From: "Dik de Heer" Date: Tue May 11, 2004 1:20 am Subject: This Is My Story : Ewart Abner EWART ABNER Born Ewart G. Abner, Jr., 11 May 1923, Chicago, Illinois Died 27 December 1997, Los Angeles, California A veteran record company executive, Ewart Abner had the privilege of being president of two highly successful black-owned record companies, Vee-Jay Records and Motown. After graduating in accounting from Howard University in Washington, D.C., Abner worked for businessman Art Sheridan in Chicago, who owned a record pressing plant and distributorship. In 1950, Abner assisted Sheridan with the founding of a record label, Chance Records. This label was an early recording home for the Flamingos. the Moonglows (and several other R&B and doowop groups), whose sessions were overseen by Abner. The Chance label folded in 1954 and the following year Abner moved over to nearby Vee- Jay Records (owned by Jimmy and Vivian Bracken), where he was hired as the label's general manager. Soon he was made vice-president and in 1961 he became Vee-Jay's president. Abner was also a songwriter. He co-wrote the big hit "At My Front Door" (aka "Crazy Little Mama", by the El Dorados) and co-wrote many songs with Jimmy Reed. Abner played a major role in the success of Vee-Jay. Rather than cater exclusively to blacks, Abner aimed to make Vee Jay a "full line" label, which also aimed at the pop and rock 'n' roll markets. The label had great success with Jerry Butler and Dee Clark (whose records first appeared on Abner's own label, originally called Falcon, but soon renamed Abner, a subsidiary of Vee-Jay), Jimmy Reed, the Spaniels, and, from 1962 onwards, Gene Chandler and the Four Seasons. Abner was instrumental in the development of the Chicago soul sound. He also had the foresight to issue the Beatles' first American releases, after Capitol Records had initially passed on the group. For the story of the Beatles on Vee-Jay see: http://www.dermon.com/Beatles/Veejay.htm By the summer of 1963, Vee-Jay was in the middle of a major management crisis. Abner was fired by the Brackens as president of the label. In August 1963, he immediately launched a new label of his own, Constellation Records, scoring hits with former Vee-Jay act Gene Chandler. Abner briefly returned to Vee-Jay in 1965 in an unsuccessful attempt to revive the collapsing label. Both Vee-Jay and Constellation folded in 1966. After giving an impassioned speech at a record industry convention in 1967, Abner was subsequently hired by Berry Gordy Jr. as an A&R director and vice-president for Motown, and was promoted to the position of company president in 1973. Motown had five number one pop singles in that year. After retiring in 1975, for the next decade Abner managed the career of Stevie Wonder. With Berry Gordy selling Motown in 1988, Abner was later hired by Gordy in his new corporation. At the time of his death in 1997, Abner was executive assistant to Berry Gordy for the Gordy Company in Los Angeles, executive president of Jobete Music Co., Inc. (Motown's publishing company), and vice chairman of the Motown Historical Museum in Detroit.