Editing Impulse! Records (section)

===The Thiele Years: 1961-69===
[[Bob Thiele]], Taylor's successor, produced most of the albums in the 1960s. He had worked for [[Decca Records]] and its subsidiaries [[Coral Records|Coral]] and [[Brunswick Records|Brunswick]], where his production credits included [[Alan Dale]], [[the McGuire Sisters]], [[Pearl Bailey]], and [[Theresa Brewer]], whom he married. Despite resistance from Decca executives who were suspicious of rock and roll, Thiele signed [[Buddy Holly]] in 1957.<ref>Kahn, 2006, p.63</ref>

Thiele's first Impulse! production was Coltrane's ''[[Live! at the Village Vanguard]]'', released in March 1962. Although unfamiliar with the "new jazz" movement, Thiele backed his artists, afforded them unprecedented freedom in their repertoire, and gave leading acts like Coltrane ''[[blank cheque|carte blanche]]'' in the studio. Impulse! during the Thiele years is recognized as a key outlet for [[free jazz]] and the musical movement spearheaded by Coltrane, [[Freddie Hubbard]], [[Archie Shepp]], and [[McCoy Tyner]]. In addition to avant-garde releases, Thiele also produced collaborations between Coltrane and two of their mutual heroes, [[Duke Ellington]] and [[Coleman Hawkins]]. Other notable performers who recorded for Impulse! during this period included [[Charles Mingus]].

Aided by good promotion and ABC-Paramount's well-established distribution chain, Coltrane enjoyed the highest profile and the strongest and most consistent sales of any Impulse! artist. In addition to its artistic influence, Coltrane's 1965 LP ''[[A Love Supreme]]'' became one of the most successful jazz albums ever released, selling over 100,000 copies<ref>Kahn, 2006, p.5</ref> on its first release. By 1970 it had sold more than half a million. [[Roger McGuinn]] of [[the Byrds]] has stated that he listened to Coltrane extensively in this period, and that Coltrane's saxophone playing influenced his 12-string guitar playing on the hit "[[Eight Miles High]]".

Thiele severed his ties with Impulse! in 1969, setting up a short-lived deal to provide independently produced recordings, before leaving the label entirely to establish his own imprint, [[Flying Dutchman Records]]. Thiele's departure was in part precipitated by the breakdown of his relationship with [[Larry Newton]], the president of ABC Records.

One of Thiele's last productions was the Louis Armstrong song "[[What a Wonderful World]]", which Thiele co-wrote and produced for ABC's pop division shortly before Armstrong's death. Although the musicians were apparently unaware of the drama, the recording session is reported to have been the scene of a clash between Thiele and Newton. When Newton arrived at the session he became upset when he discovered that Armstrong was recording a ballad rather than a '[[Dixieland]]'-style number like his earlier hit "[[Hello, Dolly! (song)|Hello Dolly]]". According to Thiele's own account, this led to a screaming match; Newton then had to be locked out of the studio and he stood outside throughout the session, banging on the door and yelling to be let in. The single was released with little promotion from ABC and it sold relatively poorly in the U.S.. In Europe, it sold more than 1.5 million copies and went to #1 in the UK. Demand from ABC's European distributor [[EMI]] for an album forced ABC to issue one, but they did not promote the album and it did not chart in the U.S. Twenty years later, it became the most successful recording of both Armstrong's and Thiele's careers, thanks to its inclusion on the soundtrack ''[[Good Morning, Vietnam]]''.