ABSTRACT
Creating a hit record or a headline act is akin to constructing a jigsaw puzzle. Unless all of the pieces are in their proper place the effort is futile. Some of the most important parts of the puzzle are the province of the record companies, large conglomerates which handle nearly every aspect of the business. A record company is truly nothing but a ticket seller. Record companies lack the market control of their corporation counterparts, adroitly described by economist John Kenneth Galbraith in the New Industrial State. The companies' business orientations and philosophies greatly color their performances at the vinyl crap table. Indeed, the relationship of the artist to the record company is quite similar to the conglomerate’s posture toward its consumers. The record industry during the early 1950s was characterized by company pre-eminence over artists. Singers had five-year contracts and were tied to the dicta of the record company.
