, comedy performers, studio-created or songwriter-led projects, and releases aimed particularly at overseas audiences. Among the label's best-known records was Daniel Boone's "Beautiful Sunday," released in 1972. Written by Boone, the song became a familiar early-1970s pop and radio record and later acquired a second life in Japan after being associated with a television programme of the same name roughly a decade after its original release. Penny Farthing also issued recordings by Johnny Pearson and His Orchestra. Pearson's "Sleepy Shores" reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart in 1971, and an album using the same title followed in 1972. Pearson's work became an important part of the label's easy-listening catalogue, which continued into the early 1980s. The label's other releases show the breadth and sometimes experimental character of Larry Page's production activities. Penny Farthing issued Killing Floor's album "Out of Uranus" in 1970, as well as Colin Hare's "March Hare" in 1971. It recorded artists including Raymond Froggatt, Paul Da Vinci, The Troggs, The Barron Knights, and Lelly Boone. Some projects were commercially unsuccessful or failed to produce the hoped-for follow-up hits. Page's efforts to reposition The Barron Knights as a mainstream pop act, including releases under the name Philly Dog, did not generate the intended breakthrough. The Troggs' Penny Farthing debut, built around a version of "Good Vibrations" featuring Reg Presley, likewise failed to achieve substantial sales. A significant part of the company's revenue came from Germany, where the solo act Kincade obtained several minor hits, including "Dreams Are Ten a Penny" and "Big Hand for Annie." Songwriter John Carter was also connected with Penny Farthing successes in the early 1970s, sometimes working under different names. These overseas results illustrate the label's reliance on export markets as well as the British singles trade. Penny Farthing was ultimately succeeded in Larry Page's business activities by Rampage Records, formed in 1978. The label's precise formal end date and corporate status are not established in the supplied reference material. Its historical importance rests on a catalogue that combined internationally recognized pop singles, British chart material, easy-listening recordings, comedy releases, and projects that found stronger audiences outside the United Kingdom than at home.

Larry Page entered the record business through Page One Records, which he founded with Dick James in 1966. In 1969, Page departed from that operation and created Penny Farthing Records. He acquired the name of an existing company for the new label and based it on Tilney Street in London. The venture was intended as a continuation and development of Page's independent-label work, but with a new corporate identity and a broad recording programme. Penny Farthing's second single, Shocking Blue's "Venus," provided an immediate sign of the label's potential. The Dutch group's recording became a significant pop success and gave the newly established label an international profile. The catalogue subsequently expanded across several distinct areas. In 1970 the label released Killing Floor's second album, "Out of Uranus," while also issuing singles by acts such as Heatwave, later known as The Sensations. The Heatwave release paired "Sister Simon (Funny Man)" with the club-favoured track "Rastus Ravel" and involved producer John Edward and backing vocalists associated with The Ladybirds and Doris Troy. The early 1970s brought a sequence of releases that defined the label's public identity. Colin Hare, formerly the bassist of Honeybus, issued the album "March Hare" in 1971. Although it was not commercially successful at the time, it was later reissued through Hare's own Runfast label in 2004. Johnny Pearson also became an important Penny Farthing artist. Page signed Pearson in 1971 and released a series of easy-listening albums, with the final releases in that body of work appearing in 1982. Pearson's orchestral recording "Sleepy Shores" reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart in 1971, and an album with the same title followed in 1972. Daniel Boone delivered another major catalogue title with "Beautiful Sunday," released in 1972. The song was written by Boone and became a staple of early-1970s radio and disc-jockey programming. Its later use by a Japanese television programme helped revive its popularity in Japan approximately ten years after its original release. Page also recorded Boone's wife, Lelly Boone, but those efforts did not achieve comparable success despite a television appearance on "Top of the Pops." Page continued to use Penny Farthing for a wide range of projects. The label recorded The Barron Knights and achieved some chart success with their comedy material, but Page's attempt to move them toward mainstream pop was unsuccessful. Releases such as "The Ballad of Frank Spencer" and recordings under the alternative name Philly Dog did not produce the desired hits. Paul Da Vinci joined the label after singing on The Rubettes' number-one hit "Sugar Baby Love"; his Penny Farthing single "Your Baby Ain't Your Baby Anymore" sold only modestly. The Troggs, an established act associated with Page One Records, were also brought to Penny Farthing, but their label debut, a Page-produced attempt at The Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations" with Reg Presley on vocals, did not generate sizeable sales. The company also issued an early album by Raymond Froggatt. Its strongest revenue base, however, was reportedly in Germany, where the solo act Kincade secured several minor hits. These included "Dreams Are Ten a Penny" and "Big Hand for Annie," the latter written by John Carter. Carter was associated with a number of Penny Farthing successes in the early 1970s and used multiple professional names in his songwriting work. The German market therefore played an important role in sustaining the label even when some of its British releases performed modestly. In 1978, Larry Page formed Rampage Records as a successor to Penny Farthing. The supplied historical account does not specify a precise closure date, liquidation process, or later ownership structure for Penny Farthing Records. The label is remembered for combining international pop successes with British recordings in rock, orchestral easy listening, comedy, and novelty-oriented areas. Its catalogue also illustrates the importance of export markets, producer entrepreneurship, and flexible artist development within Britain's independent recording sector during the late 1960s and 1970s.

