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Label Info > The CV Story

Cooking Vinyl Story 1986- 2005
"We really respect the artists we work with," says Cooking Vinyl's chief overlord, Martin Goldschmidt. "We only take things on that we want to. The thing is, we've been doing this for a long time and I'd like to see it getting bigger. Hopefully it will."

Martin has every reason to be optimistic. In recent years Cooking Vinyl's dedication to music of quality and distinction, rather than fashion and fads, has established the label with a dazzling roster. In fact, it's never been in ruder health.

Newly reformed American legends such as the American Music Club (Uncut's Album of the Month in September 2004), Cowboy Junkies, as well as Madder Rose's Mary Lorson and Billy Cote, have found welcoming homes around the Cooking Vinyl campfire. So too has The Pixies giant Frank Black, ex-Hüsker Dü and Sugar main man Bob Mould, the welcomingly reformed Soft Cell, ex-Peru Ubu David Thomas right through to 1980s art rock greats such as Echo & the Bunnymen and The Church. Elsewhere, a whole new generation of dizzying guitar outfits, such as The Mendoza Line, French Kicks and Seafood, ensure Cooking Vinyl's commitment to excellence will run and run.

Nevertheless from the beginning, this was always the case anyway. Back in the 1980s, Martin organised benefit concerts for CND and managed righteous anarcho-punks Poison Girls. He'd been seeking gainful employment on established independent labels "but nobody wanted me", says Martin, laughing. As an alternative he decided to release a single himself by a group he was managing, Akimbo. "That was the slippery slope from thereon in," says Martin, mischievously shaking his head. An inaugural long player from Celtic rockers Oysterband signalled there was no going back.

But it was in 1986 where the CV story really kicks off. Pete Lawrence, an experienced music industry player, left the distribution company Making Waves and, with Martin as a redoubtable business oppo, established a label to reflect their music tastes and, crucially, their ideological beliefs too. Both were involved in radical left-wing politics and the pair had a penchant for rootsy protest music. Incredibly, such an intriguing radar immediately paid off. Whilst on holiday at a folk festival, Pete Lawrence discovered Michelle Shocked singing an astonishing clutch of songs around a campfire.

"She actually couldn't get a gig at the festival", says Martin, "and Pete recorded it on a Walkman with run down batteries! So it was actually released on the wrong speed! Anyway, we quickly put out "The Campfire Tapes" and the rest, as they say, is history."

"Although we got off to this amazing start, we actually didn't have a clue," says Martin, grimacing slightly. "We didn't really understand the concept of profits or any understanding of the business. The contracts were a joke and we made every mistake in the book. But we still managed to sell 150, 000 copies worldwide."



Discovering one towering talent so quickly was remarkable enough. But discovering another showed that their A&R instincts were permanently switched on. In 1988 Cooking Vinyl released The Cowboy Junkies' sainted debut album, "The Trinity Sessions". It not only charted and garnered enormous critical praise, but the album eventually sold around one million copies worldwide. Since then, Cooking Vinyl has become the premier label for eclectic roots and global folk. Veteran British folk singer June Tabor found the ideal home for her astonishingly beautiful voice on Cooking Vinyl. The same went for ex-Fairport Convention man Richard Thompson and ex-Pentangle member Bert Jansch, whose dextrous fretwork between them has been a towering influence on the English folk circuit. Elsewhere, harpist Savourna Stevenson helped dissolve the boundaries between folk and world music, classical and jazz on her staggeringly versatile releases. Not bad for an apparently "clueless" pair running a tiny independent label.

Nevertheless, such astute success isn't always a buffer against an unpredictable market. In the autumn of 1989 Rough Trade distribution dramatically went bust. "We lost a fortune in the process," says Martin sighing. "Indirectly any potential sales were lost and on paper we went bankrupt." Perhaps understandably Pete Lawrence bailed out but Martin was determined to give it another go. After all, they'd struck gold so effortlessly before. Surely it was possible to do so again?

