Sacred Records

Sacred Records was a religious music record label founded in 1944 by Earle E. Williams.

Sacred Records
Founded1944
FounderEarle E. Williams
Defunct1963
GenreGospel, Christian
Country of originUnited States

History

Earle E. Williams, a minister of youth and music director in the Los Angeles area, decided to start a religious music record label in 1944 as a solution to the problem of obtaining the records he needed for his work, which included broadcasting a weekly half-hour radio program every Sunday at noon on local station KXLA.[1][2] In a 1947 interview, Williams described to United Press International (UPI), "I sold my car, ray dog, my wife's spinet, a camera and a renovated church organ and borrowed the rest on a note to get the $3,000 I had to have to start production.[2]

Based in Los Angeles, Sacred Records recorded and published religious music.[3] The label merged with Kansas City's White Church Records in 1949, and by the following year the company had opened new offices in Kansas City, Philadelphia, and New York.[4][5] Composer and arranger Ralph Carmichael convinced the label to finance Rhapsody in Sacred Music (1958), an instrumental album that featured a full symphony, including four trumpets, four trombones, multiple french horns, woodwinds, a string section of at least 12 violins and four viola, two bass harps, and percussion. "It was the first all-instrumental sacred music recording with that size orchestra", Carmichael said. "It was a scary experiment and I nearly broke the record company."[3]

Sacred Records was acquired by Word Records in 1963.[6] Williams remained with Word as a salesman and distributor.[7]

See also

References
  1. "Disk Jockey with a Difference". Sales Management. 58: 26. 1947. ISSN 0885-9019.
  2. "Hollywood Film Shop". Traverse City Record-Eagle. June 10, 1947. p. 12. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  3. Cheatham, Russ (2003). Bad Boy of Gospel Music: The Calvin Newton Story (1st ed.). Jackson, M.S.: University Press of Mississippi. pp. 124, 125. ISBN 978-1578065530.
  4. "2G Lee Suit vs. Sacred". Billboard. 62 (50): 12, 38. December 16, 1950. ISSN 0006-2510.
  5. "Sacred Expands, Goes to 45 Wax". Billboard. 62 (21): 13. May 27, 1950. ISSN 0006-2510.
  6. "Word-Sacred Complete Deal". Billboard. 75 (46): 4. November 16, 1963. ISSN 0006-2510.
  7. "Word May Buy Most of Sacred". Billboard. 75 (44): 6. November 2, 1963. ISSN 0006-2510.
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