• 1978

  Rampage Records succeeds Penny Farthing

  [1]Penny Farthing Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Larry Page formed Rampage Records as a successor to Penny Farthing's label activities.

• 1972

  "Beautiful Sunday" is released

  [1]Penny Farthing Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Daniel Boone's song became a prominent Penny Farthing release and later found renewed popularity in Japan.

• 1971

  "Sleepy Shores" reaches the UK Top 10

  [1]Penny Farthing Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Johnny Pearson and His Orchestra's recording reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart.

• 1970

  Killing Floor's second album is released

  [1]Penny Farthing Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Penny Farthing issued Killing Floor's "Out of Uranus," adding a substantial rock album to its catalogue.

• 1969

  Penny Farthing Records is established

  [1]Penny Farthing Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Larry Page left Page One Records, adopted the Penny Farthing name, and established the new label in London.

• 1969

  "Venus" becomes an early label breakthrough

  [1]Penny Farthing Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Shocking Blue's "Venus," Penny Farthing's second single, became a major early success.

• 1966

  Page One Records is founded

  [1]Penny Farthing Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Larry Page and Dick James founded Page One Records, the earlier label from which Page later departed to establish Penny Farthing.

A producer-led British independent label with a broad commercial catalogue spanning pop, rock, easy listening, comedy, and export-oriented releases.

• Single · 1969

  "Venus"

  A recording by Dutch group Shocking Blue and Penny Farthing's second single. Its early success gave the newly established label an international pop profile and remains one of the most prominent records associated with the imprint.

• Rock album · 1970

  "Out of Uranus"

  Killing Floor's second album, released by Penny Farthing in 1970. It represents the label's involvement with British rock album releases alongside its better-known singles and easy-listening catalogue.

• Easy-listening single and album · 1971

  "Sleepy Shores"

  A Johnny Pearson and His Orchestra recording that reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart in 1971. An album with the same title followed in 1972, forming part of a longer series of Pearson easy-listening releases on the label.

• Pop single · 1972

  "Beautiful Sunday"

  Daniel Boone's self-written 1972 single became a familiar early-1970s radio record. Its later connection with a Japanese television programme helped renew interest in the song in Japan approximately a decade after its initial release.

• Football song

  "Blue Is the Colour"

  A Penny Farthing release associated with Chelsea Football Club. It is among the label's notable recordings and illustrates its willingness to issue material outside conventional artist-led pop and rock formats.

• Pop single

  "Dreams Are Ten a Penny"

  A Kincade recording that contributed to Penny Farthing's reported revenue in Germany. It belongs to the label's export-oriented early-1970s catalogue and was one of several minor hits connected with the act.

• 1978

  Create Rampage Records as a successorStrategy

  Background

  After several years of releases under Penny Farthing, Larry Page reorganized his label activities.

  Action taken

  Page formed Rampage Records as a successor to Penny Farthing.

  Aftermath

  The supplied reference does not provide a precise formal closure date or detailed corporate transition for Penny Farthing.

  Source

• 1969

  Launch a new label after Page One RecordsStrategy

  Background

  Larry Page left Page One Records, the label he had founded with Dick James, and sought to continue his independent record-production activities under a new imprint.

  Action taken

  Page adopted the name Penny Farthing from another company and established a London-based record label.

  Aftermath

  The label secured an early breakthrough with Shocking Blue's "Venus" and developed a broad catalogue across pop, rock, easy listening, comedy, and overseas releases.

  Source

1. 1Penny Farthing Recordsen.wikipedia.org