Between 1946 and her death in 1975 Mrs. Lillian Claiborne
worked tirelessly to create a successful record company in Washington, DC.
Along with her original partner Haskell Davis she launched the "DC" Records
imprint in January 1947 with two 78s by Tiny Meeker's band and ads in Billboard
magazine. The choice of "DC" not only represented the place, it
represented the two cofounders, Davis and Claiborne. This partnership was
reinforced shortly thereafter with the formation of Claiborne-Davis Music, the
publishing arm of the venture. This website documents Lillian Claiborne's
contributions to the Washington, DC music scene and the dozens of local and
national artists she touched.
Mrs. Claiborne was not alone in her efforts. Many
other entrepreneurs such as the Feld brothers and Ben Adelman, tried to
establish Washington, DC as a center for the recording industry. This
website will document their successes and failures.
The serial listings of the
records released by these small companies are the focus of this site. They are found under
Labels. Additional
information such as artist profiles, recording studio history and music venues
will be posted.
Link to the Gandhi Record on DC
Webmaster Jay Bruder
Email
Contact: jabruder4 at yahoo dot com
Mention DC Records in the subject line.
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