ABSTRACT
The company was established by Columbia Pictures in the mid-1950s as an outlet for soundtrack recordings. Show music and jazz were also released, primarily for the LP market. However, by the mid-1960s, the label expanded into the pop singles market, through several production deals (notably the smash hit “The Letter” by the Memphis white-soul group the Box Tops, produced by independent Lee Dorsey) and licensing arrangements with other Memphis-based producers, including Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham, and smaller labels including Mala, Amy, Goldwax (Memphis), and New Voice/Dynovoice (New York). The label became well known for southern soul artists including Dorsey, James and Bobby Purify, James Carr, early Al Green, Oscar Toney, Jr., and Mighty Sam. However, Bell also produced some of the period’s best blue-eyed soul with Mitch Ryder in addition to garage bands along the lines of the Syndicate of Sound.
