The small record
label Spectator Records was founded in 1969 by Jørgen Bornefeldt
a former journalist from Danmarks Radio in coorporation with the jazz
musician Carsten Meinert. Meinert recorded two albums on the label.
He only joined the company in the beginning.
The studio was destroyed august
6th 1972 by a major fire. And that was the end of Spectator Records.
From 1969 to the end, the label recorded at least 23 lp albums and
9-11 singles/EP's. The picture shows Henning
Kragh Pedersen from Cinderella in Spectators studio.
The great Danish rock band Gasolin
recorded their first single – Silky Sally -
on Spectator Records. It was no
success and sold only 155 copies. Silky Sally is now one of the most
sought after Gasolin singles among collectors and is of course very
expensive.
The music from Spectator Records
is mostly jazz, progressive rock and hippie free style. But they
also made strange records for children, education etc. Most records
were issued in very small numbers (300-500). Some of the best progressive
rock in Northern Europe was recorded here.
Quality of vinyl was often poor
- even new looking records can have audible problems. Covers and labels
are primitive and cheap. On the other hand the creativity could be
outstanding - check the Furekaaben cover gallery or the artwork of William
Skotte Olsen from Green Grass. Several record
from the labels are cult today. A perfect copy
of certain records costs a fortune.
Master tapes was never found after
the fire in 1972. Unofficial reissues and bootlegs are therefore
made on the base of the original records.
Recordings that never made it to the vinyl got lost in the
fire.
Cinderella and The Copenhagen based band, Lines lyst, had material readdy
for lp’s which was never recorded.
Spectator Records – Up in Smoke
"Spectator Records – Up in Smoke" is a Danish documentary from 2017 depicting
Spectator Records. Contains unique interviews with the founders and unique
filmclips from back then.
The documentary is available as DVD online. Watch the trailer: