From: "Dik de Heer" Date: Tue Jul 30, 2002 8:44 pm Subject: Born To Be With You : Ahmet Ertegun AHMET ERTEGUN Born 31 July 1923, Istanbul, Turkey Producer / label owner. The son of a highly regarded Turkish diplomat, Ertegun grew up as what we might affectionately call an embassy brat, living in Switzerland, Paris, and London, all of which were preludes to his family moving to Washington, D.C. when he was twelve. Ertegun's taste for American music had already been set by his mother, who was quite a musical talent and bought all of the popular recordings that were shaping the sensibility of the period. But the records were no preparation for what he experienced at the age of nine when Nesuhi, his older brother (born 26 November 1917, Istanbul, died 15 July 1989, NYC) took him to hear some hot and fantastic stuff that he would never forget, Cab Calloway at the London Palladium, then Duke Ellington. His taste for adventure and his insatiable appetite for music took Ertegun to the Quality Music Shop in the Negro part of Washington. It was owned by Waxie Maxie Silverman, who specialized in used records. Soon, the teenager was another serious member of the small society of white collectors across the nation who sought out the circular documents of high quality jazz and blues in record shops and during expeditions in which they went from door to door asking Negroes if they had any old discs they would like to sell. In September 1947, Ertegun had established his own small company, Atlantic Records, with financial help from the family dentist, Dr. Vahdi Sabit, and in partnership with Herb Abramson (1920-1999), who had some experience as a producer and label owner. In 1949 Ertegun and Abramson, sometimes accompanied by arranger Jesse Stone, began travelling through the South trying to understand why their well-made, up-to-date records weren't selling. Watching the crowds night after night in the dance clubs they saw the people, especially the young ones, dancing in a new way and they couldn't dance to the classy, urbane Atlantic beat. Stone took an instrumental version of "Sorghum Switch" re-named it "Coleslaw," added a special bassline; he put country blues into city sound and it clicked. In April '49 Atlantic had its first major hit with Stick McGhee's "Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee". In 1953 Jerry Wexler joined Atlantic as a partner, after Abramson had been called up for military service. Gradually, Atlantic made its way as a successful rhythm and blues label, featuring performers like Joe Turner, Ruth Brown, The Clovers, LaVern Baker, Ray Charles, Clyde McPhatter and The Drifters, and later The Coasters. Under the name Nugetre (Ertegun spelled backwards), Ahmet wrote several classic hits, like "Chains Of Love" for Joe Turner, "Mess Around" for Ray Charles and "Don't You Know I Love You" for The Clovers. In 1955 Atlantic offered Colonel Tom Parker $25,000 for Elvis Presley's contract but lost out on it to RCA. For the two years Herb Abramson was away in the Army, Atlantic had enjoyed unprecedented success. In 1955, when he was discharged from the Army, he found a lot of changes at the Atlantic office. Jerry Wexler had taken Herb's production seat and his success meant he would be staying. Also straining relations in the office was the fact that Herb's marriage to Miriam Beinstock (who acted as office manager) was over. In order to maintain peace it was decided that a new subsidiary named Atco (ATlantic COmpany) would be established for Herb Abramson to run, but this proved only a temporary solution. In 1958, Ahmet and Jerry Wexler would buy out Abramson and Miriam Beinstock, and Dr. Sabit too. Nesuhi Ertegun would join as a third partner. From 1955 onwards, Nesuhi oversaw Atlantic's jazz division and produced some of the most important recordings of the era, by the Modern Jazz Quartet, Charles Mingus, Ornette Coleman, and John Coltrane. Nesuhi also did production work for Ray Charles, Joe Turner, The Drifters and Bobby Darin. Though he was less directly involved as a producer, Ertegun continued at the helm of Atlantic in the Sixties and Seventies as the company conquered the realms of soul and rock, from Aretha Franklin to Led Zeppelin, with phenomenal success. In 1967, the three owners of Atlantic : Ahmet, Jerry and Nesuhi were approached by Warner Seven Arts Corporation about selling Atlantic. Warner Seven Arts offered $17,000,000 in Warner stock plus high paying jobs at the new company for each of the senior Atlantic executives. They agreed to the sale. Atlantic/Atco Records, along with Warner Brothers/Reprise Records, were to be operated as separate record companies under the ownership umbrella of the Warner-Seven Arts Corporation. Ertegun serves as chairman of Atlantic Records to this day. Considering the fact that he entered the record business purely as a hobby, never expecting to make a living out of it, Atlantic has been an incredible success story. Ahmet Ertegun and Jerry Wexler were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, Nesuhi Ertegun in 1991. More info: http://www.history-of-rock.com/atlantic_records.htm Further reading: Ahmet Ertegun et al, What'd I Say : The Atlantic Story: 50 Years of Music. New York : Welcome Rain, 2001 (UK : Orion). A big, heavy book (565 pages), with over 1,000 photos. Expensive, but recommended. - Charlie Gillett, Making tracks : Atlanntic and the growth of a multi-billion industry. New York : Dutton, 1974. Revised edition : London : Souvenir Press, 1988. - Dorothy Wade and Justine Picardie, Mussic man : Ahmet Ertegun, Atlantic Records and the triumph of rock 'n' roll. New York : Norton, 1990. (Out of print) Revised edition, subtitled "Atlantic and the godfathers of rock and roll" : London : Fourth Estate, 1993. Michel Ruppli, Atlantic Records : A Discography. New York : Greenwood Press, 1979. 4 volumes.