Independent record label founded 1938 by Milt Gabler, as an offshoot of his legendary mid-Manhattan Commodore Music Shop. Commodore was the first American record company whose principal motivation was a deep love for jazz and a desire to celebrate the music and its performers.
The label's major body of work is from the 1940's, releasing sides by artists like Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Teddy Wilson, Leon "Chu" Berry, Bud Freeman, Willie "The Lion" Smith, and Eddie Condon, among others. Milt Gabler worked for the Decca label as A&R and producer from the early 40's. Commodore ceased operating as a recording company in 1954, but Decca later on used the label as jazz re-release platform.
When Billie Holiday approached her recording label, Columbia regarding the song Strange Fruit, the company feared reaction by record retailers in the southern United States, as well as negative reaction from affiliates of its co-owned radio network, CBS. When Holiday's producer John Hammond also refused to record it, she turned to her friend Milt Gabler, who worked out a special arrangement with Vocalion (2) to record and distribute the song. Columbia gave Holiday a one-session release from her contract so that she could record the song. The entire output of the label was reissued by Mosaic Records in three sets containing 66LPs in total (1988-1990).
78 rpm releases can be dated based on the address on the labels:
1. Earliest releases from 1938 (catalog #s 500-508 and 1500) have a 144 E. 42nd St address at bottom of labels.
2. Late 1938 to early 1941 (catalog #s 509-537 or maybe as high as #542, 1501-1510) have a 46 W. 52nd St address at bottom of labels.
3. 1941 to 1946 may have either a 136 E. 42nd St. address at bottom of labels (lowest seen is catalog #541 in 1944, highest is #568) or no address on labels.
4. 1946 to 1948 (catalog #s 569 and up) have no address on labels. It may be possible that all of the no address labels are 1946 and later, but this has not been proven yet.
5. Late 1947 to 1949 (7500 catalog #s) have purple Starmaker Series labels
Any date printed on the labels is a recording date, not a release date. Popular releases such as Billie Hollday's "Strange Fruit" exist in multiple variations as they were kept in print and reissued / repressed repeatedly.
Label code: LC 0094
