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| Mowest | |
|---|---|
| Name | Mowest |
| Parent | Motown |
| Founded | 1971 |
| Founder | Berry Gordy |
| Status | Defunct (1973) |
| Country | United States |
| Location | Los Angeles |
Mowest
Mowest was a short-lived Los Angeles–based subsidiary of Motown established in 1971 by Berry Gordy to expand Motown's operations to the West Coast and to promote a roster of artists aligned with contemporary soul music, funk, and R&B trends. The imprint operated amid industry shifts involving Atlantic Records, Columbia Records, Warner Bros. Records, and the rise of West Coast recording scenes in Los Angeles, Oakland, and San Francisco. Mowest's activities intersected with producers and performers associated with Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, The Jackson 5, Diana Ross, and contemporaneous acts on labels such as Tamla and Gordy Records.
Mowest was created during a period of strategic repositioning for Motown following the label's move of many operations from Detroit to Los Angeles and amid the broader migration of African American artists to California influenced by figures like Sly Stone and Curtis Mayfield. Berry Gordy's initiative sought to establish an imprint that could compete with West Coast operations run by Capitol Records, ABC Records, and United Artists Records while tapping into studio resources at facilities like Hitsville West and engineers who had worked with The Temptations, Smokey Robinson, and Gladys Knight. The label's brief existence from 1971 to 1973 coincided with shifts in distribution deals involving MCA Records, PolyGram, and contacts with independent promoters tied to Billboard (magazine) chart strategies. Internal Motown restructurings, the commercial performance of singles and albums, and competition from producers affiliated with Quincy Jones and Arif Mardin contributed to Mowest's limited lifespan.
Mowest's roster included artists and groups who were either established on other Motown imprints or emerging acts seeking a West Coast identity, connected through collaborations with session musicians from studios that serviced performers like Dennis Edwards, Eddie Kendricks, Funkadelic, and Tower of Power. Notable acts with releases on the imprint included ensembles and solo performers who recorded singles and albums produced by industry figures associated with William "Mickey" Stevenson, Frank Wilson, Johnny Bristol, and writers with ties to Holland–Dozier–Holland. Many releases attempted crossover appeal alongside contemporaneous albums by Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Isaac Hayes, and Al Green; distribution and promotion strategies mirrored campaigns used for crossover successes by The Supremes, Four Tops, and Jackson 5 singles. Specific singles were aimed at radio play alongside rotations managed by program directors at stations influenced by personalities connected to Bill Graham, Bobby "Boris" Pickett, and promoters who coordinated with venues like The Fillmore and clubs in Hollywood.
Mowest's business model relied on Motown's existing infrastructure while negotiating West Coast partnerships similar to arrangements between A&M Records and affiliates, and distribution relationships that paralleled deals struck by labels such as Stax Records, Chess Records, and Atlantic Records in prior decades. Corporate decisions involved executives familiar with contracts shaped by entertainment lawyers who had worked on agreements for acts like The Rolling Stones, Beatles, and Bob Dylan. Marketing campaigns used tactics employed by Motown Records for national rollouts, coordinating with trade publications including Rolling Stone, Billboard (magazine), and Cash Box while booking television appearances on programs like Soul Train, The Ed Sullivan Show, and regional variety shows hosted by personalities such as Don Cornelius and Dick Clark. Attempts to secure licensing and sync placements followed practices used by labels that had placed music in films produced by companies like Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures.
Although short-lived, Mowest contributed to the decentralization of Motown's industry presence and influenced later West Coast initiatives by Motown alumni and affiliates who later worked with or formed entities resembling the imprint's purpose, echoing developments seen with Gordy Records, Tamla Motown, and post-Motown ventures undertaken by artists such as Smokey Robinson, Ike & Tina Turner, and Diana Ross solo projects. The imprint's catalog has been of interest to collectors and historians alongside reissues contextualized with releases by Universal Music Group and curatorial efforts by archivists who also handle material from Stones Throw Records and reissue programs related to Rhino Entertainment. Scholarship on the label appears in discographies that examine the broader Motown diaspora alongside research on recording scenes in Los Angeles and the cultural interplay with movements associated with Blaxploitation soundtracks and the evolving R&B charts dominated by Al Jarreau, The Isley Brothers, and Curtis Mayfield.
Selected Mowest singles and albums were issued during 1971–1973, often sourced from Motown recording sessions and produced by Motown-associated songwriters and producers; these titles are referenced in comprehensive listings compiled by collectors and music historians alongside discographies for Tamla Records, Gordy Records, and international Motown subsidiaries. Notable catalog entries parallel the release strategies used for albums by Gladys Knight & the Pips, The Miracles, Martha Reeves, and contemporaries on the soul and funk charts.
Category:American record labels Category:Motown