"I bought Pete's share out and I thought I'd turn it around. It took me about five years to pay off the debts. I repaid everyone the money we owed, so we traded our way out of it. The release schedule over those five years tells you we were bust! They were very cheap deals and I re-mortgaged my house to see us through."

A crucial breakthrough for the labels' fortunes came with the signing of veteran protest singer, Billy Bragg in 1993. To this day, Bragg commands a sizeable and loyal following. "Yes, that was a massive break," says Martin. "It really enabled us to re-build the label. Also, having an artist like Billy Bragg gave us a lot of credibility. When we started out it was one of my dreams to have Billy on the label. When he signed, it was a dream come true."

The mid-nineties also saw the arrival of equally feted indie mainstays. David Gedge's The Wedding Present joined Cooking Vinyl for the albums Mini and the excellent, acclaimed "Saturnalia". Since then Gedge has pursued the lounge tainted off-shoot Cinerama who, as Martin rightly assets, "deserve to do a lot better." Elsewhere, Frank Black has been a long-term Cooking Vinyl resident clocking up some nine solo albums. Recently a collection of demos and re-interpretations of old Pixies songs was welcomingly released. From a similar period Cathal Coughlan, of Fatima Mansions and Microdisney fame, has released some of his finest songs on Cooking Vinyl, such as the foreboding and darkly atmospheric masterpiece, "Black River Falls" (2000). It seems Martin and the CV team have an effortless knack in bringing out the best in people.

Take Bob Mould. After a couple of rather prosaic solo albums on Creation, his inaugural release on Cooking Vinyl, the fractured electronic swarm of "Modulate", constituted his finest work in over a decade.



"It's the way we treat the artists," says Martin, matter-of-factly. "We try to be an artist friendly label. Jackie Leven, Frank Black and Billy Bragg all are happy to re-sign with us. We try to do a big push on every album we have out. And if an artist wants to speak to us, we're all ears. We also don't do much A&R on records - we don't put artists under pressure to write hits. But we do tell them what we think and most appreciate it."

Echo & the Bunnymen definitely took note. When they signed to Cooking Vinyl four years ago they were slightly apprehensive about working with an independent. What they discovered is how truly global the label is. For the first time, the Bunnymen found themselves selling records and playing in places they'd never have reached with a major. In 2003 Echo & the Bunnymen's frontman, Ian McCulloch, released his third solo album "Slideling" to much critical acclaim. A new Echo & the Bunnymen album is scheduled for 2005 and Martin promises it will be up there with their very best.

"Signing the Bunnymen was perhaps a shift in gear for our A&R department," he says, "our new A&R chief Rob Collins was determined to get them. Since then we've pulled in some great new acts."

Indeed so. Landing Sweden's bittersweet popsters the Wannadies and seminal ambient chill out explorers The Orb was a great move. But few acts are as great as New York based country-indie quintet, The Mendoza Line. In 2002 they landed Uncut Album of the Month for the heart-wrenchingly brilliant "Lost In Revelry". Yet 2004's "Fortune" was perhaps even better - a mesmerising journey through Glam stompers, aching lovelorn ballads and fizzy guitar pop. All what's needed is for the world and his mistress to finally wake up to them. "The Mendoza Line are so incredibly talented," says Martin, "and such lovely people. I just wish we could do more for them."

They're not the only bunch to be vastly underrated. Camden's post-grunge quartet Seafood are exceptional practitioners of searing but emotionally bruised guitar pop. Their third album, As The Cry Flows (May 2004), was an exemplary display of fuzzily euphoric alt.rock. Elsewhere, critic's favourites Obi are surely the next Go-Betweens in waiting for their commanding grasp of melodic pop on debut full-length album, "Dice Man Lopez" (2004).

But as Martin points out, Cooking Vinyl has an international set up and the label has always reflected and released overseas talent too. From Australia alternative pop queen Anne McCue is forging a handsome solo career with her thinking man's take on traditional Americana. Fellow countryman Paul Kelly is probably Australia's equivalent to Bruce Springsteen or Ray Davis - someone who can capture his country's idiosyncrasies and passions with the verve and vitality of Elvis Costello.

No roots based label would be complete without weighing in with the best of America and Americana. After all, Cooking Vinyl helped ignite the solo career of Ryan Adams with the release of "Heartbreaker". 2004 saw the release of Cracker's David Lowery and Johnny Hickman colluding with Colorado's Leftover Salmon to release 'O Cracker Where Art Thou?' Camper Van Beethoven made a welcome return with the redoubtable "New Roman Times", while Kingsbury Manx's hazy psychedelic pop reached perfection on their first CV album, "Aztec Disciple" in 2004. On a different tip altogether Minus 5's defiantly poppier slant shows there's more than one way to do Americana. And nobody is it more different than Hayseed Dixie. On three albums they wryly juxtapose rickety banjos and bluegrass with covers of Kiss, AC/DC and Motorhead covers. There's something grin-stretching when testosterone fuelled rock can be so easily moulded into saloon bar foot-stompers.

For more cerebral but no less enjoyable Americana, try singer-songwriter Grant-Lee Phillips. The former Grant Lee Buffalo frontman has released two hugely adored solo albums, "Mobilize" and "Virginia Creeper", which saw a less goggle-eyed and more intimate take on his normal skyscraping style. Maverick, New York folk songwriter Janis Ian is someone who doesn't pull any punches. Since signing to Cooking Vinyl in the early nineties, she's grappled with such taboo-defying subjects as prostitution, domestic violence to the holocaust on a fist of remarkable albums.

Jackie Leven shows no sign of mellowing either. After "The Mystery of Love Is Greater than the Mystery of Death" in 1995, his lavish blend of Celtic mysticism, Bacharach-David crooning and epic anthems, coupled with Levin's deep, lugubrious voice, has released the kind of brilliant albums to rival Scott Walker. "I think Jackie Leven is one of my all-time favourite artists who has released some of my all-time favourite albums," says Martin emphatically. "He also sells tons of records worldwide, which undoubtedly helps us. I think of the problems with many independent labels is that they see the UK as the only market there is. We always think globally and, as such, the UK market appears very small to us."

Such a forward-looking approach ensures that Cooking Vinyl are no slouches when it comes to the digital age. Martin's enthusiastic about iPods and digital downloads but wishes "some of our albums were floating around on the Internet, and then I'd know we'd have made it," he says. "Although I'm not condoning piracy, it can be a great form of flattery!" Already, Cooking Vinyl has entered into digital distribution deals and are proving true pioneers in the independent sector. "I think that digital downloads, and especially the convenience of it, will totally revolutionise the way we access music," says Martin, "like in any revolution it can be unsettling. But it's also an exciting opportunity."

Over the past twenty years, Martin and Cooking Vinyl have been spotting such opportunities in a way that leaves most independents - let alone majors - for dead. By following their own instincts and ignoring others, they've developed a truly independent label that genuinely puts the artist, the music and the fans first. And they show no signs of stopping.

In 2005 the label plans to launch teen prodigy's turned serious indie rock contenders. Once again Martin's instinct has proved copper bottomed. Hanson's first new material for five years, Penny & Me, recently ram raided the Top 10. Not only was it their first hit since 1997, it was - cue fanfares please - Cooking Vinyl's first Top 10 single since, well, the story begun. On top of such an illustrious start to 2005, there are also new signings The HaveNots and Peter Walker waiting to happen too. Perhaps even more exciting is the arrival of subsidiary label, Hot Pot, which will specialise in re-issuing reggae and dub from the long lost archives. "Hopefully Cooking Vinyl will get bigger, but without losing our soul", is Martin's aim for his visionary label. Twenty years is supposedly a long time in the music industry. For Cooking Vinyl, it seems the story has only just begun.

Neil Davenport, March 2005


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